Your staff makes or breaks the success of your business. For this reason, your hiring process should be a smooth, planned and strategic operation. It’s important to follow key steps to avoid hiring pitfalls to bring the best of the best on board every time. Here’s what you can do.

Improve your hiring process by avoiding these five mistakes

Here are the top five errors facilities make during the hiring process and how you can be sure to avoid them:

  1. Rushing to hire. You need to fill your open position. But it can take time to find the right candidate, do thorough screening and make your decision. When you rush, you increase the probability of placing a candidate with inadequate experience or who is not a good fit for the job. Always take your time to complete each step of the hiring process thoroughly.
  2. Expecting perfection. Yes, you should hold out for the right candidate. But if you find a highly qualified candidate whose references check out, don’t split hairs if the fit isn’t exactly perfect. Remember that many skills are learnable, and a candidate can also adapt to a practice’s culture. If a potential employee fills your most important job requirements, it may be time to extend that offer.
  3. Relying too heavily on your instincts. You shouldn’t discount the feeling that something is off. But sometimes when you place too much importance on your gut reaction, you miss out on an otherwise great candidate who just interviews poorly. To get around this, interview in the opposite way you normally would—for example, if you like a candidate straight away, spend the interview making him prove to you that he is the right candidate. If your initial impression isn’t entirely positive, spend the interview trying to prove to yourself that the candidate is right for the job.
  4. A wishy-washy job description. If you know exactly who you’re looking for, you’ll have a better chance of finding that person. Include all qualifications in your job description—both required and preferred, as well as bits about your company culture, job roles and responsibilities, licensure, certifications, or anything else the right candidate will need.
  5. An unorganized hiring process. After you’ve written a solid job description, be sure you have a hiring plan that you follow every time. This could include the following steps:
    1. Posting the job on social media pages, industry websites or career websites
    2. Attending networking events
    3. Conducting phone or video interviews
    4. Conducting one or more in-person interviews
    5. Checking references
    6. Extending an offer and making negotiations

You can rely on a niche staffing partner

When you rely solely on job posts, you are missing a major segment of the candidate pool—passive candidates who aren’t currently in search of a new job. You can clear this hurdle by working with a staffing partner. And when you choose a niche agency—one that specializes in the medical industry—you can rest assured your recruiter will understand the skills and qualifications that make a good candidate great.

If you’re in need of supplemental staff, just call KTE Services

We’re a medical staffing agency that works with our clients for best-matched anesthesiologists, pain management specialists, CRNAs, nurse practitioners and physician assistants. To learn more about the staffing services offered by KTE Services, contact one of our experienced recruiters today.