Strategic vs. Desperate Veterinary Hiring - Why Panic Hiring Creates More Problems Than It Solves & How To Avoid It - ep.235

Julie South
Have you ever found yourself compromising on accepting a job applicant, even though you know deep down it's going to create some resentment on your team? Maybe it's because you're getting desperate rather than strategic. 

Hi, I'm Julie south and you're listening to Veterinary Voices, the podcast that that celebrates and showcases employer of choice veterinary clinics. 

This is episode 235, the 11th in our series about writing job ads that attract and build the best teams in the veterinary profession. 

Veterinary Voices is brought to you by VetClinicJobs, the job board, direct hiring, reimagined and no agencies. 

You owe it to your team to be able to make job offers from your job ads. And let's face it, success when it comes to job ads should lead to your new hire starting within a few months. If that's not happening for you right now, then head on over to vetclinicjobs.com because the average there is about seven weeks from go to whoa. Last week in episode 234, we talked about writing job ads for different roles.

Julie South [00:01:25]:
Today we're tackling urgent hiring not because someone's resigned suddenly, but because you've been struggling to fill a position using traditional job boards for weeks, or maybe even months and months. And now you're running out of Runway. The incumbent's last day is fast approaching and you still don't have anyone lined up. So stay tuned because I'm going to give you three key strategies for urgent hiring that help you find the right person fast without compromising your standards. When clinics get desperate and time runs out, the job ad changes from showcasing your clinic to accepting anyone. For example, suddenly you're willing to hire someone who perhaps doesn't want to go on the weekend roster, even when it's par for the course for everyone else. As you can imagine, that immediately sets the scene for creating immediate resentment on your team. I've also seen clinics skip reference checks or rush background checks just to get someone started.

Julie South [00:02:44]:
They compromise on core requirements that affect the whole team, like after hours responsibilities. This almost always comes back to bite them and backfires because the wrong person creates more problems than having no one at all. Desperation shows in your job ads too. Phrases like, for example immediate start required or urgent position to fill make you sound frantic. And they can repel quality veterinary professionals who wonder perhaps what's wrong with your clinic or what's going on behind those closed doors of your clinic. You genuinely need someone quickly. I get that. But you also need someone who's going to fit if it feels like Choosing between speed and quality, you're looking at wrong metrics because that's a false choice.

Julie South [00:03:46]:
Urgent hiring requires a different approach, not lowering standards. When hiring urgently, you're competing against the comfort of veterinary professionals. Current positions. People who are happily employed won't make immediate career changes unless something compelling comes along. Your urgent job ad needs to work twice as hard to attract attention and convince people to consider a quick decision. Okay, Julie, you might be thinking, how do you hire urgently without compromising quality? Here are three key strategies for you to use. The first one. Be honest about your timeline, not desperate.

Julie South [00:04:38]:
Be transparently professional about your needs without advertising exactly how little time you have left. The key is avoiding language that screams desperation instead of urgent immediate start required. Focus on what makes your clinic genuinely appealing rather than highlighting your timeline pressure. Highlight what someone would gain by joining your team. This approach attracts people without revealing that you've been struggling to to fill the position. Number two, make immediate benefits clear. When you need someone fast, emphasise what's immediately attractive. Start earning from day one with full support.

Julie South [00:05:29]:
May sound obvious, but it doesn't happen everywhere. Join a team that will have your back from the first day. For urgent hires, you need to front load the benefits rather than focusing on long term development. 3. Streamline your process, not your standards. You need to speed up your hiring process without lowering the bar. For example, we can arrange interviews within 48 hours or two days or whatever it is for you. And make decisions quickly for the right person.

Julie South [00:06:08]:
If you're not already, use video interviews for your initial screening. Maintain your standards. Apply them faster, not more loosely. Your current team is watching how you handle urgent hiring. If they see you panic in lower standards, then they're going to start worrying about new team member quality. If they see professionalism under pressure, it reinforces confidence in your leadership. Consider involving your team in urgent hiring. They might know someone looking for opportunities.

Julie South [00:06:51]:
Or they can help with quick reference checks. And I don't mean quick as in super fast five minutes, I mean as in actioning them faster. Vet Clinic Jobs is geared towards making it easy for team members to share job opportunities with memorable links and easy to remember links. And great showcasing information about both the job and the clinic as well. There's got great looking images that people are happy to share with their networks. So that's vetclinicjobs.com have you noticed that traditional job boards make urgent hiring even harder? More expensive? They may charge many do extra for premium placements. Humongously, enormously. It hurts body parts extra for premium placements and their systems aren't necessarily designed for quick personal communication that urgent hiring requires.

Julie South [00:07:59]:
VetClinicJobs.com understands that veterinary clinics sometimes need people quickly. The REAL+STORY framework, which is their premium 12 week service, might seem counterintuitive when you're in an urgent mode. 12 weeks? Wow, that's a lot. But it actually delivers results faster than than panic advertising. Yes, your new hire might start after your original deadline, but they'll likely start sooner than if you keep doing what hasn't been working. Strategic urgency gets better results than frantic desperation. Let me quickly recap those three strategies. First, be honest about your timeline without sounding desperate.

Julie South [00:08:52]:
Show urgency professionally. Second, make immediate benefits clear front load. What's attractive about joining now? And third, streamline your process, not your standards. Move faster, but maintain your quality bar. Here's what I want you to do right now. If you're in urgent hiring mode, look at the ads that you've got out there in the big wide world and remove any desperate language from those ads. Replace it with professional urgency that shows you're organised and decisive, not panicking. Ask yourself whether there's any language or wording in your ad that that also opens up doors for resentment to sneak into your clinic culture.

Julie South [00:09:48]:
Remember, urgent hiring isn't about lowering your standards, it's about being strategic. If you're facing urgent hiring right now, visit vetclinicjobs.com Lizzie and Tanya can help you find quality veterinary professionals fast. How fast, you might be wondering. Well, we just started one clinic's real story journey just very recently and they had their first suitably qualified applicant about nine days into the programme. So we're talking just starting week two. As you can imagine, they're stoked. If that's not happening for you, you owe it to your team to get in touch with Tania so that it does start happening for you. I'll put her contact details and in the show notes to make it easy for you to get in touch with her.

Julie South [00:10:43]:
That's episode 235 of Veterinary Voices. Next week we'll explore why your job ads aren't getting applications and what actually works in a shortage market in a job seekers market. Another big thank you to vet clinic jobs. The Job Board Direct hiring reimagined no agency. Check them out. Vetclinicjobs.com Remember that urgent hiring doesn't have to mean desperate hiring. Stay professional, stay strategic and you'll attract the right people even when time is right. Until next time, this is Julie south signing off and inviting you to go out there and be your mom most fantabulous self because you work with a team that lifts you up every single day.