Director of Nursing - Professional Excellence

University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB)•Galveston, TX

39d

About The Position

The Director of Nursing - Professional Excellence provides strategic leadership and oversight for nursing excellence across UTMB Health, including the Magnet Recognition Program, centralized education, nursing strategic planning, and professional practice development. The Director plays a key role in advancing the professional practice model, aligning Magnet principles with system goals, and fostering a culture of excellence, collaboration, and innovation. Scope: The Director of Professional Excellence has strategic influence for nursing practice on the four hospital campuses and over 100 ambulatory clinics. Responsibilities: The Director of Nursing Professional Excellence is directly responsible for the leadership of developing the infrastructure that supports nursing excellence and the outcomes of that infrastructure. Creating a culture of excellence is essential for the best patient, nursing workforce, organizational, and consumer outcomes. Professional Excellence Leadership Provides system-wide leadership in developing and sustaining structures that support Magnet characteristics, including transformational leadership, professional governance, quality outcomes, interprofessional collaboration, evidence-based practice, and innovation. Oversee the centralized nurse educator structure to ensure standardized, evidence-based approaches to education, competency management, and workforce readiness. Directs systemwide development of nursing competencies, professional development programs, and specialty certification initiatives. Leads nursing strategic planning, project management, and internal/external communication initiatives that support organizational goals. Identifies gaps and implements new programs to strengthen nursing excellence. Role Transition & Workforce Development Oversee onboarding, nurse residency, apprenticeship, and leadership development programs that ensure effective role transition and retention. Leads workforce initiatives focused on recruitment, retention, succession planning, and career advancement. Strengthens academic partnerships to align clinical education with workforce needs. Evidence-Based Practice & Research Champions a culture of inquiry and evidence-based decision-making. Supports research dissemination, nursing innovation, and integration of best practices into clinical care. Collaborates with academic and practice partners to advance nursing science. Healthy Work Environment Promotes a culture of respect, collaboration, recognition, and authentic leadership. Develop programs that foster mentorship, professional growth, and shared governance. Strategic Planning & Quality Outcomes Ensures services and programs support optimal patient, workforce, and organizational outcomes. Monitors and reports nursing-sensitive indicators, benchmarking performance against national standards. Collaborates with leaders in nursing quality, informatics, and education to achieve measurable outcomes. Core Competencies: The Director of Professional Excellence performs his/her job by demonstrating technical ability, understanding job expectations, and compliance with organizational policies and procedures. The Director of Professional Excellence performs the following job responsibilities: Leadership Serves as a visible, approachable leader who models excellence and collaboration. Challenges the status quo to drive innovation and improvement. Demonstrates strong communication, facilitation, and problem-solving skills. Balances departmental priorities with system-wide objectives. Budget & Resource Management Develops and manages operating and capital budgets aligned with organizational goals. Build business cases for financial and workforce investments. Ensures fiscal accountability and operational efficiency. Strategic Planning Participates in developing long-range nursing goals and strategic initiatives. Aligns nursing strategy with system priorities to enhance quality, safety, and satisfaction. Monitors progress and outcomes of strategic initiatives. Quality & Compliance Leads quality improvement initiatives that enhance patient and workforce outcomes. Ensures compliance with regulatory and accreditation standards (The Joint Commission, CMS, Magnet, etc.). Utilize performance data to inform improvement and drive accountability. Education & Mentorship Fosters a learning culture that supports professional development and continuing education. Mentors’ leaders and clinicians, promoting evidence-based practice and research engagement. Facilitate dissemination of internal research and best practices to external audiences. Human Resources Leadership Promotes recruitment, retention, and engagement through mentorship and recognition. Develops leadership capacity at all levels through coaching and shared governance. Encourages a culture of respect, inclusivity, and high performance. Communication Maintains transparent and timely communication with nursing staff, physicians, and leadership. Ensures information from leadership meetings and quality initiatives is cascaded effectively. Represents nursing excellence in internal and external forums. Personal and Professional Development Engage in continuous self-development and lifelong learning. Seeks feedback and demonstrates adaptability. Models UTMB’s values and commitment to excellence.

Requirements

Masters degree in Nursing, MBA, MHA or related field plus five (5) years of progressive nursing leadership experience.
BSN and a valid Texas RN license or eligibility to apply for a Texas nursing license.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience as a Magnet Program Director.
A Doctoral degree in nursing or a related field.
Advanced certification in nursing specialty/leadership.

Responsibilities

Provides system-wide leadership in developing and sustaining structures that support Magnet characteristics, including transformational leadership, professional governance, quality outcomes, interprofessional collaboration, evidence-based practice, and innovation.
Oversee the centralized nurse educator structure to ensure standardized, evidence-based approaches to education, competency management, and workforce readiness.
Directs systemwide development of nursing competencies, professional development programs, and specialty certification initiatives.
Leads nursing strategic planning, project management, and internal/external communication initiatives that support organizational goals.
Identifies gaps and implements new programs to strengthen nursing excellence.
Oversee onboarding, nurse residency, apprenticeship, and leadership development programs that ensure effective role transition and retention.
Leads workforce initiatives focused on recruitment, retention, succession planning, and career advancement.
Strengthens academic partnerships to align clinical education with workforce needs.
Champions a culture of inquiry and evidence-based decision-making.
Supports research dissemination, nursing innovation, and integration of best practices into clinical care.
Collaborates with academic and practice partners to advance nursing science.
Promotes a culture of respect, collaboration, recognition, and authentic leadership.
Develop programs that foster mentorship, professional growth, and shared governance.
Ensures services and programs support optimal patient, workforce, and organizational outcomes.
Monitors and reports nursing-sensitive indicators, benchmarking performance against national standards.
Collaborates with leaders in nursing quality, informatics, and education to achieve measurable outcomes.
Serves as a visible, approachable leader who models excellence and collaboration.
Challenges the status quo to drive innovation and improvement.
Demonstrates strong communication, facilitation, and problem-solving skills.
Balances departmental priorities with system-wide objectives.
Develops and manages operating and capital budgets aligned with organizational goals.
Build business cases for financial and workforce investments.
Ensures fiscal accountability and operational efficiency.
Participates in developing long-range nursing goals and strategic initiatives.
Aligns nursing strategy with system priorities to enhance quality, safety, and satisfaction.
Monitors progress and outcomes of strategic initiatives.
Leads quality improvement initiatives that enhance patient and workforce outcomes.
Ensures compliance with regulatory and accreditation standards (The Joint Commission, CMS, Magnet, etc.).
Utilize performance data to inform improvement and drive accountability.
Fosters a learning culture that supports professional development and continuing education.
Mentors’ leaders and clinicians, promoting evidence-based practice and research engagement.
Facilitate dissemination of internal research and best practices to external audiences.
Promotes recruitment, retention, and engagement through mentorship and recognition.
Develops leadership capacity at all levels through coaching and shared governance.
Encourages a culture of respect, inclusivity, and high performance.
Maintains transparent and timely communication with nursing staff, physicians, and leadership.
Ensures information from leadership meetings and quality initiatives is cascaded effectively.
Represents nursing excellence in internal and external forums.
Engage in continuous self-development and lifelong learning.
Seeks feedback and demonstrates adaptability.
Models UTMB’s values and commitment to excellence.