I’m new to the Higher Education sector (8 months, 10 days and counting). One thing I’m learning quickly is just how complex this environment is. It’s a world where the simplest task can involve a surprising number of people.
And yet, despite the complexity, I keep noticing something simple:
Most problems don’t start big. They start small.
A misunderstanding. Unclear expectations. A conversation that didn’t happen. A silent assumption that grows legs.
In a system as interconnected as HE, these small frictions can ripple out much further than anyone intends.
I recently had a tiny reminder of this.
The car park next to 2 South was temporarily closed, but without signage. Every few minutes, another car pulled in, slowed, reversed, tried again elsewhere. It wasn’t anyone’s fault necessarily - just one of those everyday frictions that absorbs energy and chips away at engagement.
I did the usual internal grumble… then stopped myself. If it bothers you, do something constructive. I sent a quick email to the services team explaining what was happening.
By the next morning, a sign was up.
Not a grand intervention. Not innovative. Just a small act of individual responsibility that made things smoother for everyone.
And it reinforced something I’m learning very clearly here:
Thriving happens when individual responsibility and collective responsibility meet in the middle - especially in a complex system.
Here’s what that looks like in practice:
- Connection matters more than we think
I’ve worked across several industries and there’s always something in common when it comes to workplace wellbeing issues:
- someone didn’t feel heard
- expectations weren’t aligned
- assumptions weren’t checked
- communication missed the mark
- people solved problems individually instead of collectively
Connection builds trust. Trust enables performance. And here where collaboration is essential but sometimes stretched, connection is the work.
- Manager capability is essential
I’m seeing that manager capability and accountability is one of the biggest determinants of how people experience work here.
Not because managers have all the answers but, because they set the tone:
- clear communication
- early conversations
- openness to feedback
- support through stretch and recovery
- modelling the behaviour they want to see
These aren’t soft skills. They are essential to sustainable, healthy high performance.
And because we know this doesn’t always feel easy or natural, we’re rolling out Brilliant Basics. This includes an Individual Wellbeing Action Plan (IWAP) focused on what it means to thrive, and a simple wellbeing‑conversation tool and training programme. These tools help structure the conversations people often find uncomfortable, giving both managers and staff confidence and a shared language.
The goal isn’t perfect conversations. It’s better ones.
- Getting the basics right - consistently
In an institution full of complexity, the basics are surprisingly powerful:
- clear expectations
- reliable communication
- shared understanding
- early interventions
- collective problem‑solving
- simple processes that prevent confusion
The car park example reminded me that the basics are often small, visible, fixable things:
A missing sign. A gap in communication. A misunderstanding that becomes a story. A process no one realised was unclear.
When we address these early, people can spend their energy on what really matters; teaching, research, service, and supporting staff and students well.
What thriving here looks like to me (so far)
Thriving seems to happen at the intersection of:
- connection (how we relate)
- capability (how we lead)
- responsibility (how we show up)
It’s not created through one big initiative. It’s built through thousands of small moments of clarity, communication and care carried out by people who are navigating a complex system together.
And the good news is that every one of us can contribute to this:
A check‑in. A clarification. A question asked early. Or simply noticing something that isn’t working and choosing to act.
Small actions. Big impact. That’s how departments, teams and people thrive. That’s how organisations thrive.
(And yes, that sign was slightly on the small side. But honestly? It was good enough. When we are juggling so much, good enough really is sometimes just that. Good enough.)
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