5 Ways Great Leadership Improves the Physician Recruitment Process

There are many areas in health care where the right leadership can really make a difference. Great leaders have been know to improve employee morale, quality of patient care, and growth of the organization. Now there is one other area in which they could have a positive influence – the recruitment of new providers.

The involvement of great leaders in the physician recruitment process can help smooth out the speed bumps that often show up, especially in protracted and difficult recruitments. At the very least, involved leadership can step in at the end stages when things have stalled, and are even more effective when involved throughout the entire recruitment process.

Below are five ways that great leaders can improve the physician recruitment process through their involvement, leading to better placement rates as well as happy candidates and staff.

1. Clear Vision

There’s usually a lot of confusion when starting a new service line or care model. Deciding on what direction to move in, what an ideal candidate looks like, and exactly what new positions will entail can often shift in the early days of recruiting for a new venture. This is where a great leader can step in and provide a clear, concrete vision that will enable the recruiters to create clear job descriptions and candidate profiles.

2. Improved Communication

Unfortunately, it’s not a rare occurrence when a communication breakdown happens during a physician recruitment effort. Whether it’s lack of feedback from the physicians in a group, miscommunication between the various parties with input, or incorrect information on the position, poor communication can put a recruitment effort in serious jeopardy. But with great leadership, this can be remedied, if not altogether avoided. Leaders can provide specific guidelines (providing feedback/information within a specified time frame, minimizing the number of people involved, etc) and enforce them, improving how team members communicate with each other regarding the recruitment efforts.

3. Removed Roadblocks

There will always be issues in a recruitment effort that can completely cause it to grind to a halt. Whether it is uncommonly low compensation, a lack of flexibility in the position, or difficult recruitment partners, leaders have the ability to reduce the roadblocks or remove them altogether – simply because they have the power to do so. This makes it much easier to fill a need, especially if concessions are made specifically for a phenomenal candidate.

4. Happier Candidates

Sometimes unavoidable problems will arise, slowing down the recruitment process and often frustrating candidates. In these cases, a little involvement from leadership can go a long way. Having a high ranking, well respected leader personally reach out to a candidate when things are going awry (or even when they’re going well!) can do quite a bit to make a candidate feel truly wanted and valued by your organization. A call or email from the head of the hospital when a formal contract is taking too long to get to the candidate can make the difference between the candidate joining your team or the competition’s.

5. Faster Placements

When an organization’s leadership is deeply involved in the recruitment process, things tend to get done much quicker. Leadership can fast-track interviews and offers, helping move candidates through the pipeline to meet recruitment goals. This is especially true for high-level hires, such as medical directors and site leads, which can often get slowed down by scheduling difficulties and negotiations.

Key Take Aways:

• Great leaders can help not only place candidates quicker, but also keep them more engaged during delays, resulting in fewer candidates falling off
• Having the leadership involved can help reduce roadblocks and communication issues, resulting in a smoother physician recruitment process
• Strong leadership can provide clearer vision and direction for the recruitment of providers to new service lines and programs through their involvement