Leadership/Nursing L. Jones an Interview

Leadership/Nursing

L. Jones

An interview was conducted with Ms. PC, Chief Operation Officer of a healthcare organization on August 12, 2005. The interview lasted approximately one hour. The core aims of this interview were to define leadership, explore its application in a consultant toll, as well as to identify the characteristics of different contexts that facilitate consultant leadership.

A series of questions were aimed at developing an understanding of how Ms. PC understands the nature of leadership in her role as well as what she considers to be the key features of leadership in the health care profession in general.

You have achieved a position of leadership in our nursing community. Could you tell me a bit about your background and the role that you have today?"

Since obtaining my Masters degree in Nursing and Nursing Management, I have been in the nursing managerial and leadership role for over 12 years. I began as an academic hospital floor manager for 5 years, and then went on to become the Director of Clinical Operation for 3 additional years with the same organization. I then worked at a private free-staying outpatient medical facility as a Chief Operation Officer for 4 years. Currently I act as the Chief Operation Officer of a well-known healthcare organization, where I am responsible for the clinical operation, strategic planning, budget planning and control as well as many other duties as the need arises.

Ms. PC, you have obtained knowledge in management as well as in the nursing field. How would you describe a leader?" believe that a leader is anyone who uses interpersonal skills to influence others with the aim of accomplishing a specific goal. A leader empowers others, and facilitates learning with good communication skills. Additionally, a leader is someone that is good at solving problems, making decisions, and working with people. A leader may delegate responsibilities, yet he or she retains their leadership power and role through other means, including influence. In general, leaders focus on the group process, information gathering, obtaining feedback and empowering others while emphasizing interpersonal relationships.

What are important qualities or characteristics in leadership?" consider honesty, empathy for the folks that work for you, trustworthiness, good communication skills and a sense of humor to be important qualities of any effective leader.

What is your personal philosophy of leaders?" define leadership as the ability to facilitate the potential in individuals that creates a committed team effort toward a shared vision. I also believe leadership is situational and collaborative. My methodology is that of servant leadership. I find this method useful because it earns respect and honors two-way communication. I believe that the genius of leadership is found in the maintenance of integrity and continual follow-through efforts.

What learning experiences have had the most influence on your own personal development as a leader?"

My most useful learning experiences mostly come by way of learning from others. This means that I observed the quality of work from other leaders - I notice things like, whether they provide quality leadership and seem to recognize that their work is a reflection of who they are. I also notice how they treat others in the organization - something I find as a good indicator of what kind of leader they really are. Finally, I notice how easily they listen. No one is learning if they are too busy talking; listening is active and involves and exploration of ideas, problems and solutions -- some of which must come from others.

How do you see leadership evolving in nursing today?"

Historically, strong management skills have been valued more than strong leadership skills in health service. However, there are major changes that are taking place in the industry. I believe that the integration of management and leadership skills is what is needed today. The role of Leadership has shifted from being authoritative to collaborative, participatory, and inclusive of others in the organization.

That said, I am not sure leadership is really changing. The basic concepts are still the same. In order to lead effectively, you need to be able to lead your subordinates and be able to demonstrate that you can lead to your superiors. I believe the ability to motivate is still one of the most important things involved within leadership. In order to motivate you must have the ability to constantly articulate the organizations important goals as well as figure out how to motivate others to adopt these goals -- as well as really apply the work to accomplish them.

What are the most challenging issues in your current position?" think budget constraints are perhaps some of the biggest challenges I currently face in my position. The increasing rises in the cost of providing good health care, combined with decreasing reimbursement from insurance and government agencies, pushes us to pay more attention to the "bottom line." In order to respond to this issue, it is imperative that leaders are able to maintain budget control as well as to limit budget variances. However, occasionally it is almost impossible to avoid budget shortages which in turn results in shortfalls in staff development, which subsequently leads to unhappy staff and low morale.

There are many more managers than leaders in this health care organization. Managers manage processes, leaders lead people and leaders are what we need now. Both skills are important, but to be able to adapt this never-ended changing health care system requires leadership.

As a leader/manager in your career, have you had a mentor? If so, how did he or she impact your leadership style?" really had several leadership role models. My first was my father, who really demonstrated that he cared about people. The next was the Chief Nursing Director when I was the charge nurse on the floor. She taught me a lot about motivating folks and at the same time to expect only excellence in people.

Of all the leadership models I have had, perhaps most significant was one person who provided a consistently negative example of leadership. That negative experience re-enforced the importance of integrity, clear and meaningful communication, and provided me with a very strong example of what not to do.

What advice would you give someone aspiring to a leadership position?" would encourage them to try to work for several different organizations or at least in several different parts of an agency or department. Never be afraid to take on new assignments and look for opportunities to develop a diverse skill set. In some jobs it may be necessary to concentrate on technical skills, but always look for ways to improve your management and leadership skills.

To find a mentor, one can have many mentors during their career, as leadership growth comes in stages. The skills and attitudes observed from other leaders allow one to determine if they are developing and growing into true leaders. When looking for footsteps to follow, observe their quality of work as a leader.

I believe the most important trait is enthusiasm. Enthusiasm compensates for weak skills or lack of experience and brings positive energy to the team. An enthusiastic attitude is often contagious. and, integrity...that value is at the top of the list in importance, both as a personal value as well as a morale issue.