4 Ways to Identify and Develop Future Perioperative Nurse Leaders

When a perioperative leadership position opened at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, Nurse Administrator Kayla Simiele, DNP, RN, NPD-BC, and her team noticed something concerning: there was limited interest—and few qualified internal candidates—among staff in the surgical suite and outpatient procedure centers. 

“We knew that it was important for us to prioritize the growth and professional development of our teams,” Dr. Simiele said. But her team was also thinking long-term. They recognized the need to be intentional about succession planning to prepare their perioperative workforce to lead into the future.

This week, the nurses will be sharing the details from their succession planning approach in an education session at the AORN conference in Boston. They previewed four high-level elements of their succession planning framework to help nurse leaders start formulating their own plan:

1. Identify Future Leaders
Keep an eye out for high-potential individuals across your perioperative team. Look for staff who demonstrate the ability to lead themselves and others, inspire and engage colleagues, and think proactively about the future. 

These future leaders may work in a variety of roles, such as operating room or perianesthesia nurse, surgical assistants, and quality specialists, and may be identified and developed for specific leadership roles, such as nursing education specialists, clinical nurse specialists, nurse supervisors, and team leads.

2. Create an Individual Learning Plan 
Support each future leader with a personalized development plan that aligns with their goals and career path. For instance, if a perioperative nurse is interested in becoming a Nursing Education Specialist, their plan might include opportunities to facilitate staff development, serve as adjunct faculty, or become a registered nurse clinical educator (RNCE).

Ongoing mentorship is essential to developing confident, capable nurse leaders. While mentorship can look different for everyone, a strong focus should include skill assessment, goal setting, and consistent support throughout the leadership journey. 

4. Establish Leadership Capability Expectations
At Mayo Clinic in Rochester, a core part of the process was establishing clear leadership capability expectations across all current and future roles. For example, team leads must have strong critical thinking and communication skills.