Factors affecting the continuing education of hospital CEOs and their senior managers

This article examines the influences on executives' continuing education in hospitals. It uses data from a national survey on professional development conducted in 2009 by the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) to explore how organizational and individual characteristics are related to the amount of continuing education (CE) taken by chief executive officers (CEOs) and the commitment to CE by their senior managers. Our findings suggest that the organizational characteristics of ownership, size, and region and the individual characteristics of gender, professional affiliation, and the focus of CE may influence how much CE CEOs take. CEOs from for-profit, larger hospitals and ACHE members tend to take less CE. Likewise, senior managers' commitment to CE is influenced by region, gender, the CEO's personal CE hours, and the focus of the CE. Surprisingly, ACHE membership is associated with lower amounts of personal CEO CE. Also, female CEOs appear to engender greater commitment to CE in their senior managers. Finally, CE focused on change increases the senior managers' commitment, while a focus on new technology lessens it. For those organizations seeking to meet current and future challenges by creating a learning organization, CE is essential. Understanding factors that influence the amount of and commitment to CE is important. We hope our research adds to this understanding and that leaders will seek to improve the dedication and value of CE in their organizations.