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This position has closed. Northwestern Medicine removed this listing from their careers page on Sep 25, 2026. The interview prep below is still useful, and there are similar open roles at the bottom of this page.

Nurse Manager of Operations-Operating Room

Northwestern Medicine · Palos Heights, IL · Full time · Health Care Provider

Posted Sep 21, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Sep 22, 2026

Likely interview questions for this role

Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.

About your past

Tell me about a difficult performance conversation with an experienced nurse or technologist.

What they are checking: Whether they will act, which is what separates a manager from a senior nurse.

This is at Palos Heights. How does that fit your life?

What they are checking: Honest fit with the location the posting states.

What would you do

How do you improve room turnover without rushing the room?

What they are checking: The measure the operating room lives by, and speed and safety pull against each other.

How do you manage block time and a surgeon who wants more of it?

What they are checking: The permanent political problem of running an operating room.

A surgeon's behavior in theatre is a problem. What do you do?

What they are checking: The hardest conversation in perioperative management, and whether they will have it.

How do you support staff after a case that went badly?

What they are checking: Whether they look after their team, which decides whether people stay.

About the work

Tell me about managing an operating room.

What they are checking: Establishes whether they have run this setting rather than another.

How do you build a staffing model that covers the schedule plus emergencies?

What they are checking: The posting names defining workflows and staffing, which in an OR includes call.

How do you manage a budget when implants and instruments drive the cost?

What they are checking: The posting names budgets and variances, and in an OR supply is most of it.

How do you keep a department ready for the Joint Commission rather than scrambling for it?

What they are checking: The posting names regulatory and accreditation standards.

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The full job description

As published by Northwestern Medicine.

The Manager, Operations reflects the mission, vision, and values of NM, adheres to the organization’s Code of Ethics and Corporate Compliance Program, and complies with all relevant policies, procedures, guidelines and all other regulatory and accreditation standards. The Manager, Operations provides autonomous and direct management of a team or teams. Responsibilities: • Manage day-to-day operations of designated departments, divisions, programs, services and/or locations. This includes defining and overseeing workflows and staffing in the department, re-directing resources to critical areas as needed, developing operating and capital budgets, monitoring budget performance including explaining variances and defining and applying corrective action to ensure compliance with the budget as needed. 24/7 accountability • Provide support, guidance, and supervision to team members by ensuring that the team members maintain competencies in addressing behavioral, social, financial, and environmental issues for patients to achieve optimum clinical quality, patient satisfaction, and cost-effective care. Support the team by preparing and delivering annual and mid-year reviews, coaching through the resolution of complex situations that involve practice issues and customer relations, ensuring that they have the tools, including technology, to perform their roles and identifying areas in need of improvement and acting upon them with the appropriate NM system partners. • Recommend department goals to department leadership; plan and advance progress toward the goals throughout the year. Communicate goal achievement timelines, risks and decisions needed with all appropriate leadership teams on a regular cadence. • Ensure department policies and processes meet current standards of the Joint Commission and all federal, state, and regulations. Revise and/or create new policies and processes as needed to meet changing regulations and the evolution of patient care delivery. Target quality improvement by reducing process variation, eliminating redundancy or implementing new technology. • To manage escalations, interpret information needed to identify each patient's requirements relative to the patient's age-specific needs using principles of growth and development over the life span. Connect those with the resources required to coordinate each patient’s care. • Other duties as assigned. Additional Responsibilities: Business expertise • Knowledge of Joint Commission standards and all federal, state, and regulatory requirements. • Ability to analyze data for decision making purposes and make data-driven recommendations. • Ability to create budgets in accordance with guidelines and balanced to targets. • Ability to effectively apply the principles of change management while leading. • Strong computing skills, including Microsoft Office applications, Outlook and the EMR. • Attentive to detail and reviews own and others’ work for accuracy. Problem solving • Effectively and autonomously handles challenging situations, including identifying stakeholders and defining and communicating required action and roles in a compressed time frame. • Effectively balances multiple priorities, seeking guidance when in doubt. • Calmly and easily responds to changes in work environment, delays or unexpected events. • Provides guidance and supervision to team members by problem solving complex situations that involve practice operations, customer relations, and employee relations issues Interactions/interpersonal skills • NMHC Performance Leadership Competencies (from performance management system) • Exceptional verbal and written communication skills and the ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with patients, physicians, management, staff and other customers, internal and external to NM. • Projects confidence, professionalism, interest and optimism when leading others in the workplace; guided by the servant leadership philosophy. • Ability to maintain confidentiality for patients and their families, as outlined in the Northwestern Memorial HealthCare Patient Confidentiality policy. Required: • Bachelor's degree in nursing with master’s degree or master’s degree in nursing** • ** Exceptions considered for applicants with a Bachelor’s degree and actively enrolled in a master’s program. External and internal applicants must be within 1 year of completion. • Three years of nursing or health care experience, demonstrating increasing responsibilities • Basic life support (BLS) certification • Current clinical license in the state in which the hospital resides • Magnet recognized certification for specialty area Preferred: • Minimum of 3 years of supervisory or management experience. Northwestern Medicine is an equal opportunity employer (disability, VETS) and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation or any other protected status. Background Check Northwestern Medicine conducts a background check that includes criminal history on newly hired team members and, at times, internal transfers. If you are offered a position with us, you will be required to complete an authorization and disclosure form that gives Northwestern Medicine permission to run the background check. Results are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and we follow all local, state, and federal laws, including the Illinois Health Care Worker Background Check Act. Artificial Intelligence Disclosure Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may be used in some portions of the candidate review process for this position, however, all employment decisions will be made by a person. Benefits We offer a wide range of benefits that provide employees with tools and resources to improve their physical, emotional, and financial well-being while providing protection for unexpected life events. Click on or copy and paste URL to your browser to view detailed benefits information NorthwesternMedicine Career Page https://jobs.nm.org/benefits Please refer to the Benefits Eligibility by Employment Classification to determine benefits eligibility for job postings. If sign-on bonus is included in a job posting eligibility is as followed: Internal employees and rehires who left Northwestern Medicine within 1 year are not eligible for the sign-on bonus. Exception : New graduate internal employees seeking their first licensed clinical position as a Registered Nurse at NM may be eligible.