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Dental Info / Practice Management / Overseeing Employees /
Hire Hard, Manage Easy! |
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Hire Hard, Manage Easy!
Your practice has a position to fill, and of course, you want to make sure you find the right person for the job. You’ve been through this before. Finding anybody today is difficult enough. But add to that trying to find the “right” person with the right skills, a good attitude and a decent work ethic. And those interviews: after hours, over lunch, weekends and evenings. The whole process is like trying to walk on sand -- your footing keeps slipping and each step gets harder and harder.
But what if there was a way to objectively evaluate the needs of the job, create a template for the “perfect” employee, write a job description, provide interview questions, and was simple to execute?
Did you know the best way to find the right person is to clearly define the position itself -- not the person, but the job? Job descriptions are very difficult to analyze because different people performing the same job see it differently, and different people doing the same job in different businesses view the job through different filters. These filters create biases.
Sorting out these biases provides you with the right information to understand what competencies are required in a specific job for consistent long-term success. When you can match a person who brings the “right” talents to the job, you are on your way to “predicting” superior performance.
What competencies will it take to achieve superior performance in your practice? The solution seems contradictory and paradoxical. Every job is unique. Every practice might have their own special twist and expectation of a particular job.
One solution can be a well-defined job description. It works very well for one practice, but in another the people just don’t seem to get it. Not only does the doctor and staff expect different results and performance, but also each employee adds his or her own twist to the way he or she feels the job should be done.
Well, the hire-and-pray approach to employee selection and retention just doesn’t cut it anymore. In a nation where our greatest resource - people - is in short supply and extraordinary levels of customer service are at minimum expectations, selecting and retaining employees who are short on the required competencies is pure folly. Doctors who ignore the warning signals and behave as if the present were a perfect imitation of the past will be consumed by far less worthy and skilled clinicians and less formidable competitive challenges.
Based on extensive research and validation of behaviors and attitudes of people around the world, business owners can count on the predictability of behavior patterns that develop over time. Bill Bonstetter, CEO of Target Training International, Ltd., refers to these behavior patterns as “the virtual equivalent of a DNA structure of competencies.”
What is a competency? Most experts define a competency as the behaviors, attitudes, values, motivations, skills and knowledge that distinguish superior performers from average or poor performers. People having the right competencies for the job and practice show much more consistent behaviors of excellent performance. According to Dr. Stephen Schoonover, a competency specialist, “competencies generally follow the 80-20 rule.” What that means is you identify 20 percent of the behaviors that drive 80 percent of excellent performance, and you likely will have a very successful employee.
The ability to match the behavioral preferences and attitudes of people to the competency demands of job can position your practice in a place where you can do the most good for your employees and patients. People who are matched to the requirements of the jobs and are rewarded for their true aspirations and passions naturally:
- Perform better
- Are rewarded by the work itself
- Are loyal and enthusiastic
- May even need to be told to go home on some days
Competency-based position analysis, such as the “DNA of Performance,” provides you with the right information to understand the critical performance issues in every job. When you match the right person to the right job, you end up with people who are energized, focused, low maintenance and potential superior performers.
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