This is a question I get asked every day and honestly, it is not an easy question to answer. The first thing people will say is, “All these kids are lazy” or “It’s all the government money being doled out; they don’t have to work”. These are simple answers that are based not on facts, but instead on rumors and easy soundbites to parrot. The truth is a little more subtle and, honestly, the blame has to do with us, the business owners. Quickly people will counter that with, ‘I am a great boss and treat my employees well.’ That might be true, but for every one of the good workplaces there are dozens of organizations that are not so good. Additionally, what I tell my staff at Optimum RTS is that “Time Kills Deals.”
So, let’s look at the first part: creating a welcoming workplace and practicing servant leadership. We often think about how we need to put our patients and clients first, which is a very common business philosophy, but I would argue that we need to put our employees first. This thought process creates a work atmosphere that can foster new ideas on how to streamline processes and empowers the staff to not only provide unparalleled customer service but also build loyalty towards your office. Why? Because if you treat your employees with respect and value them, they in kind will do the same for you. I would enjoy taking this point further, but with the limitations of this article, I will leave you with this one last thought. The gig economy has stolen many of our lower-wage employees. Let’s say you pay someone $15.00 per hour or $600.00 per week, that’s about $487.00 after taxes. Then take away childcare at $200.00 per hour, $10.00 for lunch each day and a tank of gas, that employee might net out with $200.00. Now, how else can they make $200.00? Well easy, drive uber 1 night and be with your family every day and not have your child in daycare.
My second point is “time kills deals.” What does that mean? Well, simple: think about going out for dinner and when you get to the restaurant, they say we have a 45-minute wait so you put your name on the list and begin to wait. While you wait someone in your party calls another of your favorite places to go to and they say, we can seat you now. What do you do? Go to the other restaurant because the time you had to wait gave you the opportunity to find another option. This is the same with employees—when you do have an interviewee that actually wants to work in an office they will take the first practice that offers them the salary and hours that they requested. This is one of the most difficult things I deal with daily. As Optimum RTS is a full-service medical employment agency, candidates are my product. Every week (maybe every day) this is a conversation with employers who have hired me to assist them with their hiring process. Here is what happens: we send the candidates after being interviewed and vetted for the position, the medical office will then interview the candidate and say “she is great and will be a good fit, but I want to interview one more person or think about it.” Over the next days, that candidate is interviewing elsewhere. When the client calls me back and says, “the other interview didn’t show I would like your candidate to start,” when we reach out that candidate over 50% of the time says, “sorry I was offered and took a job yesterday.” Back to the drawing boards we all go. Think of it this way, if you are trying to buy a car in today’s market with all of the shortages in products if you walk into a dealership and find the car you like at the price you want you need to buy it right then because if you walk off the lot it will most likely be gone when you come back tomorrow.
If any of this resonated with you and you would like to further the discussion, please reach out and I would be glad to discuss it.
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