Your people are your health system’s most important asset. Recruiting the best new hires takes more than posting available jobs and hoping the perfect candidate finds it and takes the next step.
Your Careers Content as a Recruitment Tool
Are there certain positions your HR team is always trying to fill? Professions that are in high demand, or a certain role that requires skilled candidates with specific training? There are shortages for certain professionals, including doctors and nurses, and your organization is competing today more than ever for qualified people.
Your website is often the front door for recruiting. Take a close look at your current website content about the career opportunities available at your organization. Is it as effective as it could be? Does it speak directly to your ideal candidates, answer their common questions, highlight your differentiators as an employer, and specify who you’re looking for? Optimizing the careers section of your website will help your organization stand out in a competitive landscape—so the right prospective hires become the newest members of your team.
What Appeals to Job Seekers?
Think back to your job search for your current position. What was most important to you? Chances are, it was a combination of factors like:
- Growing as a professional in your field
- Competitive compensation and great benefits
- Being part of something bigger than yourself
You wanted to know as much as possible about what the organization offered in exchange for your hard work.
When job seekers visit your organization’s website, they want to find out what it’ll be like to work at your hospital or health care system. Describe how they’ll benefit in the short- and long-term, and be transparent and accurate. Explain the value of your benefits, perks, and culture to prospective employees in your website content. Consider listing and describing:
- Benefits such as health insurance, retirement planning, dental and vision insurance, life insurance, etc.
- Salary information
- Paid time off
- Professional development opportunities, such as continuing education classes, on-site trainings, nurse residency programs, and tuition reimbursement
- Employee assistance programs
- Work-life balance options including working from home and flexible hours
- Wellness programs and discounted or free gym memberships
- Any other amenities or perks, such as on-site child care services or performance bonuses
- Work culture
- What it’s like to live in the area, including information about recreation opportunities, the climate, and links to local schools and childcare services
If possible, survey your current staff (especially recent hires) about what they like most, and use their answers to inform your content. If some benefits are position-specific, specify that in the job listing rather than including it in your general careers content.
Be Specific
Content that makes an impression on job seekers provides as much detail as possible. For example, instead of simply listing “Employee wellness program,” say “Your physical, mental, and emotional well-being is important to us. That’s why we offer a range of employee wellness services, including free fitness classes and health screenings, to help you protect and improve your health.” This helps users get a sense of your culture and values as an employer.
Tell Your Story
The mission of your healthcare organization can be a powerful recruiting tool. The best employees are passionate about what they do, rather than simply punching a clock. Millennials, especially, are interested in choosing a job that matches their personal belief and value system.
Your organization makes a difference in the lives of patients and their loved ones every day. Inspire your applicants to come aboard and take pride in their work by weaving your mission, vision, and values into your copy, and linking to relevant content elsewhere on your site where applicable.
Hard-to-Fill Position Recruitment
Consider creating dedicated landing pages within your careers recruitment content that speak directly to your ideal candidate in hard-to-fill fields. For instance, if you want to attract doctors and nurses, write two pages that pitch your organization specifically to those respective audiences.
Adventist HealthCare, a Maryland-based health system, worked with Geonetric to restructure the Careers section of their website, developing new content to target and reach candidates with specialized skills, including:
- Allied health professionals, non-physician and non-nurse professionals such as social workers and certified technicians
- Home health providers
- Mental health professionals
- Nurses
- Non-clinical staff, including administrative, management, information technology, and services roles
Learn more about Adventist HealthCare’s recent redesign and how Geonetric helped the organization meet their goals.
Talk to staff who are already in those roles at your organization about what they like best about working there and what attracted them in the first place. Then, weave those features into your page copy. For example:
- “Join a team of nurses who are passionate about improving health care and work closely with doctors who respect their expertise and skills.”
- “Apply your skills as a radiologist using the latest technology in a well-equipped clinic.”
Conduct keyword research for your area and look into what professionals in the role you’re focusing on are most attracted to, then write content that addresses how your organization can meet those needs. For example:
- “Grow your practice and give your patients access to our wide-range of services when you join Benefit Health as an affiliated physician.”
Qualifying Candidates
Successful recruiting is about bringing people on board who not only fit your current culture, but help push your organization forward into the future.
Help prospects understand if they’ll be a good fit at your organization by explaining the characteristics and personality traits they need to thrive. What do your best current employees share? Are they leaders, team-oriented, compassionate, and flexible? Do they feel fulfilled by giving back to your community? Are they energized by learning and applying the latest, evidence-based practices to improve patient safety? Make it clear who you’re looking for, and the right candidates will take note and get excited to join a work culture where they’re likely to succeed.
Tools for Success
Help your candidates shine by helping them understand what’s expected of them throughout the hiring process.
In your website content or a blog post you promote with a PPC ad campaign or social media ads, include tips on how they can make their resume and cover letter as strong as possible, and give them tips on how to make the best impression during interviews. If something is important to your hiring staff, it’s important for your candidates to know, too.
Writing Compelling Copy
Just like all the other sections of your website, your careers section should follow our best practices for web writing. Write content that’s:
- Clear and concise
- User-focused
- Informative and answers common user concerns. For example, if you receive a lot of questions about the hiring process, explain in step-by-step instructions what applicants should expect, and who they may contact at any point in the process if they need help.
- Makes it easy for the reader to take action. Each page should include a compelling call-to-action that’s relevant to that page—for example, “search available jobs, “apply now,” or “contact us.”
Testimonials
Job seekers trust and seek out the opinions and perspectives of current and past employees. Consider enriching your careers content with quotes from your staff, or, if your organization has positive anonymous reviews on a site like Glassdoor, set up an employer account to feature and respond to employee reviews, and link to the best reviews from your website.
Supercharge Your Careers Content
If increasing applicant volume, finding qualified new hires, and improving employee retention are important to your organization, get assistance from the content strategists and writers at Geonetric.
