PROACTIVE PATIENT SERVICES…MARKETING CONSULTANTS
STEPS TO HIRE THE RIGHT STAFF!

Hiring the right winning staff begins with your preparation, the interview process, and follow up. You, too, can hire winners if you follow these tips..

Tip 1: Write a Job Description
Before you place an ad, write a complete job description and make sure you can answer the following questions:

• What will this employee actually do?
• What skill set does this employee need to be successful? Prioritize the importance of the various skill sets.
• What kind of experience does this person need to be successful?
• Who will this employee report to?
• Who will the employee work with?
• Does this person need a degree? What kind?
• What is the salary range for this position?

Tip 2: Write an Ad That Clearly Lists Skill Set and Years of Experience
Ask for a resume, cover letter, and references. Check the references and previous jobs. Verify the college degrees, as well.

Tip 3: Prescreen Candidates over the Telephone
It is wise to prescreen select candidates over the telephone. With the advent of advertising on the Internet you will receive plenty of resumes. Most will not meet your requirements. Therefore, your office manager or personnel manager will need to go through each resume and review for experience and the skill set you are looking for. Research shows that only a quarter to half of the resumes will be from qualified applicants.

An important step, one that if often overlooked, is to call the pre-screened applicants and ask the candidates what they did at previous jobs and what kind of salary they are looking for.

This step saves everyone's time. The candidates learn more about the available position and the skills you want while you learn more about the candidates and their experience. This step also helps winnow down the candidate pool to a manageable number.

Tip 4: Schedule Face–to–Face Interviews with Candidates
The candidates who made it through the telephone interview may be a good fit for your practice. Call them in for a face–to–face interview. Tell l them who they will be meeting with.

By this stage, all of your candidates should have the appropriate years of experience and appropriate skill set for the position. What you are looking for is how this person works with others, manages time and handles deadlines. (Ask PUMC for our time management quiz)

During the interview, you may want to check the applicant’s answers against these questions:

• Will this person be able to get along with co–workers?
• Will this person be able to get the job done on time?
• Will this person be able to deal with the responsibilities of the position?
• Will this person be reliable and dependable?
• Will this person be able to take instruction?
• Will this person fit in the office culture?
• Will this person be a team player?
• Can this person learn and grow?

You may also want to set up a scenario and ask candidates how they would resolve it. Select a few common problems in your practice and have the candidates explain what they would do. Ask them if they have ever dealt with a similar situation, and if so, how they resolved the issue. Pay careful attention to specifics given and to what is not being said.

After each interview, jot down notes about the candidate.

Tip 5: Call the Top Two or Three Candidates in for a Second Interview
Candidates will meet with the physician (if necessary) or the decision maker. At this point, you are trying to compare the candidates to one another and balancing their skill sets and experience against their personalities and ability to adapt to your office culture.

If all of them have similar experience and skills, you want the person who will work best in your office environment or the one that has the most potential to grow.

Tip 6: Rank the Candidates in Order of Preference
Start with your top candidate and present verbal offer followed by a written job offer. Wait to inform the other interviewed candidates until your written offer has been accepted.

Important etiquette step: Inform the other candidates that you have filled the position.