Does your team (or lack thereof) keep you awake at night?

Whether you are thinking of expanding and taking team members on board or you already have a team and need to add members or make changes, there will be a certain level of stress associated with it. Below are a few things to keep in mind

Hold out for the right cultural fit

In big organisations you might get away with bringing an occasional employee onboard who might have the right skillset but is not the greatest cultural fit. In smaller businesses this can be disastrous, sometimes leading to loosing good team members

Be open to other options

With the recruitment market being tough for many clinics at the moment, it might be time to reconsider your model. This might include redefining your employment model and benefits you offer or looking at your patient journey and considering if other therapists or technology could be incorporated reducing the need for those hard to come by therapists.

Don’t wing it

Put preparation into your interview. Part of your interview process may well be an informal chat but don’t make that the only part of the interview. Have questions that will inform you of the way they might respond to certain situations and how they will align to the culture of your company

Get off on the right footing

Often when new team members are brought on board it is because you are desperate to fill the space to either see patients or answer phones. It is tempting to throw them in the deep-end and hope they can swim. This may initially seem to work but it only too often starts to unravel, mistakes start cropping up and systems are not being adhered to. Make sure you have a formal induction process and checklist to make sure your new team member knows exactly what is expected.

Don’t be ships passing in the night

Your interaction with your team members does not end after the induction process (hopefully you did that!) It is important to have regular meetings with your team members to keep them motivated and engaged. Different team members will need different support – it is your job as a leader to find out what is needed and then deliver – don’t be the manager who keeps pushing out 1-2-1 meetings with team members to fit another patient in.

If we can help in any way do get in touch – we can help you put a plan in place to get the best from your team.