BUSI 646
Managing Human Capital in Healthcare
Dr. Colleen McLaughlin
2/19/23
Joshua-Paul Johnian Sr.
Discussion Reply: Recruitment – Cinnamon
Introduction
Cinnamon, thank you for your submission on the role and function of a healthcare CEO.
The leadership qualities of a CEO can be the defining marker in economic success and failure,
therefore, resulting in an even more significant relationship between human resources
management (HRM) and recruitment. I enjoyed your research approach as you provided specific
examples of CEOs' importance in their leadership, vision casting, and overall financial guidance.
In my reply, I will provide additional research that expands the topic and Biblical applications for
consideration.
The CEO and Recruitment
Typically, most individuals believe corporations benefit from extended periods of
executive leadership. For example, every company has a founder; however, most founders are no
longer connected with their original corporation or business model. Why? While every company
requires a pioneer to champion a new business or idea over time, other partnerships are essential
for any idea to grow, often resulting in changes in the executive leadership. Within healthcare,
the same cycle is mirrored, as evidenced by the recent announcement of a new CEO at the Irish
Medical Council. In this recent change, Bill Prasfika would be leaving his current role, which he
held for five years, to assume the position of Director of the Medical Board in California.
Furthermore, before working as CEO of the Medical Council, Mr. Prasifka was a lawyer and
chairman of the financial services and competition authority in aviation regulation (Ryan, 2020).
It may seem like an unlikely journey for a lawyer to excel through corporate compliance,
financial services, and aviation regulation to the medical council and the CEO of the Medical
Board of California. However, recruitment and HRM were essential in identifying qualified
personnel and their ability to provide effective leadership at the highest level.
McConnell provides further insight into the recruitment process, writing, “whether
referral and reward programs do or do not exist, a fundamental truth of recruiting remains.
Whether they are directly or indirectly, satisfied employees are often an organization's most
effective recruiters” (McConnell, p. 204, 2021). McConnell’s research highlights the inadvertent
role a company's culture and employees provide since a healthy company presents an inviting
opportunity where a new CEO can thrive with an already established culture of success.
However, even a hostile environment can be enticing for a new CEO since they focus on shaping
financial policy with their experience. Nguyen et al. (2021) demonstrate this dynamic in research
explaining the difference between older and younger CEOs and their approaches to corporate
risk, investment policies, and R&D (Nguyen et al., 2021).
A similar example can be read in the Biblical text when wise leadership proved more
beneficial in critical times of the Hebrew's journey. In Deuteronomy, we read, “Choose wise,
understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads
over you.’ Moreover, you answered me and said, ‘The thing which you have told us to do is
good.’ So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and knowledgeable men, and made them heads
over you, leaders of thousands, leaders of hundreds, leaders of fifties, leaders of tens, and
officers for your tribes.” (NKJV) The explicit instruction from God not only placed a burden of
responsibility on selecting the correct leaders but in a precursor to modern HMR recruitment
strategies, their natural qualifications were an essential factor in their ability to lead and provide
a comprehensive strategy that would benefit the cohort and overall people.
CEOs and HRM
Since selecting a CEO is vital to setting a future course for a corporation, ongoing
success can only be developed through building a team that can carry the vision and goal of the
company further. To aid in this process, HRM specialists support these goals through strategic
decision-making that often operates behind the scenes. Interestingly, this dynamic cannot be
applied universally since not all cultures and governments utilize their CEO or corporate
structures similarly. For example, recent research that compared the relationship between CEOs
and HRM, combined with strategic management, found very different results between China and
Australia. Since China’s economy and government operate under a Communist model, the
CEO’s function is that of an authoritarian who utilizes HRM to ensure labor and production is in
keeping with the overall mandates of the government. In contrast, Australia's approach to CEO
and HRM relationships is Western; in their approach, and the relationship is more collaborative.
Zhao et al. (2019) determined that CEO support for HRM was not only encouraged but essential
in related strategic decision-making in Australia, whereas, in China, they responded more
favorably to an HRM model that reinforced collectivism where the CEO was less prominent in
setting the vision for corporate goals and benchmarks (Zhao et al., 2019).
While contemporary theorists and economists argue the various methods and merits of
competing for HRM and senior leadership approaches, the Bible provides clear principles and
guidelines that can be applied across all levels of leadership, business, and society. In Titus 1:7-
14 we read, “For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-
tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but hospitable, a lover of what is
good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word as he has been
taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict.
(NKJV) While it may not be commonplace to mix HRM recruitment policies with Biblical
approaches, the function of a CEO and all employees must demonstrate the highest levels of
honesty, clarity, and sincerity. It is unreasonable to assume all companies will be operated by
Christian or according to Christ-like principles; however, Biblical instruction can provide a
modern template for HRM specialists who are tasked with recruitment and the overall retention
of quality staff, so the corporate goals are not only met but continue to grow. Finally, a healthy
HRM will also identify the correct CEO for the specific chapter of corporate leadership. While a
CEO may only be with a corporation for a short time, the importance of their hiring and
leadership will impact many generations beyond their professional tenure.
Thank you for your submission.
References
McConnell, C. (2021). Human Resources Management in Healthcare: Principles in Practice.
Burlington: Jones and Bartlett Learning.
Nguyen, M. H., Tran Thi My Ha, & Vuong, P. M. (2021). The effect of CEO characteristics on
financial leverage: Findings from listed companies in Vietnam.Cogent Business &
Management, 8(1)https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2021.2002129
Ryan, V. (2020). Medical council to begin recruiting new CEO. Irish Medical Times, 54(4), 4–4.
The New King James Version (Dt 1:13–15). (1982). Thomas Nelson.
The New King James Version (Tt 1:7–15). (1982). Thomas Nelson.
Zhao, S., Sheehan, C., De Cieri, H., & Cooper, B. (2019). A comparative study of HR
involvement in strategic decision-making in China and Australia. Chinese Management
Studies, 13(2), 258–275. https://doi.org/10.1108/CMS-08-2018-0643
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