11/21/2025
About 5 years ago, I had a conversation with the legendary Connie Barton for the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses AACN Leadership podcast. To make a long story short, I implemented ELITE. Last week, I asked a large health system CNO to write an introduction that summarizes my work for my upcoming speaking engagement at NASHVILLE GENERAL HOSPITAL, and this is what she wrote:
Dr. Shawntay Harris, DNP, MBA, MHA, RN, NEA-BC, NE-BC, TCRN, CPEN, CEN, CTRN, CFRN, FAEN, FAAN, is a nationally recognized speaker, entrepreneur, and global educator whose impact on healthcare leadership is truly extraordinary. She is an award-winning entrepreneur and nursing leader, one of the most dynamic voices in nursing today. She is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, a global trailblazer who continues to create innovative pathways for nurses and healthcare leaders in business and nursing practice by redefining what leadership looks like in healthcare.
Dr. Harris is the Founder and CEO of Eminent Healthcare Resources Consultants, Inc., and the creator of the groundbreaking Eminent Leadership Institute Training for Executives, better known as the ELITE credential. Through this work, she is not just teaching leadership but building leaders, shaping cultures, and paving new paths for nurses and executives around the globe. Her voice influences national practice through the development of leadership programs that prepare leaders to lead with strategy. Her ability to integrate clinical practice, organizational leadership, and bedside nurse advocacy positions her as an influential force in driving large-scale organizational transformation. Dr. Harris has trained hundreds of thousands of healthcare professionals worldwide, impacting not only the way we lead but the way we care.
More than her credentials, what makes Dr. Harris extraordinary is her mission. She is committed to empowering others by helping EVERY NURSE, every leader, and every team rise to their highest potential. She shows what is possible when vision meets action and leadership meets heart. Through dynamic, high-energy presentations, she engages bedside nurses, activates nursing leaders, and helps entire healthcare systems rethink their approach to safety, accountability, and professional practice. Bedside nurses walk away empowered. Leaders walk away, inspired and challenged, and organizations walk away with solutions. Dr. Harris breaks down research, guidelines, and national standards into strategies nurses can apply at the very next shift and leaders can embed into policy, workflow, and culture.
She has helped organizations: 1) Strengthen decision-making, 2) Elevate professional accountability, 3) Reduce legal exposure, 4) Improve teamwork and communication, and 5) Rebuild cultures rooted in excellence.
When organizational culture is intentional, liability declines. When leaders invest in their teams, nurses thrive. And when nurses thrive, patients win. Every single time.
