Category: Candidate Attraction

Talking Talent: Addressing the Workforce Gap in Nursing

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In this episode of Talking Talent, we talk about how to address the workforce gap in nursing and the solution developed at Sutter Health in Northern California to increase nurse retention.

Healthcare organizations across the United States are grappling with the nursing shortage. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of registered nurses is expected to grow 16 percent between 2014 and 2024 based on an increased emphasis on preventative care, growing rates of chronic conditions like diabetes and obesity and demand for healthcare services for the baby boomer generation. At the same time, baby boomer nurses are retiring in unprecedented numbers. By 2020, the number of baby-boomer nurses in the workforce will decrease to just half their 2008 peak.

Joining us to talk about the unique solution at Sutter Health is Christine Cress, the Director of Nurse Workforce and Leadership Development. A skilled executive coach and Stanford-trained facilitator, Christine has led inter-disciplinary teams to create functions and company programs where they did not exist before. She has been named honorary nurse by her nurse executive colleagues and is a strategic business partner generating results that require no spin. Christine blends mind, heart and business to her practice as a healthcare leader. She brings the insights of 18 years in healthcare – partnering with finance, supply chain, clinicians and HR to serve those who take care of patients.

In this interview , Christine explains how she and her team developed and funded an internal program that increased nurse retention during the nursing shortage.

You can read more about skills shortages in healthcare here:

Listen to other Talking Talent Podcasts about healthcare:

Expanding the Talent Landscape by Recruiting Virtual Employees

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With very low unemployment in many of the world’s major economies, those seeking to attract talent should explore the benefits of recruiting employees that work from home. Since a number of these countries, such as the United States and the UK, are considered to be at “full employment,” where nearly everyone who wants a job has a job, the traditional formula of recruiting in the market where a company is located may no longer be as effective as it has been in the past. And since the top reason for quitting a current job is to increase wages, employers face the challenge of meeting candidate expectations for higher pay based on local salary ranges.

While remote work may not be viable for some positions, expanding the pool of candidates outside a specific geographic area allows employers to take advantage of the growing trend in telecommuting as well as potentially reduce attrition, decrease cost-per-hire and even improve productivity.

The Virtual Workforce is Substantial (and Growing)

A study by Global Workplace Analytics and FlexJobs released earlier this year reported that 3.9 million U.S. employees, or 2.9 percent of the total U.S. workforce, currently work from home at least half of the time. This number is up from 1.8 million in 2005, an increase of 115 percent. And as of 2017, 43 percent of U.S. workers worked remotely at least occasionally, up from only 9 percent of workers in 2007.

Growth in remote work is not limited to the United States. In the UK, one in seven people work from home, according to the Office for National Statistics. In Canada, nearly half (47 percent) of employees work from outside one of their employer’s main offices for half the week or more. And in Australia, the number of people who work from home has risen to 30 percent. The significant percentages of telecommuters is not the case for all economies. Eurostat reported earlier this year that working from home was slightly more common in the Eurozone than in the EU as a whole. And some non-Eurozone countries have a negligible virtual workforce. Bulgaria has only 0.3 and Romania just 0.4 percent of its workers working from home, as an example.

A Deloitte study on Global Human Capital Trends reported that 70 percent of employees value telecommuting, but only 27 percent of employers offer this option. Therefore, companies that provide opportunities for telecommuting may have a competitive advantage in attracting talent.

Reducing Employee Turnover and Increasing Productivity

While study results vary, there is evidence being offered that working from home can increase employee retention. One study by OwlLabs found that companies that support remote work have 25 percent lower employee turnover than those that don’t.

A study conducted by a Stanford University professor set up a control group between office-based workers and those were allowed to work from home. As the Harvard Business Review reports:

“Half the volunteers were allowed to telecommute; the rest remained in the office as a control group. Survey responses and performance data collected at the conclusion of the study revealed that, in comparison with the employees who came into the office, the at-home workers were not only happier and less likely to quit but also more productive.”

The professor noted that “The results we saw at Ctrip, (the company studied, which is the largest online travel agency in China and the owner of other travel sites worldwide including Trip.com) blew me away. Ctrip was thinking that it could save money on space and furniture if people worked from home and that the savings would outweigh the productivity hit it would take when employees left the discipline of the office environment. Instead, we found that…Ctrip got almost an extra workday a week out of them. They also quit at half the rate of people in the office—way beyond what we anticipated. And predictably, at-home workers reported much higher job satisfaction.”

Providing the option of working virtually can be a crucial factor in retaining valuable talent. If an employee needs to relocate temporarily for family reasons, such as caring for an older parent, or permanently due to a spouse’s job transfer, the employee can remain with the company by working remotely. Having this option available allows the employee to remain with the organization while the employer retains experienced talent and saves the costs of hiring and training a new worker.

Cost Savings for Employers and Employees

This same Stanford study showed that the company saved $1,900 per employee working from home over nine months. Remote workers allow employers to save money on furniture, parking, office space, insurance costs and other expenses. Global Workplace Analytics’ research shows that a typical employer can save more than $11,000 per year for each half-time telecommuter, the result of a combination of increased productivity and reduced real estate, turnover and absenteeism.

The cost benefits of remote work also extend to employees. Those working remotely save on commuting expenses, depreciation on their vehicles if they drive and gain the time back that would normally be spent going to and from work.

Can Remote Work Be a Solution for Your Business?

The difficulties of recruiting locally and the potential returns of developing a remote workforce may be attractive, but it is also uncharted territory for many companies. How would you source candidates throughout the nation and even beyond? Can you develop recruiting processes, including interviewing, that are effective using video and other tools if you have only relied on face-to-face meetings until now? And once a candidate is hired, how will you manage the onboarding process remotely? The answers to these and many other questions confronting a company exploring a remote workforce option can be provided by a recruitment process outsourcing company (RPO). An RPO can provide the experience, technology and expertise to ensure your success as you remove the geographic limits of your talent pool.

Military Spouses: How to Hire the Overlooked Talent Pool

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While a strong focus on veteran hiring has significantly lowered the unemployment rate of U.S. veterans, many employers are now starting to focus on another challenge. Military spouses still have a difficult time finding employment that matches their skill sets.

According to a study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the unemployment rate for military spouses has hovered around 20 to 25 percent over the last decade. This means that military families are more likely than average to rely on a single income.

As employers work to support the military, the focus should now shift to the entire military family. While many employers have built robust veteran hiring programs, military spouse hiring programs struggle to gain traction despite the help and stability employment can provide for military families. By focusing on military spouse employment, organizations have the opportunity to not only support the military but also hire strong employees. In this article, we will dig into the demographics of who military spouses are, the challenges they face and how employers can hire and retain these valuable workers.

Who are Military Spouses?

In order to effectively recruit military spouses, it’s important to understand who they are. Military spouses form a diverse group with a variety of backgrounds and skill sets, but there are some commonalities.

They’re Overwhelming Young and Female but not Exclusively

A White House report on Military Spouses in the Labor Market shows that 92 percent of military spouses are female, and the average age is 33-years-old. The average American working age is 41-years-old.

This means average military spouses are within their prime working years. While the population is mostly female, employers should also recognize that male military spouses face many of the same challenges as female military spouses, but often lack support groups or feel overlooked.

They May be Veterans Themselves

According to the White House report, 12 percent of military spouses are active duty military themselves. Male military spouses are much more likely to be veterans. Nearly half of all married female active duty military members are in dual-military marriages.

They are Highly Skilled and Highly Educated

Military spouses are more likely to hold a bachelor’s or advanced degree than the general population. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation study, 34 percent have a college degree and 15 percent have a postgraduate degree. In the general population, according to census data, those numbers are 32.5 percent and 12 percent, respectively.

They Often have Children but not Always

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation study finds that 41 percent of military spouses have dependent children, and more than 70 percent of those children are 7-years-old or younger.

Having young children in the home can increase the pressure on military spouses to find flexible work, but military spouses without children can also benefit from flexible work arrangements.

They Manage Stress Effectively and Work Well Under Pressure

Because of the pressures associated with being a military spouse, including frequent moves, managing change and running a household through a deployment, military spouses learn to effectively manage stress and deal well with pressure.

According to Military.com, military spouses are quick learners, committed to service, adaptable and they bring a diverse set of skills. Military spouses pick up these skills dealing with the high stress of the military lifestyle, including managing and adjusting to frequent moves and taking on extra responsibilities and stress during a deployment. These traits often make them strong employees.

The Challenges Faced by Military Spouses

The issues faced by military spouses have broad implications. Finding work and managing a career is one of the top stressors for military families, just behind deployments and moving away from friends and families.

That stress plays a significant role in a veteran’s decision to leave the military, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation study, and impacts the military’s readiness and ability to recruit.

Increased Difficulty Finding Work

When searching for a job, military spouses say the most frequent issue they face is that employers don’t want to hire them out of fear that they will move. They also struggle explaining gaps in their resume and often need a more flexible schedule while their spouse is deployed.

Because of these challenges, about a quarter of military spouses say it has taken them more than a year to find a job after a move and many work part-time or seasonal jobs or work more than one job when they want permanent, full-time employment.

Need for a Flexible Work Environment

Military spouses may move frequently. In the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation study, more than half of the military spouses surveyed report having moved more than 50 miles three times due to their spouse’s military career.

Additionally, more than 80 percent of military spouses have experienced a deployment during their spouse’s career. A deployment, especially for a family with children, can be disruptive to work life and make it more difficult for a military spouse to maintain a strict schedule. Because of this, positions that allow for remote work or flexible hours are ideal for military spouses.

Underemployment

When military spouses find employment, about 70 percent report that the job does not take full advantage of their work experience and education. Nearly two-thirds of military spouses say they have taken a decrease in pay or responsibilities in their current role.

Most military spouses with post-secondary education say that the military lifestyle does not support career opportunities for both spouses.

Best Practices for Recruiting and Retaining Military Spouse Employees

Identify Ideal Positions for Military Spouses

Because of the unique pressures faced by military spouses, organizations should determine if any positions would be an ideal fit for a military spouse or if any adaptations can be made to help a position fit better with the military lifestyle. Flexible working hours and the ability to work remotely should be considered.

Set Hiring Manager and Recruiter Expectations

Military spouses may have long resume gaps or short tenures at previous jobs. They may also have taken positions outside their area of expertise or made lateral career moves. Organizations should educate recruiters and hiring managers and set reasonable expectations. These factors alone should not disqualify a military spouse candidate.

Find Military Spouses Where They Are

Organizations looking to hire military spouses should post to job boards that target military families and partner with military advocacy organizations. A variety of national and local veteran organizations have job boards specifically targeted to military spouses. Employers should research to determine which are most often used in areas they are targeting. While job posts targeting veterans should use language that reflects their military experiences, military spouses have a wide range of experience and expertise. Because of this, employers don’t need to use military-specific language, but highlighting job benefits that are appealing to military spouses and stating a commitment to hiring military spouses can be beneficial.

Establish an Affinity Group for Veteran Spouses

Hiring a military spouse is just the first step. Much like veteran affinity groups, a military spouse affinity group can help new employees feel welcomed. An affinity group is a voluntary, employee-driven group of people with a common interest or goal. An affinity group is an opportunity for military spouses across a workplace to connect and support each other and help with the stress and pressures of being in a military family.

Focus on Retention Through Life Transitions

Because of the military lifestyle, a military spouse may need to relocate to follow their partner or adjust work hours to take care of their family if their partner deploys. In order to retain strong military spouse employees, organizations should determine what types of adjustments can be made to retain these employees through times of personal change – including remote work, temporarily reduced hours or a flexible schedule. This can increase employee engagement and help the military family through transitions.

Find a Partner with Experience Hiring Military Spouses

Organizations without experience hiring military spouses should consider turning to an RPO partner with experience hiring veterans and military spouses. RPO providers can bring their strong connections with partners like Hiring our Heroes and share their expertise in veteran and military spouse hiring.

Healthcare Workforce and Recruiting Trends to Watch

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The healthcare workforce is highly specialized. As a result, the healthcare workforce and labor market are uniquely competitive. To gain a competitive edge, healthcare organizations are looking for innovative recruiting solutions to find top-quality candidates who provide world-class care for patients.

In this post, we examine the trends in the healthcare workforce that will influence the future of healthcare recruitment.

Employer Branding for Healthcare Workforce

Top healthcare candidates have many options when it comes to employers and can easily research the experiences of employees in your organization on career sites such as Indeed and Glassdoor.

In fact, a survey conducted by LinkedIn found that 75 percent of job seekers consider an employer’s brand before applying for a job. What’s more, a study conducted by Healthcare Recruiters International found that over 90 percent of candidates think employer branding is an essential recruiting resource. So, how can you ensure you have an impactful employer brand?

How RPO Can Solve The Top Challenges In Healthcare Talent Acquisition

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Conduct an Employer Brand Audit

Before developing your employer brand, you should conduct an employer brand audit. Your employer brand audit will help you understand how your brand distinguishes itself from competitors and provide a starting point from which you can build your strategy. Below are key questions to ask yourself during the audit:

  • Why would someone want to work for you?
  • What is the perception employees and candidates have about your organization?
  • What percentage of your employees would recommend your company as a great place to work?

Set your Employer Brand Strategy

Prospective healthcare employees are similar to patients in that both select the healthcare provider they feel most comfortable with. Your employer brand strategy should help make a candidate’s choice easier and provide assurance that he or she has chosen the right employer. Your employer brand strategy should contain the following three components:

  • Differentiators: A list of the benefits and unique qualities that are different or better about working at your healthcare facility.
  • Employee Value Proposition: Using your list of differentiators, craft a brief paragraph that positions your organization against other healthcare employers and demonstrates why candidates view you as an employer of choice.
  • Employer Brand Promotional Plan: Develop a plan to share your employee value proportion with candidates, including the tactics you will use, the tools you need and the schedule you will follow to attract potential new hires and retain current employees.

Promote Your Employer Brand to the Healthcare Workforce 

Once you have established your employer brand, it is time to promote it. You can promote your employer brand by highlighting your workplace benefits and culture in recruiting materials, on your website and social media channels and in your job postings and candidate outreach emails. Some examples of ways to promote your employer brand include:

  • Sharing videos and pictures of your workplace to show what working for your healthcare organization is like.
  • Leveraging your social channels to show off your workplace and company perks so that a candidate can assess what you have to offer.
  • Building a career site that makes visitors feel welcome and gives applicants the information they are looking for, such as details about employment opportunities, company culture and work environment.
  • Telling engaging stories from current and former employees to better attract the type of healthcare candidates who could see themselves in those stories.

Diversity in the Healthcare Workforce

Healthcare is experiencing a shortage of workers, and professionals of diverse backgrounds are particularly underrepresented in many occupations and in the upper ranks of many healthcare organizations.

Minority Workers in the Healthcare Workforce

With demand in many healthcare professions at record levels, career opportunities abound for individuals of all backgrounds. However, Black, Hispanic and Indigenous Americans make up almost a quarter of the U.S. population, yet as a group, they account for only 6 percent of physicians, 9 percent of nurses and 5 percent of dentists according to the Sullivan Commission on Diversity.

Healthcare organizations can play a significant role in addressing this issue by:

  • Promoting healthcare careers to diverse populations via school programs and community organizations.
  • Encouraging students to shadow healthcare professionals and explore careers in healthcare.
  • Recruiting ethnically diverse individuals for every-level positions to increase current minority representation.
  • Offering internships, residencies and fellowships to ethnically diverse students. For example, the Institute for Diversity in Health Management in Chicago offers summer internships to college students.

Healthcare Workers with Disabilities

Individuals with disabilities can pursue successful careers in the healthcare field. Opportunities are available, but so are obstacles, from expensive equipment to accommodate workers to licensing requirements.

Some disabled healthcare workers take advantage of programs specifically designed to recruit those with disabilities. Project Search at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center gives high school students with disabilities the opportunity to learn about careers in healthcare. Healthcare organizations can also provide assistance to workers with disabilities by:

  • Creating formal policies and procedures on accommodations for staff with disabilities. Invite employees with disabilities to work with on these policies.
  • Making the online application process easier to use, with fonts that can be enlarged or a site that can be used with a screen reader.
  • Advertising your healthcare organization as an equal opportunity employer and including contact information for anyone having problems accessing your organization because of a disability.

Aging Healthcare Workforce

According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing the median age of a Registered Nurse (RN) is 46 years old. Plus, more than a quarter of RNs report they plan to retire or leave nursing over the next five years. These demographic trends portend significant employment challenges in the near future in the U.S.

Healthcare employers will need to rethink their current employment policies and practices to simultaneously retain talented older staff and create job opportunities for new workers of all ages. Many healthcare organizations are taking proactive steps to confront the problems that will occur as the healthcare workforce matures. Some of these strategies include:

  • Developing strong outreach mechanisms to attract promising senior candidates to healthcare management careers.
  • Publicizing career advancement opportunities, such as continuing education, professional development organizations, networking events and vacancies inside the organization, in a manner that appeals to everyone, especially older individuals.
  • Creating environments that encourage retention, development and promotion of qualified elderly or senior employees.

Greater Use of Technology

As technology continues to become more sophisticated, it will play an increasingly important role in finding and hiring talent in healthcare. In fact, according to Ideal, 96% of senior HR professionals believe AI has the potential to greatly enhance talent acquisition and retention.

AI can help reduce unconscious bias during the hiring process by anonymizing candidates and focusing on skills, not age, gender or race, auto. AI technology can also be used to improve the screening process and manage interview scheduling.

Drafting Better Job Posts

Finding the right candidate in the healthcare workforce begins with the right job posting. In fact, it is often the first thing candidates see from your organization, so it is important to make a good impression.

Today, AI technology can utilize algorithms to assess and analyze language patterns in job postings to determine why some fail and others succeed and suggest keywords to make job descriptions more appealing to candidates. As the AI technology analyzes more job posts, it becomes more accurate with its language suggestions, helping employers draft precise job descriptions.

While there may never be a perfect job posting, AI technology is getting us closer.

Advanced Candidate Screening

Traditionally, candidate screenings begin with reviewing an applicant’s resume followed by a brief phone call. This means that recruiters and hiring managers have only their judgment of a resume to assess whether a healthcare candidate would make a good hire.

Healthcare recruiters know that resumes are an incomplete picture of someone’s skills, achievements, capabilities and most importantly, personality and culture fit.

AI technology can also be used to cull data and metrics healthcare organizations have on their employees to build predictive models and personality profiles that help lead to candidates who fit the company culture and job requirements more accurately and can reduce time-to-fill metrics.

Automating Recruiting Tasks

In healthcare recruiting, administrative tasks such as resume screenings and scheduling interviews can be time-consuming. With the assistance of AI, recruiters and hiring managers can reduce their time spent conducting administrative work by using AI and Robotic Process Automation technology to automatically screen candidates’ resumes using keyword and qualification searches.

AI can also help schedule interviews with candidates through email or chatbot programs that bring more personalization to the communication process. Not only does this save time that recruiters can spend on more critical tasks, it also accelerates the interview process, helping reduce time-to-hire and ultimately providing healthcare organizations with an advantage when competing for talent.

Conclusion

Your healthcare organization’s success depends on your ability to adapt to changes in recruiting and healthcare talent management. Healthcare RPO is one way the sector is staying on top of a difficult hiring environment.

Paging All Doctors: Effective Physician Recruiting Strategies and Tactics

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The Association of American Medical Colleges has projected that by 2036 there will be a shortage of up to 86,000 physicians. This shortage will include both primary and specialty care physicians. Despite the looming shortage, hospitals and healthcare systems are increasingly investing in physician recruiting. Three-quarters of healthcare organizations surveyed by independent consulting firm Sullivan, Cotter and Associates said they plan to increase the number of employed physicians in the coming year.

To attract and hire good candidates in a high-demand hiring environment, healthcare organizations need to create an outstanding physician recruiting strategy. In this post, we explore proven tactics healthcare organizations can implement to recruit and retain top physician candidates.

Make the Candidate Experience the Heart of Your Physician Recruiting Process

The physician recruiting process requires tremendous time and effort, great attention to detail and timely ongoing two-way communication between candidates and employers. Because of the time-intensive nature of the process, poorly executed physician recruiting is expensive.

In a candidate-driven talent market—especially so for physicians—it is important for you as an employer to make a good impression on the candidates you are pursuing. To ensure success when recruiting physicians, healthcare organizations need to roll out the red carpet for candidates and provide them with an extraordinary candidate experience.

Communication

Communication is the cornerstone of great candidate experience. To build strong relationships, recruiters should work to understand the physician’s needs and wants. When contacting a candidate, a recruiter should open a dialog about what motivates them and work to identify issues and concerns they may have.

Transparency 

Organizations should also make it easy for candidates to evaluate their organization to shape their views and impressions early and accurately. To help facilitate this, a physician recruiter can leverage innovative recruitment technologies and techniques such as video interviewing and virtual office tours can engage candidates in new ways and help your organization leave a lasting impression.

physician recruiting companies

Interviewing Candidates

The interview is not only an ideal way to further assess a physician’s fitness for a position, but also an important chance to “sell” your job offer.

Wherever possible, relate what you do to the interviewee’s medical background and previous clinical experience. One of the easiest ways to do this is to ask candidates why they want to work for you and use their reply to tailor your response, highlighting the parts of the job that may appeal most to them.

Technology can help with interviewing as well. Automated interview scheduling can save you time and video interviewing can be used to conduct real-time interviews with physicians in different locations or to pre-recorded interviews that can be watched when it is convenient for the physician recruiter.

Be Responsive                         

For physicians, a typical day on the job can be hard. Often, it includes running non-stop for eight to 12 hours, being constantly interrupted, having patients demanding attention and making rapid decisions. This makes the responsiveness of your recruiters and their ability to communicate with them quickly and effectively crucial to the recruitment process.

physician recruiter

A physician recruiter should leverage technology to help them stay organized and respond quickly to candidate inquiries. Recruiters should also make sure that the next steps in the hiring process are outlined and communicated to the candidate well in advance. When done efficiently, responsive physician recruitment can reduce confusion between candidates and recruiters and cut down time-to-hire.

Include the Candidate’s Family

Family concerns play a significant role when considering a new position for many physicians, especially one that may require them to relocate.

When recruiting a candidate, consider whether the location of your organization provides the candidate’s spouse with professional opportunities or the candidate’s children with good schools. All of those items affect a physician’s decision to accept a new job offer.

If the candidate makes a visit to your hospital or clinic, include family members in the experience. Giving family members the opportunity familiarize themselves with your community can favorably influence a candidate’s decision.

Physician Recruitment and Become an Employer of Choice for Physicians

An employer that offers a positive work culture and environment not only attracts great candidates but also increases the chance of retaining them.

physician recruitment

Becoming a healthcare employer of choice means that physician applicants are eager to work for your organization, that other healthcare workers envy your employees, you receive lots of resumes from eager candidates and that your best employees are likely to remain with your organization throughout their careers.

What is a Healthcare Employer of Choice?

Healthcare employers of choice are motivated by the well-being of both employees and patients. An employer of choice clearly differentiates between themselves and competitors in key benefits, such as life insurance, disability, paid time off and retirement, as well as certain physician-specific benefits, such as continuing medical education expenses, licensing and medical malpractice insurance.

Schedule Manageable Workloads

Organizations that want to become an employer of choice should try to make sure that physician workloads are manageable to prevent physician burnout. This can be done by reducing the number of patients they see during a shift to ensure physicians have ample time to sit down with patients and families to discuss treatment and post-discharge care.

Work-life Balance and PTO

For many physicians, work-life balance can seem like more a work-life puzzle. The healthcare field can make trying to fit in time for family and friends, hobbies, or any other activity that occurs outside of work difficult.

It is a daily struggle. For some, the struggle leads to stress, which leads to a lack of motivation. A large part of your physician recruiting and retention strategy should revolve around providing candidates with favorable or flexible scheduling and a healthy amount of PTO time to show that your organization is committed to a healthy work-life balance.

Clearly Communicate Your Benefits Package

In order to appreciate the benefits your organization offers, candidates need to be clear on the options that are available to them. If your organization provides the opportunity to earn bonuses based on performance, a partnership track or retirement benefits, make sure that your recruitment messaging communicates those benefits clearly.

Sometimes employees can be hesitant to use some of the perks provided by an organization. It is essential that your workplace culture encourages your employees to use their benefits.

Next Steps For Physician Recruiters

Every physician views career success differently, and one of the keys to effective physicians recruitment is discovering what motivates them. Some physicians may be fresh out of residency and concerned about paying back student loans while others might be seeking the prestige of a leadership position or teaching opportunities. Find out what success means to your candidates and discuss how you plan on helping them achieve it.

Removing Barriers to Employment for the Long-Term Unemployed

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With record low unemployment rates in the U.S., the UK and other leading economies, recruiters seeking to attract talent may assume that everyone who wants a job already has one.

However, this not the case, even in the strongest job markets. In the United States, the long-term unemployed are defined as those who have been out of work for 27 weeks or more and are searching for work. In May 2018, when the jobs report numbers were so good that reporters ran out of words to describe it, nearly 1.2 million individuals had been out of work and seeking employment for more than six months. The long-term unemployed made up 19.6 percent of all unemployed Americans and May was the first month that this percentage fell below 20 percent since the Great Recession.


During an economic downturn, the primary cause of long-term unemployment is simple: there are not enough jobs to employ those who want them. With the robust job growth over the last year, the ranks of the long-term unemployed in the U.S. have fallen by one third. During times of economic growth, causes of extended joblessness can often directly be addressed and remedied by employers.

Minding the Resume Gap


Imagine being a qualified job candidate who has been unemployed for nearly a year. After months of disappointment, a job comes along that looks like a perfect match. The candidate is excited to fill out the online job application, but when they reach the job history section, they see: “Please provide the start and end dates for all of your jobs. If there is a gap of more than six months, please provide an explanation.” These types of questions related to job history can be used (or perceived to be used) as a way to disqualify candidates.


The Deloitte Handbook A Guide to Recruiting and Hiring the Long-Term Unemployed recommends removing filters and screening procedures that ask for dates of last or current employment and automatically eliminate unemployed and long-term unemployed applicants. It also recommends confirming that Applicant Tracking Systems do not screen out resumes based on employment status.

Avoid Date Limits on Valuing Experience


A candidate who has been unemployed for an extended period may possess years of valuable experience and required job skills. It is important for employers to consider whether their recruitment process gives undue weight to recent expertise over cumulative experience gained over the lifespan of a career. Recruitment processes should also be checked for any potential bias against older applicants. An OECD study found that incidence of long-term unemployment increases with age throughout many developed economies.

Addressing the Jobs Skills Gap


A lack of in-demand skills can be a cause of long-term unemployment. There are many resources for those with extended joblessness to receive training in marketable skills. Employers can build relationships with these agencies as part of their recruitment program to target the long-term unemployed. In the UK, skills training can be included as a standard benefit offered to the long-term unemployed. In Australia, the government offers programs which include training for young people and others who either have or risk having long periods of unemployment. Job training services are also provided by Canadian provinces and by state and local governments in the United States.


There are numerous local initiatives in which businesses combine with non-profit agencies to provide skills in an effort to fight all levels of unemployment. Employers can work closely with these agencies to source available talent (often at reduced sourcing costs) and even partner with them as part of their community engagement efforts.

Reaching the Hard to Reach Talent


Individuals without strong job seeking skills can have their period of unemployment unnecessarily extended. For example, the process of finding a job 15 years ago was completely different from today. Reaching candidates whose experience and skills may add tremendous value to your organization requires specialized expertise in sourcing that may not be readily available in many human resources departments. Several leading employers have turned to Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) companies to successfully attract and recruit hard to reach talent.

Worth the Effort


For many companies, the incentive to attract the long-term unemployed may be to meet a need to recruit the last pool of available talent in a tight labor market. However, hiring those with extended unemployment can potentially be a valuable tool in retaining talent, which is critical in today’s economy. The Deloitte handbook cites a White House study that found that companies that hire the long-term unemployed experience higher retention rates and greater workforce loyalty. Given the potential for talent attraction and retention, employers who remove barriers for the long-term unemployed may gain an unexpected competitive edge in an increasingly challenging market.

Wages and Recruitment: The Pressure is Building

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The scene opens on an office with two people facing each other across a desk. The one behind the desk takes a piece of paper, and with exaggerated strokes, writes an unseen amount on it, folds the paper in half and slides it slowly across the desk. There is tension in the air. The paper is picked up, unfolded and read. The entire plot hinges on whether the amount, still invisible to the viewer, is accepted or rejected.


This performance has played out countless times in films and television. For those attempting to recruit in a tight labor market successfully, the scene may feel uncomfortably familiar. Determining the right wages at a time of record high job openings and low unemployment can seem daunting. Offering wages that are too low can repel the best talent while offering wages that are unnecessarily high can impact a company’s profitability. Understanding the causes of current wage pressures allows employers to make informed decisions that will have a positive effect on their recruitment processes.

Beyond Supply and Demand – Causes of Wage Pressure


It’s Economics 101: the cost of goods and services rises when their availability decreases. When there is low unemployment, available workers are scarce. Companies that are seeking to attract talent need to source from a limited pool of available workers as well as those who are currently working. Since the top reason that workers quit their jobs is for better pay elsewhere, companies face the dual challenge of finding the right salary to offer the workers they are trying to attract while also retaining their current employees. While this supply and demand scenario is critical to understanding wage pressure, there are other important factors at work in today’s recruiting environment.

Cost of Living


Inflation continues to remain at low levels in most major economies, but the cost of living is rising in many places due to high housing costs. This is especially true for cities that are major business and financial centers. Companies recruiting in these metropolitan areas need to factor in the current and potential future cost of living in these locations when determining their wage ranges as part of an effective recruiting strategy.

Competition from the Gig Economy


The gig economy was not a factor in wage pressure just a few years ago, but it is an integral part of today’s talent landscape. Uber, the company that pioneered this sector, surpassed 1.5 million drivers last year. Some people may choose to work in the gig economy to supplement the income from their full-time job. For others, gig work is an attractive alternative to working set hours, going to an office and having a boss. Employers that want to attract talent to fill positions need to know how their pay rate compares with those choosing to work as independent contractors by tapping on an app.

Skills Shortage


Supply and demand also come into play when there is a shortage of workers who possess the skills required by employers. Consider the example of welders in the United States. In 1988, there were about 570,000 welders compared to the 360,000 in 2012. The American Welding Society estimates a 290,000 job deficit for welders by 2020. Due to a skill shortage and increased demand, wages for welders are projected to increase at nearly double the rate of the average U.S. worker. Wage pressure resulting from skills shortages is a global issue. Employers should factor in the availability of workers with the required skills, or those that can be trained to acquire these skills, when determining pay rates.

What Wage Pressure? 


The United States and other leading economies have had sustained job growth and low unemployment for an extended period, without experiencing a corresponding substantial increase in wages. However, there are leading economists that believe that wage inflation is imminent. Employers seeking to find the best talent should take note of the current economic environment in the U.S. A recent article in Bloomberg reported that during the current economic cycle, the rate at which workers are leaving their jobs has accelerated to its highest point in the in the past six months. This is an indication that the strong labor market is giving workers the confidence that if they leave a job, another one can be found without difficulty.


The article goes on to cite The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s wage measure for job switchers, those who leave one employer for another, which has also rebounded to cycle highs in recent months, reaching 4.4 percent in March and 4.0 percent in April. The article goes on to note: “Seems like a good environment for workers facing stagnating real wage growth to start looking for greener pastures, forcing firms to boost compensation more aggressively to attract and retain employees.”

Relieving the Pressure on Recruitment


With so many factors to consider, how can employers determine a wage range that will attract the best talent without causing an unnecessary negative impact on profit? Companies should consider partnering their recruitment efforts with an expert, such as a recruitment process outsourcing company or RPO.  RPOs can provide information on current wage rates, the supply and demand of workers in specific markets and the ability to source and screen candidates. An RPO provides the steps to deliver the best candidates while delivering an employer the insight to offer the right wages to attract the right talent. By partnering with an RPO, an employer can leverage an understanding of wage pressure into an asset in its recruitment efforts.

Changing Workforce Demographics: Aging Talent

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An Aging Workforce in an Aging World

For the first time in history, the majority of people on earth will live to 60 years of age and beyond. This is true in high, medium and low-income nations. People are not only living longer, but they are working longer. In the U.S., 23 percent of workers are aged 55 and older. Over one-third of Canadians over the age of 55 are still working and in the UK, workers over 50 comprise 27% of the workforce. In Australia, labor force participation, (those working or actively looking for work), for those 55 and older has never been higher. The demographic shift towards an aging workforce brings both unprecedented opportunities and challenges for organizations that want to attract and retain talent.

A Talent Ticking Time Bomb?

The Deloitte 2018 Global Human Capital Trends Study notes that “population aging poses a workforce dilemma for both economies and organizations. Thirteen countries are expected to have ‘super-aged’ populations—where more than one in five people is 65 or older—by 2020, up from just three in 2014. These include major economies such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, France, and South Korea. China’s 65-and-older population is projected to more than triple from approximately 100 million in 2005 to over 329 million in 2050. In fact, analysts have estimated that 60 percent of the world’s population over 65 will live in Asia by 2030.”

The study notes that almost all developed economies have a birthrate below the “replacement rate,” or the rate of babies born that will ultimately replace previous generations, leading to a potentially catastrophic talent shortage. Citing the example of Japan, now the world’s oldest country in terms of population, a shortage of approximately 1 million workers in 2015 and 2016 is estimated to have cost the economy $90 billion.

To bolster its declining talent pool, Japan changed its laws so that descendants of Japanese citizens living abroad would be attracted by newly available long-stay visas and work permits. It had particular success in attracting workers from Brazil with as many as 320,000 Brazilians of Japanese descent working in Japan ten years ago, although that number has decreased in recent years. China also faces a steep plunge in its working population in the coming years and has made it easier for those of Chinese descent to live and work there.

Despite these developments in Asia, addressing a workforce shortfall through immigration appears to be an increasingly remote option for many advanced economies. A recent article in the Economist explains that the trend in many countries has been to place increased barriers to foreign talent. For organizations seeking to successfully navigate this demographic reality, success may depend on leveraging the talent of an older workforce, mentoring, succession planning and redefining the concept of retirement from work.

Older Workers as Outperformers

There is evidence that older workers have an edge on their younger colleagues regarding work performance. A study conducted by a management professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business concluded that older workers often out-perform their younger colleagues, stating “when it comes to actual job performance…older employees soundly thrash their younger colleagues…every aspect of job performance gets better as we age…I thought the picture might be more mixed, but it isn’t.”

Creative solutions which include accommodating the needs of older workers can help utilize their talent and positively impact a corporation overall. The Economist cites an example from BMW:

“When BMW, the German car maker, faced an outflow of workers it applied an adaptive approach for older workers with great success:…facing an imminent outflow of experienced workers, [it] set up an experimental older-workers’ assembly line. Ergonomic tweaks, such as lining floors with wood, better footwear and rotating workers between jobs, boosted productivity by 7%, equaling that of younger workers. Absenteeism fell below the factory’s average. Several of these adjustments turned out to benefit all employees and are now applied throughout the company.”

Employer Brand Ambassadors and Mentors

Older workers, especially those with significant tenure in an organization and industry, can serve a critical role in its talent lifecycle. Older employees can become employer brand ambassadors by effectively sharing their success stories with prospective candidates as part of an organization’s recruitment marketing messaging. Older employees can be mentors for new workers being onboarded that not only teach necessary skills but also help acclimate a new employee to the organization’s corporate culture. If a company’s workforce is reflective of the economy as a whole, then it should plan to see an exit of at least one-fifth of its employees due to retirement in the next ten years. These older workers form a natural base for a mentorship program which can play an essential role in succession planning.

Redefining Retirement Age

The days when turning 65 meant the end of working life appear long gone. Some workers past the traditional age of retirement have no choice but to continue working due to a lack of savings. Others choose to keep working, on a full or part-time basis, or as consultants. Companies will also have to compete with the trend towards entrepreneurship for talent 65 and over because this age group is more likely than any other to be self-employed.

Having the Competitive Advantage

What does an aging workforce mean for the overall talent strategy of your organization? Does your organization have the necessary insight into the challenges and opportunities that an aging workforce presents? If not, this expertise can be provided by recruitment experts such as a recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) company. Whether your strategy is developed in-house or with a partner such as an RPO, the current tight job market drives the need to build a talent program that integrates the reality of this important workforce demographic. As the Deloitte study concludes “The demographic math is undeniable: As national populations age, challenges related to engaging and managing the older workforce will intensify. Companies that ignore or resist them may not only incur reputational damage and possible liabilities but also risk falling behind those organizations that succeed in turning longevity into a competitive advantage.”

Rural Healthcare: How to Recruit and Attract Clinical Talent in Rural Areas

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Healthcare providers in rural areas face unique obstacles when it comes to recruiting and retaining clinical talent. The growing shortage of nurses and physicians coupled with declining rural populations makes it more challenging than ever for rural healthcare organizations to attract physicians, nurses and other specialized clinical professionals. In this post, we cover the healthcare recruitment challenges faced by rural healthcare organizations and actionable advice on how to overcome them with smart talent acquisition strategies.

Rural Healthcare Challenges

Modern Healthcare reports that 77% of rural counties in America are experiencing shortages of primary care physicians, and the number of surgeons practicing in rural counties has decreased by 21%. What’s more, the Council of State Governments reports that more than 60% of areas experiencing nursing shortages are located in rural regions. Recruiting and retaining clinical professionals in these underserved rural communities remains a significant challenge for states and county governments and healthcare organizations. Economic, educational, professional and cultural dynamics affect the clinical talent shortages in rural areas including the following factors:

  • Many universities and institutions of higher learning are located in more urban regions, limiting rural healthcare organizations recent graduate talent pool.
  • Access to professional development and education programs may be limited in rural areas which can discourage candidates looking to further their career training and education.
  • Candidates with experience working in urban areas may not be prepared for or willing to adapt to the culture and lifestyle changes inherent with living in rural communities.
  • Rural healthcare organizations may not have enough opportunities for career advancement within the organization.
  • Rural healthcare organizations often face understaffing leading to increased workloads, extended shifts and less scheduling flexibility.
  • Urban healthcare organizations may be able to offer more competitive salaries, benefits and better working conditions.
  • Rural communities may offer fewer career opportunities for spouses and children of candidates.

Recruiting Strategies for Rural Healthcare Organizations

To overcome healthcare recruiting challenges, rural healthcare organizations need to employ various strategies focused on attracting and retaining clinical talent. Below, we list four approaches rural healthcare organizations can utilize to source, hire and retain clinical talent.

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Recruit Foreign-Born Talent

Rural healthcare providers should not limit their talent search locally. Federal programs like Conrad State 30 allow a state’s health department to request J-1 Visa waivers for a maximum of 30 foreign-born physicians per year. For foreign-born physicians to be accepted into the program, they must agree to work in a Health Professional Shortage Area or Medically Underserved Area. Healthcare organizations located in one of these federally designated areas can reach out to their state’s health department and request J-1 Visa recipients be sent to their facility if they display sufficient need.

Non-immigrant H-1B Visas can also be used to fill clinical employment gaps for rural healthcare organizations. H-1B Visas are employer-sponsored and are reserved for “specialty occupations,” including medical doctors, nurses and physical therapists. H-1B visas are issued for three years and can be extended to six years depending on circumstance.

While exact H-1B Visa requirements vary by state and each state is given some flexibility in determining program rules, all of the following are required by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services:

  • The recipient must have a full-time contract for employment as a direct care healthcare worker in a region designated as a Health Professional Shortage Area, Medically Underserved Area or a Medically Underserved Population.
  • A firm commitment from an international medical graduate to begin employment within 90-days of receiving a visa waiver.
  • Three years of employment, specifically in H-1B temporary worker status, with the sponsoring employer.
  • A no-objection letter from the visa recipient’s home country if the talent exchange was subsidized by the home government.

Offer Recent Graduates Loan-Repayment Assistance    

According to Debt.org, more than 76% of medical school graduates exit school with average $189,000, in student loan debt. What’s more, 47% of graduates owed $200,000 loans and 13% owed more than $300,000. Rural healthcare organizations can attract these young clinical professionals by offering loan repayment programs and incentives. If a rural healthcare organization is unable to afford its a loan repayment program, there are multiple state and federal programs designated to assist rural healthcare organizations. Below, we list three long-standing federally subsidized loan repayment incentive programs:

Maintain a Steady Candidate Pipeline

The healthcare talent shortage has placed a premium on clinical healthcare workers. Rural healthcare organizations have to reconcile the fact that some of their talent may be lured away by offers from competitors in more attractive locations. To stay ahead of talent attrition, rural healthcare organizations need to build and maintain a verdant candidate pipeline. Below we share strategies on how to build and cultivate relationships with potential candidates:

  • Healthcare organizations should position themselves as rural training sites for medical students, primary care residents, nurses and other clinical roles looking to experience healthcare in a rural setting.
  • Staff members should be encouraged to network and cultivate a rapport with potential candidates at medical conferences, professional development workshops, networking events and trade shows.
  • Recruit traveling nurses, physicians and locum tenens clinical professionals who may also be on the lookout for permanent practice opportunities.
  • Recruiters for rural healthcare organizations should be provided with subscriptions to candidate sourcing services and encouraged to reach out to candidates who have experience working in rural healthcare.

Sell the Community to Candidates

Many candidates may have preconceived notions regarding rural communities — and not all of them positive. To assuage a candidate’s doubts about working and living in a rural setting, it is important for healthcare organizations to highlight the strengths and positive attributes of their community. Recruiters can point to the lower cost of living in the community and how that can make the compensation packages more attractive. Elements of a community’s culture such as recreational and leisure activities, natural beauty, festivals, fairs, the arts scene, spiritual and religious institutions and a community’s character may make the position more attractive once highlighted. Additional factors such as the community being a good place to raise children, an opportunity for more professional independence and the chance to offer more personable patient care are all positives that can be presented to interested candidates.

Conclusion

For rural healthcare organizations facing recruiting and retention challenges, employing some of the approaches and strategies outlined in this blog will help attract vital clinical talent. Improved talent acquisition, in turn, will enhance the quality of care rural healthcare organizations provide to their communities.

How to Use Pre-Employment Assessments and Testing in Healthcare Recruiting

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From resumes to references and cover letters, healthcare organizations have multiple sources of information to learn about the skills and competencies of a potential hire. Even with this information, it can be hard to get to know candidates throughout the hiring process. Healthcare HR professionals can use pre-employment testing to more accurately ascertain the strengths, weaknesses and overall suitability of a candidate. In this post, we cover the basics of pre-employment assessments and ways healthcare recruitment teams can leverage them to make better healthcare hiring decisions.

What is Pre-employment Testing and Assessment?

A pre-employment assessment is a method used by an employer to evaluate a candidate’s skills, intellect, personality and other traits. Recruitment process outsourcing providers, healthcare hiring managers and recruiters are all relying more heavily on data-driven talent management practices. According to a survey conducted by the American Management Association (AMA), the use of pre-employment assessments is growing steadily. The AMA’s study revealed the following:

  • 70% of employers conduct job skill testing at some point during the hiring process
  • 46% of employers conduct personality or psychological assessments of job candidates
  • 41% of employers test candidates for literacy and math aptitude

Assessments can provide valuable information on a candidate’s ability to successfully execute their duties in the workplace. Below we list the three popular types of pre-employment assessments and their functions:

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Pre-employment aptitude tests

According to a study conducted by LinkedIn, the most important traits employers seek in candidates are problem-solving skills and the ability to learn new concepts. These traits are hard to measure based solely on a review of a candidate’s resume or during an interview. An aptitude test is used to measure a candidate’s critical thinking, problem-solving skills and ability to learn and apply new information.

Pre-employment personality tests

A personality test seeks to answer the following questions for organizations: Will the candidate be happy in this position? Does the candidate possess the behavioral traits and attributes needed for success in this role? Dissimilar from an aptitude test, there are no right or wrong answers to the questions on personality tests. Measuring behavioral traits can help healthcare organizations predict job fit by determining if a candidate’s behavioral tendencies line up well with an organization’s culture and the demands of the position.

Pre-employment skills tests

Skills tests are designed to measure job-related skills, including skills from verbal, math and communication abilities, to typing and computer literacy. Many skills tests in healthcare are designed to measure more specific medical-related skills such as medical terminology, patient safety practices or other knowledge unique to the healthcare work environment.

The Value of Pre-Employment Testing and Pre-Employment Screening in Healthcare

Pre-employment assessment tests offer wide-ranging benefits from streamlining the recruiting process to strengthening a healthcare organization’s capabilities by increasing the chance that a new hire will be effective in their role.

A study conducted by Gallup concluded that companies that selected the top 20% of applicants based on talent assessments increased productivity by 10% and decreased turnover by 10%. Below, we list five of the most significant benefits a healthcare organization may experience after implementing pre-employment testing.

1. Lowering employee turnover

Employee turnover is a major issue for many healthcare organizations. The costs of turnover can be significant. Pre-employment assessments can help healthcare recruiters increase employee retention by making sure that new employees possess the basic skills required for the job along with the appropriate personality, or character, to feel comfortable working with a particular healthcare organization or medical environment. These factors may decrease the chances of candidates being let go for poor performance or failure to successfully complete training, as well as the likelihood that employees will quit of their own volition.

2. Reducing time spent on screening candidates

According to Recruiter.com, recruiters spent 63% of their workweek on the phone screening candidates. By requiring that candidates take pre-employment testing earlier in the recruiting process, healthcare organizations can quickly filter out candidates who do not possess the minimum skills or traits desired by hiring managers, which frees up time for recruiters to speak with more qualified candidates.

Moreover, setting minimum cutoff scores for certain assessments can narrow down the number of candidates selected for a phone or in-person interviews. Reducing the time dedicated to the screening process can drastically reduce the overall time to hire candidates.

3. Identifying prospective leaders

According to a survey conducted by the American College of Healthcare Executives, more than half of respondents agreed with the statement: “In general, over the last five years, my firm’s healthcare clients have changed the requirements for skills, knowledge or credentials needed by members of their senior leadership teams.” Respondents most often named emotional intelligence, ability to influence rather than direct, strategic thinking, collaboration and critical thinking as the skills most desired in healthcare leadership.

Pre-employment screening presents an opportunity to identify candidates who possess the potential to ascend to leadership roles by testing candidates on the leadership qualities they value most. Hiring healthcare workers who possess leadership potential can help healthcare organizations source harder-to-fill leadership positions internally in the future.

4. Building successful teams

Quality patient care is at the core of successful clinical hiring. To provide quality care, a healthcare organization’s staff needs to work towards the shared mission of caring for and serving patients with dignity, empathy and respect. This sense of common purpose begins with building effective teams within a healthcare organization.

Pre-employment assessments such as personality tests can be used to measure the behavioral traits not only central to job performance, but also to a candidate’s ability to work within a team structure. On personality tests, there are no right or wrong answers; however, the answers can provide healthcare organizations with insights into whether a candidate will fit in with their team and the organization’s overall culture. Traits such as strong interpersonal skills, good communication skills and high levels of empathy can all indicate that a candidate works well with others and can provide patients with quality care.

5. Recognizing strengths and weaknesses

From soft skills such as bedside manner to hard skills like technical proficiency, a properly administered pre-employment testing can uncover a healthcare applicant’s professional strengths and weaknesses. Identifying strengths and weaknesses using assessments can help HR professionals by:

  • Identifying candidates with high levels of initiative and strong work ethic
  • Screening out candidates who may be unreliable
  • Reducing the potential of hiring the wrong candidates and wasting resources on training
  • Helping HR leaders develop training programs for current employees based on insights gleaned from the strengths and weaknesses of candidates

By utilizing pre-employment screening and assessments, healthcare organizations can better understand where a candidate will excel, which of their skills may need nurturing or training and if they are well-suited for the roles they are applying to.

Conclusion

By utilizing pre-employment assessments tests, healthcare organizations can employ a less biased and more efficient method of hiring candidates. Furthermore, the data provided by pre-employment assessments can better inform hiring managers and recruiters of the skills and traits possessed by applicants and can be used to better position job descriptions and optimize training procedures. If you would like to learn more about pre-employment screening technology, check out PeopleScout’s proprietary recruiting technology platform, Affinix and check out other great strategies for healthcare recruiting including healthcare RPO.