By: Allison McCarthy, MBA | amccarthy@barlowmccarthy.com
Valentine’s Day has come and gone – but it’s message reminds us that every day is an opportunity to express appreciation and gratitude to others.
I don’t pretend that this is either comfortable or effortless. It’s easy to take things for granted. Personally, I have to really work at it – so I welcome reminders like Valentine’s Day to trigger my awareness.
Physician recruitment is such a “community” effort. Success doesn’t come without the buy-in of others. Reinforcing that by regularly extending our appreciation will go a long way in strengthening that support. Here are a few ideas on how to do that.
- Write a note of thanks – including 2-3 examples of what that person did to make things work well. Being specific demonstrates that you understand the real value of what they did and the benefit it provided to you, the candidate and to the recruitment effort overall.
- After a site visit, send some cookies to the practice staff to thank them for putting their best foot forward – letting them know that they really made a difference in the candidate’s experience.
- Compliment a physician who does a great candidate interview and if done in front of his/her colleagues, it may encourage others to raise their skill level as well.
- When announcing a recruit’s offer acceptance, identify by name those that were part of the interview team and thank them for helping to make it happen.
- Ask participating physicians and office staff for feedback on what you could do to improve the recruitment process for them. You might get some great tips on how to better screen candidates or improve your communication with the practice team.
- Say thank you to anyone that says hello and smiles during the hospital or practice tour. When we’re so focused on the candidate and ensuring everything is going smoothly, it’s easy to forget that those we quickly pass-by are also helping to make it a positive experience.
Small actions can have a big impact. Extending our gratitude for even the little things work collectively to improve the recruitment experience and results. Let’s remember that Valentine’s Day is not just for February 14th …… but for every day.