Nurse leadership: what I’ve learned about making change happen

Tips on being an effective leader from charity chief executive Joanne Bosanquet, who built a high-profile nursing career after leaving school at 16 with no GCSEs

At the start of her nursing career, if someone had told Joanne Bosanquet she would one day be the chief executive of a leading nurse charity, she wouldn’t have believed it was possible.

‘From a career perspective, I had never thought about being a nurse in a charity as I didn’t see where I’d fit or what I’d do,’ she says. ‘And I certainly never considered being a chief executive. The thought would have made me laugh my head off.’

Charity role presented new challenges

But in 2019, Ms Bosanquet