With decades of experience leading organisations across the private and public sectors, Trevor Hills brings hard-won wisdom to the art and science of management. His new book, The Expert Manager, distils a career's worth of insight into a practical guide for managers who want to make a real difference. He writes a fortnightly newsletter on the craft of managing.
Trevor Hills, LLB (Hons) MSc MInstP, has spent decades at the forefront of management practice, leading organisations with both economic and social purposes across a remarkable range of sectors.
His career has taken him through manufacturing and service firms, local and national government, education administration and school governance, health services management, trading associations, aviation, and printing and publishing — alongside a wide range of professional and community organisations.
Trevor has owned and run a management consultancy and management services business, a role that extended his work as a participant observer — particularly when acting as a temporary member of executive management teams during periods of change, acquisition, or merger.
His work has encompassed employment tribunal matters, the professional development of police officers, and participation in privatisation and contracting bids and their implementation. He has also developed a methodology for management coaching, mentoring, and related self-learning and self-development.
He now writes The Expert Manager, a fortnightly newsletter on the craft of managing — reflections, tools, and field notes drawn from decades of practice.
Trevor resides in Guildford in the United Kingdom, where he enjoys exploring the local and regional gardens, convening with friends, attending the symphony, and participating and serving in civic organisations.
You've read the leadership books. You've sat through the trainings. And yet, when you're standing at the whiteboard at 7.45am with two urgent emails flashing and your team looking to you for answers — none of that theory seems to help.
Most management books give you theory. This one gives you a schema — a practical way to see what's really happening, decide what to do next, and learn fast enough to stay ahead of change.
The Expert Manager is not another collection of motivational slogans or recycled best practices. It is a working framework for managers who are restless to do more than fill a job description, and who want to master the craft of getting things done through people.
Built around a schema of critical management practice, you will learn how to:
Whether you manage a small team or an entire department, whether you work in business, government, healthcare or education, this book gives you tools you can use on Monday morning.
Includes ready-to-use practical tools: self-assessments, the 4-Box Points for Action framework, and a Learning Plan and Log to track your development over time.
“The ambition behind the text is courageous and often illuminating. The questioning examples illustrating the application of critical practice are valuable and immediately applicable.”— Professor Victor Newman
Alongside the book, Trevor writes a fortnightly newsletter on the craft of managing — reflections, tools, and field notes drawn from decades of real-world practice. Every piece answers a question managers already ask, through one of the frameworks set out in the book.
It is free to read. New pieces appear every other Thursday.
Why professional standing is contextual, earned in conversation, and only half yours to decide.
Why faster analysis makes good managers more important, not less.
Being “in charge” isn't really about doing the work. It's about agency — the quiet capacity to shape what happens through other people.
Free, fortnightly, and straight to your inbox. No charge and no obligation — unsubscribe whenever you like.
Subscribe on SubstackWhether you have a question about the book, an enquiry about management consulting, or simply wish to connect, Trevor would be delighted to hear from you.
Fill in the form and it will come straight through. He reads everything himself and will normally reply within a few days.
You are also very welcome to email directly at trevor.hills@trevorhills.com.