Can Workforce Development Pay for Itself?

AHA Leadership Scan: A Series of Virtual Panel Discussions  

Can Workforce Development Pay for Itself?
From Variable Labor Spend to a Predictable Workforce Development 

Thursday, November 5, 2026 
1 - 2 p.m. Eastern; noon - 1 p.m. Central; 10 - 11 a.m. Pacific  

Health systems invest millions each year in tuition assistance, workforce development, recruitment and retention programs, yet many struggle to connect those investments to measurable workforce outcomes. At the same time, organizations continue to face frontline workforce turnover, nurse attrition, workforce readiness challenges and shortages in critical clinical roles.

Increasingly, leading health systems are approaching workforce development differently — not as an isolated employee benefit, but as an integrated workforce strategy. By aligning workforce planning, career pathways, employee demand and organizational workforce needs, they are creating a more predictable pipeline while improving retention, internal mobility and workforce stability.

In this session, health system leaders will share how they are using workforce investments to develop frontline team members to advance their skills and knowledge. Learn how organizations are addressing frontline workforce attrition, improving first-year nurse retention, strengthening workforce readiness and creating internal career pathways tied to critical workforce needs. Panelists will showcase how they are:

• Developing frontline employees by building internal pathways that address shortages in critical clinical roles and reduce reliance on external recruitment and temporary labor.
• Improving first-year nurse retention and frontline workforce readiness through targeted career development programs that reduce early attrition and strengthen the pipeline for high-turnover roles.
• Building the business case for workforce investment by connecting workforce planning and development to measurable financial and operational outcomes, including reduced labor spend and a more stable workforce. 

Attendees will gain practical insights into the governance structures, workforce planning approaches, financial models and success metrics used to measure workforce outcomes, reduce dependence on external labor markets and build the business case for workforce investments that generate measurable operational and financial returns.

Attendees Will Learn:

• Discover how leading health systems are reframing workforce development as a workforce strategy — not an isolated employee benefit — and the governance structures and financial models that make that case internally.
• Explore approaches for building internal career pathways that improve frontline retention, reduce first-year nurse attrition and address shortages in critical clinical roles.
• Assess how aligning workforce planning with organizational needs creates a more stable workforce, reduces external labor spend and builds long-term workforce engagement.

Speakers:  

Caitlin Masterson 
SVP of Workforce Development 
Unitek Learning

Holly Muller, DNP, MHA, RN, CRRN, NEA-BC 
Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, Presbyterian Delivery System 
Presbyterian Healthcare Services

Mary-Ann Robson, MN, BSN, RN 
Executive Director: Clinical Education 
Community Health System

Michele Johnson 
Advent Health

AHA Moderator:

Elisa Arespacochaga 
Group Vice President, Clinical Affairs and Workforce 
American Hospital Association

By attending the AHA Leadership virtual panel discussion "Can Workforce Development Pay for Itself? " offered by the AHA, participants may earn up to 1 ACHE Qualified Education Hour toward initial certification or recertification of the Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE) designation.