Nurse Executive Advanced (NEA-BC) Certification Exam
Practice Test Verified Questions, Correct Answers, and
Detailed Explanations for Students||Already Graded A+
1. A nurse executive is leading a hospital-wide transition to a new shared
governance model. The FIRST step in ensuring success is to:
A. Train all staff on the new model
B. Form a multidisciplinary steering committee
C. Develop unit-level bylaws
D. Communicate new expectations to all leaders
Answer: B
Initial shared governance work requires participatory structures; a steering
committee creates ownership and guides design.
2. A major responsibility of the NEA-level leader during strategic planning is
to:
A. Create action plans for every unit
B. Align nursing goals with organizational strategy
C. Interpret policies for frontline staff
D. Implement bedside workflows
Answer: B
Advanced nurse executives operate at the organizational/enterprise level and
ensure strategic alignment.
3. The most effective benchmarking strategy for evaluating nursing
productivity across multiple hospitals is:
A. Using only internal trends
B. Comparing to national external databases
C. Reviewing last year’s budget
D. Surveying nurse leaders
,Answer: B
External databases (e.g., NDNQI, Vizient) allow valid cross-organizational
comparison.
4. Which leadership style is MOST effective during a hospital crisis requiring
rapid decision-making?
A. Transformational
B. Servant
C. Autocratic
D. Laissez-faire
Answer: C
Autocratic leadership provides fast, decisive direction needed in emergencies.
5. A nurse executive is developing a business case for a new staffed
observation unit. The most important financial metric to include is:
A. Patient satisfaction scores
B. Return on investment (ROI)
C. Nursing turnover rate
D. Supply utilization
Answer: B
Business cases require demonstrating financial value; ROI quantifies expected
financial return.
6. The best method for analyzing the effectiveness of an organizational
culture improvement initiative is:
A. Reviewing clinical outcomes only
B. Conducting annual engagement surveys
C. Performing a gap analysis
D. Holding town-hall meetings
Answer: C
Gap analysis evaluates the difference between current and desired culture
states.
, 7. When implementing evidence-based practice across the system, the NEA
should FIRST:
A. Select bedside champions
B. Assess organizational readiness
C. Purchase EBP resources
D. Train leaders in research appraisal
Answer: B
Readiness assessment determines system capacity and barriers before action.
8. Which is the strongest indicator of healthy work environments for nurses?
A. Absenteeism
B. Nurse turnover
C. Authentic leadership
D. Overtime hours
Answer: C
Research consistently links authentic leadership to psychologically safe, healthy
work environments.
9. A nurse executive uses balanced scorecards to:
A. Determine payroll adjustments
B. Monitor multi-domain organizational performance
C. Track individual employee competency
D. Document corrective actions
Answer: B
Balanced scorecards assess performance across quality, finances, satisfaction,
and operations.
10. The most effective strategy to reduce nurse burnout organization-wide is:
A. Mandating resilience training
B. Implementing workload balance processes
Practice Test Verified Questions, Correct Answers, and
Detailed Explanations for Students||Already Graded A+
1. A nurse executive is leading a hospital-wide transition to a new shared
governance model. The FIRST step in ensuring success is to:
A. Train all staff on the new model
B. Form a multidisciplinary steering committee
C. Develop unit-level bylaws
D. Communicate new expectations to all leaders
Answer: B
Initial shared governance work requires participatory structures; a steering
committee creates ownership and guides design.
2. A major responsibility of the NEA-level leader during strategic planning is
to:
A. Create action plans for every unit
B. Align nursing goals with organizational strategy
C. Interpret policies for frontline staff
D. Implement bedside workflows
Answer: B
Advanced nurse executives operate at the organizational/enterprise level and
ensure strategic alignment.
3. The most effective benchmarking strategy for evaluating nursing
productivity across multiple hospitals is:
A. Using only internal trends
B. Comparing to national external databases
C. Reviewing last year’s budget
D. Surveying nurse leaders
,Answer: B
External databases (e.g., NDNQI, Vizient) allow valid cross-organizational
comparison.
4. Which leadership style is MOST effective during a hospital crisis requiring
rapid decision-making?
A. Transformational
B. Servant
C. Autocratic
D. Laissez-faire
Answer: C
Autocratic leadership provides fast, decisive direction needed in emergencies.
5. A nurse executive is developing a business case for a new staffed
observation unit. The most important financial metric to include is:
A. Patient satisfaction scores
B. Return on investment (ROI)
C. Nursing turnover rate
D. Supply utilization
Answer: B
Business cases require demonstrating financial value; ROI quantifies expected
financial return.
6. The best method for analyzing the effectiveness of an organizational
culture improvement initiative is:
A. Reviewing clinical outcomes only
B. Conducting annual engagement surveys
C. Performing a gap analysis
D. Holding town-hall meetings
Answer: C
Gap analysis evaluates the difference between current and desired culture
states.
, 7. When implementing evidence-based practice across the system, the NEA
should FIRST:
A. Select bedside champions
B. Assess organizational readiness
C. Purchase EBP resources
D. Train leaders in research appraisal
Answer: B
Readiness assessment determines system capacity and barriers before action.
8. Which is the strongest indicator of healthy work environments for nurses?
A. Absenteeism
B. Nurse turnover
C. Authentic leadership
D. Overtime hours
Answer: C
Research consistently links authentic leadership to psychologically safe, healthy
work environments.
9. A nurse executive uses balanced scorecards to:
A. Determine payroll adjustments
B. Monitor multi-domain organizational performance
C. Track individual employee competency
D. Document corrective actions
Answer: B
Balanced scorecards assess performance across quality, finances, satisfaction,
and operations.
10. The most effective strategy to reduce nurse burnout organization-wide is:
A. Mandating resilience training
B. Implementing workload balance processes
