Leadership in Practice

Hosted by Gary Hughes

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Mar 2026

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About the show

The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for all leaders and managers in general practice and primary care. If you are in one of these roles, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be. In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice. If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe on Apple Podcasts . Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

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37 recent

March 9, 2026Episode 2251 min

Training and supporting your Practice Manager

In this episode I'm joined by a Practice Manager I've known of for years, but never met.Nicola Davies is the brains behind an award winning training program for Practice Managers practice. I thought it was high time we met and a good way to do that would be a conversation about training Practice Managers. Nicola has a wealth of experience in Practice Management and you can feel the passion. She cares deeply about training and supporting her PM colleagues and she generously shared her time and knowledge to provide bucket loads of great advice for practice managers and partners, on the best way to train and support the Practice Manager.Nicola Davies, has worked for 41 years in General Practice. From medical secretary to co-founder of the IGPM, she’s led practices across the UK, championed practice manager support in Cornwall, and co-designed an award-winning training programme for managers in primary care. Her depth of experience and passion for education, primary care and practice management is inspiring. The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be.In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice.If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

January 6, 2026Episode 2142 min

Practice KPIs and the benefits of measuring

In the first episode of 2026 I explore Practice KPIs with Edward Rigby. It’s an area I’ve always had a great interest as I believe they are quite possibly a managers most valuable information. Used correctly, KPIs improve decision making, keep you in control and reduce conflicts. Edward Rigby, a Managing Partner at Malpas Surgery a rural dispensing practice in southwest Cheshire, demonstrated he is an expert of this and shared plenty of insights and advice. Edward has over seven years in practice management and is dedicated to improving local health outcomes. He has an MBA and is passionate about quality improvement and regularly shares best practice across primary care through writing, speaking, and teaching.The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be.In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice.If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

October 31, 2025Episode 2034 min

The key to fantastic staff retention

In this episode I chat with Sarah Rhodes, a three-time Practice Manager of the Year. Sarah has achieved something genuinely remarkable. She has not lost a single team member in more than five years. I was blown away hearing how she has done it, from listening and flexibility to creating a culture where people truly want to stay and grow. Her approach is authentic, inspiring and practical and full of ideas that any practice can learn from and put into action.Sarah is a Practice Business Manager from Avicenna Medical Practice in Bradford. She has a Masters in Health and Care Management and a long-term passion for staff training and development and this has translated to great results in terms of staff morale and retention. The practice has won several awards, and amongst everything Sarah does there she is also a Finance Director of Bradford Care Alliance for an IGPM Regional Rep.The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be.In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice.If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

October 1, 2025Episode 1940 min

Lessons from other sectors

In this episode, I explore what general practice can learn from other sectors. Like many practice managers, I came into the role from elsewhere—the veterinary and optometry world, in my case—and those experiences gave me skills and perspectives that proved invaluable. General practice can sometimes be insular and inward looking, believing it’s too different—or even superior—to other sectors. But there’s real value in looking outward. Many brilliant PMs rise through the ranks internally, while others bring fresh insight from successful careers elsewhere. There’s no single best path but stepping in from the outside can offer lessons worth sharing.Pete Woodward is a Managing Partner at Cheadle Medical Practice in Greater Manchester where he’s been since 2021. Alongside this he is responsible for overseeing two other Stockport practices and he was voted the national ‘Practice Manager of the Year’ in 2024. He is also a Non-Executive Director for Viaduct Care, Stockport’s GP Federation.The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be.In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice.If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

July 31, 2025Episode 1841 min

Do Practice Managers affect patient outcomes?

I was scrolling through LinkedIn one evening, when I came across a great question posed by Ed Kennedy. The question was ‘do practice managers impact patient outcomes?’Well as an ex-practice manager I thought absolutely they did, but it was something that I didn’t consciously think about when I was back in practice. I thought this was a great question for an episode of the podcast, so Ed joined me for a really wide-ranging conversation that showed just how almost everything a practice manager does impacts patient outcomes. Ed Kennedy is Managing Partner at a two-site GP practice in Hampshire, caring for 14,000 patients and leading a team of 60 staff. He has spent his career in healthcare, beginning in community pharmacy, moving into the pharmaceutical industry, and spending the past decade in primary care management. He has a Master’s in Health Economics, Policy and Management from the London School of Economics, with academic research focused on how leadership—particularly non-clinical leadership—affects health outcomes. His dissertation explored the role of Practice Managers in shaping patient care and system performance, an area often overlooked in health policy and research.Ed is a Director of the Institute of General Practice Management, where he leads on national dispensing issues, and is committed to raising the profile and professional standards of practice management. He has a particular interest in the sustainability of general practice, workforce leadership, and evidence-based decision-making in primary care.The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be. In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice. If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

March 31, 2025Episode 1747 min

Should all practices have a Managing Partner

I believe every practice should have a managing partner. That should be the most senior non-clinician, probably the Practice Manager. I believe it’s to the benefit of the practice, the partners, the staff and the patients. Yet only a small number of practices have a Practice Manager Partner. In this conversation we explore the role of the Managing Partner and I hope it will give food for thought for those thinking about becoming a Partner, or inviting their Practice Manager to join the partnership.Our expert for this discussion is Robyn Clark, a practice manager in South Gloucestershire and a director of the IGPM. She is an HR practitioner by background with experience of working in secondary care, mental health trusts and community health services, and is passionate about employee engagement, coaching and mentoring.The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be. In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice. If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe on Apple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

February 20, 2025Episode 1648 min

Financial Management in Practice

This episode is a must listen for Practice Managers, PCN Managers, Finance Partners, and anyone else who might be looking after the money. It’s a really helpful episode, that’s worth sharing.Finance in primary care is complicated, and different to most other businesses. It can be a challenge even for the most experienced. Step Forward our guest for this episode, Katy Drew, a Chartered Accountant and ex Practice Manager who just gets it, and shares loads of easily understood and great advice.As Head of Primary Care Development at Sandison Easson Specialist Medical Accountants she helps Practices to be resilient in the current climate through practical help and advice leading to strong financial management. Having spent part of her career in practice management she is keen to support managers in translating financial information so they are able to present data in an accessible and understandable way to GP partners. She is a motivational and enthusiastic trainer who inspires confidence in those she works with at both individual practice level and through courses and conferences The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers, Partners and all Leaders in general practice and primary care. If you liked this podcast you can find even more ideas and tools to help you improve your Leadership at www.leadershipinpractice.co.uk.If you need help with a leadership challenge, I’d be delighted to discuss this with you and you can contact me at gary@leadershipinpractice.co.uk, or on LinkedIn.If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe on our website or at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favourite Podcast platform.

January 26, 2025Episode 1544 min

How coaching can help you and your team

Is your own personal growth really important to you, and have you got a passion for developing your team?I’d answer yes to both of those questions, but sometimes you hit a bump in the road that you’ll only get over with some additional expert help. Whether it’s for your own growth, or developing others, coaching should be in every leaders toolbox. Kristi Adams joins us to explain coaching and its many benefits, and shares a simple tool to help you when you’re coaching your own team.Kristi's journey into healthcare started when she became a young carer at the age of seven. Kristi worked in the NHS for over 15 years. As her career developed, Kristi discovered a natural skill for listening and empowering people to discover their inner resources. In 2015, after having life changing coaching herself, Kristi founded Attigo Coaching and Development. Kristi is a CPD-accredited coach specialising in healthcare leadership. She holds a PCC credential with the ICF (The International Coaching Federation), is a Neuro-Linguistic Programming Practitioner and DISC Practitioner. She coaches clinical and non-clinical leaders across the NHS, community, and voluntary sectors, providing them with much-needed time and space to pause, reflect, and plan. Kristi is a trainer at The Coaching Academy. She holds various coaching and training associate roles across healthcare and since 2017, has been a lead tutor and coach on the NHS Leadership for Personalised Care Programme. Kristi is a Health Service Journal Award winner, at the forefront of healthcare service innovation. She trains leaders to re-design appointment systems, so that some patients are consulted in groups, as opposed to one-to one with their GP or nurse. The result is that patients wait less time to be seen and need to be seen less often.The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be. In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice. If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.

January 4, 2025Episode 1441 min

Bringing your values to life

Agreeing our values is important, for a practice as much as it is for us as individuals.Living our values is essential for primary care and is so connected to what we do in general practice and primary care networks. They are often identified and declared but rarely do we see evidence beyond this. That might be because it’s difficult to do, or it’s poorly understood, or it’s not known what to do once our values are identified.On the face of it, it’s a straightforward thing to do, but there’s far more to it. Which is why we our values are often decided but not always visible. The further I got into a really enjoyable conversation with Jane Martin, the more I learned.Jane Martin is the Founder and Director of Flow Consulting and is a communications and relationship expert Jane is a communications and relationship expert with over 25 years experience across a range of B2B, both client and agency side. Jane is a psychologist, psychotherapist, facilitator, NLP practitioner and coach, with a corporate background in publishing and pharmaceuticals. She has worked extensively both clinically and corporately over many years to help individuals and teams thrive.Trained as a psychotherapist and psychologist, she holds an MSc (Dist) in Organisational Development.Jane’s understanding of how we function as humans enables her to deliver fresh insights to her clients and challenge them to think beyond the obvious - believing that good leadership starts from within. This approach is underpinned by a strong commercial awareness to ensure practical application to a range of corporate roles, and creates a powerful learning experience for the delegates and return on investment for clients.Jane works deeply and holistically with clients – bringing in her role as a qualified breathwork practitioner and in nature-connectedness to support clients to harness their natural and internal resources - physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual.You can contact Jane Martin here:Jane@flowconsulting.co.ukTelephone: 07801 298929The Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be. In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice. If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.You can reach us at contact@leadershipinpractice.co.uk.

November 24, 2024Episode 1332 min

Building resilience in practice

Resilience is now a must have skill for leaders and managers in primary care, such are the demands and pressures of the job, In this episode we talk to Farnaaz Sharief, join in and you’ll be listening to a real expert on resilience. We learn how to navigate and build resilience, she teaches us how to look after the resilience of our team, and what to do when our own resilience is flagging.At the end of Farnaaz’s brilliant, simple, and accessible advice, that is useful for everyone, we both give our usual podcast takeaways.In the conversation we also reference some breathing techniques which you’ll easily find with a simple internet search, Here are two links to get you started:Box breathingStraw breathThe Leadership in Practice podcast, hosted by Gary Hughes, is for Practice Managers and all leaders in general practice and if you are in this role, you’ll know how complicated and difficult it can be. In each episode I’ll be discussing a business, management or leadership challenge, and I’ll provide ideas and tools to help you understand how you can be a better leader of your practice. If you want to be a regular listener to the show the easiest way is to subscribe onApple Podcasts. Don’t forget to visit our website and follow us on LinkedIn for more great ideas and advice to help you become a better leader of your practice.