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blog//Developing the Physician-Recruiter Relationship

By Janet Baer-Lile

The relationship between a physician and a recruiter is based on mutual trust and commitment. A dedicated recruiter will make every effort to get to know their physicians, many developing long-lasting friendships and mutually-beneficial business relationships. At Kendall & Davis, we maintain a high standard and work hard to develop relationships with physicians that lead to the highest quality service.

Physicians choose Kendall & Davis for our capability to network their situation better than the majority of recruitment firms. Kendall & Davis has been in practice for over 30 years and we have a quality standard that surpasses all our competitors. Our dedicated in-house web development and design team implements extensive marketing efforts to generate an abundant list of opportunities for the physician, including but not limited to online marketing, thousands of mailers, and print advertisements in medical journals.

Our methodologies for working with physicians focus on consistent, open communication and mutual sharing of information. Kendall & Davis recruiters only work with physicians they feel that they can place. We are committed to our physicians and are dedicated to treating them with the utmost professionalism.

Communication and Flexibility

The first thing your dedicated recruiter will ask from you is your curriculum vitae, usually either by fax or email. For tips on creating a successful CV, click here. The sooner your recruiter obtains this, the sooner they can begin researching job opportunities that fit your individual skill set. Additionally, once a relationship has been developed, your recruiter will ask you to treat them as your exclusive recruiter for two weeks while they work to fill your needs. This is important to us because it helps us develop a relationship built on trust. Additionally, if a physician is working with multiple recruiting firms simultaneously, it is likely that some employers will think the physician’s CV is being broadcasted (the equivalent of a spam email or a generic form letter); this can be dangerous to a physician’s reputation during the career building process. Once your recruiter has a detailed understanding of what you want and need, they will begin researching job opportunities that fit your criteria. In order to provide you with the broadest range of qualified opportunities, we may be flexible with some of your criteria. We ask physicians to be flexible as we research opportunities for them in order to find an ideal job opportunity.

When your recruiter has compiled a list of job opportunities to discuss with you, they will call or page you. It is imperative that communication lines are open and that you are responsive to the recruiter’s communication attempts. While a recruiter is discussing opportunities with a physician, they will discuss location, type of practice, details of the environment and procedures, community details, and any other relevant information. Based on this conversation, the physician will indicate to the recruiter which opportunities they are interested in. Again, we request that physicians be flexible during this phase of the process – nothing is set in stone and flexibility will afford you the most opportunities from which to choose.

Investigating Opportunities

The next phase of the placement process is a preliminary phone conversation between the physician and the potential employer. There is no obligation for either the employer or the physician during this phase of the process; this is an informal exploratory conversation. Your recruiter will show your CV to the potential employer and discuss your strengths and applicable skills with them. Once communication between the physician and the employer occurs, it is important that the physician indicate to their recruiter which opportunities they are interested in pursuing as soon as possible.

In-Person Interviews and Facility Visits

The final phase of the placement process involves in-person interviews, facility tours, and meetings between the physician and the employer. The employer will usually pay for interview expenses; your recruiter will make you aware if there are limits or special considerations. The employer will either reimburse you directly or assume responsibility for arranging travel and accommodations themselves. Before you go on your visit, your recruiter will discuss what you want to accomplish during your visit, such as visiting housing, schools, meeting with the doctors, touring the facility, and meeting the administration. The site visit should give you enough information in order for you to make a decision on the opportunity. We want the employer to have enough time with you also. The goal of every site visit is to generate an offer of employment. Your recruiter will make every effort to prepare the employer for this prior to the visit.

Once an offer is made, rest assured that your recruiter will be involved in the contract negotiations and all the phases of the hiring process. Our recruiters take pride in our commitment to stick with you from start to finish, ensuring the best possible outcome for both the physician and the employer. This is our commitment to our physicians – to begin working with one of our expert recruiters, call us today at 1-866-675-3755.

May 01, 2007