Outsiders May Rule In New Era Of Healthcare Leadership

CHICAGO, Jan. 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Could a former financial services CEO lead a major hospital group? It may become more common in the years to come, according to the just released Healthcare Leaders Survey by Ferguson Partners, Ltd. (FPL) (http://www.fpladvisorygroup.com), conducted by Modern Healthcare Custom Media.  Health industry executives who took part in the survey said the top three outside industries the next generation of healthcare leaders was most likely to come from would be finance (92 percent), followed by the hospitality industry (55 percent), investment (40 percent), and pharmaceutical industry (33 percent). Manufacturing, information technology and the retail/supply chain industries received mentions as well.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140114/CG44162-INFO-a)
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140114/CG44162-INFO-b)

"It's been very recent in our 25+ years of experience in executive search that a shift to a skill set outside of the industry norm has become acceptable, " said William J. Ferguson, co-chairman and co-CEO of FPL. "But with growth and recapitalization of key strategic priorities, as well as the rise of guest-focused care, it's not surprising that finance and hospitality were the two 'outside' industries our respondents thought could be most successful."

Survey respondents were somewhat cautious about whether a non-healthcare CEO could be more successful than an industry veteran.  Seventeen percent of respondents thought a hospital CEO hired from another industry would be equally effective as someone with healthcare experience, and nine percent thought an outsider could be more effective.  The majority (59 percent) of respondents said an outsider would be less effective.         

"Unsurprisingly, healthcare organizations prefer CEOs with direct healthcare experience," Ferguson continued. "However, as the healthcare industry experiences challenges ranging from recapitalization to consolidation—as we've seen within other industries—healthcare organizations should consider candidates with relevant experience from 'outside.'"

A New Mix:  Workforce Hiring Trends for 2014

The survey also examined hiring trends and found that healthcare industry executives predicted the workforce will remain relatively stable in 2014. While 44 percent of respondents reported their overall staff numbers were likely to decrease in 2014, 39 percent said they were likely to hire more staff and 16 percent anticipated their staffing levels would remain unchanged. No major layoffs or mass hirings were expected by any group.

However, the mix of staff may change. Hiring will be focused on patient care and enterprise management. The largest increases in staffing are expected to occur in care management, with 42 percent of executives reporting they would hire in this function. This was followed by:

• Information management (41 percent)
• Clinical management (34 percent)
• Operations management (26 percent)
• General administration (24 percent)

Significantly, nine percent of respondents reported that they would hire at the senior management level, and most senior executives reported expecting a pay increase, although at a slower rate than past years.

Survey Respondents and Methodology
The survey was conducted on behalf of FPL and Modern Healthcare by Signet Research, Inc., an independent research company. It was taken by 345 healthcare executives in various functions in November 2013. The findings are accurate at a 95 percent confidence level, within a sampling tolerance of approximately +/-5.3 percent.

More than 70% of respondents had positions in high-level management with functions ranging from general senior management (CEO, president) to operations, clinical and financial management. More than half (54 percent) worked for a hospital or hospital system, 33 percent were employed by medical clinics, groups or nursing homes, and another 13 percent worked in allied fields or for payers.       

About FPL Advisory Group & Ferguson Partners, Ltd.
FPL Advisory Group (FPL) (www.fpladvisorygroup.com) is a global professional services firm that specializes in executive search, compensation and management consulting solutions across the healthcare, real estate, financial, and hospitality sectors. FPL is comprised of two primary operating companies that work together to serve a common client base. Ferguson Partners Ltd. provides executive and director recruitment services.  FPL Associates provides a range of specialized compensation and management consulting services. FPL is headquartered in Chicago, with offices in Boston, New York, San Francisco, Toronto, London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo.

EDITORS: Full survey results, graphs and executive summary are available upon request.

Media Contact: Beth Strautz
[email protected]
773-895-5387

SOURCE FPL Advisory Group & Ferguson Partners, Ltd.