Over the past few months, today’s guest has been charting and sharing her learning from her first days, weeks and months in post as a new CEO. After her first 100 days she published a report about all she’s learnt and how it’s shaping her priorities - I highly recommend you reading it if you want a masterclass on how to demonstrate engagement, get buy-in and land well in your new role.
In this episode I’m talking with Laura Skaife-Knight, CEO of NHS Orkney. Laura has over 20 years’ of experience working in the NHS and is known for her work to improve patient and staff engagement. It may come as no surprise that Laura’s background is in communications - which is how we actually first met - and if you follow her online you’ll know she sees this as integral to her role as CEO.
We talk about:
- how a sport's discipline shaped her career and approach
- the path from journalist to communications director to CEO
- asking for feedback to understand and improve personal performance
- operating outside your comfort zone
- changing leadership styles and stepping authentically into your role
- landing well in a new role and approaching the first 100 days in post
- navigating working and living in the same community
- getting the basics right, sticking to the plan and avoiding priority overwhelm
- building relationships with the Chair and Board to gain alignment
- creating an inclusive culture
- working and engaging people in a remote and rural setting
- improving performance, engagement and morale
- succession planning
- the realities of being chief exec
- advice for aspiring CEOs
Resources and helpful links
Laura Skaife-Knight
Laura joined NHS Orkney in April 2023, bringing 20 years’ experience in the NHS and 13 years of Board-level experience to the Health Board. She has experience and a reputation for improving patient and staff experience in a range of England’s largest acute teaching hospitals to smaller, yet crucial, Trusts central to the delivery of regional integrated care. Laura joined NHS Orkney from The Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn NHS Foundation Trust (QEH) where she was Deputy CEO between 2019 and 2023. Prior to this she worked for 12 years at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, where she was Director of Communications and External Relations, and Derby Hospitals Foundation Trust and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust where she held senior communications and engagement roles.
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