What drives highest physician leadership compensation? 4 findings

The total median compensation for physicians in leadership roles in 2016 is $350,000, according to results of the 10th biennial Physician Leadership Compensation Survey from Cejka Executive Search and the American Association for Physician Leadership.

This figure represents a three-year gain of 8 percent since the last survey in 2013. While this increase is fairly consistent with compensation growth over the last seven years, it lags pre-recession two-year growth rates of 12 percent reported in 2007, according to Cejka.

Various factors account for the increase in physician executive pay, according to the survey results. Here are four takeaways.

1. The growing role of "big data" drives up compensation. The greatest increase in C-suite compensation was for CIOs and CMIOs, up 18 percent from $315,000 in 2013 to $372,500 in 2016. This spike can be explained by the role's shift in focus and the growing role of "big data." In 2013, the roles were primarily concerned with EMR implementation, whereas now CIOs and CMIOs are focusing on ensuring the usability of data to support preventative care at the individual provider level and risk-based accountable care at the enterprise level.

2. Working at the corporate level and holding higher degrees and certifications opens the door to higher pay. Those who operate at a systemwide level or hold post-graduate degrees or certifications also earned more, according to the survey results. For example, physician leaders who held roles at the corporate or parent level of a health system saw an average 67 percent spike in median compensation since 2013.

Physician leaders with MBAs earned an average of 13 percent more than their peers without post-graduate degrees, and a certified physician executive on average earned 4 percent more.

3. Physician leaders whose compensation is most aligned with organizational goals earn more. Leaders who allocated more time to administration and whose performance-based pay was a higher percentage of total compensation earned more as well.

4. Outside of the C-suite, pay goes up as focus on clinical initiatives increases. The highest three-year pay gain for physician leaders outside of the C-suite was for those who were focused on clinical initiatives serving as president of the medical staff or medical director, assistant or associate.

 

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