​Management & Leadership Domain: Key Concepts for the FACHE Exam

​

• Core Leadership Theories and Styles

  • You should be able to identify and know when to apply different leadership styles.

  • Situational Leadership: Adapting your style based on the development level (competence and commitment) of your team members.

  • Transformational Leadership: Inspiring and motivating followers to achieve extraordinary outcomes and, in the process, develop their own leadership capacity.

  • Servant Leadership: Focusing on the growth and well-being of people and the communities to which they belong. The leader's primary role is to serve.

  • Autocratic vs. Democratic vs. Laissez-Faire: Understand the characteristics and appropriate use cases for each style.
     

• Change Management

  • This is a critical competency. Understand the structured process for managing the "people side" of change.

  • Key Models: Be familiar with foundational models like Kotter's 8-Step Change Model (Create Urgency, Build a Guiding Coalition, etc.) or the general cycle of Identify -> Plan -> Implement -> Evaluate.

  • Principles: Know the importance of creating a clear vision, communicating effectively, empowering action, and anchoring new approaches in the culture.
     

• Team Building and Group Dynamics

  • Recognize the stages of team development: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning.

  • Understand techniques for building effective clinical and non-clinical teams.

  • Know how to facilitate productive meetings and group discussions.
     

• Communication and Relationship Management

  • Communication Channels: Understand the flow of communication—upward (to superiors), downward (to subordinates), and lateral (among peers).

  • Active Listening: Know the principles of listening to understand, not just to respond.

  • Stakeholder Engagement: Be familiar with strategies for engaging and working with diverse stakeholders, including physicians, staff, board members, and community leaders.
     

• Conflict Resolution and Negotiation

  • Understand different conflict management styles (e.g., competing, collaborating, compromising, avoiding, accommodating).

  • Know the steps in a formal grievance procedure.

  • Be familiar with negotiation techniques like compromise and persuasion.
     

• Organizational Structure and Systems Thinking

  • Key Concepts: Understand principles like span of control (the number of subordinates a supervisor can effectively manage) and chain of command (the formal line of authority).

  • Organizational Theory: Have a basic knowledge of how organizational units interrelate and how structure impacts efficiency and communication.
     

• Decision-Making

  • Understand the importance of data-informed decision-making.

  • Recognize the potential impacts and consequences of decisions on all aspects of the organization (operations, finance, quality, HR).

  • Be familiar with ethical frameworks for making difficult decisions.