Source page: McKinsey & Company
Commentary
Strengthening nurse leadership
Healthcare | Leadership | Public Health
June 24, 2025 – The importance of nurse managers is particularly salient today, as clinical-care organizations face growing patient volumes amid a nursing shortage in the United States that could hit about 400,000 by 2030. Prioritizing nurse managers can build a more resilient and engaged workforce. A recent McKinsey survey revealed that feeling undervalued by leadership or the organization are major reasons for frontline nurses’ intent to leave, behind only seeking a better job. Healthcare systems could save $400 million–$700 million annually by reducing frontline-nurse turnover through strengthened manager support, note Senior Partner Gretchen Berlin and coauthors.
To read the article, see “Nurse managers: The backbone of a strong nursing workforce,” May 6, 2025.
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Visual form
Ranked vertical bar chart with callout labels.
Layout / body structure
The chart is a single ranking panel read from the tallest bar on the left toward the smaller bars on the right. Each bar has a leader line that connects to a text label naming the factor influencing nurses’ decisions to leave.
What is being compared
It compares the factors affecting U.S. frontline nurses’ decisions to leave their current position, ranking those factors by the share of respondents who rated each one as very much or extremely impactful.
Measurement system
The values are percentages of respondents. The bar heights and the numeric labels at the bottom of each bar give the ranking, while the text labels at the top identify the factor attached to each percentage.
Visible structure inside the graphic
The tallest bar at 53 is tied to looking for a better job. Two highlighted light-blue bars at 41 and 40 correspond to not feeling valued by leadership and not feeling valued by the organization. Additional dark-blue bars step down through inadequate compensation at 34, lack of advancement at 32, family care at 27, inability to work remotely at 26, and several lower-ranked workplace factors down to 23.
Main takeaway from the visual
The chart shows that leadership and organizational recognition are not minor issues but sit among the top reasons nurses consider leaving, almost as prominent as the search for a better job.
Key standout values or extremes
Looking for a better job leads at 53 percent. Not feeling valued by leadership and not feeling valued by the organization follow at 41 and 40 percent, both ahead of inadequate compensation at 34 and potential for advancement at 32. The lowest values on the chart still sit in the low twenties, which shows that many different strains matter at once.
Controls / sequence, when applicable
This is a static chart image with no in-chart controls to operate.
Companion media, when applicable
There is no separate companion audio or video; the chart image is the full visual on this page.