You Get What You Pay For
"You get what you pay for." We have all heard the saying, but nothing could be truer than when you are recruiting a physician leader to establish or rebuild a clinical or academic program. Unfortunately, many hospitals are not willing to pay the necessary price to attract the best physician leaders. That being said, why would any successful, happy, well-established, reputable, outstanding, highly recruited physician leader come for less?
In 2009, MillicanSolutions conducted an extensive survey with the Association of Administrators in Academic Pediatrics to identify strengths and weaknesses in the physician recruitment process. The primary goals were to benchmark key similarities and differences in physician staffing processes and identify any positive or negative impact these processes had on physician recruitment and retention efforts.
Salary/Benefit package was cited as one of the top recruiting challenges and one of the most cited reasons a candidate rejected an offer. Ironically, of the 36 children's hospital respondents, 64% stated that they pay the mid-range of national salary benchmarks regardless of the candidate's current compensation package, while 6% stated they low ball the compensation package and engage in multiple counter offers. Even more disconcerting were the 3% who stated they adopt a hard ball approach which in essence is a "take it or leave it" strategy. The aggregated data signifies that 73% of physicians will come away with a negative impression of the institution, the department, the hospital, and its leaders based on the current negotiation strategies. They may tell you that their spouse was unwilling to move, but I am willing to bet there was more to the story.
Given the competitive nature of recruitment, these approaches are guaranteed formulas for failure. It is a rare exception to the rule if a candidate considers a new opportunity that involves a pay cut or no change in salary. It is critical to understand early in the recruitment process what the candidate's current compensation package entails prior to extending an invitation to visit the institution. If the institution is serious about recruiting "the best physicians" then compensation and professional development packages have to be in line with the expectations of the top talent being recruited. You get what you pay for isn't just another saying; it's a reality of today's physician recruitment market.
Wesley Millican
President
MillicanSolutions, Inc.
For assistance with your internal recruitment strategies and leadership needs please do not hesitate to contact us:
www.millicansolutions.com
wesley@millicansolutions.com
(817) 421-5800
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