07 May
How to find the best people for your practice; advertising or using an agency?
When I speak with a GP surgery that’s actively looking to hire a clinician, one of the frequent push-backs I receive is “we just want to advertise online and see who applies”.
When looking to hire, this will always seem like the most sensible route to take. Once upon a time, this was likely the best chance of finding the best candidate. This is now no longer the case.
As a lot of practices in the country have discovered, advertising is simply not as effective as it might’ve been many moons ago. The best candidates are usually not sitting by the computer waiting for the opportunity to arise for them to put their CV forward.
A proactive approach is needed to truly unearth the right candidates. Here are 5 key differences between advertising and using agencies; and why using the latter will not only find the right candidates, but the best candidates for your vacancy.
Reaching the talent pool
1. Advertising taps into a significantly shorter talent pool
Advertising reaches a much shorter selection of talent. You’re only making your vacancy available to clinicians who will be actively looking to change jobs. You could post an advert and be waiting weeks, months, sometimes years for the right person to apply! It’s estimated that advertising only taps into 5-10% of the candidate market.
Contrastingly, a recruitment agency working on behalf of your surgery will be able to tap into the section of the market that advertising cannot reach – the passive market.
This will be filled with candidates that aren’t online applying for jobs, but open to the right opportunity. This means the chances of filling the position within short time frames is substantially higher than you’d get from just advertising.
How to make sure you don’t miss out
2. Candidates that apply directly are usually interviewing elsewhere
Active candidates typically do not want to put all of their eggs in one basket. They want to explore what else is available, to ensure they make the right move. As a result, it’s incredibly likely that they’ll have more than one opportunity in the works. You could offer an active candidate the position, rule out other candidates, only for it all to fall through because another practice has offered better terms – leaving you back at step 1!
Recruiters still work with candidates who are active as opposed to passive but will be able to introduce to you a much wider pool of talent, that likely won’t have multiple opportunities in the works at one time, and more importantly, can advise you on the likelihood of an active candidate accepting your offer. This will ease the burden of missing out on the right person for the job!
Negotiation
3. Recruiters will consult, negotiate and manage candidates throughout the interview process
A recruitment consultant works as the “middle-man” during the interview process. As well as tapping into a wider pool of talent, a recruiter will work closely with a candidate to ensure their interest in a position doesn’t wane as a result of preventable factors.
The interview process can take time before reaching the offer stage, and if a candidate feels a process is dragging or the practice isn’t that interested in them, they could pull out. Having a consultant present to manage them and maintain their interest throughout the process is an incredibly useful asset to have, and one that would not be at your disposal when advertising.
Beyond advertising
4. Advertising doesn’t give you expert insight into the wider candidate market
As well as everything mentioned above, a recruiter can provide expert, up-to-date insight into the candidate market and can accurately inform you on how competitive your job offering truly is, when compared to other vacancies and practices in the area – staying competitive is key to attracting the best talent!
Selling your vacancy
5. When advertising, your advert is your “pitch” to a candidate. Recruiters can sell your vacancy very effectively by tailoring each key benefit to a candidate’s specific wants and needs on an individual basis
Through networking, a recruiter will know the “must haves” and “nice to haves”. They generally the most important things that a new role will need for them to be interested. One advert cannot be truly tailored and personable to each candidate. A recruiter will be able to take the elements of the job that are most relevant. They then tailor the vacancy to each candidate. This means they can be 100% assured that the opportunity is right for them.
Having a recruiter present can give your practice a competitive advantage over practices that decide to just advertise and hope for the best. Not only can recruiters tap into a wider talent pool, but will manage candidates, consult and advise to ensure that the end goal of filling your vacancy is completed.
In 2024, don’t just rely on advertising!
Contact us for help recruiting to your practice
You’re welcome to find out more about how we can help your practice. Read how Menlo Park can help you to recruit. We take you through our process here.
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