With global populations of older adults growing rapidly comes an urgent need for leadership—in aged care, services, supports, and policy. Understanding trends and strategies, plus challenges to be overcome, is key to strong leadership.
In 2024, the Global Ageing Network piloted a new program designed for aged care providers who are focused on building their roles as leaders. Five interactive, virtual sessions were held between September 2024 and January 2025. Topics included understanding the global landscape of aged care, building teams, managing a global workforce, honoring older persons’ voices, and leading innovation. All were presented by Global Ageing Network member leaders for groups of up to 20 professionals in aged care and services.
I attended one of the Global Ageing Network Leadership Series sessions, which featured Dr. Donald Macaskill, CEO of Scottish Care, who led an enlightening discussion of human rights. Dr. Macaskill reminded us of what Eleanor Roosevelt said: Human rights is, at its core, how we relate to one another. He pointed out that there are multiple frameworks within which to consider human rights: international, regional, and domestic, and that in any of these frameworks, human rights can refer to the right to life, to liberty, to a fair and public hearing, to respect for privacy, family life, home, and correspondence. It can also refer to freedom of thought and much more.
The presentation also included an interesting discussion of proportionality, balancing multiple views, and the process of progressive realization of human rights. Another speaker, Dan Levitt, senior advocate for British Columbia, offered a framework for leadership within which human rights might be considered, called LEADS: “Lead oneself, Engage Others, Achieve Results, Develop Coalitions, and Transform Systems,” and noted that human rights are ultimately about a conversation, not a contract.
The impressive depth of the session, and the experiences and success of the first cohort of participants, demonstrated both to me and to the participants the value of this program. It’s why the Global Ageing Network is happy to announce that the Leadership Program will continue as a free member benefit for 2025, with sessions to begin in April.
The program will feature case studies and examples from the global aged care sector, peer-to-peer learning, and dialogue about challenges leaders confront, plus successful strategies to overcome them. Another positive outcome for participants will be the ability to build peer networks of leaders from a variety of countries and organizations, creating opportunities for ongoing shared learning.
The five 90-minute sessions (delivered virtually, with translation available via Wordly.ai), will cover the following topics:
- Understanding the global landscape of aged care
- Building and strengthening a high functioning team
- Leading a global workforce
- Honoring the voice of older persons
- Leading change and innovation in aged care
The projected session dates—some of which may vary according to location—will include five sessions followed by an evaluation session:
- 17 April 2025
- 22 May 2025
- 19 June 2025
- 17 July 2025
- 21 August 2025
- 11 September 2025 (Evaluation)
Applications are due by 21 February 2025, and space is limited, so sign up early. Please visit the 2025 Global Ageing Network Leadership Program webpage to learn more and register. Send questions to Shannon Davis at sdavis@globalageing.org.
