When you receive a job offer, it's important to take the time to carefully evaluate its details so you are making an educated decision to accept, or to reject, the proposal. The last thing you want to do is to make a hasty decision that you will regret later on.
Consider the entire compensation package - salary, benefits, perks, work environment -not just your paycheck. Weigh the pros and cons and take some time to mull it over. It is perfectly acceptable to ask the employer for some time to make your decision. Employers often use checklists to help organize their assessments of applicants and to help rank them. Applicants should consider using the same method in order to make the best decision possible when choosing new positions.
To help in this investigation of offers, job seekers may find these simple checklists below useful when conducting their comparisons. Feel free to add to the checklist as you discover items that are important to you.
http://career.thingamajob.com/career-transition-advice.aspx/Researching-Potential-Job-offers.aspx
http://www.srijobs.com/compare.htm
Part of the text above came from this website: http://jobsearch.about.com/od/salaryinformation/a/joboffer.htm
Written by Rob Knezovich, Dental Recruiter/ Account Executive for the Midwestern US. You can reach Rob at (540) 491-9107 or rknez@etsdental.com. Find out more at www.etsdental.com.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Why It's A Good Idea to Work With a Dental Recruiter To Find Your Next Associate
Shortage of Dentists – Over the past 20 years there has been a 32% drop in students entering Dental Schools in the US. At the same time the demand for dental services has increased dramatically.
Common Methods Don’t Work – Many practices around the country have been looking for Associate(s) to join their practices for years. Conventional methods of locating new Associates simply don’t work anymore. How many times have you seen the same ad in the ADA Journal? How many responses did you get when you put an ad in your local newspaper?
Cost – Paying for a Professional Recruiter is not cheap. But, when you consider the alternatives you will find that it is money well spent. Some recruiters charge upfront fees to do a search, however there are firms like ETS Dental that do contingency searches and you only pay a fee if you hire someone that they present.
Cost of NOT using a Recruiter – Take a moment and consider what it really costs you to find an Associate using conventional methods.
Cost of your time – As a practicing Dentist, your time is probably worth somewhere between $150 and $350 an hour. At an average of $225 an hour, it would cost $18,000 if you personally invested 80 hours in a search. Considering your chances of success, most find this is neither time nor money well spent.
Lost Opportunity Cost – Most successful practices are booked up for at least three or four months. Think how much new patient/referral revenue is lost every day from not being able to readily accommodate new patients. What would it mean to you to bring on an Associate six months sooner? (Example: $1000 Net collections per Associate per day – Less $350-$400 for Associate Pay = $625 x 104 days (4 days a week for 26 weeks) = $65,000.
Cost of Not Being Open Five or Six Days a Week – What would it mean to your practice if you could stay open one or two additional days a week? One would expect your net collections to increase from 10% to 40%. Most of this money would go directly to your bottom line since your fixed cost would remain relatively stable. (Example: Your Current Weekly Net Collections x (10% to 40%) = $???,???.
Cost of Your Vacation Time – What would it mean to your practice if you could keep it open when you take a vacation. One Dentist told us it costs him at least $30,000 for him to take a one-week vacation. How much does it cost you? ??,???.
Cost of Not Having a Choice – If you found just one Associate Candidate but you didn’t think there was a real fit, would you hire the Associate anyway? What if you settled for the only Associate candidate you’ve seen in months or even years? Wouldn’t it be nice to have a choice among multiple candidates when you make a decision that is this important to your business? What would it cost you if you hired the wrong Associate? $???,???.
Cost of Selling a Practice – Many Dentists are interested in selling or getting ready to sell their practices. The going rate to engage a Practice Management Firm to sell your practice is 10% of the practice value. This means that it would cost you $70,000 to sell your practice if it were valued at $700,000. Even if you find your own buyer, you still have to pay the Practice Brokerage according to most exclusive contracts. Wouldn’t it be better if you paid a recruiter to find the Associate of your choice then pay your own Lawyer and Accountant $5,000 to $15,000to sell the practice to your Associate?
There are many advantages to working with a dental recruiter during this very important process. Research the firm that you are considering working with. Ask your colleagues, who have recently hired Associates, who they worked with and ask if they would work with them again. Most importantly, make sure that you understand how the recruiting process works. Communication is key to finding your next great Associate!
Written by Marcia Patterson, Dental Recruiter for the Northeast at ETS Dental. You can reach Marcia at (540) 491-9118 or mpatterson@etsdental.com. Check us out at www.etsdental.com.
Common Methods Don’t Work – Many practices around the country have been looking for Associate(s) to join their practices for years. Conventional methods of locating new Associates simply don’t work anymore. How many times have you seen the same ad in the ADA Journal? How many responses did you get when you put an ad in your local newspaper?
Cost – Paying for a Professional Recruiter is not cheap. But, when you consider the alternatives you will find that it is money well spent. Some recruiters charge upfront fees to do a search, however there are firms like ETS Dental that do contingency searches and you only pay a fee if you hire someone that they present.
Cost of NOT using a Recruiter – Take a moment and consider what it really costs you to find an Associate using conventional methods.
Cost of your time – As a practicing Dentist, your time is probably worth somewhere between $150 and $350 an hour. At an average of $225 an hour, it would cost $18,000 if you personally invested 80 hours in a search. Considering your chances of success, most find this is neither time nor money well spent.
Lost Opportunity Cost – Most successful practices are booked up for at least three or four months. Think how much new patient/referral revenue is lost every day from not being able to readily accommodate new patients. What would it mean to you to bring on an Associate six months sooner? (Example: $1000 Net collections per Associate per day – Less $350-$400 for Associate Pay = $625 x 104 days (4 days a week for 26 weeks) = $65,000.
Cost of Not Being Open Five or Six Days a Week – What would it mean to your practice if you could stay open one or two additional days a week? One would expect your net collections to increase from 10% to 40%. Most of this money would go directly to your bottom line since your fixed cost would remain relatively stable. (Example: Your Current Weekly Net Collections x (10% to 40%) = $???,???.
Cost of Your Vacation Time – What would it mean to your practice if you could keep it open when you take a vacation. One Dentist told us it costs him at least $30,000 for him to take a one-week vacation. How much does it cost you? ??,???.
Cost of Not Having a Choice – If you found just one Associate Candidate but you didn’t think there was a real fit, would you hire the Associate anyway? What if you settled for the only Associate candidate you’ve seen in months or even years? Wouldn’t it be nice to have a choice among multiple candidates when you make a decision that is this important to your business? What would it cost you if you hired the wrong Associate? $???,???.
Cost of Selling a Practice – Many Dentists are interested in selling or getting ready to sell their practices. The going rate to engage a Practice Management Firm to sell your practice is 10% of the practice value. This means that it would cost you $70,000 to sell your practice if it were valued at $700,000. Even if you find your own buyer, you still have to pay the Practice Brokerage according to most exclusive contracts. Wouldn’t it be better if you paid a recruiter to find the Associate of your choice then pay your own Lawyer and Accountant $5,000 to $15,000to sell the practice to your Associate?
There are many advantages to working with a dental recruiter during this very important process. Research the firm that you are considering working with. Ask your colleagues, who have recently hired Associates, who they worked with and ask if they would work with them again. Most importantly, make sure that you understand how the recruiting process works. Communication is key to finding your next great Associate!
Written by Marcia Patterson, Dental Recruiter for the Northeast at ETS Dental. You can reach Marcia at (540) 491-9118 or mpatterson@etsdental.com. Check us out at www.etsdental.com.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Who Is Answering Your Phone?
“You never get a second chance to make a first impression.” For no other position is this more important than for your front desk. The person that manages your front desk often sets the tone for the entire office and, especially if it is a phone call, you may not get a second chance to "wow" that prospective patient.
So, what does a patient get when they call into your office? To find out, it probably would not hurt to give them a call. Have a family member or friend call the office. Ask them to evaluate the person to see if they come across as polite, helpful, and as a good listener. You might be surprised by the feedback you receive, and you need their brutal honesty.
We all know that the front desk can be like air traffic control, and the importance of this position is tremendous. Is he or she aware of the impact that they play on your office? Are they able to handle the multitude of tasks that can bombard them at any given time throughout the day? Can they do so with a smile on their face?
You work hard to retain your patients and get them to give you referral business. You want your patients to tell their spouses, family, friends, and coworkers that you are the best and that they need to go see you. This is your lifeline- the grapevine that keeps your practice growing. Make sure that you have the right person there to ensure that the level of care you give starts from that first moment of contact.
Posted by Tiffany Worstell, Dental Staff Recruiter at ETS Dental. You can reach Tiffany at (540) 491-9112 or tworstell@etsdental.com. To find out more, check us out at www.etsdental.com.
So, what does a patient get when they call into your office? To find out, it probably would not hurt to give them a call. Have a family member or friend call the office. Ask them to evaluate the person to see if they come across as polite, helpful, and as a good listener. You might be surprised by the feedback you receive, and you need their brutal honesty.
We all know that the front desk can be like air traffic control, and the importance of this position is tremendous. Is he or she aware of the impact that they play on your office? Are they able to handle the multitude of tasks that can bombard them at any given time throughout the day? Can they do so with a smile on their face?
You work hard to retain your patients and get them to give you referral business. You want your patients to tell their spouses, family, friends, and coworkers that you are the best and that they need to go see you. This is your lifeline- the grapevine that keeps your practice growing. Make sure that you have the right person there to ensure that the level of care you give starts from that first moment of contact.
Posted by Tiffany Worstell, Dental Staff Recruiter at ETS Dental. You can reach Tiffany at (540) 491-9112 or tworstell@etsdental.com. To find out more, check us out at www.etsdental.com.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
What are hiring dental practices looking for?
The first step is getting noticed by potential employers. Luckily most practices do not have computers searching CVs for keywords. They are looked at by an actual person. Usually, this is the doctor or office manager. Practices look at resumes for a few things first: Where did you go to school and when did you graduate. Next, they scan over for notable CE, GPR/AEGD programs. They are also looking to see if they know who you are, or if they know any of your references if you listed any.
Everyone is going to put on their cover letter or resume an objective stating how great they are with patients and staff, that they are team oriented, willing to learn, etc. You need to tell the practice what you can do to better their bottom line. Production averages, can you do molar endo, implants, surgical extractions, and more. In this current climate GPs are looking for ways to keep anything they can in house. You have to sell yourself in numbers, as well as in patient care standards and personality. Your personality will come out in a face to face or telephone interview, but you have to get them to take a serious look at you first via what is in your CV and/or letter.
Another important step in increasing your possibility of finding a great opportunity is in networking groups, study clubs, and local dental associations. These are really the way to meet these owners face to face and introduce yourself as an up and coming star in the area. You need to be a networking pro. It is fine being a member of an association on paper, but reach out and start introducing yourself today.
A final note: from experience, when great jobs openings exist with great practices they are rarely advertised on job boards. They are filled by word of mouth. Most of the job openings that I uncover as a recruiter are not listed. I keep in touch with practice owners constantly. When they have a need, it is my job to figure that out from what they are saying, and help they fill that need.
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