Nurse Manager Job Description Template

Strong nursing leadership is essential for high-quality clinical care. Nurse managers, often called unit directors or clinical administrators, are key members of leadership teams who bridge the gap between hospital executives and bedside nursing staff. If your organization is looking to hire an employee to support and guide your clinicians, crafting a well-written nurse manager job description can help you find an employee with the skills for success.

In this sample job description template, we’ll outline key nurse manager skills, duties, and scheduling considerations. We’ll also provide tips on how to organize these details in a way that entices qualified candidates to apply.

Prior to posting your job vacancy, it’s important to conduct background research on the nurse manager job market. You can find other competitive nurse manager jobs on our healthcare hiring board, which can help you shape and advertise your specific position. Next, you’ll need to craft nurse manager interview questions to assess candidate strengths and weaknesses. Once you’ve completed these steps, you’re ready to begin developing your job description.

Nurse Manager

Tips: Nurse managers juggle a variety of responsibilities. They educate clinicians, ensure team compliance, and manage the budget for units or facilities. Whether your facility is looking to hire a nurse manager or assistant nurse manager, job descriptions should begin with an introduction to your organization and the role you’re hiring for.

How many employees will the nurse leader be expected to manage? Are there patient care expectations required for the role? The first section of your job description should answer these questions and showcase the benefits of working at your facility.

Template:

Looking to lead a driven and motivated clinical team? At [facility name], we’re looking to hire a nurse manager to provide support and guidance to nurses working in our trauma intensive care unit (TICU).

Here at [facility name], our mission is to provide our patients with safe, compassionate care. However, we know that we can’t meet our clinical benchmarks without the loyalty, engagement, and satisfaction of our nursing team. Our leadership team is made up of the best educators and mentors in Oregon, which is why our facility has been named the Pacific Northwest’s “Best Place to Be A Nurse” for the last three years.

As a nurse manager in our organization, you’d be expected to manage the TICU unit budget, organize employee schedules, and lead evidence-based practice projects that support our facility goals. While there are no direct clinical expectations for this position, your office would be located within the patient care unit, providing in-house leadership to RNs, LPNs, and CNAs working in the TICU department.

Does this sound like your next great career move? Continue reading as we outline our competitive nurse manager salary, benefits package, and scheduling options.

Benefits

Tips: In this section of your general nurse manager job description, it’s time to brag about your organization’s nursing fringe benefits. Each nurse manager will have different personal and professional goals, so be sure to list a range of professional, financial, and lifestyle incentives to capture their interest.

Template:

• Competitive pay
• Health, dental, and vision benefits
• FSA/HSA options
• 401(k) matching and access to our pension program
• $5,000 annual tuition reimbursement
• Paid vacation and holidays, family leave, sick time
• Access to 1,000+ free online continuing education (CE) courses
• Free employee parking
• $150 annual scrub stipend

Duties and Responsibilities

Tips: Will the clinical leader be working in an office setting or a hospital? Nurse manager job descriptions should provide insight into what working at your organization looks like.

The list of expectations shouldn’t be exhaustive, but should instead review the most frequently performed duties. This can ensure candidates know what responsibilities they’re signing up for before interviewing for the position, ultimately improving your facility’s employee retention and satisfaction scores.

Template:

Nurse managers at our organization are expected to perform the following duties:

• Conduct annual staff competency training
• Set monthly staffing schedules to ensure safe nurse-to-patient ratios
• Oversee the unit budget
• Mentor and motivate employees to meet organizational values and goals
• Perform annual nurse performance reviews
• Ensure team regulatory compliance (state nursing license renewal, certification check-offs, etc.)
• Represent their employees at system-level board meetings

Compensation and Schedule

Tips: In this section of your nurse manager job description, clarity is key. Hiring departments may feel uncomfortable explicitly sharing salary ranges and might leave this section out as a way to entice more applicants. However, studies show that job seekers prefer seeing salary ranges upfront and are more likely to apply for positions that can help them meet their financial goals.

Template:

• Starting salary of $140,000, with adjustments made for relevant education and experience
• Full-time employment, working Monday through Friday for 8-hour shifts (8a-4p)
• No nights, weekends, or holidays required
• Bi-weekly or weekly pay periods

Nurse Manager Qualifications and Skills

Tips: Here, you’ll want to list the nurse manager education requirements, certifications, and clinical experience you’re looking for. Be sure to differentiate between required and preferred nurse manager skills to optimize your candidate pool.

Template:

Required Qualifications:

• Active and unencumbered RN license
• MSN required, DNP preferred
• 2+ years of bedside experience
• 3+ years of nursing leadership experience
• Strong communication, mentorship, and conflict resolution skills

Preferred Qualifications:

• Certified Nurse Executive (NE-BC)
• Previous leadership experience as a charge nurse, team lead, or resource team nurse

Call to Action

Tips: You’ve taken the time to develop a nurse manager job description that showcases your organization and highlights the benefits of joining your team. Now, you’ll need to guide potential candidates straight to the online application.

You can do this by providing a link labeled “Apply Here” or “Click Here to Apply” that takes nurse leaders to the final stage of the application process. You can also provide candidates with human resources department contact information to answer any questions about the position or the application process.

Template:

Ready to take the next step in your nursing leadership career? Click the “Apply Now” button to begin your application. The entire process takes less than 10 minutes. Feel free to reach out to our human resources department at [facility phone number] with any questions. We look forward to seeing your application!

Match With Qualified Candidates Today

Even after developing a great nurse manager job description, advertising your position can be a timely and painstaking process. By posting your vacancies to our healthcare hiring board, you can quickly reach over 1 million qualified professionals looking for work.