CEO Turnover Highest at Nevada Hospitals

Dolan says about one-third of CEO departures are considered involuntary, in which the board and the CEO were just not a good fit, or the CEO died, or was terminated for job performance, or ethics violations. But about two-thirds are voluntary, such as the CEO just wanting to retire, a growing trend as baby boomers age, and which some CEOs may have postponed a year or two due to the recession.

According to an ACHE report last year, the average hospital CEO tenure is 5.6 years with a median of 3.6. Only 3.4% had a continuous tenure of 20 or more years. And 57% of first time-CEOS were promoted from within their organizations.

In addition to loss of continuity, the report said, employee morale likely suffers, as does board and community relations and hospital culture.

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