If you own a therapy business, you’ve probably heard of the idea of an "ideal client." In order to direct your marketing efforts and leverage the skills you have as best you can, you need to know who you’re talking to. Getting really detailed about your ideal client can help you make business decisions that support growth in a way that’s aligned with your vision, mission, and values. This same principle applies when hiring in a group practice.
In an ideal world, we’d like to think that hiring therapists would be a touch easier than hiring in other fields. After all, aren’t we trained in things like communication and building healthy relationships? Therapists are people too, and there may be individuals who aren’t a good fit for your practice. There will be people who don’t respond to your leadership style, people who don’t agree with your decisions, and people who cause conflict, just like in any other job. That’s why it’s helpful to have a really clear idea of who you want to hire before you start looking. Having clear guidelines can help ensure you’re hiring clinicians who are a good fit, which benefits everyone.
Sometimes, the excitement of hiring the first therapist in your practice overrides the need to make sure it’s the right fit for you and for them. For more established practices, it can be tempting to bring on more people to continue growth, even if they’re not the ideal fit for the job.
It’s also important to note that just because someone isn’t the ideal clinician for you doesn’t mean that they’re not a great clinician. There are tons of great clinicians out there who wouldn’t be a good fit for my practice, and that may be the case for yours as well. It’s up to you to decide what works and what doesn’t—so be prepared to ask yourself plenty of questions as you narrow it down.
Here are some questions to ask when looking for your ideal clinician:
What kind of experience am I looking for?
Experience-wise, what are your expectations for this position? Are you looking for fully licensed clinicians, or are you looking for provisionally licensed folks? Are you willing to be flexible on that? Do you have the systems in place to support your choice?
What kind of certifications or qualifications do you want this person to have? Should they have a certain specialty or niche? What are the needs of your community? Are there any trends in the calls coming into your office that you can explore? This can help you understand what folks in your community are looking for, so you can hire knowing that there’s a demand for it.
What are the logistics of the job?
Will this clinician be expected to work on certain days of the week, or have night/weekend availability? Is there a minimum number of hours they will be expected to work? What does it cost to have a clinician on your team (so you know how much profit you can expect to make per hire), and how many clients would they need to see for your practice to be profitable?
You can play around with the numbers to see what you’re willing to be flexible with. It’s not only important to know this to understand the kind of clinician you want to hire, but also so you can communicate all of this during the hiring process.
What are my expectations?
Unspoken expectations can lead to misunderstandings and resentment. Sometimes we think we’re being clear about something when we’re really not. It’s important to be very clear about what the expectations are for the position so that you can both make an informed decision on whether it’s a good fit. What are your expectations for their availability, as discussed above? Will they be expected to market themselves? It’s also important to ask what your potential hire’s expectations are.
What kind of workplace culture do we have?
One big reason that people end up leaving group practices is that there is a personality clash—where one clinician doesn’t fit in with the workplace culture that the owner is trying to build. So, it can be helpful to really consider what you’re looking for when it comes to personality or characteristics for a new hire. In my practice, we have a strong workplace culture where everyone feels like family. We make sure to bring that up in the interview process, because it’s very important to us to bring on clinicians who will add to that culture. If they’re more of a "closed-door-between-sessions" type, that’s fine, but it’s probably not a good fit for us.
Asking yourself these questions before starting the hiring process can help you better communicate to applicants what you’re looking for, which will also let them see if working with you will be a good fit on their end. Hiring can be tricky, but it’s a lot smoother sailing when you know exactly who you want to hire and why. Taking the time to explore and ask yourself some questions can make a big difference in the way you approach new candidates.
