16 Tactics for Maximizing Clinician Placement Rates
Medical staffing companies currently face challenges as the healthcare industry gradually rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with limited job openings from clients. However, dwelling on these challenges won’t yield results. Despite the prevailing circumstances, your firm can navigate through this turbulence and thrive by strategically enhancing key metrics in the recruitment and hiring process. Here are four critical areas to prioritize, accompanied by detailed strategies for improvement:
- Increase the Number of Candidates
- Increase the Candidate:Submission
Rate - Increase the Submission: Interview
Rate - Increase Interview: Start Rates
1. Increase the Number of Candidates
The Importance of Expanding Your Candidate Pool
The first and most straightforward strategy to increase placements is to increase the number of candidates entering the pipeline. At the end of the day more candidates means more opportunities for successful matches with job openings. Consider the following scenario where we double the number of candidates in your funnel:
When you double candidate applicants, with the same number, you double the number of starts.
- https://staffingattractionsystems.com/2024/04/30/google-ads-for-medical-staffing/Strategies to Increase Candidate Numbers
- Run Branding Campaigns: Increase your visibility where your candidates spend the most time online. This includes platforms like TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Create engaging content that highlights the benefits of working with your staffing agency. Share success stories, industry news, and tips for job seekers to build a strong online presence and attract more candidates.
- Improve Apply Rate: Make your job listings more appealing to potential candidates. This involves crafting compelling job descriptions, highlighting unique benefits, and ensuring that the application process is as frictionless as possible. Simplify the application process by making it mobile-friendly, reducing the number of steps required to apply, and offering one-click applications where feasible.
- Partner with Educational Institutions: Establish connections with nursing schools, medical schools, and other healthcare training programs to attract fresh graduates. Offering internships, hosting job fairs, and participating in campus events can position your staffing company as a top choice for new healthcare professionals entering the job market
- Leverage Search: Every month, hundreds of thousands of clinicians use Google and Bing as a starting point to find their job. Despite this fact, a ton of firms are nowhere to be found search listings. Here are some methods to be found or frequently on Google:
- Google Ads: Utilize Google Ads to target high-intent job seekers. Create compelling ad copy that highlights the unique benefits of working with your staffing agency. Ensure your ads appear prominently when candidates search for relevant job-related keywords.
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Optimize your website to rank highly in organic search results. Conduct keyword research to identify terms that job seekers are using and incorporate these into your website content. Ensure your website is user-friendly, mobile-optimized, and provides valuable information to job seekers.
- Google for Jobs: Leverage Google for Jobs to capture high-intent candidates. Ensure your job postings are optimized for Google for Jobs by using structured data, including relevant keywords, and keeping the job descriptions clear and concise.
2. Increase the Candidate to Submission Rate
Enhancing the Efficiency of Your Recruitment Process
If spending on more candidates is not something your firm can handle at this point, the next best thing is to ensure that the candidates you do have are being submitted for job openings. Here’s a look at how improving this rate can impact your outcomes:
When you double the candidate:submission rate, with the same numbers, you double the number of submissions
Strategies to Improve Candidate to Submission Rate
- Leverage AI and Automation in Job Matching: Utilize AI and automation to improve the accuracy and efficiency of job matching. Advanced algorithms can analyze candidate profiles and match them with suitable job opportunities, increasing the likelihood of submission.
- Be Less Generic in Your Outreach: Approach candidates as a resource guide or agent rather than just a recruiter. Show candidates that you are with them for the long run by offering personalized career advice, industry insights, and continuous support.
- Increase Engagement Rates: Enhance your engagement strategies to get in contact with more candidates from those who have applied. Use personalized communication, follow-up emails, and proactive outreach to keep candidates engaged and informed throughout the process.
- Ask More from Your Candidates:
- Referral Invitations: Encourage candidates, yes even candidates, to refer friends through a dedicated landing page, offering incentives or recognition for successful referrals.
- Calendar Bookings: Allow candidates to book meetings with recruiters directly through an integrated calendar system, facilitating easy scheduling and personalized follow-ups.
- Feedback Mechanism: Request Google reviews and feedback from candidates to improve your services and build credibility.
- Credential Uploads: Provide easy options for candidates to upload necessary credentials directly through the landing page, streamlining the documentation process.
- App Promotion: Promote the download of your staffing firm’s app (if applicable) to enhance engagement and provide a seamless experience for candidates.
3. Increase the Submission to Interview Rate
Focusing on Quality over Quantity
The next critical metric is the submission to interview rate. Improving this rate means ensuring that more of your submitted candidates are considered suitable for interviews. Here’s an illustrative impact:
Doubling the submission to interview rate from 50% to 100% means that all submitted candidates are interviewed, which subsequently doubles the number of offers and starts.
When you double the submission:interview rate, with the same numbers, you double the number of interviews
Strategies to Improve Submission to Interview Rate
- Resume Review & Optimization: Offer resume review and optimization services to help candidates showcase their qualifications effectively within vendor management systems (VMS) and for hospitals. Ensure resumes include relevant keywords and skills based on the platform’s search algorithms.
- Hospital Insights and VMS Relationship Building: Schedule regular meetings with hospital contacts to discuss their needs, staffing challenges, and preferred candidate profiles. Develop strong relationships with VMS account managers to understand their selection criteria and preferred communication methods.
- Nurse Preferences: Consider candidates’ preferences for location, unit type, and desired contract length when matching them with open positions. Engage in deeper conversations to understand their long-term goals, facility preferences, and other factors influencing their decisions. This personalized approach can lead to better matches and higher interview rates.
- Data Analysis: Regularly analyze submission and interview data to identify trends and understand why candidates are not getting interviews. Use this information to refine your approach and improve your submission to interview rate.
4. Increase the Interview to Start Rate
Converting Successful Interviews into Starts
Finally, the interview to offer rate is critical. This metric indicates how many interviewed candidates receive job offers. Here’s how doubling this rate can affect your placement outcomes:
When you double the interview:placement rate, with the same numbers, you double the number of starts
Strategies to Improve Interview to Start Rate
- Hospital Research Resources: Equip candidates with resources to research hospital culture, reputation, and patient population. This preparation helps candidates ask insightful questions during interviews, showcasing their genuine interest and fit for the position. Emphasize the importance of hospital culture in job satisfaction, as candidates are increasingly considering this factor when making job decisions. Ensure hiring managers clearly communicate the hospital’s culture early in the interview process to align candidate expectations with the reality of the workplace environment.
- Interview Follow-up Skills: Coach candidates on the importance of post-interview follow-up. Encourage them to write professional thank-you emails to interviewers, reiterating their interest in the position. This small step can leave a positive impression and reinforce their commitment to the role.
- Contingency Planning: Develop robust contingency plans in case a candidate declines an offer. This might involve having backup candidates ready or quickly identifying new candidates who fit the role. Ensuring you have a pool of pre-screened candidates can minimize downtime and keep the hiring process moving efficiently.
- Transparent Compensation and Benefits: One of the main reasons candidates turn down job offers is due to unmet compensation and benefits expectations. Address this by being transparent from the start. Include clear details about compensation and benefits in the job posting to set accurate expectations. This transparency can save time and prevent candidates from dropping out late in the process due to compensation issues. Additionally, during interviews, ensure that candidates fully understand the compensation package and any additional benefits the role offers
Wrapping It Up
Increasing placement rates in medical staffing companies requires a multi-faceted approach focusing on expanding the candidate pool, improving the candidate to submission rate, enhancing the submission to interview rate, and maximizing the interview to offer rate. By systematically addressing these areas with targeted strategies, medical staffing companies can significantly improve their placement outcomes and achieve greater success in meeting the needs of both candidates and employers.
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