Abstract
Aims:
To identify the range of internal specialist management expertise providers in the NHS and explore their blending with external organisations to address complex organisational challenges.
Methods:
Ongoing quantitative and qualitative research (e.g. interviews) and a national networking event and workshop organised by the University of Bristol with NHS partners.
Findings:
There is a diverse NHS ecosystem of what we term internal consultancies where strategic benefits can result from combining their contextual insight with the specialist skills of external providers. Effective blending can build sustainable management capacity, deliver better value and reduce over-reliance on external consultants.
Conclusion:
There is a need for coordinated action across policy, procurement and workforce development to support a network of internal consultancy/expertise and its periodic blending with other partners, including external organisations.
To identify the range of internal specialist management expertise providers in the NHS and explore their blending with external organisations to address complex organisational challenges.
Methods:
Ongoing quantitative and qualitative research (e.g. interviews) and a national networking event and workshop organised by the University of Bristol with NHS partners.
Findings:
There is a diverse NHS ecosystem of what we term internal consultancies where strategic benefits can result from combining their contextual insight with the specialist skills of external providers. Effective blending can build sustainable management capacity, deliver better value and reduce over-reliance on external consultants.
Conclusion:
There is a need for coordinated action across policy, procurement and workforce development to support a network of internal consultancy/expertise and its periodic blending with other partners, including external organisations.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | leader-2025-001401 |
| Journal | BMJ Leader |
| Early online date | 11 Nov 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 11 Nov 2025 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2025. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ Group.