Development and validation of health service management competencies

Abstract

Purpose The importance of managerial competencies in monitoring and improving the performance of organisational leaders and managers is well accepted. Different processes have been used to identify and develop competency frameworks or models for healthcare managers around the world to meet different contextual needs. The purpose of the paper is to introduce a validated process in management competency identification and development applied in Australia - a process leading to a management competency framework with associated behavioural items that can be used to measure core management competencies of health service managers. Design/methodology/approach The management competency framework development study incorporated both qualitative and quantitative methods, implemented in four stages, including job description analysis, focus group discussions and online surveys. Findings The study confirmed that the four-stage process could identify management competencies and the framework developed is considered reliable and valid for developing a management competency assessment tool that can measure management competence amongst managers in health organisations. In addition, supervisors of health service managers could use the framework to distinguish perceived superior and average performers among managers in health organisations. Practical implications Developing the core competencies of health service managers is important for management performance improvement and talent management. The six core management competencies identified can be used to guide the design professional development activities for health service managers. Originality/value The validated management competency identification and development process can be applied in other countries and different industrial contexts to identify core management competency requirements.

Developing senior hospital managers: does ‘one size fit all’? – evidence from the evolving Chinese health system

“…The findings contrast to a recent management competency study in Australia targeting senior managers in both public hospitals and community health services [26]. This study confirmed that more than two thirds of the senior managers working in both the public hospitals and community health services in Victoria (one of the largest Australian States) possessed a postgraduate qualification.…”

“…Although management competencies are context sensitive [25], the literature confirms the existence of core competency requirements across management levels and positions [26][27][28]. Hence a competency framework identified in one healthcare context can be applied to other contexts after being tested.…”

The Odyssey of Integration: Is Management its Achilles’ Heel?

“…There was general agreement amongst participants that in order to be a successful manager of integrated care, both aspects, learned behaviour and innate personality, were important, thus echoing the discussions in more recent management theory that both intrinsic and extrinsic factors make good managers [56,58]. Whilst some managers had a more natural leaning towards integrated care, it was thought that all could develop the necessary competences with personal commitment and a supportive environment.…”

“…The question of what makes a good manager has interested philosophers and statesmen throughout the ages. Whilst there is recognition that the demands made on a manager will vary dependant on the context and their particular role, considerable work has been done to clarify what competences are required by managers within healthcare settings [13,18,28,30,31,49,56]. Pihlainen et al (2016)'s [57] systematic review suggests that competences related to the healthcare context have social, organisational, and financial dimensions, and that these should be demonsrated alongside operational (i.e.…”

Sino-Australian University Partnership in Health Management Education

“…The University had a long running successful Master of Health Administration (MHA) program for Australian managers. The La Trobe MHA program was particularly attractive to the Chinese health managers for its practice orientated approach designed around a validated management competency framework [details about the competency framework have been published elsewhere, (8)(9)(10)]. La Trobe University (LTU) draws many Asian students.…”