Management of Power

Case Scenario

Holyfield Healthcare Systems and Jonesville Regional Hospital, each with different organizational structures, are merging. The senior leadership, of which you are a part, must decide on the overarching organizational structure that will be used for the newly formed healthcare system. This will impact the distribution of power, which includes lines of authority, chain of command, and how operations will be carried out. Before the new structure can be adopted, a thorough exploration of the two existing structures, with attention paid to how power is distributed and wielded, must occur. In addition, leadership styles and their impact on power management within each organization will be explored. 

Overview of Organizational Power: For this , you will begin by providing an overview of the types of organizational power, how power affects the health of an organization, and the impact of power on the work environment.

Organizational Structures and Power: From the four major organizational structures, Line, Matrix, Service-Line, and Flat, you will identify which one is currently used at each of the two healthcare systems (Holyfield and Jonesville). Then you will compare the characteristics of the two organizational structures*. The comparison will include a description of how power is distributed, managed, and wielded within each of the organizational structures. Then you will select one of the two structures to use in the newly merged system and provide a substantive, evidence-based rationale for your choice. *Shared governance and the Magnet Model are not considered organizational structures for this.

Leadership Styles and Power: Of the five major leadership styles**; authoritarian, democratic, laissez-faire, situational/contingency, and interactional; choose one used at each of the existing healthcare systems (Holyfield and Jonesville) and describe its characteristics. You will discuss how each leadership style is supported by the organizational structure chosen earlier for that system. As part of the discussion, you will include how power is distributed, managed, and wielded by each style. Finally, you will discuss your preference for the leadership style that is supported by your chosen organizational structure and provide an evidence-based rationale for your choice. **Transformational and transactional leadership are broad types of leadership within which several of the styles fit. Your focus is to be on the styles, not the two broad types. 

Use the following format outline/template for your paper to complete your assignment. Bold-type is used here for emphasis only. Follow the guidelines for use of bold-type and headings using the most current edition of the APA manual.

• Introduction (no heading)
  • Statement of paper’s purpose
  • Identify the chosen setting and the framework you will apply to it
• Overview of Power within Organizations (heading, centered)
  • Types of organizational power
  • Impact of power on the health of the organization
  • Impact of power on the work environment
• Organizational Structure and Power (heading, centered)
  • Describe at least two specific examples with expected outcomes of the framework’s impact on nursing
• Engagement of staff and leadership (centered, with heading)
  • Identify, compare, and contrast two organizational structures of the scenario facilities
  • Describe how power in distributed, managed and wielded within each structure
  • Preferred organizational structure (of the two) for a merged system with evidence-based rationale
• Leadership Styles and Power (heading, centered)
  • Compare two leadership styles supported by and used within the structures of the scenario facilities
  • How is power distributed, managed, and wielded by the two leadership styles within the preferred structure described
  • Preferred leadership style (of the two) for the merged system with evidence-based rationale  
• Conclusion (centered, with heading)
  • Recap of paper’s purpose
  • Summary of what was covered

1. A minimum of three (3) scholarly sources, no older than 5 years, must be used for the paper. These should be relevant to nursing and should represent the majority of evidence provided in the paper. Other sources, such as textbooks, may be used in addition to these; however, they will not be counted as part of the scholarly source requirement.
2. The paper should contain all elements required under the guidelines and provided by the outline.
3. The outline provided should be followed for organizing the paper. Only level-one headings are required. Remember, the introduction does not have a heading.
4. A maximum of four (4) pages, excluding title and reference pages, is required. 
5. Microsoft (MS) Word is required for completing the assignment . The paper should be written in the third person, in active voice. Refer to “Guidelines for Writing Professional Papers in Graduate Programs” found in the Student Resources Central of the course.
6. The assignment is graded on the quality of written communication using standard English grammar, sentence structure, use of scholarly evidence, and organization based on the required components. Quality is also measured by the completeness of required content elements of the assignment.