How we are advancing your needs
In the last issue of Surgical News, we provided an update on the progress made by the One College Transformation team over their first 12 months. To help us support the implementation of the program, we developed a narrative for the College and provided key messages for the main transformation streams – Technology, People and Culture and Governance. Following are a few key messages that clearly illustrate the intent of the transformation program and outline the benefits you can expect.
We’re transforming the ways you engage with the College and putting you at the centre of the experience
Over the next few years we will be transforming and improving the technology, learning and development, governance and service delivery of the College to meet modern expectations of the surgical profession. Our new member management system will enable you to access information and services, move between platforms more intuitively and provide better personalisation to address your needs.
We are enhancing our current Portfolio system in stages with the tools offered by Microsoft Dynamics 365. This will provide significant benefits such as reliable storage and updating profile information and preferences. The new eHub will offer an efficient method of capturing your interactions with the College, including registrations, events and exams – all these interactions will be stored on one platform.
Most importantly, eHub will establish the ‘golden record’ or a single view of your profile across the College. The
‘golden record’ will be the single source of truth, providing us with a record of your activities that, in turn, will enable us to provide more personalised services, such as suggesting courses you might be interested in, given your specialty.
We’re reducing inefficiency to improve value for you and have a shared purpose to see this through
We are making sure our staff are trained and equipped to support you by ensuring each interaction adds value.
We have established a digital workplace initiative to promote collaboration across the College and enhance business processes by reducing manual work, enabling College staff to better cater to your needs.
The introduction of technology, such as SharePoint Online, Microsoft Teams, Planner and One Drive will improve productivity and relationships between our staff and you, our members. Microsoft Teams, in particular, will give us new ways of working, of which the College has already had a steep learning curve, given the quick escalation of the COVID-19 pandemic.
We need your contribution to shape surgery’s future
We need more diverse voices that represent the different specialties, locations and practices of surgery. We are working to exceed the diversity targets in our committees so we can hear from more people. We are also making sure the committee member selection process is transparent.
We are moving to a contemporary model of governance and removing internal roadblocks for approvals. We are putting in place clearer and shorter approval pathways for recommendations. This will minimise duplication and delays and help get committees’ recommendations heard and actioned by the Council, reducing the waiting time for new initiatives to be carried out and, ultimately, benefiting the surgical community. Shorter council agendas will ensure important issues are heard and decided on in a timely manner.
We need our Fellows, Specialist International Medical Graduates and Trainees to be involved in and contribute to the transformation program. This transformation is making the College more open and inclusive, giving you many new opportunities to engage and make an impact. We will let you know how you can participate in pilot reviews for the 1CT program. If you have any questions, please email 1CT@surgeons.org.
This article was first published in Surgical News September/October 2020.