ABSTRACT
This chapter explores factors affecting the development of corporate board teams within complex and hybrid public sector organisations through a period of continuous transformation. It takes executive board members for English Primary Care Groups (PCGs) as its unit of analysis for the period 1999 to 2002. The chapter explores the ways PCGs see their structure and objectives. It reviews the process of the formation of PCGs and presents an agenda arising from their nature which makes them a particularly interesting focus of research. The chapter summarises relevant literature, describes the research methods to be employed in the programme and presents results from the first phase of the study. The level of complexity within most PCGs is made apparent by the large number of GP practices working within their boundaries. The sampling exercise for the postal survey would have to take account of the possible examples in PCT applications for mergers between existing PCGs.
