American College of Healthcare Executives

Leaders aren’t pricing what the decision costs the leadership pipeline, because the pipeline is not on anyone's scorecard. In Heidrick & Struggles' 2026 CEO & Board Confidence Monitor, more than two-thirds reported being very confident in their executive leadership team's ability to deliver on the strategic plan. Building and sustaining a healthy organizational culture drew the highest confidence of any risk area, at 54%. Organizations feel well led.

When I joined USC Arcadia Hospital eight months after it became a part of Keck Medicine of USC in 2022, the community hospital environment and its associated challenges were familiar. The post-pandemic years for our nation’s approximately 6,000 community hospitals have been rough. Rising operational costs, declining reimbursement, larger competitor hospitals and other issues pressured bottom lines and challenged the ability to sustain the programs and services communities need.

Public confidence in vaccination is under pressure. Reports suggest the U.S. may be at risk of losing its measles elimination status this year, seasonal flu vaccination rates have softened in several recent surveillance reports, and unverified claims circulating on social media continue to compete with sound medical guidance for people's attention and trust. This isn't a failure of science; it's a failure of the communication of science.

Healthcare environments are competitive, mission-driven and often unforgiving. Many professionals may spend years waiting to feel fully confident before speaking up, leading or pursuing new opportunities. And yet, confidence rarely comes first. More often, confidence is built through action, overcoming discomfort and repeated engagement in spaces that stretch us professionally.

Perfectionism is a tricky thing in healthcare. After all, this is an industry in which details matter. High standards matter. And mistakes can impact actual lives. So, perfectionism can seem pretty innocent. Admirable, even. But it’s not. Perfectionism isn’t about getting it right. It’s about avoiding getting it wrong. We’ve been studying perfectionism in the workplace for years, and one of the things I’ve learned is that we’ve been looking at it in completely the wrong way.

Discover the FACHE Credential Become board certified in healthcare management as a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. The FACHE® credential demonstrates your ongoing commitment to professional growth and advancing healthcare.

Healthcare organizations have spent years elevating physician executives into more consequential roles. The direction is right: Clinical decisions increasingly shape enterprise performance. But here is the uncomfortable truth: Many organizations are expanding physician leadership roles faster than they’re preparing physicians for these roles. WittKieffer's research found that 81% of physician leaders say their responsibilities have expanded significantly or moderately over the past three years.

Health systems differ in size and vision, but one goal they have in common today is the journey to value-based care. Massive consolidation is accelerating this trend, especially as systems become more vertically integrated. As part of this journey, leaders in health systems are asking, What can I do to provide a consistent experience for patients and employees wherever we provide care?

Many emerging healthcare leaders spend a tremendous amount of energy trying to identify the "right" career path. Should they pursue an administrative fellowship? Move into hospital operations? Lead a department? Join a consulting firm? These are reasonable questions. We search for the optimal sequence of jobs, titles and promotions.

In a recent editorial, I discussed how leaders spend considerable time designing systems to identify errors, track deficiencies and correct underperformance. Let’s consider the other side of the coin: catching people doing the right things. Most organizations have become highly efficient at finding what is wrong. Dashboards, audits and reporting structures are designed to uncover gaps, deviations and failures. These systems are necessary.