The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 279 No 7473 p416
13 October 2007

Society summary

Council will not proceed with appraisal pilot

The Council of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society has decided not to set up a pilot of a process of appraisal and development for Council members.

Presenting the proposal at the October Council meeting, on behalf of the Governance Committee, John Hanlon said that this was a matter for the Council to decide: did it want to put resources into going forward with the appraisal, or did it want to put those resources into proceeding with trying to get the best that it could for the Society and its members from the split of the professional and regulatory functions?

The Chief Executive and Registrar commented that the Society had an enormous amount of work to do. Indeed the Society was facing its biggest challenge for a generation or more. He said that if he were starting with a new look, new shape organisation, then he would rate appraisal for Council members extremely highly.

But the Society would not be in that position for another two to three years. He believed that would be the time to devote energy and resource to an appraisal process. In the short to medium term, between now and then, resources needed to be husbanded carefully, particularly in light of the proposed fee increase.

He wanted to make sure that the Council got maximum possible effectiveness out of those resources, with the goal of realising the separate General Pharmaceutical Council and a professional leadership body. “I do not want to prejudice either of those tasks so my view would be that we should tackle this question at a later date, when we have a new shape organisation,” he said.

Brian Curwain wondered if, maybe by piloting the process now, the new organisation could be made more fit for purpose and would hit the ground running.

Jonathan Buisson said that, in the current climate, members would see this as the Council spending money on some sort of group hug for the Council. “They would think it a total waste of money,” he declared.