CEO turnover is an issue plaguing the healthcare industry--turnover rates were at 18 percent for 2015--but grooming potential leaders from within and having a plan for a potential succession can help ease the transition.
CEO turnover can also cost hospitals other key leaders in the C-suite and can negatively impact community relations, financial performance and strategic planning, according to a post from Executive Insight.
To avoid those issues, the authors cite findings from B. E. Smith's 2016 Healthcare Trends report, which surveyed 1,200 healthcare leaders,and found that 53 percent of the executives plan to find a successor internally and 44 percent will seek experienced or emerging leaders from outside their facilities.
The survey found that 98 percent of the surveyed leaders would consider a job change to advance in the field, and 90 percent have been approached with a potential opportunity within the past year and seriously considered it. Healthcare organizations can cultivate these candidates as future leaders by offering leadership programs, creating roles for interim executives and applying leadership assessments and talent reviews to existing managers and staff with high potential, according to Executive Insight. Both potential future leaders and strong CEOs have "vision and strategy," according to the survey, so cultivating those traits is also of benefit.
Having a successor waiting in the wings in the event of a vacancy is ideal, according to the article, but developing potential interim leaders is also beneficial. The survey identified five major succession planning activities: one-on-one monitoring; skills identification; executive coaching; formal skills assessment; and continuity and effective transition.
To learn more:
- read the article