Eyeworld

136 | EYEWORLD | JULY 2021 P RACTICE MANAGEMENT by Corinne Wohl, MHSA, COE, and John Pinto About the authors John Pinto President J. Pinto & Associates San Diego, California Corinne Wohl, MHSA, COE President C. Wohl & Associates San Diego California But that opportunity passed quickly, and we are now back to the challenges of staffing shortages and finding desired candidates. Finding and hiring great employees has al- ways required the ability to balance the "mostly science" of recruitment and the "mostly art" of selecting a finalist. Adding in a pandemic has shaken up the process further, as we see many frustrated administrators and practice owners already blasting past 2019 patient volume base- lines but lacking the staff needed to reach for the next practice goals. Below are a few thoughts on the science and the art of recruiting and hiring well. The science 1. Reevaluate the function, responsibilities, and experience required for this position. This is not a quick skim. Considering all past experience and planned future changes in the practice, will this role and its respon- sibilities as it has existed still meet your future needs? For example, if you are hiring a practice administrator and your goal is to grow the practice 10% annually, ideally you want an experienced administrator who has worked in a practice that achieved high growth rates. They will know not only what steps work to drive increased patient volume but also how that will impact day- to-day operations. In this example, hiring an administrator without that experience is taking a big risk that you won't meet your future goals. 2. Update or renew the position descrip- tion. Once the position has been reevalu- ated based on the expectations and future goals of the practice, prepare the written documentation and share it with the owners and management team. Having the knowledge of what is expected from each position in the organization sheds light on how best the departments could interact. For example, if the primary goal of hiring receptionists is to find ones with a strong customer service background and a delight- ful demeanor, it may be expecting too much for everyone in that department to be per- fect at memorizing all the insurance copays H iring a new employee can be like bowling. You eye the distant pins with a mixture of confidence and hope. You set your intention to knock all the pins down at once for the best score. You align your body, take intentional steps toward the line, steer the ball toward the pins, release your control, and wait to see what happens. Sometimes it is a strike, sometimes a few pins were missed, or it could be a total gutter ball. What do you do next? The same as bowling. Figure out what went right and wrong and do it again. The lingering pandemic has not made recruiting and hiring easier, no matter where you are located. There was a brief moment in spring and summer 2020 when experienced technicians and front desk staff who were not quite able to return to their practices when they reopened and thus left their employment were looking for jobs. How unusual it was, albeit briefly, to find a lot of experienced people on the job market. The science and art of staffing up post-pandemic

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