#14 𝗕𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗝𝗲𝗸𝘆𝗹𝗹 & 𝗛𝘆𝗱𝗲: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗥𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽

𝗥𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗿𝘂𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲 - 𝗶𝘁 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁.

Behind every examination, every rota, every waiting list and compliance check, there’s someone making the system work.
That’s management - the operational backbone:
• Coordinating resources
• Balancing rotas
• Navigating waiting lists
• Ensuring compliance
• Planning capacity

𝗜𝘁 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗜𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲.

But when management becomes our default mode, something shifts.
We stop solving problems and start absorbing them.
We maintain the service, but lose sight of the people within it.
• Teams burn out under endless throughput
• Innovation stalls
• Staff feel processed, not valued

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝗶𝗻.

Leadership zooms out. It asks the bigger questions:
• Where are we going?
• What kind of service are we building?
• Who are we becoming as a team?

Leadership invests in people.
It dares to dream, to risk, to evolve.
But even leadership can overreach:
• Priorities drift
• Outcomes blur
• Teams feel motivated but unanchored

The reality is we live with a dual role tension.
𝗗𝗿 𝗝𝗲𝗸𝘆𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿: visionary, human-centred, future-focused
𝗠𝗿 𝗛𝘆𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿: precise, responsive, focused on outcomes

And service managers must hold both roles.
Not either/or.
Not both at once.
But each, 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

To achieve this they must ask:
• Am I managing or leading right now?
• Does my team need control or creativity in this moment?
• Am I reacting to tasks, or responding to people?

Because great service is built by 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 and 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲.
It's not just about keeping things running
It's about about developing people alongside delivering results.