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Objective: To explore nurse managers' perceptions of the frequency and importance of professional activities performed in their daily work in public hospitals in Hunan, China. Background: Nurse managers are responsible for the management of almost all nursing activities in Chinese hospitals. Understanding how nurse managers operationalize their role and their perceptions of the importance of each activity is essential for clarification of their role and the competencies required to perform it. Methods: A cross‐sectional questionnaire survey. Results: A total of 1,371 nurse managers in Hunan Province completed the survey. Nursing quality/safety management and patient management were performed most frequently and perceived as most important. Nurse managers performed nursing information management frequently while perceiving it as less important. They seldom performed nursing research management and placed low value on it. Conclusions: Patient‐centred care remains central to nursing management. Nursing managers can create a leadership culture in their hospital settings that includes the effective management of information and facilitation of research knowledge to benefit nurse managers, staff and patients. Implications for nursing management: The results provide evidence for standardization of roles and job descriptions of nurse managers and for developing their knowledge and skills to ensure quality patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]