Recruitment is the process of attracting capable applicants to apply to an organization for employment and involves marketing the organization’s employment to potential employees.

According to Patrick Gauthier of AHP Healthcare Solutions:
 

“The practice of recruitment and retention in the behavioral health workplace tends to focus on clinical and paraprofessional staff but the advent of Health Care Reform and the Meaningful Use of health information technology are quickly changing the equation for behavioral health care providers. What used to be considered “back-office” functions like reception, accounts receivable, and sometimes desk-top computer support have given way to patient registration, coding specialists, revenue management, and a full-fledged IT team. Now, the stakes are higher than ever as markets begin to shift and expectations surrounding infrastructure surge higher than many providers’ staffing plans may be prepared for. Staffing plans are being re-evaluated in light of the paradigm-shifting and business-environment-altering power of reforms. Once providers come to terms with the…“drivers”, they will begin planning for non-clinical staff that can bring to bear new skills and expertise for the future.”

Read the rest of the blog on What’s Driving the Need for Non-Clinical Administrative Expertise? by Patrick Gauthier.

Recruitment methods should attract the type of employees that are in demand for the position and interested in the organization. The key to this strategy is improving awareness of the organization.

 

The first step in organizational marketing is to create a marketing plan.

 

Eight steps to market a nonprofit organization provides valuable strategies that are applicable to behavioral health agencies. An article on 27 low-to no-cost marketing ideas for small businesses also has useful tips, such as creating a brochure and Web site, and using social marketing techniques. The approaches of social media in marketing rely on the use of low-cost technologies to communicate with potential job applicants, especially those Gen X and Ys who are comfortable with this venue. Additional information on the social marketing media and behavioral health recruiting is available from the Social Media section on this Web portal.

A key step in reaching job applicants that are best suited to an organization’s needs is the development of a detailed job description. The more specific the description of needed skills and experience, the more likely resumes that match the stated needs will be received. A definition of a job description and its components can provide the basics information needed to start a job description.Writing job descriptions that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires skill. In your efforts to be clear, you might inadvertently be exclusionary. The article, Non-Prejudicial Language for ADA Job Descriptions, by Steve Bruce offers tips for handling this important responsibility. 
 

Information on writing a job description based on competencies in the field of substance abuse treatment can be found in A Provider’s Guide: How to Use Core Competencies in Behavioral Health. This toolkit describes not only how to write a job description based on competencies, but how to use competencies to develop a career ladder and how to use competency models in supervision.

Information and other tools helpful in writing job descriptions can help to understand the scope and responsibilities associated with the position and write an effective job description. 
 

A job description typically encompasses general tasks, functions, and responsibilities of a position; to whom the employee will report; qualifications required by the employee; and potential salary range.For a more detailed explanation of how to write a job description, visit the resource, Write an Accurate Job description QUICK TOOL [2.1.4].