Digital Supporter

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A Digital Supporter is committed to digital transformation in health and social care and is willing to actively support the applicant’s learning throughout the programme and beyond. This role is not formal mentoring but involves offering encouragement, sharing insights, and creating space for reflective conversations.

The Role of the Digital Supporter

All participants must have a Digital Supporter. Someone from their own or another relevant organisation who can support their learning and leadership journey throughout the course and beyond.

A strong Digital Supporter helps participants get the most from the programme by:

  • Acting as a critical friend to discuss progress, ideas, and assignments
  • Helping access relevant meetings, projects, or insights
  • Offering networking opportunities to build connections
  • Challenging and expanding thinking around digital transformation

They don’t need to be a digital expert. Just someone with experience, perspective, and a commitment to improving services, leading change, and supporting development.

Finding the Right Digital Supporter

The Digital Supporter does not need to be part of the applicant’s team and may come from elsewhere in their organisation or from another organisation elsewhere in the sector. What matters is that they bring a strong commitment to advancing digital innovation and improvement in the sector. Their insight, encouragement, and enthusiasm for digital transformation will help the applicant challenge their thinking, and connect their learning to real-world practice across the wider system.

Example of a Digital Supporter could be:

  • A colleague with experience in leading or contributing to digital projects
  • A manager or senior leader from another service who understands the digital landscape
  • Someone involved in innovation, quality improvement, or transformation work
  • A subject matter expert from another organisation or part of the sector with a shared interest in using digital to improve systems or services

Think about who challenges you, shares your ambition for improvement, or has insight into digital transformation at a system level.

two people sitting in front of a laptop smiling

 A Digital Supporter plays a valuable role in encouraging and guiding the applicant throughout their learning journey. Their support reinforces the practical application of new skills and contributes to the wider progress of digital transformation across health and social care.

The Digital Supporter should not be the applicants' Line Manager to ensure any successful applicants' get fresh perspectives and broader system insights

Applications cannot be considered without the commitment of a Digital Supporter. This section of the application must be completed in full before submission. Incomplete Digital Supporter sections will result in the application not being progressed.

If you are having any difficulty identifying someone appropriate, please contact the Programme Team as soon as possible at nes.dew@nhs.scot   

Guidance for Digital Supporter Statement

As part of the application process, Digital Supporters are asked to provide a short statement outlining how they will support the applicant during and after the programme. This is an important part of the selection process and helps the panel understand the level of peer or sector-based digital support available to enable the applicant’s success on the programme. 

Digital Supporters should read the application guidance and checklist carefully before writing their supporting statement.

Please note: The Guidance for Digital Supporter Statement and Digital Supporter Checklist sections are intended for use only during an open recruitment window. As recruitment is currently closed, the information here is provided for reference only and should not be used to submit an application at this time.

Application Guidance & Checklist

Digital Supporter Checklist

Digital Supporters require to:

  • Provide all personal details: name, job title, organisation, email address, and contact number.
  • Sign the digital declaration to confirm your commitment to offering practical guidance including encouragement, feedback and insights to support the applicant.
  • Write a short statement (max 250 words) describing how you will encourage the applicant's development and contribution to digital transformation during the programme and beyond.

Word Count

·         You are allowed up to 250 words

·         Any words beyond this limit will not be considered by the panel

·         We recommend drafting your answers to check your word count before submitting

Please note: The Guidance for Digital Supporter Statement and Digital Supporter Checklist sections are intended for use only during an open recruitment window. As recruitment is currently closed, the information here is provided for reference only and should not be used to submit an application at this time.

Digital Supporter Principles

As a Digital Supporter, your role is to encourage the applicant throughout the programme and beyond. You are expected to:

  1. Demonstrate commitment to digital transformation
    Show enthusiasm and offer valuable insights into how digital innovation can improve health and social care systems or services. Actively support the applicant’s vision for digital transformation, helping foster their motivation to lead change and implement innovative solutions within their organisation and the wider sector.
  2. Offer regular encouragement
    Check in with the applicant regularly, offering motivation and helping sustain their confidence and momentum throughout the programme. Ensure they stay on track with their goals and vision.
  3. Share relevant knowledge and experience
    Provide useful perspectives, examples, or resources from your own practice to support the applicant’s learning. Help them think critically about their leadership skills and how to apply them to real-world scenarios.
  4. Support reflective thinking
    Create space for open conversations about learning progress, challenges, and how new insights can be applied in practice. Help applicants reflect on their leadership and development priorities, enabling them to identify areas for improvement.
  5. Help connect learning to wider efforts
    Signpost opportunities, projects, or networks related to the programme's focus and the applicant’s goals. Assist in applying their learning to digital transformation projects while balancing the demands of the programme with their current professional responsibilities.
  6.  Participate in Evaluation
    Complete all required programme evaluation activities to help measure impact and inform future programme developments.
     
Other support Networks
Two people looking at a laptop

There are also benefits to developing and building a broad range of support and networks. This could be a peer mentor, adviser or someone else with specialist knowledge or skills who works in your organisation or sector, or someone who is out with these confines. The programme will encourage you to be proactive in developing and building your networks across the wider sector.