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Looking Beyond the Active Candidate: Pro-active Recruiting in the Healthcare Industry
Among recruiting specialists the debate over active versus passive job seekers continues. Which is better? Who makes the ideal candidate? Who should I target? Whether an active or passive prospect is more desirable is largely a matter of taste, and most recruiters tend to lean toward one or the other. Perhaps a more valuable question is: Where and how do I effectively find and reach the best candidates?
In the healthcare industry, the active pool is significantly smaller than the passive pool.This disparity is true in any employment field but it is of particular importance to healthcare recruiters. While most other industries have seen slowed or stalled growth, the healthcare sector continues to expand. With staffing shortages in many areas of the country, reaching the large group of passive healthcare professionals is evermore crucial. Connecting with qualified active candidates is fairly straightforward, but the pool of passive candidates in healthcare – the larger group of potential employees – is often left untapped.
By posting their resumes on job boards, applying to listings and keeping professional profiles up to date, active job seekers are comparatively easy to attract and reach. A passive candidate, on the other hand, is typically satisfied in his current position and is not actively seeking a change in employment.
Let’s add another group to the mix, and one that is increasingly more common. This category uses multiple names, the most common labels being semi-active, semi-passive, or actively passive. While someone in this category is not aggressively searching for new openings daily, she does follow employment trends, knows the market and may put out feelers to gauge the hiring environment.
A study by Harris Interactive shows a large majority (74%) of employed workers would consider a new job opportunity. (Holton, 2011)These semi-active candidates, presumably waiting for a new promising opportunity, make proactive recruiting more important than ever.
To recruit successfully, the strategy employed must be a multi-pronged one, and necessarily involves learning how to reach the passive and semi-active candidates. This is a relationship-driven business, based on communication and trust. Reaching and cultivating a relationship with a passive candidate takes time and effort. Talent-acquisition experts know how to build networks and use online tools and social media to expand their contact tunnels. Linkedin, a social network of over 8 million professionals, is an increasingly popular venue for reaching passive and semi-active candidates. Spoke, Jigsaw and Ryze and others are likewise gaining footing in the online professional networking arena.
Another method for finding qualified yet passive personnel is credential searches (particularly those paired with Boolean searches to achieve specific requirements). Like online networking, credential searches can net a good list of potential candidates and is, comparatively, a quicker method for turning up leads.
Finding passive and semi-active candidates that match your criteria is one thing; communicating effectively with those professionals is another. An old-fashioned phone call is still a preferred method of contact, as personal communication goes a long way. Another good bet is a concise, compelling recruitment email that leads with a strong, powerful statement about the position being filled (or the organization that houses the position).
The key, as always, is finding the right person for the job. Sometimes that means digging through a slush pile of active seekers to find the one that shines, and sometimes that means contacting and cultivating a relationship with a passive seeker. Excellent healthcare recruitment requires a comprehensive approach that includes both the ability to choose the best active candidates and the know-how to find and attract candidates that would otherwise not be seeking a new position. The goal is both to help the client retain quality staff while at the same time providing career satisfaction to the best and brightest candidates.
Source:
Holton, J. (2011, March 8). Survey: 74% of Workers Are Passive Job Seekers Ready to Consider a Move. Retrieved August 1, 2011, from TLNT: http://www.tlnt.com/2011/03/08/survey-74-of-workers-are-passive-job-seekers-ready-to-consider-a-move/
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