ATTACHMENT

Assume you are the assistant to the executive at a local health care organization, planning a presentation on strategy to the board of directors (governing board) of the facility. As you prepare the content for the presentation, it is essential that you understand the role of the board of directors as well as the roles of the executive leadership team. You have decided to research these roles in terms of strategic planning. Your manager has asked you to prepare a summary of the differences between leadership and board governance in establishing strategic planning for a health care organization and submit it to him before the strategy presentation.

PART1: You’ve already completed it.

Part 2:  Group Feedback:

As a team, comment on the following elements of at least 2 other team members’ summaries:

· Do you agree or disagree with their evaluation of the differences? Why or why not? Provide evidence from your research to support your position.

Summary 1: Strategic planning within organizations is a crucial element to that organization’s success. Strategic planning is an overall road map of where the organization currently stands and where the organization wants to be down the road. Utilizing board governance and organizational leadership is important as the board delegates the plan and how it is expected to be carried out over several years and leadership manages the organization and leads the employees for the best outcomes. Board governance within the context of strategic planning is putting in an effort to produce a decision by using authority, control and direction over the organization. The boards main responsibility is to assess issues and opportunities for the organization to improve. Furthermore, “Board governance is tasked with understanding an organization’s collective goals while working with a committee to improve an organization’s position.” (Unique Writers Bay, 2021). The organizational leaderships responsibility in strategic planning is to communicate the organizations strategic foresight to employees of the organization. In strategic planning, “Leadership encapsulates all individuals within the organization who have been accorded a level of authority to support the organization’s objectives.” (Unique Writers Bay, 2021). The major difference between board governance and leadership is, “…governance is a process of implementing power as opposed to leadership which is primarily based on the skill of guiding individuals.” (Unique Writers Bay, 2021). Board governance is in charge of giving the organizational oversight on strategic policies where the leadership guides the individuals on how to implement strategies handed down by the board. 

Both leadership and board governance are absolutely needed when it comes to strategic planning. The board is required to evaluate and identify specific strategies to help improve the organizations position. Micro-managing is not something the board is looking to do when it comes to strategic planning which is why organizational leadership is required. Both the board and organizational leadership work hand in hand when it comes to strategic planning. Without leadership there would be no guidance among the organization and the board would be required to lead. The two work together to achieve a specific set of objectives for the organization. It is important for board governance and organizational leadership to continue to work together to achieve the best possible outcomes for the organization. 

References:

Eisenstein, W. by L., & Eisenstein, L. (2019, December 19). The role of the Board of Directors in strategic management. BoardEffect. Retrieved September 21, 2022, from https://www.boardeffect.com/blog/role-board-directors-strategic-management/

The role of the Board of Directors in Strategic Planning: Diligent Insights. Diligent Corporation. (n.d.). Retrieved September 21, 2022, from https://www.diligent.com/insights/board-of-directors/role-board-directors-strategic-planning/

UniqueWritersBay. (2021, August 7). Difference between leadership and board governance in establishing strategic planning for a health care organization. UniqueWritersBay. Retrieved September 21, 2022, from https://uniquewritersbay.com/difference-between-leadership-and-board-governance-in-establishing-strategic-planning-for-a-health-care-organization/ 

Summary 2: Governance, Leadership, and Strategic Planning

Board governance within the context of strategic planning involves the members of the board of directors ensuring that the strategic plans of the organization align with its vision (Harrison, 2020). In line with this role, the board is tasked with the role of conducting internal and external analyses of the organization to determine the strategic gaps that guide the identification of the strategic options. It is these strategic options that guide the executive leadership of the organization in formulating the strategic plan (Jiang el at., 2011). Board governance also involves the identification of priorities, goals, and objectives that must be achieved to guarantee the continuity and sustainability of the operations of the organization. Also, governance entails the findings of the resources and the allocation of funds to ensure the strategic imperatives of the organization are attained. The board then conducts oversight to ensure the strategic imperatives are captured in the strategic plan for implementation. 

Organizational leadership within the context of strategic planning is understood as the members of the leadership team that act as the change drivers as envisaged in the strategic plan of the organization (Austin el at., 2016). The organizational leadership must ensure the organization has the needed capabilities to implement the strategic activities identified in the strategic plan and also nurture the envisaged organizational culture to guarantee the execution of the strategy. 

The difference between leadership and board governance in establishing strategic planning for a health care organization is that board governance is concerned with policy formulation that provides the strategic direction for the organization. Also, board governance involves decision-making with regard to strategic choices and then conducting oversight to ensure the strategic direction is being followed (Mannion el at., 2015). On the contrary, leadership is mainly focused on identifying and motivating the team with the right skills and competencies to implement the strategy, develop the action plans, and operationalize the activities identified in the strategic plan.

Leadership and board governance are both needed and necessary as they have a symbiotic relationship. The two leadership structures work collaboratively as governance provides the direction and strategy that guide the leadership. The leadership then ensures the outcomes envisaged in the strategy are attained.

References:

Austin, J., Bentkover, J. & Chait, L. (2016). Leading strategic change in an era of healthcare transformation (1st ed). New York. Springer. 

Harrison, J. (2020). Essentials of strategic planning in healthcare (3rd ed). New York. Cengage Learning. 

Jiang, H., Lockee, C., Bass, K. & Fraser, I. (2011). Enhancing board oversight on quality of hospital care: An agency theory perspective. Health Care Management Review, 37(2), 44-53.

Mannion, R., Davies, H., Freeman, T., Millar, R., Jacobs, R. & Kasteridis, P. (2015). Overseeing oversight: Governance of quality and safety by hospital boards in the English NHS. Journal of Health Services Research and Policy, 20(1), 9-16.

Part 3:  Individual Final Summary

Individually, prepare a 350-word summary for your manager to demonstrate your evaluation of the role differences between leadership and board governance in establishing strategic planning for your health care organization. Include the following in your summary:

· Definition of board governance within the context of strategic planning

· Definition of organizational leadership within the context of strategic planning

· Evaluation of the differences between leadership and board governance in establishing strategic planning for a health care organization