From Workforce Visibility to Workforce Action
Healthcare organizations have more workforce data available than ever before. Yet turning that data into confident, forward-looking decisions remains one of the hardest challenges they face. AMN Healthcare's 2026 Healthcare Workforce Outlook Survey, drawing on responses from more than 4,000 stakeholders, shows why. Workforce strategy, financial sustainability, and technology readiness are deeply connected. When organizations treat them separately, the result is fragmented strategy and missed opportunity.
What the Data Reveals
The survey points to a persistent gap between what healthcare organizations can measure and what they can act on:
- 38% of executives trust their forecasting accuracy, leaving many teams reacting to staffing and budget needs instead of planning ahead.
- 48% of organizations connect workforce data to financial models, limiting accurate labor forecasts and scenario planning.
- 37% say their HR technology supports their workforce goals, creating barriers to recruitment, retention, and labor optimization.
- 39% technology readiness score, ranking it among the weakest pillars of workforce strategy, and among the biggest opportunities.
- 40% cite technology and analytics as a top strategic investment for future success.
The Foundation You Might Be Missing
The pattern is worth noting. Organizations excel at measuring workforce costs but struggle to connect that data across systems. The survey's Capability Staircase makes this clear: cost visibility scores highest at 77%, while workforce data integration scores lowest at 48%.
That gap matters. Data integration is the foundational capability that shapes technology alignment, reporting accuracy, and the quality of every workforce decision healthcare leaders make. Organizations that strengthen it will find the rest of their strategy grows stronger with it.
Turning Visibility into Action
Better data means better outcomes for people and budgets alike. A large not-for-profit health network in Nevada shows what that looks like in practice. Using WorkWise™, the network gained clear visibility into workforce demand and optimized its mix of core and contingent labor. We worked alongside the organization to turn that clarity into measurable results:
- 267% increase in its internal float pool
- 80%+ reduction in traveler utilization
- 15% growth in core staff
- 62.9% decrease in turnover
The outcome was a more stable, cost-effective workforce and more consistent patient care. Visibility became action, and action became lasting change.
Closing these gaps does not have to be a solitary effort. We partner alongside organizations at their own pace and aligned with their priorities, connecting the data that drives smarter workforce decisions.