Nursing Supervisor Job Description Template

Nursing supervisors oversee and manage nursing care across entire units. They perform a mix of administrative and clinical duties, from making hiring decisions to evaluating quality improvement initiatives. Fundamentally, they serve as an important link between clinical care and hospital management, so they require a strong set of communication, leadership, and organization skills. This is why creating a targeted nursing supervisor job description is crucial when hiring for this role.

To help you effectively advertise your opening, we’ll outline an example nurse supervisor job description with key information for prospective applicants. Tailor this template and pair it with thoughtful interview questions to select the best candidate for your team. Seeking more insights? Explore what other facilities are putting in their nursing supervisor job postings and learn how to make your organization stand out from the crowd.

Nursing Supervisor

Tips: This is the introductory section of your job description, where you’ll want to provide an overview of the role and your facility. Think of ways to make your organization stand out from others. You can list any notable awards or distinctions that your facility has received, or share information about your mission and work culture. You may also want to briefly mention any essential qualifications (such as licenses or degrees) to make sure that the right people continue reading your posting.

While this example is for a hospital nursing supervisor job description, you can easily tailor the introduction if you’re hiring for a post-acute care setting as well. Just remember to adapt your job description so it caters to the specific needs of your facility.

Template:

[Facility name] is looking for a nursing supervisor (RN) to manage the inpatient nursing team at our beautiful downtown campus. Proudly holding Magnet distinction, we are experts in providing quality, patient-centered care. We achieve this by fostering a healthy work culture, and our competitive benefits and training opportunities are designed to help staff thrive both inside and outside the workplace. If you’re interested in joining a top-tier healthcare organization that cares about you, we invite you to explore all of our other benefits below.

Benefits

Tips: In this section, you’ll want to elaborate on all of the great perks of working at your facility. This section of your nursing supervisor job description should highlight the most notable parts of your employee benefits package. If your unit offers any special training programs or career development opportunities for nurse leaders, you should also list them here.

Template:

• 401(k) plans with employer match
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• Generous PTO and paid holidays
• Tuition reimbursement
• Continuing education (CE) credits

Duties and Responsibilities

Tips: Now, your prospective applicants are going to want to know what they’ll be doing on the job. This section should list all of the most important duties and responsibilities of the nursing supervisor. As a general rule of thumb, you should try to list these duties in order of relevance.

It’s also important to note that this role is sometimes referred to as either the “clinical”or “administrative” nursing supervisor. Depending on your facility, these titles may have certain distinctions. A clinical nursing supervisor job description might list duties more closely related to clinical care quality and flow. On the other hand, an administrative nursing supervisor job description might focus more on hiring, scheduling, and supply management. If you have different supervisors for specific aspects of nursing care, make sure to clarify that here.

Template:

• Supervise nursing staff while ensuring effective implementation of clinical guidelines and institutional policies
• Assign, educate, and oversee the activity of nursing staff during assigned shifts
• Facilitate performance evaluations of staff and provide constructive feedback
• Assess patient care needs and develop appropriate assignments
• Evaluate the effectiveness of nursing care and identify areas for improvement
• Aid in the hiring, training, and development of nursing staff and implement policy changes to improve workflow and care quality

Compensation and Schedule

Tips: Prospective applicants will also need to know the other logistical details of the job, such as the expected pay, hours, and work location. While not all job postings include a pay range, studies have shown that this helps promote transparency and may even be the deciding factor for whether candidates decide to apply to a role. Thus, including a pay range in this section can be an important way to attract a stronger pool of applicants.

Template:

• Pay: $91,000 – $131,000 annual salary range (actual compensation based on experience)
• Hours: Full Time, Days (7am – 7pm)
• Location: Chicago, IL

Skills and Qualifications

Tips: In this section, you should list the essential nursing supervisor skills and qualifications that are needed for the job. Indicate whether each skill is required or preferred to encourage all qualified candidates to apply.

Template:

• Graduate from an accredited school of nursing (required)
• Active RN license in the state of [insert state] (required)
• BLS certification from the AHA obtained within 30 days of hire date (required)
• At least 2 years of RN experience (required)
• 1 year of experience in a managerial or leadership role (preferred)

Call to Action

Tips: Finally, it’s time to invite interested candidates to take the next steps. This last section of your job description should include a concise and catchy call to action, which provides a link to your application portal. If you don’t use an application portal, provide clear instructions on how candidates should submit their resumes and cover letters.

Template:

Ready to take your career as a nursing supervisor to the next level and lead a top-performing team? Click here to start your application today. We look forward to hearing from you!

Get Your Job Posting in Front of the Right People

Writing a strong nursing supervisor job description is the first step to finding the best leader for your team. Ready to put your job posting into action? IntelyCare’s nationwide, nursing-only job board can help you reach over 1 million nursing professionals who are ready to advance their careers.