How do we go about landing top healthcare talent? Before we discuss the answer to that question it’s important to understand the meaning of two words. One is “Landing” and the other is “Lighthouse”
Landing – is “an act or process of one that lands; especially: a going or bringing to a surface (as land or shore).
Lighthouse – a tower or other structure displaying or flashing a very bright light for the guidance of ships in avoiding dangerous areas, in following certain routes, etc.
In Landing top healthcare talent a process has to be established to ensure the top talent you’re trying to bring aboard to your organization has a clear understanding of what they’re leaving and what they’re receiving. It’s very important to be prepared to start the landing process once top talent has been identified. This process of landing should take place after a personal interview, and once the candidate has declared interest in the role/organization.
There are 8 key areas that must be made crystal clear for a top healthcare candidate. If you’re going to land that individual to your organization the following must be discussed in great detail. Let’s review below.
- Summary of What The Individual is Leaving & What They’re Gaining in New Role/New Organization
- Expectations of Role/Department
- Compensation & Benefits
- Management/Leadership Team
- Team Department
- Explanation of How Role Impacts Organization’s Objectives
- Training & Development
- Career Path/Career Growth
Once your organization has identified someone you feel would be a top healthcare nurse, physician, therapist, or pharmacist, etc., you must begin the landing process. The landing process is verbal and sometimes written communication with top talent. You might decide to provide both forms of communication in different stages. I would suggest breaking the 8 areas into three stages. Make sure you explain that you’re interested in the candidate, and feel they can bring a great deal of value to your organization. You want them to know that you’re committed to invest the appropriate time to ensure the role/organization is an excellent opportunity for them to consider. You could communicate these stages over a day, week, or 3 weeks. You want to make sure that the individual truly understands each stage and allow them to digest the information and ask questions for clarification.
Stage 1 (Evaluation of Right Opportunity)
In stage one you will schedule some time with the candidate to discuss what the individual is leaving and what the individual would be gaining with the role and your organization as a whole. During this time you will also want them to know about the expectations of the role/department. In the last part of this stage you will want to make sure it’s clear that the individual knows about the compensation opportunity within a particular pay grade along with the summary of benefits. Most individuals that are good at what they do have a pretty good understanding of what they feel they’re worth. They also know the needs they have for themselves in terms of benefits along with their family’s benefit needs. You should allow time to discuss key benefits that the individual is looking for in their next move. Which benefits are must haves and which are nice to haves should be discussed…
Stage 2 (Comfort of Team & Organization)
It’s always scary to be in a situation where you’re leaving position/company/friends/colleagues that you’ve worked with for several years. There needs to be a feeling of comfortability in the team and leadership that surrounds this individual. At this stage you will be explaining the top talent’s direct reporting manager’s style/longevity/credentials. You will also want to talk about the organizations structure by leadership (provide an organizational chart by department, and by senior leadership). Discuss the style of the department – how they communicate with one another, availability/exposure to ask questions when needed. Credentials and average years of experience of the team would be insightful for someone that’s looking for opportunities to learn from others or provide mentoring/leadership to a department. The last part of this stage should be an explanation of how the person’s role and department impact the organization and how they will be measured and rewarded.
Stage 3 (Career Growth & Development)
In the final stage of Career Growth & Development it needs to be made clear that the individual knows that they are brought in day one with an expectation they will be successful. They should know the organization is committed to provide the training, and development to ensure they’re not only successful during their onboarding/orientation but throughout their career with the organization. You should explain the average length of orientation/training and what is involved. What training and development is provided internally and what is supported externally in terms of conferences/professional affiliations. One of the most important areas for top healthcare talent will be understanding the potential career paths/career growth. It might be wise to first understand what the individual is looking for in short term and long term career goals. You can then begin discussing the various career paths within the organization. Examples of individuals that have followed a particular career path by lateral moves/promotions carry a lot of weight and show career growth potential.
Always remember that your role as an effective Healthcare Talent Acquisition Leader is to be that light or lighthouse. You must always be willing to provide appropriate guidance for top healthcare talent to ensure they land in the right position/organization allowing them to avoid dangerous areas in their healthcare career.
Let Your Light Shine Bright!
KNK Recruiting is a Hospital and Healthcare RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) firm. We partner with Hospitals, Home Health, Long Term Care, and Specialized Healthcare Service organizations to help them analyze and improve their recruitment processes to ensure their business needs are met. We offer Talent Sourcing Consultants and Talent Recruiting Consultants to help with all or some of the following areas:
Attracting Talent = Sourcing & Screening (how are we doing at attracting talent?)
Assessing Talent = Interviewing (are our assessments leading to interviews? & are our candidates interviewing well enough to be brought on board?)
Landing Talent = Selecting & Hiring (have we made a good match between the candidate and employer?)
Retaining Talent = Candidate & Hiring Mgr. Satisfaction (how are we doing at engaging talent? & have our client and candidate developed a long- term relationship?)
…all with the goal of continuous improvement and the best possible outcomes for our clients and candidates.
If your company is limited on staff or time to address the important recruiting and retention areas discussed please contact us today at 513-444-2089 so we can schedule a consultation.