Candidate Experience

As the recruiting landscape continues to evolve and shift with increasing demands, healthcare recruiters are searching for ways to attract and manage their top candidates. Utilizing an effective applicant tracking system (ATS) not only aids in the monotonous task of managing the influx of applicants, but also positions your organization as a leader in a very competitive market.

To continue celebrating Health Care HR Week, we are excited to announce the release of our latest white paper, 10 Ways to Optimize Healthcare Recruiting and Onboarding Processes. In a fast-paced industry like healthcare where the competition for top talent is intense, who doesn’t want to streamline their recruiting and onboarding processes?

In a recent survey conducted by CareerBuilder, an estimated 225,000 healthcare jobs were added at an average of 23,000 per month last year—and 2015 looks just as promising for job seekers. The U.S. workforce is projected to grow by 1.2 percent this year and 28 healthcare jobs are projected to grow at three percent or more.

In the past century, technological advances have transformed the face of healthcare. Electronic health records (EHR) have enabled healthcare organizations to centralize patient-sensitive information; online portals have allowed patients to become more autonomous and be active players in their own health; and telemedicine has eliminated distance barriers and given patients with limited resources access to medical services. Despite these advancements in technology, many employers have overlooked the need to improve their onboarding system.

To remain competitive, healthcare organizations need to hire employees who provide a high level of patient- and resident-focused care and who are committed team members. Science-based behavioral assessments can help healthcare organizations choose the right people for the jobs they need to fill and do a better job of managing and developing the people they already have on staff.

With all the competition to find and recruit top healthcare talent, it’s paramount job candidates don’t get fed up with your application process and choose to pursue work elsewhere. Ensuring you have what candidates are looking for and delivering it throughout the recruiting and hiring process can help keep them engaged until you’re ready to bring them on board. It can also set a positive tone for their entire experience working for your organization.

Consider these six ways to improve the candidate experience in your healthcare organization.

Employee engagement is challenging in today's workforce, but it is especially critical in the healthcare setting. With the changing healthcare climate, hospitals and healthcare facilities are under greater pressure to improve clinical care while lowering costs, implementing change, and reducing employee turnover. High levels of employee engagement can significantly impact these areas. Research shows a strong correlation between strong healthcare employee engagement and patient satisfaction, patient safety and quality, and improved clinical outcomes.

Recruiting is about more than just finding qualified people who have the skills and abilities to do the job. It’s about ensuring they’re a good fit, too.

A candidate may have all the skills and experience you want for a position and be eager to take it, but if he or she isn’t a fit for your organization’s culture, you may not get the best work out of him or her over time, and he or she may be at a higher risk of leaving for another job, putting you back at square one in the hiring process.

Retaining good employees is an issue in every industry, but with long hours and emotionally draining work, retaining healthcare workers has its own special challenges. Then there’s the costs of replacing doctors, nurses and other employees with specific skill sets and certifications. It soon becomes clear that retention is, by necessity, a high priority for many healthcare organizations.

Healthcare organizations face unique challenges when it comes to managing employees and handling human resources responsibilities. It’s a highly stressful industry; frontline providers deal with life-and-death situations. But even in the trenches, it’s important that healthcare HR leaders manage employees and track their performance toward meeting the organization’s objectives, including improving patient satisfaction and care. Here are some ways to keep healthcare employees performing at the top of their game.