GMMH announces appointment of new Chief Operating Officer (COO)
A vital role in GMMH’s Executive Team has been appointed to permanently with Carol Harris set to join as Chief Operating Officer (COO) – strengthening the leadership at this important time.
Carol will join the team from South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, where she has been COO since March 2016.
Karen Howell OBE, Chief Executive at GMMH, said:
“I’m delighted that, so early in my time as part of Team GMMH, we can say that Carol Harris is joining us as Chief Operating Officer (COO). One of my priorities when I started three weeks ago was to appoint brilliant leaders to the vital roles in the Executive Team.
“Carol brings solid operational leadership experience following her time as a director of operations before becoming their COO. This is coupled with her professional leadership experience, having worked as an interim chief nurse.
“At South West Yorkshire, Carol has been responsible for operations across all districts and services and, with such a deep knowledge of delivering services to diverse communities across a large area, demonstrated she was the right person to be our COO from a shortlist of outstanding candidates.
“I’m excited that she will be joining us in the autumn – and I can’t wait to start working with her alongside all of our colleagues.”
Originally qualifying as a mental health nurse in 1987, Carol has worked in a wide range of roles across mental health services. This means she has in-depth practical knowledge of challenges faced by services as well as by people who use services and their carers.
Carol said:
“I trained as a mental health nurse in Manchester and worked in practice, and leadership roles, across Greater Manchester during my career, so I am incredibly excited to be joining the team in the Trust as COO.
“I am committed to working with staff, partners, service users and their carers to ensure we provide the best care and facilitate the best outcomes for the people of Greater Manchester.”
Interim COO John Foley will continue leading operations until Carol takes up her position, and John and Carol will work together to ensure there is smooth handover, building on the work John has done to support the organisation in the last year.
