I am Philippa Harding, the Director of Harding Advisory Ltd.  An Associate of ICSA, the Chartered Governance Institute, I am a corporate governance professional with extensive technical and practical understanding of the challenges facing decision-makers and a track record of managing these successfully, with an agile and collaborative approach to problem solving.

Experience

I have spent most of my career working in healthcare and regulatory settings, always with a focus on improvement: 

Most recently, as Director of Corporate Governance at the London Ambulance Service, I directed the articulation, transformation and delivery of the systems, processes, culture and behaviours required to enable effective decision-making.  These improvements were key to ensuring the Trust’s removal from Special Measures and resulting achievement and maintenance of a “Good” rating from the CQC.

As Operations Director in the Regulation directorate during the establishment of NHS Improvement, I was responsible for driving and maintaining a culture of continuous improvement and high quality service delivery.  I did this by establishing performance frameworks, PMO provision and deployment/resourcing support, whilst partnering with senior leadership team members to develop and implement organisational transformation. 

Whilst Board Secretary at Monitor (the health sector regulator), I successfully demonstrated my technical expertise and practical management of the business of Board and decision-making committees.  I was also responsible, together with the Chief Executive and Chair, for developing and implementing a new governance framework required for regulatory decision-making. 

I have also held similar corporate governance roles in the Care Quality Commission and the Healthcare Commission.

Examples of previous projects

• Revamp of an NHS Trust Board Assurance Framework (BAF), recognised as “outstanding practice” by regulator.
• Developed and implemented new organisational structure during merger of two national regulators.
• Led the successful design and delivery of an organisation’s response to proposed regulatory enforcement action, resulting in recognition of good practice and enhanced relationships with regulator.
• Identification and review of all COVID-related decision-making by an NHS Trust to provide assurance of the rationale for these decisions.