Corporate Wisdom: From Ward to Board – Leadership Reflections with Professor Phil Wood
As part of the Corporate Wisdom series, the Business School welcomed Professor Phil Wood, Chief Executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, for a compelling talk titled From Ward to Board.
Bringing together two of the region’s most prominent civic and anchor institutions, this event offered a rare opportunity to explore leadership through the lens of healthcare, an area interlinked with society, policy, and purpose.
Drawing on more than three decades of experience, Professor Phil Wood shared his professional journey that began at Newcastle Medical School in the early 1990s. After a period pursuing research at the Institute for Molecular Medicine in Oxford, he returned to clinical medicine and joined Leeds Teaching Hospitals in 2002. He progressed through several senior roles before becoming Chief Executive in 2023.
Throughout his talk, Phil emphasised that healthcare systems are fundamentally shaped by the cultures and values of the societies they serve. He reflected on the enduring legacy of early 20th-century healthcare models and the challenges of reform in politically charged environments. Within this context, he noted the delicate balance of public expectation, particularly around the NHS being free at the point of service, against the realities of managing complex and evolving demand.
Leadership, he argued, is grounded in values and built on reflection. Shifting from ‘doing’ to ‘directing’ requires stepping outside one’s professional comfort zone to mentor, support and guide others. Phil offered insights into how reflective and reflexive behaviours can strengthen leadership practice, particularly in the face of crisis, such as leading through the COVID-19 pandemic, which had lasting human impacts on the NHS workforce.
He outlined six strategic areas for leaders to focus on:
- Setting the organisational vision and direction
- Aligning the organisation to that direction
- Equipping other leaders to deliver
- Using the board effectively
- Developing and engaging stakeholder relationships
- Maximising personal effectiveness
In closing, Phil reminded the audience that while opportunities may come and go, a leader’s values and moral purpose must remain consistent. Understanding context is critical, people are both agents and resistors of change, and adaptability is vital in a world where short-term expectations often outweigh long-term ambitions. Above all, no organisation can operate in isolation – partnerships and collaboration are essential to sustainable progress.
This talk was the latest in the Corporate Wisdom series which continues to offer an invaluable platform for businesses and the wider community to learn from senior leaders who reflect and share insight on their careers, values, and the complex realities of leadership.
