Developing the Next Generation of Healthcare Leaders - The Leadership College Approach

In healthcare, the leadership crisis is not limited just to issues of scale, economics, or even provider availability. Identifying and cultivating high-performing leaders able to direct future healthcare organizations remains a major industry concern.

Faced with a shrinking talent pool to lead healthcare organizations, a group of top healthcare executives envisioned an industry-specific leadership development initiative that would prepare the next generation of leaders to assume key roles in healthcare. In California, for instance, Duane Dauner, President of the California Healthcare Association, participated in the development of the Leadership College program because of his keen awareness of the need to invest in the next generation of CEOs.

Co-sponsored by CHA, this highly acclaimed college format provides the opportunity to build strong personal leadership capabilities, enabling emerging leaders to generate future success. This format provides learning modules in varied structures, content, faculty, and logistics over a 10-month period. Oversight of the program by CHA and other key development partners attracts leading healthcare executives from multiple institutions.

The Leadership College approach uses assessments, coaching, interactive exercises, and action learning assignments to develop the operational, interpersonal, and overall leadership skills needed for success in a specific industry or profession. The program consists of 75-125 hours of executive learning that is delivered over the course of the 10 months. Because of the nature of the interactive sessions, executive coaching and offline course work augment “live” program days, with the participants going beyond networking to build mutually supportive relationships with other executives.