Strong Mentorship Leads to Strong Leadership. Strong Leadership Leads to Strong Organizations.

          Mentorship is an essential quality of leadership. However, in a profession plagued by chronic shortages, who has time for mentoring? The impact that nursing leaders have on an organization is far-reaching. Therefore, it is essential that resources are allotted to their mentorship and training.
         Too often highly competent clinicians, recognized for their nursing expertise, are promoted into management roles with little or no training. They are given a new office, a title and it is assumed that they know how to lead. I refer to it as, “Poof, you’re a manager!” syndrome.
         At best, these new leaders learn by trial and error. At worst, they leave the role feeling defeated and wondering what went wrong. Administrators are then left trying to figure out how such a competent clinician was unable to deliver in the new role.
          It is not uncommon for these leadership roles to go unfilled, forcing administrations to place interim Directors of Nursing (DON) to fill the gap while they search outside the organization for talent. Had they invested in leadership training and succession planning for all nursing staff, this costly problem might have been prevented.
          The investment is well worth the time and money because the return on investment (ROI) is substantive. Strong leaders who can develop talent, provide structure and create a culture of quality and caring are essential to the success of the organization.
Strong nurse leaders:

• Establish meaningful goals for themselves and their employees;
• Create a positive culture for learning and caring;
• Create successful programming to meet the needs of patients and staff;
• Problem-solve creatively while adding value;
• Role model professional behavior and outstanding customer service;
• Recruit and retain the best performers who reflect the mission of the organization;
• Coach and guide staff while developing new talent for succession planning;
• Identify gaps in performance to ensure quality outcomes;
• Manage time, resources and people to control costs and increase revenue

          Quality leaders performing these functions provide an environment in which staff and morale thrive, turnover is reduced, patient satisfaction improves and revenue is boosted. The reputation of the organization continues to be strengthened and the organization is protected from unnecessary risk.