Copies of the criteria were provided to all applicants in advance of their application.Core criteria were that candidates must:have management experience at a senior or board-equivalent level in the voluntary, public or private sectorsdemonstrate leadership and motivation skillsdemonstrate the ability to see the "bigger picture"demonstrate the ability to think and plan aheaddemonstrate the ability to understand complicated issuesdemonstrate the ability to work as part of a teambe an effective communicator at all levels with good listening and interpersonal skillsbe able to take decisions on a collective basisbe confident and willing to challenge and test proposals on which the board must decidedemonstrate a strong personal commitment to the NHSdemonstrate an understanding of, and interest in, government health policiesbe committed to engaging positively and openly with key partners and the publicbe committed to the idea of public service accountability, honesty, openness and equality of treatment and opportunitybe able to spend around three days per week as Chair on the work of the boardDesirable criteria were that candidates would have:experience in serving in the voluntary sector, particularly in an organisation with links to the health sectorexperience of other countries' approach to health education and improvementspecialist skills or knowledge relevant to HEBSCandidates were short-listed for interview by Trevor Jones (Chief Executive, NHS Scotland), Ken Thomson (Head of Health Improvement Strategy Division, Scottish Executive Health Department) and Alistair Dempster (Independent Assessor).