4 Tips for Navigating the Hiring Process

As a job seeker, knowing how to interact with a hiring manager or recruiter plays an incredibly pivotal role in the hiring process. Even though an interviewing manager or recruiter might not be the final decision-maker as to whether or not you land the job, their assessment of your character, professionalism, and abilities will speak volumes during the application, screening, and interview process.

Here are four helpful tips for navigating the hiring process:

1. Maintain Open and Honest Communication – Communication is perhaps the most critical component of the entire hiring process. Make sure your resume or CV are updated with your most recent work history before applying to the position. If you’re working with a recruiter, provide as much information and as many details as requested. Be especially forthcoming early on in the process when it comes to your education, current employment status, and certifications. Even if you’ve been unemployed for a while or are lacking in experience, being honest and upfront with a hiring manager or recruiter communicates your trustworthiness and helps prevent any future misunderstandings. It only takes one dishonest detail to spoil your chances with a future employer and lose their trust, so honesty is always the best policy.
2. Respond in a Timely Manner – Part of establishing open channels of communication with a hiring manager is maintaining timely responses. Being prompt in your responses shows enthusiasm and communicates your interest in the position. If you’re going on vacation or will be difficult to reach for a period of time, be sure to communicate this beforehand with the manager or recruiter. Dropping off the map unexpectedly in the midst of the hiring process can result in missed opportunities, as employers are more likely to go with an eager candidate than one that’s passive in their responses.
3. Don’t Overdo it on the Follow Up - Showing enthusiasm and interest in a position are key to landing an opportunity. However, excessive follow-up and “reaching out” can be both annoying and detrimental to your chances of establishing a good relationship with an employer. If a recruiter or manager provides a specific timeline of when they will be in touch with you, always adhere to that schedule.
4. Respect the Employer’s Hiring Process – It may seem obvious, but in order to effectively navigate the hiring process, you must respect the employer’s process for assessing and interviewing candidates. As an applicant, attempting to “skip” the chain of command by bypassing a human resources manager to talk directly with the final decision-maker rarely works out in the candidate’s favor. Respecting the employer’s processes and following instructions lays solid groundwork for your candidacy. If working with a recruiter, understand that there are multiple processes going on behind the scenes. A good recruiter will be transparent and set expectations of when you can expect to hear back. Again, be respectful in adhering to the timeline the recruiter presents to you. If you don’t hear anything back by the time they specified, it’s OK to check in then and see how things are going.

Each recruiter and company will have their own unique hiring process. Regardless of the position you’re applying to, though, establishing open channels of communication and maintaining a professional demeanor throughout every correspondence are good policies for landing an interview and ultimately getting the job.

For a complete listing of all of our current job opportunities, please visit our job board. Or, if you’re looking to add a new associate or staff member to your practice, contact us and begin your search today!

3 Tips for New Grads Looking for Their First Opportunity in Dentistry

Today’s blog post is an article shared with us by Larry Dougherty, D.M.D.  I have known Dr. Dougherty since 2010 when I placed him with a group practice in San Antonio.  He has since gone on to own and operate a successful private practice, Rolling Oaks Dental, with his wife Ana Ferraz-Dougherty, D.M.D.  Both doctors graduated from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, FL.  Dr. Dougherty is an active member in the ADA, TDA, and the San Antonio District Dental Society.  He is currently the Chairman for both the TDA’s and SADDS’s Committee on the New Dentist.

Dr. Dougherty regularly publishes articles on his blog for new dentists to gain insights and tips.  He has been gracious to allow us to share one of his recent articles on our blog. 

-Carl Guthrie, Senior Dental Recruiter, ETS Dental, cguthrie@etsdental.com  

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Original article found at “3 Tips for New Grads Looking for Their First Opportunity in Dentistry.”

Congratulations to everyone that is graduating dental school this month. You’ve worked hard and earned the privilege to be called a doctor. While it feels like an ending, it is truly just the beginning. Now is when the fun really starts. Many of you have chosen to do a residency, join the military, or join a family member’s practice. I didn’t do any of those things so I don’t have much to comment about any of those paths. Personally, I graduated from dental school and started replying to classified ads on Dentaltown. That was my first step, and it landed me my first opportunity. In future blog posts I’ll get into more details on my thoughts about corporate vs. non-corporate opportunities. For now, let’s just focus on a few basics that apply no matter which route you take.

1.  Find a Recruiter

There are recruiting agencies that help offices looking for dentists find them, and you need to be in touch with them. I ended up here in the great state of Texas with a little help from Carl Guthrie at ETS Dental. You tell the recruiters what you’re looking for and they help you to find it. These people are highly knowledgeable about what is out there and can provide some valuable advice. It also saves you a lot of work. The best part is you don’t pay them a penny, the recruiting dentist is the one who pays for the service...

Click here to continue reading the full article on Dr. Larry Dougherty's blog

What Does a Graduating Pediatric Dentist Earn?

So you have done well in college and were accepted into dental school. During this time you have realized that you have a special talent and interest in working with kids. You apply and are accepted into a pediatric residency and spend a couple of more years earning your pediatric dental certification.

Finally, after many years of study and devotion, you are a pediatric dentist! You are now ready to enter the market and find that first job and wonder what is fair and what you can expect to earn. You probably have heard figures from your residency director, co-residents and others in the specialty and the numbers may vary widely. Who is right? They are probably all correct in what they are telling you and the differences can be explained by understanding what they have experienced.

I am an independent recruiter who works exclusively with dental specialists and I spend most of my time with private pediatric dental practices and those looking to hire a pediatric dentist. I work nationally and see daily what practices are offering and new graduates are getting in different areas around the country.

What am I seeing? Nationally, on average, I see base guarantee of around $200,000 which is vs. a % of collections. Most practices pay on a % of collections rather than production since most are participating in a few PPO’s or discounted plans.

To break this down further, the daily guarantee averages between $800 and $1,200. The daily guarantee should become a moot point after one is up and running with a practice and it is there as a floor. With the guarantee, the practice is saying that they are going to have a schedule that will allow you to be productive and, if they do not for a particular day, you will still be paid for your time.

What % are practices paying? Typically it will be between 35% and 45%. A % approach is recommended rather than a flat salary because it allows the associate to be in control of their destiny and they know what they need to produce and then collect in order to reach a certain earnings level. With the % approach vs. a salary, practice owners are not wondering if they are overpaying and associates are not wondering if they are being underpaid and are incentivized to work rather than surfing the internet or other non productive distractions.

Why would one work for 35% when others are getting 45%? I see a good number of graduating pediatric dentists who evaluate a practice opportunity based on the % alone and anything less than 40% or 45% are not of interest to them. What they really need to look at is the nature of the practice to include the patient flow, whether they will be doing a good amount of restorative and the ability to do hospital dentistry and sedations etc. A pediatric dentist can do much better financially in a busy practice paying a lower % vs. a higher end, slower practice paying 45% where they are relegated to hygiene checks and little restorative dentistry. 

Location, Location, Location: That said, the biggest factor in what a new graduate pediatric dentist can and will earn is where they decide to live and practice. This is a simple supply and demand economics equation with some of the best earnings opportunities being in areas that you and I may have never heard of.

What I see is that most of the major metropolitan areas across the country tend to be fairly saturated with pediatric dentists and it can be more challenging for the new graduates to find truly good private practice opportunities. I recommend looking at areas where people are not going and take a position there for a couple of years. You can earn a great deal, gain very valuable experience and make yourself much more marketable and you will find it much easier to get into the market where you really want to be for the long term.

If you have any questions about earnings or the state of pediatric dentistry in certain areas of the country feel free to call me. I will be happy to share with you what I know.

 

Gary Harris is a nationwide Recruiter for Dental Specialists at ETS Dental. He can be reached at gharris@etsdental.com or 540-491-9115. ETS Dental is a Dental Recruiting firm specializing in finding and placing General Dentists, Dental Specialists, and Dental Staff throughout the United States. www.etsdental.com

 

Job Searching in a Saturated or Difficult Job Market

The Dental Associate job market is improving across the country. However, it is still competitive and often challenging in many larger metro areas in the U.S. There are not enough jobs available for the number job seekers in saturated areas such as Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin. At ETS Dental, we speak with dentists everyday who are having a very hard time finding opportunities.

Don’t Get in Your Own Way: The biggest disservice you can do yourself is to think you are the only qualified applicant for the job. In a saturated market you have to sell yourself much more than the practice has to sell itself to you. For example, I just posted a job opening in San Francisco, CA. I had 10 applicants within 2 hours. By the end of the week I will have at least 50 to 75. Your resume, cover letter, attitude, and the things you say have to express what you bring to the table to benefit the practice. What skills and experience do you have that will benefit the practice? What sets you apart? Can you speak Spanish? Do you love working with kids? Can you place implants? Can you bring new patients into the practice? Don’t move the conversation straight to how much they will pay you. You don’t even have the job offer yet, and this approach can cost you the job.

 

Expand Your Options: Most job seekers we speak with would much rather work for a private practice or small group practice. Corporate dentistry is a last resort or often not something they even want to consider. However, large group and corporate dentistry is growing and here to stay. These practices can offer you stable employment, great training, a guaranteed minimum salary, and benefits. If private and small group practices are not hiring in your area, don’t limit your options. 

 

Use an Independent Recruiter: A few dental recruiters, like ETS Dental, have contacts with practices throughout the U.S. Most often we are working on openings that are not advertised in any other channels. Our clients entrust us to locate the right talent to grow their practices. We speak with job seekers in order to understand their goals and experience. We have the ability to market strong candidates to practices with whom we have built relationships with over the years. Sometimes it’s who you know, and recruiters are good to know. 

 

Volunteer: Many new graduates can benefit from this in difficult areas. Volunteering can help build or maintain skills. It helps you learn chairside communication and build patient rapport. It can even help you connect with other practitioners, and possibly lead to an employment opportunity. Look for volunteer opportunities in free dental clinics or giving your time by participating in free dental care days that may be offered in your community. 

 

Shake Some Hands: Go to dental society meetings. Get online and join discussion groups such as Dental Town. Get on LinkedIn. Hand out business cards to every dentist you meet. Drop in and say hello to offices and leave a resume/CV. You can’t be shy in a saturated market. Let people know who you are, and let them know you are looking for an opportunity. 

 

Multiple Part-Time Jobs: Most saturated markets have more part-time openings available than full-time. You should definitely consider trying to get 2 or 3 part-time jobs if you need a full-time income.

 

Relocate:  It’s an extreme measure for many, but for some it can mean the difference in having a career or several short-term, part-time positions or nothing at all. Relocating expands your options exponentially. Just make sure you are not expanding your options of relocation to another heavily saturated area. Check out some earlier articles on this topic:

• Where Are the Jobs
• Choosing Where to Practice
• Grass is Greener Outside the City

 

Written by Carl Guthrie, Western Region Account Executive and Dental Recruiter. Contact at cguthrie@etsdental.com or 540-491-9104

The Inside Scoop from the Recruiters at ETS

We decided to take an internal survey and look at some of the most common things we hear regarding associate dentist candidates and hiring practice owners in our searches.  Whether we were looking at positions for General Dentists, Dental Specialists, or support staff, we all seem to be hearing or saying the same things:

1. What message do we repeat to dental practice owners the most? The number one answer was the importance of feedback.  Whether emphasizing how feedback will streamline the process of finding their next great associate or stressing how it keeps the interview process moving to reduce the risk of losing a great candidate, timely feedback is crucial to us being able to do the best job for you.  
2. What message do we repeat to associate dentist candidates the most? When asked about the other side of the process, there were three common responses.  First, how can we make you, the candidate, stand out from the other candidates I am presenting to my client?  Second, the need for realistic expectations, whether with regard to salary or comparing different opportunities, arises often as well.  Last but not least, we constantly have to encourage candidates to look outside of major metro areas for work.  Chances are, if you’re looking for a job in a major metro area, that area is already saturated, and you’re better off trying to check out an area at least an hour outside of that metro.
3. What is the number one response from practice owners as to why a candidate does not get an interview?  Lack of experience seems to be quite common.  It seems like people of all walks of life run into the cycle of “how to get the job to get the experience if you can’t find a job to get the experience.”  Find other ways to set yourself apart.  Additionally, we get feedback from practice owners that a candidate didn’t show any interest in what the practice wanted, or they were selfish. In other cases, owners may not give an interview based on an assumption made by looking at a resume.
4. What is the number one complaint we hear from practice owners today? Candidates are too worried about themselves, and they are not motivated to work hard to be successful.  Practice owners give us all sorts of insights as to what they feel is lacking in a candidate pool they are interviewing.  We hear a lot about how new graduates, especially, want things their way and don’t want to work hard to add value to the practice.   This feedback shows up in everything from unrealistic salary expectations, unwillingness to work evenings or weekends, and even in the commitment they show the hiring doctors with responsiveness.  Most of our client practices want a long-term addition to their office who understands the work that went into building a successful practice and wants to add value.
5. What is the one way associate candidates who are great set themselves apart from candidates who are just “okay?”  Attitude, people skills, communication skills, interpersonal skills, professionalism…call it whatever you want, it’s PERSONALITY.  As one of our recruiters put it best, “Skills can be taught.  Personality cannot be taught.”  Make sure that anytime you’re getting ready to start your next job search that you remember to put your best attitude in front of the potential employer.

Posted by Chante Smith

ETS Dental is a Dental Recruiting firm specializing in finding and placing General Dentists, Dental Specialists, and Dental Staff throughout the United States. www.etsdental.com

The View from the Recruiter's Seat: Candidates are Driving the Job Market and Rejected Offers Are on the Rise

Over the past two years, recruiters in the executive and managerial space have observed significant changes in hiring practices, the most important being a shift from an employer-driven market to a candidate-driven market. Following this trend, new data indicates the talent market is now overwhelmingly driven by top performers. Recruiters who responded to the most recent MRINetwork Recruiter Sentiment Study provide cautionary advice to employers who haven't yet awakened to the new reality.

"I have been recruiting for nearly 11 years and I have never seen the market more candidate-driven than it is now. Candidates have choices and 'A' players are being heavily courted," said a recruiter responding to the study. According to the report, in the second half of 2013, 79 percent of recruiters described the labor market as candidate-driven, up 12 percent from a year ago.

The executive and managerial market continues to be so candidate-driven, because the talent pool remains weak. As the economy rebounds, average candidates simply will not do - employers want star players to help them move their businesses forward. This leaves top performers at a strong advantage. Multiple job offers provide these candidates with more bargaining power and the ability to reject less desirable work agreements. According to the study, 49 percent of candidates refused job offers as a result of accepting an offer with another company, up 16 percent from the first half of 2013.

MRINetwork recruiters report several reasons for why more jobs are being turned down:

1. Qualified candidates are hard to find and also difficult to move. New jobs are not offering high enough salaries or enough benefits to incent a move.
   
2. Top candidates are interviewing with multiple companies and have multiple offers to consider.
   
3. Good candidates are becoming more difficult and demanding. Employers haven't caught up yet. They still think they can get a great candidate cheap.
   
4. Employers are taking too long to complete the interviewing process.

With rejected job offers on the rise, the candidate-driven market points to several things:

1. Employer branding is more important than ever to entice star talent. "Companies should be re-visiting, from the top down, why their company is a great place to work, and why not," said an MRINetwork recruiter.
   
2. It is now crucial that employers find ways to streamline the hiring process to avoid losing their top picks. One recruiter noted, "Slow hiring processes give candidates access to more options and more time to rethink their reasons for making a change."
   
3. Salary and benefit packages need to be aggressive, not simply market-competitive. Another recruiter added, "More employers need to consider offering a higher salary if their benefits are not as competitive with those currently provided to the candidate. Many employers looking to hire have cut back on benefits and this isn't being covered by increased salaries."
   
4. Counteroffers are a reality, especially when it comes to top performers. Since exceptional candidates are frequently recruited from other companies, prospective employers should be prepared to offer a salary and benefits package that the current employer is not likely to beat.

The good news is that more employers are realizing the executive and managerial market is candidate-driven. According to the study, 25 percent of employers are presenting job offers within two weeks of the first interview, up 6 percent from the first half of 2013.

While the study results demonstrate that hiring trends are highly favorable towards top performers in the executive and managerial space, the data is not representative of overall hiring, which the Federal Reserve noted in its most recent Beige Book, is holding steady or increasing at a measured pace. Even still the results are encouraging, showing consistent signs of economic recovery.