Conference

OD in the NHS 2025: elevating our everyday practice

Our Do OD annual conference returns for 2025, focusing on insights and strategies to elevate your OD practice against a challenging NHS backdrop.
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General information

Time
6 May 2025 09:00 - 16:30 GMT
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Audience
Open to all
Event location
Birmingham, B5 4EW External link icon

Speakers

  • Dionne Williams
    Dionne Williams External link icon
    Talent and Future Workforce Manager Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council
  • Rachel Andrew
    Rachel Andrew External link icon
    Head of Learning and Organisational Development The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust
  • Headshot of Dee Nambiar
    Dee Nambiar External link icon
    People Consultant, Programmes and Consultancy NHS Midlands and Lancashire
  • Julia Tybura
    Julia Tybura External link icon
    Non-Executive Director, Master Executive Coach & Supervisor Zenon Consulting
Do OD Conference - activity

OD in the NHS is a free, face-to-face conference for anyone working in NHS organisational development or related roles. 

Hosted in central Birmingham, the event will provide tools and knowledge, reflective spaces and useful connections to help OD practitioners lift out of the everyday practice it’s so easy to get stuck in.  

We know OD in the NHS at the moment is tough. We find ourselves getting pulled into reactive work, we can feel overwhelmed by the scale of the challenges we’re facing, our opportunities to think, plan and reflect are squeezed. 

The conference offers delegates the time and space to: 

  • hear about latest developments in the wider world of OD in the NHS 

  • gain a range of practical tools and strategies to elevate everyday practice 

  • meet like-minded colleagues and peers and make new connections. 
     

Conference programme


Morning sessions

  • You'll find our registration desk and welcome refreshments on the 2nd floor. 

  • Connect with your values - take a moment to start the day connecting with your values, in a practical activity based on acceptance and commitment theory.

    Carly Telford, Assistant Director, NHS Employers, Do OD

  • Take the opportunity to network with colleagues and visit our exhibiton stands. 

  • Formal welcome to the day from Carly Telford, Assistant Director, NHS Employers, Do OD.

  • Julia Tybura has recently completed her first transatlantic sail on a 42 foot sailing boat with her husband and friends as crew. She will share her journey from novice sailor to the ‘big trip’ via some very big waves! Julia will reflect on the challenges faced through that journey focusing on reflexivity, problem solving, decision making, team working, leadership and proactive management. She will invite you to reflect on how her stories and reflections may resonate with what you may be navigating as OD practitioners during these complex times.

    Julia Tybura, executive coach, non-executive director and HPMA London Founder Board Member

  • Time to take a break and take some refreshments.

  • Join one of our morning breakout sessions, featuring:

    • Elevating your everyday practice with a mindset for growth and care

      Rich Cook, CEO and Chief Psychologist, Mindset Practice
      Lisa Waugh, Senior Psychologist, Mindset Practice    
    • Organisational design: Building the seat at the table

      Karen Clark, OD&D Team Leader, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
      Sean Rooney, Senior OD&D Practitioner at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
    • SOOTHE: Organisational culture and wellbeing

      Nardia O'Connor, Senior Health, Wellbeing & Organisational Development Practitioner, Midlands Partnership University NHS FT
      Dr Michael Sleath, Lead for Staff Wellbeing and Engagement, MPFT
    • Harnessing appreciative inquiry

      Kayleigh Barnett, Head of Continuous Improvement and Appreciative Inquiry Advanced Practitioner Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS
       
    (Followed by break for lunch)            

Afternoon sessions

  • Welcome to the afternoon programme from Carly Telford, Assistant Director, NHS Employers, Do OD.

  • Tom Simons, Chief HR and OD Officer, Workforce, Training and Education (WT&E), NHS England
    Adam Stanbury, Director of Employer Solutions at CIPD

  • Opportunity to take a break and visit our exhibition. 

  • Join one of our afternoon breakout sessions, featuring:

    • Learning inquiries: From 'I can't' to 'I can'  

      Rachel Andrew, Head of Learning and OD, Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust
      Dionne Williams, Talent & Future Workforce Manager, Dudley Council
    • Artificial Intelligence: Turning interests into tangibles    

      Dr Goran Lukic, Clinical Psychologist, Admissions lead & Teaching Fellow at University of Surrey
    • Thinking brighter: Nurturing our creative spark    

      Dee Nambiar, People Consultant, NHS Midlands and Lancashire
    • The role and boundaries of OD in building compassionate organisations    

      Beth Hill, Head of ICS Leadership Talent and OD, NHS England

  • Catch up with colleagues and meet the Do OD team on our stand, where we'll be outlining our latest professional development opportunities and current findings from the Do OD Culture Change Inquiry Group.   

  • This session will outline pioneering work undertaken in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. It will consider how change impacts on civility and behaviours, and how psychological safety underpins our interactions. The session will be highly interactive, exploring how we can elevate our own everyday practice in challenging times, and sharing practical models to use.

    Bina Kotetcha, Deputy Chief Officer - Culture, OD and Inclusion, Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland ICB
    Dr Fiona Kilpatrick, Active Bystander Programme Lead & OD Specialist, LLR ICB

  • Following conference close, we're holding an informal networking reception and we encourage you to stay and join us. It will be a great opportunity to catch up with colleagues, speakers and other attendees about the event and the key learning covered, as well as catch up more with the Do OD team.

OD swap shop

Our OD swap shop will be running throughout the day – bring your favourite OD tool, technique, idea, model or theory – tell your colleagues why yours is brilliant and learn about theirs. Don’t have a favourite? Come and get a new one! A creative design team will be displaying all your responses on the day, so do come and take a look. You can download a swap shop card ahead of the day, or call into the stand at the event.
 

Venue

The Birmingham Conferences and Events Centre is located in Birmingham city centre, just a minute's walk from Birmingham New Street Station. Find out more about the venue.
 

Event registration

This event has now sold out and a waiting list is in operation. If you cannot use your registered place, please do let us know as soon as possible at eventbookings@nhsconfed.org so it can be offered to someone else. Thanks in advance for supporting as many colleagues as possible to attend on the day.

Join the waiting list

Our sponsor

This event is delivered in partnership with Mindset Practice.

 

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