As healthcare organizations face mounting pressures — from workforce shortages to shifting regulations — the need for experienced physician leadership has never been greater. As Director of Physician Executive Recruitment at Jackson Physician Search, I see it every day in my work with clients. These organizations are seeking strong physician executives to guide their organizations through uncertain times. While some searches aim to fill newly created roles, just as often they’re initiated to replace a departing physician executive — typically due to retirement.
When possible, I recommend involving the departing physician in the search for a successor. After all, who knows the role better than the person currently doing the work? I appreciate their insight into the traits and skills necessary for the role. This helps me craft an ideal physician executive candidate profile.
I’m always impressed when this part of the process is already in place. Occasionally, the organizations I work with have a physician leader succession plan that includes the current leader’s thoughts on the ideal candidate, as well as the duties and responsibilities associated with the role. This one simple step of succession planning enables us to open the search immediately, with a comprehensive job description ready to post.
This is just one of many benefits of involving physician leaders in succession planning. Yet, many organizations treat succession planning as an HR exercise — an administrative function that happens when someone announces their departure. However, when it comes to physician leaders, working collaboratively is essential. In this blog post, we’ll not only look at why getting physician leaders involved in succession planning is essential, but also how and when to do it.
3 Reasons to Include Physician Leaders in Succession Planning
Involving physician executives in their own succession planning is much more than just a courtesy. It’s about safeguarding continuity, strengthening the leadership pipeline, and ensuring that the next generation of leaders is prepared to carry the organization forward.
1. Protect Continuity of Care
Physician executives occupy a unique position between bedside and boardroom. They know the nuances of patient care and the administrative realities that support it. Organizations risk losing this institutional knowledge when they rely on interim appointments, rushed searches, or external hires who lack cultural fit. These reactive transitions can be disruptive to patient care and demoralizing to staff — not to mention expensive.
By contrast, involving physician leaders in succession planning makes the process intentional. It allows time to cultivate internal talent, clarify leadership expectations, and, when needed, recruit strategically. Most importantly, it signals to staff and stakeholders that leadership is stable, thoughtful, and committed to continuity.
2. Build an Internal Leadership Pipeline
Succession planning should be more than a search for the next Chief Medical Officer. It’s a chance to cultivate a pipeline of emerging leaders who reflect the organization’s culture and strategic goals. Physician executives can work with boards to:
- Define leadership readiness criteria that go beyond clinical excellence to include strategic thinking, emotional intelligence, and operational acumen.
- Create rotational leadership opportunities to expose future leaders to budget oversight, committee chair roles, or cross-functional projects.
- Support leadership development programs and executive coaching tailored to physicians.
- Encourage physicians to articulate their leadership ambitions and map out personalized development plans.
These efforts not only prepare future leaders but also foster a culture of growth and accountability across the medical staff.
3. Leverage Physician Leader Networks
Physician leaders at your organization often have broad professional networks that span clinical, academic, and administrative circles. These connections represent a powerful, yet underutilized, asset in building an external leadership pipeline. By encouraging physician executives to cultivate these networks actively — particularly through regular attendance at industry conferences, leadership summits, and specialty seminars — they not only stay informed on emerging trends but also serve as ambassadors for your organization. Involving physician leaders in succession planning means they will be more likely to leverage this network when the time comes to look for successors.
How to Involve Physician Leaders in Succession Planning
Involving physician executives should go beyond asking them to suggest a replacement. The process works best when it is structured, intentional, and aligned with organizational goals. Here are strategies healthcare administrators can use:
- Encourage early conversations.
Ask physician leaders approaching retirement to give ample notice — not just of their departure, but of their intent to collaborate on succession. Our past physician retirement research found a significant gap between what physicians perceive to be acceptable notice and what administrators expect. So, start those retirement conversations early and have them often, ensuring physician leaders feel comfortable and confident that their timelines will be respected. Be transparent about the ideal notice period. A 12–24 month runway provides time to identify, assess, and prepare potential successors. - Define leadership readiness criteria together.
Work with physician executives to outline what “ready” looks like. Does the next leader need experience in quality and safety oversight? A track record in financial stewardship? Strong credibility with clinical staff? Establishing criteria upfront makes succession planning transparent and consistent. - Create rotational leadership opportunities.
Not all future leaders need to be identified today, but they do need exposure. Physician executives can help design stretch assignments such as committee chair roles, budget oversight, or operational improvement projects. These rotations give rising talent a chance to demonstrate capabilities and build confidence. - Support leadership development.
Executive coaching, physician leadership programs, and structured mentorship should all be on the table. Current leaders can help match emerging talent with the right resources and provide ongoing feedback to support their development. -
Consider interim or assistant roles.
If no clear successor exists, leadership may want to consider hiring an assistant chief medical officer (ACMO) or similar role to work closely with the outgoing leader. By gradually transferring duties over a three to six-month period, the outgoing physician executive ensures continuity while the incoming leader gains real-time experience. In my former work as Director of Physician Executive Recruitment for a national hospital system, we often used ACMO roles as a bridge, and the model remains effective.
A Call to Action for Healthcare Administrators
Healthcare administrators should not wait until a resignation letter is on their desk to think about succession planning. Instead, they should proactively engage physician leaders in succession planning conversations. This means:
- Asking leaders about their career timelines well before retirement.
- Formalizing leadership pipelines with input from current physician executives.
- Encouraging transparency around leadership ambitions among rising physicians.
- Investing in development opportunities that prepare future leaders.
Succession planning done well doesn’t just replace a role. It strengthens the entire leadership culture. When physician leaders are involved in the process, they help ensure that transitions are smooth, intentional, and aligned with the organization’s values.
If your organization is seeking physician leaders, the Physician Executive Search team at Jackson Physician Search is eager to leverage our vast network and expertise to help you find the best candidate for your organization. Reach out today to learn more.
About Mark Dotson
Mark began his career recruiting for Allied Health Therapists (PT, OT, and SLP) for long-term care facilities in 1996. In 2002, he joined HCA Healthcare, recruiting physicians of multiple specialties in the Tennessee, Kentucky, and Indiana markets. He also worked to develop a team dedicated to sourcing physicians nationally in specific areas of focus for the organization, helping HCA establish an in-house hospital service line for many of its hospitals. Mark saw the growing need for this line of service and was recruited to lead the recruitment effort of Cogent Healthcare.
Mark spent the next nine years in Hospital Medicine recruitment and business development with different companies before finding his way back to HCA. In 2016, he began leading HCA’s Physician Executive Recruitment and Development for the entire country. He quickly realized that combining his focus and excitement for working with physicians and helping grow their careers outside a clinical setting was a perfect fit for him. During his tenure, HCA established CMOs in more than 100+ facilities, as well as created and grew a new entry point for physicians to become leaders by adding the position of ACMO. In 2023, Mark led the company’s recruiting effort to assemble a group of physicians for their newly established team of Medical Directors for Medical Claim Denials. The effort proved successful. Mark and his team hired more than 50 physician leaders in less than 12 months.
Mark lives with his wife and son in Nashville, TN. Outside of work, he loves coaching baseball. He’s been a Little League coach in the local community since 2005, but he’s been happiest coaching his son’s team since 2017.
