How To Recruit Right Now In Our Industry?

Recruiting the right person for your clinic has always been a challenge. But why is it especially tough at the moment? Having spoken to and coached hundreds of other clinic owners, the consensus is that job adverts tend to result in either very little response, or a lot of response but from candidates that aren’t the right fit for the position.

Joining me in the podcast studio to help shed light on the situation, was Jo Pereira, founder of Purpleberry Jobs – a new recruitment platform for allied health professionals. To listen to the full episode, simply navigate to this page. Alternatively, here are some key outtakes.

Why is recruiting in our industry proving so tough?

The health and wellness industry has faced a formidable few years and the effects are still being felt. Covid combined with the cost of living crisis has resulted in healthcare professionals often feeling safer staying within the NHS. – for whatever reason, there’s a perception that working privately is less stable and secure, so fewer seem willing to make that leap to a private setting. And to make matters worse, Brexit has caused staffing issues throughout the system.

3 key considerations when recruiting:

As just highlighted, one of the biggest challenges is reassuring candidates on the stability and benefits of working within a private setting. Towards this, clinic owners need to communicate how the candidate can expect to progress and develop within their role in the same way, if not better, than they would within an NHS setting or working within the military. That’s certainly not easy to map out or execute upon, especially for a particularly small clinic, but it’s an important consideration if you want to recruit someone that is truly going to benefit your clinic across the long-term.

On top of this, when writing your job advert, write as though you’re talking to somebody. Tell them why you started the clinic, why you’re passionate about what you do, why your clinic is growing, why you want to take it to that next level, and what your values are as a business. Doing this will go a long way to helping attract the right people with the right ambition, and making sure that your advert really stands out.

And, lastly, when writing the advert and considering the role more generally, make sure to consider what’s most important to the person you’re targeting. Is it income or work-life balance? I don’t know about you but I’ve definitely observed a shift towards the latter. For instance, are you able to provide flexible working patterns? If you are, then make a big point about it. And make sure you communicate how you ensure team members feel valued and appreciated.

Just know you’re not alone…

If you’re finding it difficult to recruit for your private clinic, just know that you’re not alone. We’re all in the same boat, but as this short article has hopefully highlighted, there are some easy steps you can be taking to give yourself a much better chance of success. And to find out more about Jo and her new platform, head on over to her website here.

And, as always, if you’re struggling with recruitment or any other aspect of your business, schedule a call with me and we can discuss things in much more detail. These calls are completely free and provide you with actionable steps for the challenges you’re facing.