MSN6216 -
Advanced Finance and Operations Management
Unit 3
Assignment
Mentor Interview
Professional Context
Business acumen, including financial management skills, is a
key competency for nurse leaders, and a primary responsibility for many is the
development and management of operating and capital budgets.
The assignment in this unit involves you speaking with a
leader who has experience with creating and managing budgets. You will learn
about that person’s approach to budget management and consider techniques or
strategies you may emulate when you are creating and managing budgets.
Scenario
You are the nurse manager of a new urgent care clinic, and
one of your first tasks is to prepare next year’s operating budget. Like many
nurses, you have had little or no direct experience with the budgeting process,
and you realize that financial management is not one of your strengths as a
leader. Consequently, you have decided to reach out for help from someone in
the facility with budgeting experience and financial management expertise who
can offer you help and insight.
Instructions
Interview
Conduct an interview with your site supervisor or another
nurse leader whom you consider to be a mentor in the area of health care
finance. Discuss their experience with operations and capital budgets in their
current role or a previous role. Explore the following topics in your
interview:
Their experience managing an operating budget.
Their approach to managing productivity within the
parameters of the budget.
Their approach to oversight of the appropriate use and
availability of equipment and supplies.
Their experience managing a capital budget.
How managing a capital budget differs from managing an
operating budget.
Their application of finance principles to fulfill the
organization's mission and goals.
Analysis
Note: The requirements outlined below correspond to the
grading criteria in the Mentor Interview Scoring Guide, so be sure to address
each point. You may also want to review the performance level descriptions for
each criterion to see how your work will be assessed. Additionally, the Guiding
Questions: Mentor Interview document, linked in the Resources, provides
additional considerations that may be helpful in completing your assignment.
Prepare a written analysis of your findings from the
interview, supplemented by your own research and evaluation of budget
management techniques.
Compare the process of managing an operating budget to that
of managing a capital budget.
Describe the process of allocating resources for labor,
equipment, and services.
Describe an effective approach that contributes to planning for
profitability and fiscal success.
Evaluate the nurse leader’s approach to budget management.
Write clearly and concisely, using correct grammar and
mechanics.
Integrate relevant and credible sources of evidence to
support your assertions, correctly formatting citations and references using
APA style.
Note: Remember that you can submit all, or a portion, of
your draft analysis to Smarthinking for feedback, before you submit the final
version for this assignment. However, be mindful of the turnaround time of
24–48 hours for receiving feedback if you plan on using this free service.
Submission Requirements
Format your paper using APA style.
Use the APA Style Paper Template linked in the Resources. An
APA Style Paper Tutorial is also provided to help you in writing and formatting
your analysis. Be sure to include:
A title page and reference page. An abstract is not
required.
A running head on all pages.
Appropriate section headings.
A minimum of five properly-formatted citations and
references.
Your executive summary should be 3–5 pages in length, not
including the title page and reference page.
Portfolio Prompt: You may choose to save this learning
activity to your ePortfolio.
MSN6216 -
Advanced Finance and Operations Management
Unit 5
Assignment
Preparing and Managing an Operating Budget
Professional Context
Sound financial management is essential to the fiscal
well-being of all health care organizations, and the nurse leader plays an
important part. Consequently, the preparation and effective management of
operating budgets is a critical skill for nurse leaders. The budget guides
leaders in optimizing the use of resources, and because nurses are closest to
patients, they understand very well what it takes to operate on a daily basis
and provide safe, high-quality care.
This assignment provides an opportunity for you to develop
an operating budget for a health care unit. Keep in mind, staff is a large part
of this budget and is often hard to control.
Scenario
You are the nurse manager of a 35-bed hospital unit with 20
full-time equivalent (FTE) staff. You have been given the task of getting the
budget under control. Several people have recently left the unit, and you have
been working to fill those open positions. Your staff work scheduled overtime
and many sign up to work extra shifts. Your unit serves an older population, as
well, and has incurred expenses associated with this group of patients.
Instructions
Note: The requirements outlined below correspond to the
grading criteria in the Preparing and Managing an Operating Budget Scoring
Guide, so be sure to address each point. You may also want to review the
performance level descriptions for each criterion to see how your work will be
assessed. Additionally, the Guiding Questions: Preparing and Managing an Operating
Budget document, linked in the Resources, provides additional considerations
that may be helpful in completing your assignment.
Prepare and submit an operating budget for your hospital
unit.
Prepare the operating budget. Note: Assemble your budget figures
in a table, using a format of your choice. You may use either Microsoft Word or
Excel to create your budget table.
Explain how the budget was designed and created.
Develop a strategic plan.
Develop an approach to ongoing budget management.
Present budget data and information clearly and accurately.
Integrate relevant and credible sources of evidence to
support your budget data and information, correctly formatting citations and
references using APA style.
Note: Remember that you can submit all, or a portion of,
your draft budget to Smarthinking for feedback, before you submit the final
version for this assignment. However, be mindful of the turnaround time of
24–48 hours for receiving feedback if you plan on using this free service.
Submission Requirements
If you used Microsoft Excel to create your budget table,
submit the Excel file along with your budget narrative. You may also add the
Excel file to your Word document as an embedded object.
Format your budget using APA style.
Use the APA Style Paper Template linked in the Resources. An
APA Style Paper Tutorial is also provided to help you in writing and formatting
your analysis. Be sure to include:
An APA-formatted title page and reference page. An abstract
is not required.
A minimum of five ;properly-formatted citations and
references.
Your budget should be 8–10 pages in length, not including
the title page and reference page.
Portfolio Prompt: You may choose to save this learning
activity to your ePortfolio.
MSN6216 -
Advanced Finance and Operations Management
Unit 7
Assignment
Budget Negotiations and Communication
Professional Context
Negotiating budgets and communicating financial needs to
stakeholders are vital skills for nurse leaders. Given today's numerous
constraints on funding and highly competitive environments, the ability to win
support for your budget proposals hinges on being able to present a compelling
argument based on well documented needs, accurate financial information, and a
justifiable business case.
This assignment provides an opportunity for you to examine
the mission and goals of a health care organization in order to justify a
budget proposal. A persuasive argument requires thoughtful justification and
rationale for the expenses required to support your proposal. A proposal that
supports the organization’s mission and goals strengthens your argument and is
much more likely to get you what you need.
Scenario
The financial department has reviewed your unit’s operating
budget and has asked you to submit an executive summary that provides support
for your budget proposal. Your challenge is to position your unit favorably
within an environment of competing demands for limited funding.
Instructions
Note: The requirements outlined below correspond to the
grading criteria in the Budget Negotiations and Communication Scoring Guide, so
be sure to address each point. You may also want to review the performance
level descriptions for each criterion to see how your work will be assessed.
Additionally, the Guiding Questions: Budget Negotiations and Communication
document, linked in the Resources, provides additional considerations that may
be helpful in completing your assignment.
Write an executive summary of the operating budget you
designed in Unit 5. Make a compelling case for why funds should be allocated
for your budget.
Outline a strategic plan that ensures profitability and
fiscal success.
Present a plan to meet staff productivity goals, while
staying within budget parameters.
Justify equipment and service costs.
Analyze department, unit, or project alignment with the
organization's mission and goals.
Write clearly and concisely, using correct grammar and
mechanics.
Integrate relevant and credible sources of evidence to
support your assertions, correctly formatting citations and references using
APA style.
Note: Remember, you can submit all, or a portion, of your
draft paper to Smarthinking for feedback, before you submit the final version
for this assessment. However, be mindful of the turnaround time of 24–48 hours
for receiving feedback if you plan on using this free service.
Submission Requirements
Format your paper using APA style.
Use the APA Style Paper Template linked in the Resources. An
APA Style Paper Tutorial is also provided to help you in writing and formatting
your analysis. Be sure to include:
A title page and reference page. An abstract is not
required.
A running head on all pages.
Appropriate section headings.
A minimum of five properly-formatted citations and
references.
Your paper should be 3–5 pages in length, not including the
title page and reference page.
Portfolio Prompt: You may choose to save this learning
activity to your ePortfolio.
MSN6216 -
Advanced Finance and Operations Management
Unit 9
Assignment
Preparing and Managing a Capital Budget
Professional Context
In today’s health care environment, the focus on major
purchases as part of the capital budget has emphasized the need for newer and
better technology. Although the need to invest in capital equipment and
technology has been ongoing, the nursing workforce must also have a safe and
pleasant work environment.
This assignment provides an opportunity for you develop a
capital budget for a major facility improvement that will benefit patients,
nurses, and the organization.
Scenario
You are the unit manager of a 50-bed, step-down unit, and it
is time for you to prepare your annual capital budget. You have seen a
significant turnover in your nursing staff in the past three years. A review of
exit interviews and patient surveys indicates low nurse satisfaction, poor
morale, and complaints of an antiquated and depressing work environment. You
have researched the impact of a positive working environment on staff
productivity and morale and decided to request a renovation of the nurses’
lounge as the main purchase in your capital budget. You will present your
request as a quality improvement investment.
Instructions
Note: The requirements outlined below correspond to the
grading criteria in the Preparing and Managing a Capital Budget Scoring Guide,
so be sure to address each point. You may also want to review the performance
level descriptions for each criterion to see how your work will be assessed.
Additionally, the Guiding Questions: Preparing and Managing a Capital Budget
document, linked in the Resources, provides additional considerations that may
be helpful in completing your assignment.
Prepare a capital budget for a facility renovation.
Note: You may use the budget in the Vila Health: Developing
a Capital Budget multimedia exercise from this unit’s studies as an example of
how you might format your table. You may also use a budget format used in your
organization or a format you find in any of the course resources or on the
Internet.
Describe the capital acquisition.
Justify the need for the capital acquisition.
Prepare the capital budget.
Note: Assemble your budget figures in a table, using a
format of your choice. You may use either Microsoft Word or Excel to create
your budget table.
Describe the process for calculating costs.
Present a plan for budget management.
Explain how the renovation will affect the financial health
of the organization.
Present budget data and information clearly and accurately.
Integrate relevant and credible sources of evidence to
support your budget data and information, correctly formatting citations and
references using APA style.
Note: Remember, you can submit all, or a portion, of your
draft budget to Smarthinking for feedback, before you submit the final version
for this assignment. However, be mindful of the turnaround time of 24–48 hours
for receiving feedback if you plan on using this free service.
Submission Requirements
If you used Microsoft Excel to create your budget table,
submit the Excel file along with your budget narrative. You may also add the
Excel file to your Word document as an embedded object.
Format your budget using APA style.
Use the APA Style Paper Template linked in the Resources. An
APA Style Paper Tutorial is also provided to help you in writing and formatting
your analysis. Be sure to include:
An APA-formatted title page and reference page. An abstract
is not required.
A minimum of five properly-formatted citations and
references.
Your budget should be 4–5 pages in length, not including the
title page and reference page.
