Director Of Nursing Operations

Hospital for Special Care • New Britain, CT

4d • $60 - $93 • Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Nursing Operations is a senior nursing leader accountable for the safe, effective, efficient, and equitable delivery of nursing operations across the organization. Reporting to the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO), the Director serves as a key liaison among the CNO, Clinical Managers, off-shift nursing leadership, and the Staffing Office. The Director provides visible leadership across shifts; optimizes staffing, scheduling, workforce deployment, and operational resources; advances quality, safety, regulatory readiness, and performance improvement; and develops nurse leaders to achieve organizational and nursing strategic priorities.

Requirements

• Current, unrestricted licensure as a Registered Nurse in the State of Connecticut.
• Master’s degree in Nursing; or BSN with a master’s degree in management, organizational development, healthcare administration, or a related field.
• Minimum of five years of progressive nursing leadership/management experience.
• Demonstrated leadership, interpersonal, conflict-management, and relationship-building skills.
• Excellent written, verbal, presentation, and executive communication skills.
• Demonstrated knowledge of nursing operations, staffing and scheduling, workforce management, quality and patient safety, regulatory requirements, performance improvement, and fiscal stewardship.
• Ability to interpret and use workforce, quality, operational, and financial data to guide decisions and improve outcomes.

Nice To Haves

• Previous nursing leadership experience at the Director level or comparable scope of accountability.
• Proficiency with workforce-management, scheduling, productivity, and other complex healthcare information systems.

Responsibilities

• Translates the nursing and organizational strategic plan into operational priorities, measurable goals, and sustained results.
• Provides visible, accessible leadership across shifts and locations, including regular engagement with off-shift nursing personnel and the HfSC Satellite.
• Leads complex operational change using systems thinking, sound judgment, evidence, and structured change-management principles.
• Serves as a professional resource, coach, and escalation point for Clinical Managers and other nursing leaders.
• Represents the CNO and nursing leadership, as delegated, to support continuity of leadership and successful patient care operations.
• Leads or supports crisis response, operational contingency planning, and organizational resilience activities.
• Directly manages designated nursing operational leaders, including off-shift managers and the Staffing Office Manager, and establishes clear expectations, accountability, and development plans.
• Directly manages Care Coordination, Case Management and Social Work departments.
• Ensures equitable, transparent, and efficient house-wide staffing and scheduling practices consistent with patient needs, staff competencies, budget parameters, policies, and regulatory requirements.
• Forecasts short- and long-range staffing needs and develops mitigation plans for vacancies, leaves, orientation needs, census changes, and other workforce demands.
• Manages and optimizes nursing staffing resources, including licensed nurses, CNAs, PSAs, and other assigned resources.
• Audits scheduling and timekeeping practices, including coding, PTO, staffing requirements, and accuracy of staffing-needs data; addresses trends and variances.
• Ensures effective use and continuous optimization of workforce scheduling systems, including ShiftWizard or successor platforms.
• Partners with Human Resources, Talent Acquisition, nursing leaders, and education partners on recruitment, onboarding, engagement, retention, succession planning, and workforce stabilization strategies.
• Develops pipelines and relationships that support recruitment of student nurses and other priority talent.
• Partners with the CNO, Quality, Clinical Managers, and interdisciplinary leaders to advance nursing-sensitive quality, patient safety, and experience outcomes.
• Promotes a just culture, psychological safety, high reliability, and continuous learning; ensures timely escalation and follow-through on identified risks or operational deficiencies.
• Uses performance-improvement and improvement-science methods to identify gaps, implement interventions, evaluate outcomes, and sustain gains.
• Supports compliance with applicable federal and state regulations, accreditation standards, organizational policies, and professional nursing standards.
• Maintains operational oversight of assigned clinical support systems, including telemonitoring resources and system functionality, and escalates technology or workflow risks appropriately.
• Promotes evidence-based practice and standardization of care delivery in partnership with clinical and professional development leaders.
• Monitors nursing staffing metrics, FTE utilization, productivity, overtime, premium labor, and budget performance; identifies trends and implements corrective action when indicated.
• Provides managers and the CNO with clear, actionable analysis of workforce, operational, quality, and financial performance.
• Balances patient care requirements, workforce well-being, quality outcomes, and fiscal responsibility when allocating resources.
• Participates in annual operating and workforce planning and supports business cases, resource allocation, and growth initiatives as directed by the CNO.
• Builds trusting, collaborative relationships across nursing, medical staff, ancillary departments, Human Resources, Finance, Quality, and other organizational partners.
• Communicates decisions, expectations, and operational priorities clearly and transparently and adapts communication to diverse audiences.
• Facilitates constructive conflict resolution, consensus building, and interdisciplinary problem solving.
• Promotes psychological safety, staff engagement, professional accountability, inclusion, recognition, and a healthy work environment.
• Rounds with leaders and staff to identify barriers, reinforce priorities, recognize contributions, and ensure timely follow-up.
• Develops Clinical Managers and other nursing leaders through coaching, mentoring, feedback, performance management, and succession planning.
• Models ethical leadership, integrity, accountability, self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and commitment to the organization’s mission, vision, and values.
• Maintains professional competence and pursues ongoing leadership development relevant to nursing operations and executive practice.
• Supports leader well-being and sustainable leadership practices while maintaining accountability for operational outcomes.

Benefits

• employer-subsidized medical and dental
• vision insurance
• a 403(b) retirement savings plan with an employer match of up to 6%
• paid time off
• employer-paid life insurance
• short-term and long-term disability insurance
• a Health Savings Account (HSA) with employer contributions
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
• an Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• tuition reimbursement and professional development opportunities
• voluntary benefits, including pet insurance
• employee wellness programs with access to our onsite fitness and aquatics center
• an employee referral bonus program
• meaningful employee recognition and appreciation initiatives

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director