Filling positions in the healthcare industry is growing more and more difficult each day. No one is more acutely aware of this than hiring managers in the space, who find themselves struggling to attract and retain quality personnel.
So what are the top issues in healthcare recruiting? Here are two.
- Competition for scarce talent is a huge problem in the industry. Some of this is driven by the rise of outpatient urgent care centers. These facilities are expected to produce over $18 billion in revenue at more than 12,000 clinics in 2017. And it takes a lot of healthcare workers to staff them. As this new sector continues to grow, urgent care facilities are offering competitive salaries and benefits in order to keep their centers adequately staffed. This has led to bidding wars where hospitals, private practices, and urgent care centers are pushed to expand their job offers to land the top available talent.
- Lengthy screening processes are another challenge. State and industry regulations require healthcare workers to pass a litany of tests and verifications in order to be able to work. Rigorous screening is vital in order to hire a quality workforce and is a top priority for hiring managers in healthcare - in fact, 32 percent of healthcare managers say that education and verification is a key initiative. However, this lengthy process can become discouraging to applicants – 6 out of 10 applicants quit an applicationprocess because it took too long.
The problems are significant but the solutions aren’t too difficult for organizations that are willing to take some time to examine their recruitment practices. Beyond just salary and benefits, consider the net effect of candidate experience, culture, and the offer on landing talent. The candidates you want are looking for more than just money – in a tight labor market, top talent has numerous employment options. Think holistically about the recruiting process and make sure to optimize as much as possible. There’s no getting around the time it takes to administer tests, so cut every minute possible from other parts of the recruitment process. Stay in touch with candidates, let them know the length of the process, and treat them with consideration and respect.