At Houston Methodist, the Vice President/Chief Nursing Officer (VP/CNO) position is responsible for formulating and implementing new nursing strategies for the development of a world-class professional nursing organization that is consistent with top health centers and fosters high quality patient care. This position ensures Nursing and Clinical services are directed by a nurse leader who has the authority and responsibilities for establishing and sustaining standards of nursing practice, approving nursing policies and procedures, upholding standards of patient care, providing direction and oversight of clinical functions and activities for all nursing departments as well as other ancillary departments. The VP/CNO position develops and directs the implementation of, and ensures compliance with, Standards of Patient Care that promote optimum health care delivery. This position is knowledgeable of social, economic, and regulatory issues affecting the health care system. The VP/CNO position, in concert with other nursing and clinical leaders, participates and is part of the organization's highest governing, decision-making, and strategic-planning body and the advocate for nursing to the Board of Directors, medical staff, and management to plan, promote, and conduct organization-wide performance improvement activities.

This position reports directly to Executive leadership in the organization and has responsibilities which include providing management and oversight of multiple areas and entities, as appropriate, and driving Houston Methodist's mission, vision, values and commitment to excellence. Demonstrating a proven record of successful strategic planning, developing long-range goals and implementation, this position manages a diverse, interprofessional team, collaborating with stakeholders to achieve mutual goals. Directly and indirectly overseeing management staff with the goal of enhancing professional development and personal growth, this position forms and leads internal teams, providing training and mentorship as needed. This position collaborates with all senior leadership to meet the organization's objectives, ensuring operational initiatives are implemented, setting business goals, and solving internal issues when needed. Responsible for the assigned areas' policy and procedure development, revision, and implementation. This position is also accountable for employee engagement, adequate staffing levels, budget development and compliance, to ensure a safe and effective work environment. This position ensures compliance with ethical and legal business practices and accreditation/regulatory/government regulations.

PATIENT AGE GROUP(S) AND POPULATION(S) SERVED
Refer to departmental "Scope of Service" and "Provision of Care" plans, as applicable, for description of primary age groups and populations served by this job for the respective HM entity.

HOUSTON METHODIST EXPERIENCE EXPECTATIONS

• Provide personalized care and service by consistently demonstrating our I CARE values:
  • INTEGRITY: We are honest and ethical in all we say and do.
  • COMPASSION: We embrace the whole person including emotional, ethical, physical, and spiritual needs.
  • ACCOUNTABILITY: We hold ourselves accountable for all our actions.
  • RESPECT: We treat every individual as a person of worth, dignity, and value.
  • EXCELLENCE: We strive to be the best at what we do and a model for others to emulate.

• Practices the Caring and Serving Model

• Delivers personalized service using HM Service Standards

• Provides for exceptional patient/customer experiences by following our Standards of Practice of always using Positive Language (AIDET, Managing Up, Key Words)

• Intentionally collaborates with other healthcare professionals involved in patients/customers or employees' experiential journeys to ensure strong communication, ease of access to information, and a seamless experience.

• Involves patients (customers) in shift/handoff reports by enabling their participation in their plan of care as applicable to the given job

• Displays cultural humility, diversity, equity and inclusion principles

• Actively supports the organization's vision, fulfills the mission and abides by the I CARE values

PEOPLE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Provides direction to management team to enable the effective and efficient completion of objectives. Gives timely guidance and feedback to direct report management to strengthen their specific knowledge/skill areas needed for progression. Holds direct reporting management team accountable for the development of staff to meet overall objectives in terms of quality, service and cost effectiveness.

• Identifies opportunities and takes action to build strategic relationships between one's area and other departments to achieve business goals. Works collaboratively with stakeholders to foster a climate of open communication and mutual problem-solving.

• Develops efficient organizational structures within scope of assignment. Provides leadership for management team to maintain a competent and engaged employee group and provides recognition/commendations to achieve desired outcomes. Drives initiatives to meet or exceed threshold goal for department turnover and/or system metrics on employee engagement indicators.

• Creates and maintains strategies to optimize nursing workforce diversity and inclusion to support a positive practice environment.

• Works closely with hospital management and stakeholders to acquire the right infrastructure and resources to ensure that patients are safe in the hospital and have access to the right medical care.

• Promotes relationships among community organizations to improve patient outcomes and the health of the communities served.

• Acts as the closest link between the physicians, nurses and hospital executives. Ensures all nurses and clinicians offer the best possible support to physicians in their respective departments.

SERVICE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Develops and implements strategic and operational/high level projects and processes. Sets clear goals, priorities and objectives for the direct report management team. Oversees multiple departments' operations and designated projects to ensure that goals or objectives are accomplished within the prescribed time frame, providing guidance to management team to ensure the best possible delivery of service and high customer/patient satisfaction.

• Drives HM service standards and activities to impact system score for patient/customer-based satisfaction, through role modeling and fostering accountability. Responsible for the overall successful operation of the direct report management team.

• Drives collaboration across the organization to identify needs and develop scalable solutions. Prioritizes objectives and implements strategies to achieve organization initiatives as part of the executive leadership team. Delegates responsibilities to direct report management, providing guidance and direction, as appropriate.

• Reinforces the Professional Practice Model that aligns and integrates nursing practice with the mission, vision, philosophy, and values and develops a nursing environment in which excellence in clinical care and research is achieved.

• Establishes mechanisms to support nurses throughout the organization are involved in shared governance and decision-making structures and processes that establish standards of practice and address issues of concern.

• Creates and sustains an environment for the professional practice of nursing which is competitive with other health centers and meets the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) for Magnet status criteria.

QUALITY/SAFETY ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Reviews levels of service and significant trends that impact the effectiveness of delivering patient care, critical operational objectives, or other key components within the organization. Ensures that management teams are conducting root cause analyses, as appropriate. Proactively guides management to identify prevention/risk avoidance opportunities and implements continuous improvement plans.

• Monitors and ensures organizational compliance with federal, state and local safety and environmental regulations and standards as well as accreditation requirements. Ensures direct report management monitors and/or revises the departments' safety plan and/or any specific accreditation/regulatory required safety guidelines.

• Proactively approaches the optimization of safe outcomes and information systems by monitoring, improving and enhancing operations, identifying solutions via collaboration. Oversees the implementation of process improvements, utilizing tools such as lean and change management principles. Role models situational awareness, using teachable moments to improve safety.

• Utilizes intimate knowledge of clinical and operational issues and a clear sense of patient care priorities to improve the quality of care in the organization. Uses clinical performance improvement goals as an integration strategy to align priorities in the organization.

• Organizes, directs and coordinates nursing and health services in compliance with the government regulations and policies set by the Board of Trustees; has overall responsibility for all of patient care.

• Creates structures, processes, tools, and relationships that enable collaboration and define accountability. Enhances quality outcomes by partnering with leadership (CMO and/or Chief of Staff and/or President of Medical Staff) for shared clinical decision-making.

• Establishes multiple avenues for reaching, through leadership to direct caregivers or specific change agents with key messages. Utilizes formal communication plans to support each change initiatives and utilizes creative and innovative channels for a message to permeate the entire organization.

FINANCE ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Ensures departments' operational and capital budgets align with organization's strategic plan. Uses benchmark data to support performance, costs and return on investment.

• Drives the maximization of efficiency and productivity. Leverages relationships with vendors and partners to obtain contracts that support cost-efficient operations and maintenance.

• Allocates financial, information, and human capital for improvement activities, ensuring efficient delivery of cost-effective and efficient services to patients, physicians, and hospital departments.

• Collaborates with Human Resources to develop and implement leading edge recruitment and retention strategies, as well as, innovative management systems to drive low turnover and vacancy rates in nursing.

GROWTH/INNOVATION ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Develops long-range goals and strategic plans. Deploys data and research to drive cross-business organization prioritization.

• Maintains acute awareness of market and industry trends. Implements innovative solutions for practice or workflow changes to improve system operations. Represents HM at community or professional organization meetings.

• Drives change initiatives, maintaining effectiveness when experiencing major changes in work responsibilities or environment; adjusts effectively to work within new work structures, processes, requirements or cultures.

• Initiates and executes succession plans. Conducts conversations with direct report management on My Development plan.

• Maintains awareness of the ever-changing environment of healthcare, evaluating results on the best approach the hospital should take to streamline its nursing and/or clinical operations.

• Increases the leadership capacity of Houston Methodist nurses through both formal and informal education and professional activities.

This job description is not intended to be all-inclusive; the employee will also perform other reasonably related business/job duties as assigned. Houston Methodist reserves the right to revise job duties and responsibilities as the need arises.

EDUCATION

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited school of nursing

• Master's degree in nursing, business management or related field

WORK EXPERIENCE

• Ten years of directly related experience to include leading high-performing teams, at least eight years in a management role; may consider current HM employee with seven years management experience in healthcare

• Leadership experience to include accountability over multiple operational areas with a successful track record of strategic planning, change management, operational/clinical integration within a system, clinical/quality management, financial management, and community involvement

• Executive or senior leadership experience preferred

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATIONS - REQUIRED

• RN - Registered Nurse - Texas State Licensure and/or Compact State Licensure within 60 days OR
• RN-Temp - Registered Nurse - Temporary State Licensure within 60 days AND
• Magnet-L - ANCC Recognized Leadership Certification

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATIONS - PREFERRED

• Membership in American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) preferred

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Demonstrates the skills and competencies necessary to safely perform the assigned job, determined through on-going skills, competency assessments, and performance evaluations

• Sufficient proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing the English language necessary to perform the essential functions of this job, especially about activities impacting patient or employee safety or security

• Strategic vision with the ability to execute

• Demonstrated leadership presence and maturity

• Impeccable judgment and ability to make sound decisions in a fast-paced, dynamic setting

• Executive-level presentation skills and ability to interface successfully with high-level clients

• Demonstrates the ability to interact with others in a way that gives them confidence in one's intentions and those of the organization

• Ability to use appropriate interpersonal styles and techniques to gain acceptance of ideas or plans; modifying one's own behavior to accommodate tasks, situations and individuals involved

• Demonstrates leadership qualities and critical thinking through self-direction initiative and effective interpersonal skills and oral/written communication skills

• Ability to identify and understand issues, problems and opportunities, comparing data from different sources to draw conclusions; using effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; takes action that is consistent with available facts, constraints and probable consequences

• Extensive knowledge of regulatory and accreditation agency requirements that impact department; stays abreast of industry changes

• Demonstrates flexibility and adaptability in the workplace

• Capable of leading teams/facilitating groups, building consensus and garnering highest confidence in professionalism and work product by senior leadership

• Ability to work under pressure and balance many competing priorities; highly responsive and solution/action oriented

• Proficiency in spreadsheet, word processing, and presentation software

• Maintains a positive and supportive attitude and demeanor

• Professional handling of exposure to confidential/sensitive information

• Possesses the vision and the sensitivity to sustain a cultural transformation process consistent with the mission and values of Houston Methodist

• Ability to hold people accountable to achieve objectives and have crucial conversations when appropriate with key stakeholders

• Demonstrated ability to lead others to common organizational goals and objectives and able to mentor and develop others in the organizations to foster positive employee engagement

• Ability to inspire and motivate others, while promoting the mission and vision of the organization and related capacities and abilities

• Strong demonstrated transformational and complex, matrixed leadership skills (inspiring, analyzing and problem solving, communication across multiple organizations, executing) to champion Nurse Excellence

SUPPLEMENTAL REQUIREMENTS

WORK ATTIRE

• Uniform No
• Scrubs No
• Business professional Yes
• Other (department approved) No

ON-CALL*
*Note that employees may be required to be on-call during emergencies (ie. DIsaster, Severe Weather Events, etc) regardless of selection below.

• On Call* Yes

TRAVEL**
**Travel specifications may vary by department**

• May require travel within the Houston Metropolitan area Yes
• May require travel outside Houston Metropolitan area Yes

Since 1998, Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital has been serving Fort Bend and the surrounding counties. Residents have come to rely on a level of compassionate care and leading-edge technology that was once available only in the Texas Medical Center. Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital tied for No. 4 in Houston and No. 6 (three-way tie) in Texas in U.S. News & World Report’s best hospital rankings in 2020. With 316 operating beds, 24 operating rooms and over 2,400 employees, Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital was designed to provide comprehensive, personalized care for the community.