Dear Dr. Noah Lot – Should We Hire a Recruiter?
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Dear Dr. Noah Lot: We are in serious need of additional staff, including veterinarians and technicians. We don’t have time to be doing tons of outreach to try and find good candidates. Should we hire a recruiter? Place ads on social media? How can we find qualified help – fast?
First, unfortunately, we have some bad news. You can’t find qualified help fast. The best you can do in the short term is identify relief help to bolster your staff. There are local and national resources that can help with this, and your local VMA will likely be able to direct you to some options.
Hiring a recruiter in general can be very helpful – however, they are also overwhelmed by a huge volume of openings they are recruiting for, and a dearth of candidates. The demand is far outpacing the supply. If you go this route, it’s not going to necessarily speed up your results.
We would recommend being more proactive and stepping outside your comfort zone. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures.
Here are our top 5 proactive recruiting tips:
- Build a staff referral program and make the incentive large enough so that any and all members of your team would be inspired to call someone they used to work with. Think about how much you would budget for a recruiter, and then direct that money instead to the program. Once the new hire has been in place for predetermined amount of time, the bonus kicks in.
- Post openings internally. Every single one, from kennel staff to veterinarians. That way your team can know what is available (and let their contacts know!), and they can apply if they feel qualified. This promotes growth and upward mobility, which can enhance culture.
- Don’t limit your search by geography. You never know when someone might be open to moving for the right opportunity.
- Share your openings on social media. Post on your practice page and encourage staffers to share the post. The more exposure the better. Make sure it links to the job posting on your site, and that information is detailed and up to date.
- Be prepared to act fast. If you find a candidate who you think is a strong fit, you need to move quickly. Get them in as soon as possible for an interview, make sure they meet with all stakeholders, and be prepared to make your best offer on the spot. Again, think of supply and demand. It’s likely they may entertain multiple offers, and you want to strike while the iron is hot.
Quick fixes are nice, but not always possible when it comes to adding the right people to your team. Be patient, be proactive, and be decisive. And if you need more help crafting your recruitment outreach, implementing referral programs, or reaching prospective team members, BluePrints can help!