Given the unprecedented level of competition for talent these days, our approach to finding and attracting candidates to an FQHC is a lot different—or at least it should be. In some ways today, recruiting is like a sales job. Your mission is to highlight and showcase the value of the organization to healthcare talent in a way that encourages their interest in working on your team. How can you switch up your approach to attract the best candidates to your FQHC in today’s highly competitive marketplace?
How to Recruit to Your FQHC by “Selling” the Mission?
Start with the organizational mission. These values are what drive your teams to do the great work in the communities they serve. Increasingly, candidates are looking for mission and values as part of their assessment during a job hunt. One of the best things your hiring team can do is to talk with candidates about the vision, strategy, and mission of the organization. The best candidates today are looking for employers who value the same kinds of things they do. Talk about how these values are reflected in the day-to-day work done by your teams and you will engage top candidates, keeping them interested in working for your FQHC.
As part of this effort, you should also talk about the work/life balance that comes from working at an FQHC. Of course, salary discussions should occur early on along with a benefits discussion. Don’t make the mistake of getting toward the end of the process to start talking about the value of your benefits and compensation packages. But for many healthcare workers these days it is the work/life balance that comes from an FQHC lifestyle that will be very appealing. So many healthcare employees experience burnout that having the ability to work a little less with fewer pressures will be highly attractive.
You should also show how much you value your employees and even the candidates you are interviewing. If the candidate is interviewing with several people throughout the organization, it’s important that they openly share what they enjoy about their jobs. It could be the mission, the people, the work/life balance—or something else. But by all means, share this information with candidates at every layer of the interview process they encounter. Thank the candidate for their time and make them feel at home during the interview. Even if they don’t get the job, it will build goodwill in the community for your organization.
Speaking of meeting with several people during the hiring process, we highly recommend the peer interview process as a way to share the mission and values of the organization straight from the employees who are living it every day. Candidates will appreciate the insight from real employees who work in the FQHC’s unique environment. Encourage these employees to share stories about why they love their work and why they stay in the organization.
Hiring today is hard. Particularly in healthcare but even more so in the FQHC community. UHC Solutions specializes in finding our FQHC clients the talent they need when they need it the most. Talk with our team today about how we can do the heavy lifting of finding and pre-screening your job applicants. We can help you meet your hiring goals.
