The basic principles and structures of shared governance were defined in the early 1980s. Since that time, shared governance has become the predominant structural model for organizations that guide the professional practice of nursing. As the profession has matured, subsequent models of professional practice and the Magnet Recognition Program have validated its viability for advancing nursing practice and patient care. As a result, nursing ‘shared’ governance has matured into nursing ‘professional ‘ governance. The content of this session will explore what is different in nursing professional governance and how it has changed over the past decade. Explored will be five key principles which demonstrate higher levels of expectation for decision-making and practice that now redefines the professional character of the role of every nurse and inform its impact on practice, especially at the unit level.