Leadership is a vital part of any project’s implementation; thus, the appropriate style must be identified and used throughout the process. Indeed, managing teams and addressing the inevitable changes requires a person in charge to be influential, flexible, and open to communication (Cziraki et al., 2018). When a project is complex or includes diverse participants, multiple leadership styles can be applied simultaneously. For instance, managing nursing practitioners is beneficial through visionary strategies, while the transformational approach is more appropriate for physicians. I agree with your statement that “the leader can motivate his team members by establishing a shared vision that can be identified by all the project participants.” Furthermore, the willingness to keep working and face the issues can be encouraged by an executive; thus, this person must be trustworthy and have authority for each participant.
You also provided a valuable insight that although project management and leadership styles are the terms of the same field of activity – execution, they are different. The latter is dedicated to inter-personal relationships and individual patience, communication traits, and capabilities. Project management, in contrast, is process-driven and reflects how to implement an idea to make a significant change in practice, and it might not depend on participants’ motivation to complete (Hopper & Zborowski, 2018). The difference of the terms enables nursing practitioners to question what to prioritize to achieve results. Based on your response, the answer is that the leadership styles must be learned and understood first, as most of the practice’s processes are tied to execution. Furthermore, project management outlines and strategies are adjustable and can be changed during the implementation, while if a leadership style was selected incorrectly, it may have severe irreversible consequences such as noncompliance.
Modern advanced practice nurses (APRN) should indeed have well-developed leadership skills as their work includes multiple management activities, extended responsibilities, and communication with colleagues who need motivation and guidance. Furthermore, they must be familiar with the diverse execution styles and be able to select the appropriate based on their team members’ specifications and characteristics necessary for achieving goals (Lai et al., 2020). Transformational leadership is a novel and workable strategy for APRNs to use in their work while addressing their practicum issues. You correctly mentioned that such an execution style “involves visioning the desired outcome, analyzing present reality, and realizing the opportunities for improved healthcare delivery via culture change within an organization.” Project management in the modern clinical setting enables practitioners to develop advanced and complicated plans for achieving the desired goals, and without proper leadership and teamwork, success chances are low.
Your post provides valuable information about leadership and project management strategies because it is based on the actual practice problem you are involved in. As expediting discharges to facilitate early room turnovers to improve ED throughput is crucial for any hospital, the complex project management strategy may be created and then adjusted to the specific aspects or team members’ capabilities. The insight worth highlighting in your post is that the emergency department has multiple leaders who must cooperate for efficient work and not cross each other’s interests. I agree with your opinion that leadership must be based on transparent communication and develop facilitators’ skills along with the selected management strategy. Transformational leadership is applicable for the projects with multiple executives as it enables the participants to be flexible and timely react to the occurring challenges (Boamah, 2018). APRNs capable of performing and leading the projects that address the culture of change and help organizations improve are valuable contributors to the healthcare quality nationwide.
References
Boamah, S. (2018). Linking nurses’ clinical leadership to patient care quality: The role of transformational leadership and workplace empowerment. Canadian Journal of Nursing Research, 50(1), 9-19. Web.
Cziraki, K., Read, E., Laschinger, H. K. S., & Wong, C. (2018). Nurses’ leadership self-efficacy, motivation, and career aspirations. Leadership in Health Services, 31(1), 47-61. Web.
Hopper, K. B., & Zborowski, M. (2018). Mapping the nursing process to a human performance technology—project management framework. Performance Improvement, 57(7), 7-20. Web.
Lai, F. Y., Tang, H. C., Lu, S. C., Lee, Y. C., & Lin, C. C. (2020). Transformational leadership and job performance: the mediating role of work engagement. SAGE Open, 10(1), 2158244019899085. Web.