Healthcare IS Blog

According to a new report from research firm Kalorama Information, Cerner is the clear market share leader among EHR (electronic health records) software providers, edging out rival McKesson. Of the 4,474 non-federal acute care hospitals surveyed, nearly one-quarter use Cerner. The company’s 2015 acquisition of Siemens Healthcare’s EHR division helped make it No. 1.

When looking for work, it’s understandable that you want to make sure your resume is getting in front of the right people and you’re not missing out on any good opportunities. However, when working with a recruiting firm, it’s also important to know to whom your resume is going, as well as for what position you’re applying and/or being considered. 

Our firm focuses on pharmacy informatics. It’s a tight niche with a very specific skill set. Our clients are seeking a pharmacist with extensive experience implementing and using their pharmacy IT software. They will send us a very detailed job description that lists bullet point after bullet point of skills and experience for which they’re looking. In many ways, it’s helpful to have a detailed understanding of what they want. However, oftentimes this will hinder the search internally. 

Most of the companies we work with have a “salary range” for the position they’re trying to fill. The question is, where do these numbers come from?

Depending upon a company's size, the role of an HR person or department in the hiring process can vary from simply posting an ad and sending resumes to the hiring manager to completing everything through the first interview. The challenge with the latter is making sure that you're not delegating steps throughout the hiring process to a person to whom you've not given the proper tools to complete those steps. 

If you fail to do the three things listed below prior to an interview, chances are you’ll not be offered the job. 

When it comes to making a career move, everyone’s motivation is different.

Every time I see an article on what not to do during an interview, it’s directed toward the candidate. Well, in the recruiting world I’ve seen an equal number of interviews go badly due to something the hiring manager did or didn’t do as because of something the candidate did or didn’t do. A few of the major don’ts come to mind. 

From a recruiter’s standpoint, a delay in the hiring process is the most common factor preventing a successful hire. A delay can range from too much time between interviews, to a postponement in making an offer, to putting a position “on hold.” Below are a few things to avoid during the hiring process.

Before each interview, a good recruiter will prepare their candidates with relevant information regarding the interview that's about to take place. The candidate is told who they're speaking/meeting with, how long they should expect the interview to last, what types of questions they will be asked, and, ideally, some information regarding the personality/interview style of the hiring manager(s). 

There are a handful of factors that motivate people to make a job change. In my experience, it's not just one of these factors that prompts someone to start looking, but a few combined. In the end, though, the focus tends to come down to just one thing: money.

Most the time, when discussing salary and/or hourly rate, people state an amount that they desire to make, accompanied by what they're currently making - adding that they would not want to go below that. Certainly, this makes sense. But are there exceptions to this rule? Are there times when taking less money may make more sense?

While a start date is the last agenda item of the hiring process, it's among the first things that should be considered.

In today's day and age, we are flooded with emails on a daily basis. Most people have a personal email address where we are bombarded with special offers, facebook alerts, updates from friends, etc. as well as a professional email address used for work purposes. And in most cases, this is equally full of new emails on an hourly basis. But are all these email necessary and relavant?

I realize a lot of companies have had bad experiences with staffing firms, and I am not asking the above question to prompt memories of being burned one way or another. I am asking more to find out if you have enough faith in the firm you are working with to allow them to make your life easier.

How often do you speak with, or get together with, a friend? How about an old colleague? A previous boss? A recruiter with whom you've worked?

Although there are many things that will make the life of a traveling consultant easier, I think there a few that qualify as must-haves for anyone who travels for work on a weekly basis. 

These may seem like common sense to most, but you’d be surprised by how many people with whom I speak who are not equipped with these tools designed to make travel more seamless. 

One of the main differences between contract placement and permanent placement is the speed of which the contract world moves. 

More often than not, losing your job comes as a complete surprise. In my experience, when people get news of their termination or a contract ending early, they find themselves in an uncomfortable position - hit with a sense of urgency to find something new. 

When leaving a professional voicemail — or any other voicemail, for that matter — you should take a few things into consideration if you want the call to be returned:

Although we are primarily a contract staffing firm, our clients often have needs for a full time employee to fill a permanent position. And although this is not a focus of our firm, we can certainly fill these positions as well. But first we ask, "have you considered bringing on a consultant while you look to find the permanent employee?"

I Need Them Yesterday, But I Don't Have Time to Interview Them Tomorrow

By the time a hiring need arrives at a recruiting firm, it’s usually an urgent need. The company has already tried to fill the position on its own and maybe spent too much time doing so. When they decide to pay a fee to fill this position, they’re feeling the pain of not having someone in the role to complete the work. 

A "telephone screen" can be conducted by anyone within an organization, from Human Resources up to the CEO. Does it really matter who actually conducts that first telephone interview? In my experience, yes, it absolutely does.

For the most part, a resume, LinkedIn profile, or email from a candidate is not enough to determine if that person is qualified for a position. A follow-up conversation needs to take place to further discuss skills and experience, as well as to evaluate the person’s communication skills.  However, there are a few mistakes people make in those initial written communications that may cause a hiring manager to eliminate them as a candidate before that first discussion ever takes place. 

In a decision-making position, it’s often your job to save the company money wherever possible. Whether you accomplish this through effective vendor management, staff reduction, or offering lower salaries, you, as a manager, are usually looking for ways to save a few extra bucks and, as a result, make yourself look good. 

When a candidate withdraws from the interview process or declines a job offer, it's often because he or she didn't see anything in the new company that's better than his or her current company. Whether it's the career opportunity, the people, the salary, or just the fact that the organization itself appeared unattractive, something was missing.

I really liked him, but I'd like to talk to a few more people before I make my decision . . .

Such is the feedback commonly heard in the recruiting world after the first interview takes place. There's something about human nature that makes us want to "shop around" and compare our options. The problem with this, when dealing with people, is that the more time that passes between each contact with a candidate (time we’re spending shopping around), the more doubts will tend to arise within that candidate’s mind.