Director Nursing Workforce Management (RN)

MedStar Health; Columbia (MD); On-site; USD 121,000 - 238,000; Full time

Job summary

MedStar Health in Maryland seeks a Director of Nursing Workforce Management to lead system-wide staffing strategy, internal resource pools, and contract labor across the network.

This role partners with nursing executives and operational leaders, rounds on-site, and drives analytics, budgeting, and workforce optimization to ensure staffing stability.

BSN required; Master’s in nursing or related field preferred; 3–4 years in progressive nursing leadership with workforce management experience.

Qualifications

• BSN required; Master’s degree preferred (Nursing or related field).
• Minimum 3–4 years in progressive nursing leadership and workforce management.
• Strong analytical, financial, and project-management abilities.

Responsibilities

• Provide system-level leadership for nursing and clinical workforce management operations, ensuring staffing resources are effectively aligned with patient care needs and organizational priorities.
• Lead 24/7 centralized staffing and scheduling operations and internal resource pool deployment.
• Monitor staffing patterns, vacancies, productivity, and utilization to identify efficiency opportunities and workforce stability.
• Partner with nursing executives and operational leaders to develop workforce solutions responsive to volumes and clinical needs.
• Develop and implement system-wide workforce management policies, processes, and standards.
• Regularly round at MedStar Health entities to understand local challenges and align strategies.

Skills

Leadership

Analytics

Communication

Relationship-building

Project management

Education

BSN

Master's degree in Nursing or related field

Job description

About the Job

Director, Nursing Workforce Management

General Summary of Position

MedStar Health is seeking an experienced nursing leader to serve as Director of Nursing Workforce Management, providing system-level leadership for nursing workforce operations, staffing strategy, internal resource pools, and supplemental labor management across the MedStar Health system.

Reporting to the Senior Director of Workforce Management Solutions, this leader will oversee the operational infrastructure that supports effective deployment and utilization of nursing and other clinical workforce resources across MedStar Health entities. The Director will lead centralized staffing and scheduling operations, internal resource pool strategies, workforce optimization, payroll operations, and contract labor management while partnering closely with nursing executives and operational leaders throughout the system.

This role requires a leader who understands nursing operations at both the unit and enterprise level and can translate staffing needs, workforce data, financial performance, and operational challenges into practical workforce solutions.

The successful candidate will bring significant nursing leadership experience, strong knowledge of workforce management and staffing operations, and the ability to build trusted relationships with nursing leaders across multiple hospitals and care environments.

This is a highly visible, system-facing position that requires frequent rounding and on-site engagement across MedStar Health entities.

Key Responsibilities

Nursing Workforce Strategy & Operations

• Provide system-level leadership for nursing and clinical workforce management operations, ensuring staffing resources are effectively aligned with patient care needs, workforce requirements, and organizational priorities.
• Lead the daily operations of the centralized staffing and scheduling function, including oversight of 24/7 staffing operations and internal resource/float pool deployment.
• Evaluate staffing patterns, workforce demand, vacancies, productivity, and resource utilization to identify opportunities for greater efficiency and workforce stability.
• Partner with nursing executives, Directors of Nursing, nurse managers, and other operational leaders to develop workforce solutions responsive to changing patient volumes and clinical needs.
• Support the development and implementation of system-wide workforce management policies, processes, standards, and operating practices.
• Regularly round at MedStar Health entities to maintain strong relationships with nursing leaders, understand local workforce challenges, and ensure workforce strategies are effectively supporting operational needs.

Internal Resource Pool & Workforce Optimization

• Provide strategic and operational oversight of internal nursing and clinical resource pools.
• Optimize deployment of float pool and other flexible workforce resources across departments, hospitals, and markets.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen internal workforce capacity and reduce reliance on premium and external labor.
• Partner with entity nursing leadership to evaluate staffing models and develop solutions that improve workforce flexibility, coverage, productivity, and continuity of care.
• Use workforce trends and operational data to anticipate staffing needs and proactively address potential workforce gaps.

Contract & Supplemental Labor Management

• Provide oversight of contract and supplemental clinical workforce utilization across the system.
• Develop and implement strategies designed to appropriately manage and reduce contract labor utilization and expense while maintaining appropriate staffing coverage.
• Establish productive relationships with external staffing agencies and workforce partners.
• Monitor contract labor utilization, agency FTEs, spend, billing, invoicing, and vendor performance.
• Partner with nursing, finance, procurement, and other stakeholders to ensure supplemental workforce resources are utilized effectively and responsibly.

Workforce Analytics, Productivity & Financial Management

• Develop and monitor key workforce performance indicators, including staffing productivity, overtime, agency utilization, absenteeism, resource pool utilization, and other workforce measures.
• Translate workforce data into actionable insights and recommendations for nursing and operational leadership.
• Identify operational trends, risks, and opportunities and lead the development of improvement plans.
• Partner with the Senior Director of Workforce Management Solutions in annual budget planning and ongoing financial management.
• Monitor departmental and workforce-related financial performance and implement strategies to achieve established operational and fiscal goals.

Centralized Staffing, Scheduling & Payroll

• Ensure effective 24/7 operation of centralized staffing and scheduling services.
• Maintain appropriate processes for proactive schedule review, staffing coordination, and movement of clinical personnel across departments and entities.
• Oversee centralized payroll activities supporting multiple departments and workforce groups.
• Partner with Payroll, Human Resources, Nursing, and other stakeholders to resolve payroll, scheduling, and workforce system issues.
• Serve as a subject matter resource regarding workforce management policies, scheduling practices, payroll processes, and related systems.

Leadership & Team Development

• Lead, coach, and develop workforce management leaders and associates, creating a culture of accountability, collaboration, service, and continuous improvement.
• Provide ongoing performance feedback, mentoring, professional development, and career support.
• Participate in hiring, performance management, corrective action, and other leadership responsibilities.
• Partner with nursing leadership and professional development teams to ensure appropriate orientation, competency management, licensure, and ongoing education requirements are maintained.
• Build strong relationships across Nursing, Human Resources, Finance, Payroll, Procurement, Operations, and other key functions.

Project & Change Leadership

• Lead or participate in system-wide workforce management initiatives focused on staffing optimization, technology, scheduling, productivity, internal labor strategies, and workforce transformation.
• Apply strong project management skills to organize complex initiatives involving multiple hospitals, departments, leaders, and stakeholder groups.
• Facilitate implementation of new workforce processes and solutions while ensuring appropriate communication, stakeholder engagement, and adoption.
• Promote continuous improvement and standardization of workforce management practices across MedStar Health.

Minimum Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) required.
• Master's degree required. Master's degree in Nursing preferred; candidates with a BSN may possess a master's degree in healthcare administration, business administration, leadership, or another related field.

Licensure & Certification

• Current Registered Nurse (RN) license in a MedStar Health jurisdiction or Compact State Licensure required.
• Nursing administration, nurse executive, or other relevant professional certification preferred.

Experience

• Minimum of 3-4 years of progressive nursing leadership experience required, with demonstrated responsibility for nursing operations, staffing, workforce management, or resource utilization.
• Demonstrated workforce management experience required. Strong candidates may bring experience leading an internal resource/float pool, centralized staffing operation, workforce management function, or unit-based nursing operations as a Director of Nursing or comparable nursing leader.
• Experience managing complex staffing and scheduling environments strongly preferred.
• Experience with contract, agency, travel, or other supplemental clinical labor preferred.
• Experience leading teams and managing performance, development, and operational accountability required.
• Experience managing workforce productivity, budgets, financial performance, or labor utilization preferred.
• Project management experience or demonstrated success leading complex, cross-functional initiatives preferred.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

• Strong understanding of nursing operations, staffing models, workforce management, and clinical resource utilization.
• Ability to operate effectively in a complex, multi-hospital health system.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret workforce, staffing, productivity, and financial data and translate findings into action.
• Excellent relationship-building and influencing skills, particularly with nursing executives and operational leaders.
• Strong project management, organizational, and change leadership capabilities.
• Financial acumen and understanding of labor utilization, productivity, premium labor, and contract workforce expense.
• Ability to balance enterprise standards with the operational needs of individual hospitals and nursing departments.
• Strong communication, presentation, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to lead through influence across multiple departments and organizational levels.
• Commitment to developing high-performing teams and creating an inclusive, collaborative leadership environment.

Position Requirements

This is a system-level leadership role with significant visibility across MedStar Health. The Director must be able and willing to frequently travel to and round at MedStar Health hospitals and other entities to engage nursing leaders, understand workforce needs, support implementation, and strengthen system-wide workforce management practices.

This position has a hiring range of USD $120,702.00 - USD $238,222.00 /Yr.