11 Oct 6 Tips for Hiring, Training and Motivating Your Eye Care Staff
Every eye care practice gets to decide the values, expectations, and atmosphere they want to set for their workplace. These decisions define the work culture that makes your practice unique from the rest when hiring eye care staff. Your new employees will get to decide if they want to be a part of this culture within their first few weeks of starting.
These six tips will help you create a work culture that you’ll be proud of when hiring, training, and motivating your eye care staff.
1. Don’t rush the hiring process.
It’s true what they say, quality over quantity. It takes time, patience, and money to find the candidate who will carry your core values and bring you success. You may need someone to cover a position immediately and decide to hire the first candidate you find. If that candidate doesn’t work out, you would have to start all over again.
Rushing the hiring process could cost you a lot of money. Neuvoo stated that after CareerBuilder® surveyed several companies for costs of hiring, they discovered that 41% reported they spent $25,000 annually, while 25% reported $50,000 in hiring costs.
Make sure you have a plan that allows you to determine your candidate’s strengths and weaknesses. Be prepared for your interviews and keep an eye out for the candidate that best fits your workplace culture.
2. Create an effective employee training program.
There are many training methods, but we believe the most effective way is to create a program that teaches employees to become efficient, innovative, and productive.
Listed below are five phases that are essential to your training program to help you build a team that focuses on patient satisfaction and, at the same time, increases your business revenue.
Create detailed job descriptions.
Every training program should begin with detailed job descriptions that outline every employee’s responsibilities and clear expectations. After reading the job description, your employees should understand what their day-to-day duties require to be successful. Having this information will also allow you to cross-train your employees when needed.
Define your culture.
Describe the values, attitudes, and beliefs that form your practice environment. Does your culture allow the freedom for your employees to express ideas and concerns? How do you handle those? Are there specific words that you use that help uplift everyone? Work hard on building a work culture that you feel proud of going to every day.
Document office workflows.
It’s essential to document the office workflows that are currently functioning for your practice. Having the proper documentation will allow your trainee to review it whenever needed instead of asking you a hundred times.
Over time, you will have staff members who will find an easier or faster way of doing specific workflows. Take the time to listen, test, and update your documentation if there is a more efficient way of doing your processes.
Invest time in an EHR and practice management software integrated learning center.
Every eye care practice with a customer-driven approach knows that EHR optimization is critical to a successful path in this industry. Training new employees to master an optometry EHR and practice management software can be time-consuming if you do not have the right solution.
MaximEyes.com includes a self-guided integrated Learning Center with online courses you can complete at your own pace. Download documentation, view video overviews, and engage your staff with step-by-step walkthroughs without ever leaving MaximEyes.com. Quickly and easily get existing and new staff proficient in the software without extended downtime for your office.
Investing in your employees with the resources and tools they need will quickly get them up to speed in no time.
Evaluate employee performance.
After three to four weeks of training, sit down with your employees to give and receive feedback on how their training is going. Evaluate the areas that need improvement and work on a plan that can help improve both sides. Employees appreciate when their feedback is received regardless of their seniority or position.
Related: 7 Eye-Opening Ways to Manage Your Optometry Staff
3. Active listening is non-negotiable.
Every voice matters. In a 2017 study, Salesforce Research surveyed more than 1,500 business professionals, where 73% stated they feel empowered to perform their best work because their voice was being heard at work.
Do your employees feel they have a positive and safe environment to share their opinions and ideas? A great way to do this is by holding weekly staff meetings to announce improvements, changes and giving your employees a time for open discussion.
4. Set goals that motivate your eye care staff.
Get creative with setting up the team and personal development goals based on performance and production needs. Reaching these goals will help your employees know that they have a purpose.
First, you will want to set team goals that align with the culture and vision of your practice. Create your team goals to help build a collaborative community rather than a competitive one.
Once your staff understands how important these goals are to you, they can plan their own goals. Personal development goals allow each individual to grow and learn in the areas that they need improvement.
Have your employees present their goals to you and create milestones that can help you track their progress. A great goal your new employees can start with could be completing the MaximEyes.com online Learning Center courses so they can grasp how your EHR and practice management software benefits your practice.
Related: 10 Steps for Inspiring Better Performance in Your Eye Care Staff
5. Recognize your employees.
Employee recognition is acknowledging your team for their hard work and performance. Recognition will give your employees pride in their work and will improve the quality of their performance.
In a study by SurveyMonkey, 63% of employees who receive recognition at work say they are unlikely to find a new job anytime soon. There are many ways of recognizing someone who meets every deadline, accomplishing goals, and striving to serve patients with excellence.
The way you recognize your employees will be remembered as part of your cultural identity. A great start to employee recognition can be as simple as nominating an “Employee of the Month” and celebrating that individual during the first meeting of the month. Your employees will notice that you are watching, and you see their hard work and efforts.
6. Offer a career development plan.
If you want to hold on to your best employees for a long time, you will want to offer a career development plan. No matter how much recognition an employee gets, they still have ambitions and dreams they want to accomplish during their career. Will you be willing to invest in their future?
Your plan can include industry or personal development courses, certifications, or continuing education to maintain ABO and NCLE certifications. Consistently check in with your employee during their evaluations to determine their ambitions and if they have changed since the last time you talked about it.
Employees that feel seen, heard, and known by you will want to work alongside you for a long time because they know you will value their work.
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