Dallas, March 24, 2025 (Globe Newswire) – Nearly half of hospitals, medical groups and other healthcare facilities leaders intend to leave the organization in the next 12 months, according to a new study examining the plans, perspectives and challenges facing medical executives in 2025.
The 2025 Healthcare Leadership Trends Survey conducted by Be Smith, a leading provider of Healthcare Executive Search Services and AMN Healthcare company, reflects the overall volatility status of healthcare workers.
“We are pleased to announce that Mary Newell, vice president of leadership search at AMN Healthcare,” said: “After the pandemic, many health professionals are reassessing where, when and how they work.”
Of the nearly 600 medical executives surveyed, 46% said they plan to leave the organization within the next year, while 26% said they would do so immediately or within the next six months. A majority (74%) say they received a trusted job offer within the last six months, suggesting that many people planning to leave the organization have options to choose from.
It may be difficult to fill a place that is left empty. 80% of those surveyed said filling in health executive positions in today's market was very, very, or moderately challenging. Using interim executives may be one way to fill open positions. Last year, 80% of those surveyed using interim leaders did so to fill temporary open positions.
New Leadership Role
Management was asked which healthcare leadership roles are likely to be important in 2025. Three of the four identified roles include leadership roles in technology management, information technology, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence.
“People are accelerating the application of technology to improve efficiency, enhance clinical diagnosis and outcomes, and protect patient data,” Newell said. “This requires optimal application of both hard assets and leadership talent.”
Destroyers and growth strategies
Healthcare executives identified “financial pressures and constraints” and “workforce issues” as two factors that are most likely to destroy healthcare facility operations in 2025. Both have been the result of patchwork refund models and chronic labor shortages over the years.
Healthcare leaders evaluated “expanding existing service lines” as their main revenue growth strategy for next year, followed by “significant cost savings” and “addition of new service lines.” According to Newell, hospitals in recent years have focused on building outpatient service lines as a way to gain revenue and market share, but cost reductions are a response to the inflationary pressures faced by many industries these days.
Cautious optimism
Medical executives have been asked to assess the financial and operating conditions they expect to encounter at the facility in 2025, with the majority reflecting a mood of cautious optimism. While one-third of 2025 (34%) expects better than 2024, 48% expects no change, only 18% expects poor conditions. Survey respondents were somewhat less optimistic about the financial and operating conditions facing the healthcare industry as a whole. 39% expects no change since last year. 30% expect conditions to improve, while 31% expect them to deteriorate.
Be Smith's Healthcare Leadership Trends Survey is run annually to assess the plans, perspectives and challenges healthcare leaders face next year. The 2025 survey was based on 588 responses from medical executives across the country. A copy of the research report can be accessed in the 2025 white paper BES Healthcare Leadership Trends
About Smith and AMN Healthcare
Be Smith is a leading provider of interim healthcare executives, healthcare executives and academic search services, and is a division of AMN Healthcare. AMN Healthcare is a leader and innovator in Total Human Resources Solutions for healthcare organizations across the nation. Through a steady partnership approach, we solve the most pressing workforce challenges and enable better clinical outcomes and access to care. We provide a comprehensive network of quality healthcare professionals, providing fully integrated, customizable workforce technology.
