Abstract
Achieving career optimization is especially important for health care administrators working in United States (US) hospitals. Succession planning is a critical and essential process for nurturing future leaders. Succession planning occurs when there is an immediate change in leadership such as when a leader voluntarily or involuntarily vacates a position resulting in substantial loss of organizational knowledge and experience. This descriptive quantitative study fulfilled gaps in knowledge pertaining to the role of succession planning and perceived barriers to achieving career optimization among health care administrators working in US hospitals. Succession planning is imperative to the health care workforce for sustainability.