advice from higher authority is critical (Laschinger et al.
1999, 2001, 2003).
Also, of interest is that it is important for NUMs to be
perceived by staff as performing well in all the leadership
aspects measured in this study (Fig. 1) for the ward to be
rated positively. In other words, it would seem that a NUM
cannot be a ‘star’ – performing well in one aspect or in a
small number of aspects. The findings of the present study
suggest that whilst some items (such as ‘A nurse manager or
immediate supervisor who is a good manager or leader’) had
a larger influence on overall ward ratings than other items
(for instance, ‘The nursing staff participates in selecting new
equipment’), the NUM needed to be performing well in each
of the twelve leadership aspects for the ward to be rated
positively overall. These findings have important implications
for leadership development and training. In particular, the
present study suggests not only that NUMs require a broad
range of skills and capabilities, but that they need to be
performing well in all of these diverse tasks for their wards to
be rated positively overall. However, as Paliadelis (2008) has
found, many NUMs feel underprepared and overwhelmed by
the scope and complexity of the NUM role. In addition,
recent research by the NSW Department of Health (2009)
found that good support and management education enabled
NUMs to better achieve all aspects of the role. Greater levels
of training, mentorship and support for NUMs may act as
enablers and assist in ensuring that NUMs feel comfortable
with the role and able to perform well on all of the distinct
leadership aspects.