Hiring an Interim CEO
By Gary M. Stein

The rate of hospital chief executive turnover continues to vex and challenge hospital trustees. It has remained stubbornly high for the past 10 year, averaging 16 percent since 1996, with little variability from year to year.

However, greater variance exists from state to state, with turnover as high as 23 percent in Hawaii and 21 percent in Virginia, and as low as 6 percent in Utah and 5 percent in Maine.

A change in leadership typically raises questions and insecurities among key stakeholders, such as physicians, employees, volunteers, community organizations, and others.

If not managed well, the CEO transition period can lead to the departure of key individuals and affect relationships for years to come. Therefore, hiring an experienced, competent interim CEO should be an integral part of any transition plan.

The board’s most important responsibility is hiring, firing and maintaining a healthy working relationship with the organization’s CEO, and often it is the responsibility most fraught with danger for the organization.

The quality of the process the board uses to make and execute such decisions will usually determine the leadership hiatus most hospitals experience during a CEO transition.

A thorough search process can take up to six months to complete. During this time, the organization could be “on hold” and begin to decline, or it could thrive and position itself to act quickly when the new CEO comes aboard. The direction an organization takes during a CEO transition often is determined by how well it manages stakeholder issues and concerns.

With more than one of every six CEOs being replaced each year, trustees are finding it more difficult to maintain the leadership needed to develop and sustain quality improvement programs, recruit and retain physicians and employees, improve profitability, and conduct fund raising.

That’s why using experienced and knowledgeable advisors for the chief executive search and reviewing board structure and dynamics as part of the executive search process will improve the hospital’s ability to attract and retain the right CEO and regain the needed momentum to develop and execute its key strategic plans.

Hiring an interim CEO allows the hospital to continue on its strategic path, if there is confidence in the path, or to begin evaluating the strategic assumptions and plans driving the hospital or health system, while providing leadership stability to a health care organization in transition.

The person filling this role should not only help the organization pursue its strategic direction but also work with the board, physician leaders and senior executives to create a foundation to support the success of the incoming CEO.

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INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center Quest for Quality Finalist

The American Hospital Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize is presented annually to honor leadership and innovation in quality, safety and commitment in patient care. Recently five U.S. hospitals were recognized for their leadership and innovation in quality, safety and commitment to patient care with this award.

With a commitment to accountability and transparency that drives quality improvement, Center member INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center of Oklahoma City, was recognized as a finalist. The 564-bed hospital currently posts data on its Web site about quality, patient satisfaction and pricing. The quality improvement initiatives underway at INTEGRIS demonstrate a responsibility to the patients and community served. The spotlight that accompanies transparency has served as an additional motivator for hospital leaders and staff. To ensure that every employee has a stake in quality performance, INTEGRIS has instituted a pay-for-performance program system wide.

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