Nurse Interview: Leader, Executive, or Manager

Nurse Interview: Leader, Executive, or Manager

Nursing leaders work in a variety of positions: managers in hospitals, directors at various levels within clinical and non-clinical settings, executives within healthcare organizations, etc. For this assignment, students will conduct an interview to explore the characteristics and functions of nursing leaders. Students will then present their findings. The nursing leader must be an RN, have a BSN degree or higher, and be in a position of leadership.

Part I: The Interview

The interview should be conducted formally using professional dress, tone, and manners. Interview questions should focus on leadership style, development of the nursing leader, and current issues and trends facing nursing and healthcare at local, national, and global levels. Students will learn from the interview experience, so take the time to complete this portion of the assignment with enthusiasm.

Ensure the individual being interviewed has enough responsibility to be able to respond to the following questions. You will use these headings to organize and present your findings. 

• Introduction
  • Describe your education, nursing background, and current and previous positions.
• Leadership Style
  • Describe the leadership style you identify with and most commonly use in your practice.
  • How did you develop your leadership style?
  • How has your leadership style evolved with experience?
• Future Planning
  • How are you working towards sustainability for your practice setting in developing new nursing leaders?
  • To what professional organizations do you belong?
  • How are professional organizations impactful in developing nursing leaders?
• Current Issues and Trends
  • Describe current challenges you are facing in nursing and healthcare (today and in the past 2-5 years.)
  • How do these challenges impact your practice setting?
  • Describe the impact of these challenges at the local, national, and global levels.(For example, if staffing is a concern for the practice setting is it because of a local trend? Is this a tourist community in which the population fluctuates making finding and keeping qualified, dedicated staff a difficulty? Is this a challenge because this type of facility is impacted by local, national, or even global politics and economic circumstances?)

Part II: Presentation of Findings

You may present your findings as a paper, a PowerPoint presentation, or a video. Be creative! Be sure to include all of the content you covered during the interview in detail, as well as a conclusion. Resources for creating an effective presentation or video are available in the Resources area for this week. Required elements for each method of submission are described below.

• Option 1: Paper
  • Must be at least four pages, excluding the title and reference page
• Option 2: PowerPoint
  • Must be at least 12 slides, excluding the title and reference slides
• Option 3: Video
  • The video submission cannot be of the actual interview. The video is of the student reviewing the interview, questions, and responses and should be formatted similar to that of a news report. The video must be at least ten minutes in length. This option also includes a requirement for submission of APA formatted citations as a Word document or a PDF file.

All options require at least three recent references (published within the past five years) submitted in APA style.

Use these headings to organize and present your submission. 

• Introduction: Provide enough information for the audience to get a sense of the leader you interviewed.
• Leadership Style: Discuss the interviewee’s leadership style.
• Future Planning: Describe and explain the interviewee’s future planning and professional development.
• Current Issues and Trends: Describe the challenges discussed during the interview. Explain how they impact practice and the local, national, and global community.
• Conclusion: Reflect on what you discovered or learned during the interview. How does this experience impact you as a future BSN prepared nursing leader? Describe related changes to your practice you have implemented or plan to implement as you move forward with your practice and career.