Focusing on the Applicant Experience is Secret to Success

By Sarah Anderson, SVP, Recruiting and Caregiver Experience

Recruiting and retaining caregivers has proven to be a challenge over the last several years. At Help at Home, we have doubled in size, meaning we are hiring a lot of caregivers. And, we’re doing this during a tight labor market in which wages have risen in the hospitality and retail industries, giving our potential employees more options.

And even when the economy changes, the outlook for hiring caregivers is going to remain challenging. With the aging baby boomer population growing, we will continue to grow our caregiver workforce which means the need to recruit and retain them is an ongoing focus.

The good news? We are meeting this challenge by rethinking and revamping our approach to hiring and retention – using AI tools as a way to automate administrative tasks to allow us to focus on the personalized engagement of our future caregivers.

Caregiving is rewarding, but can also be demanding

Even before the labor market tightened, recruiting and retaining caregivers was challenging. Home Care Pulse stated that in 2020, the national turnover rate was 65 percent. When you think about it, that’s not surprising.

Caregiving work can be extremely rewarding, but it also can be challenging – physically, mentally and emotionally. For example, it can be hard to see a client you’ve come to know face health setbacks. Caregivers see clients on their worst days – when they are sick, in a bad mood or confused. It can be overwhelming.

The good news is that Help at Home focuses on identifying unique ways to support caregivers and that improves retention. Our turnover rate is about half the national average – and our average caregiver/client relationship is more than four years! That statistic is important to us. It speaks to the value of the caregiver/client relationships, which directly impacts the client’s health and wellbeing.

Streamlining the hiring and onboarding process is key

So, how are we doing it? The name of the game has always been about making the process of hiring caregivers as efficient, easy and engaging as possible. In today’s market especially, it’s important to have a “consumer grade experience” – meaning that the days of asking applicants to complete an arduous application before they even speak to someone are over. They expect the process to be clear and concise and they expect to receive something for their efforts – if not a job, than a timely response.  In the past, many companies focused on a process that was simpler for THEM, not the candidate. The thinking was that if you really wanted the job, you would be willing to jump through whatever hoops that were thrown at you.

Unfortunately, even when they did, they often found themselves in a black hole.  But in a climate where people have many options, they are drawing conclusions about what your company will be like to work for as they go through the application process. Think of it as the first impression the company is showing the candidate who is the potential employee. If it’s hard to schedule an interview, they may assume it will not be a smooth experience for them as an employee to manage day-to-day caregiver needs.

Our approach to hiring is rooted in the applicant’s experience

Here are some of the changes we’ve made at Help at Home to prioritize caregiver experience:

• We are focused on a high-tech, high-touch approach streamlining caregiver recruiting, hiring and onboarding processes. We’ve launched new recruiting platforms that simplify the hiring process, resulting in an average of over 3k new hires each month.
• Implemented 24/7 services for potential caregivers, who can now apply and schedule interviews online at any time of day. That means they can easily work around the demands of their current job.
• Developed an onboarding program with touchpoints that extend through the first 60 days for new caregivers. This is a thoughtful program timed to key milestones – their first day with a new client for example – and provides video support to give them an idea about what to expect in the process. Already, we are seeing improvements in our 60-day retention rates.
• Launched a Caregiver Contact Center – a one-stop shop where caregivers can reach out when they are having a problem.
• Creating “pulse” surveys – where we ask caregivers directly about their challenges. These are not anonymous, so that we can provide direct support and solve individual issues. We’ve had nearly 100,000 surveys returned so far – exceeding our expectations. It shows us that our caregivers want to have a voice for their clients – and they are providing us with valuable insights into what areas they struggle with – so we can work together on finding solutions.
• Elevating the role of caregivers. Help at Home is a leader in care coordination for in-home services, meaning that our caregivers are doing more than just making breakfast – though that’s important too! Instead, in some markets, they are working with a team to monitor and react to client changes in mental and physical health. We are finding higher satisfaction among caregivers working in these programs – and it gives them another potential career path if they want to move into community health work.

Gone are the days that a company’s perspectives were rooted in meeting the minimum state requirements for training, recruitment or care coordination. We know that going beyond those requirements with the goal of focused supports for our new caregivers will provide employment longevity and better client care.

In the next 5 to 10 years, AI will change a lot of processes. Some organizations will undoubtedly try to use AI instead of real people for hiring and recruiting, but the companies that succeed will be the ones who figure out how to use AI along with the right, personalized approach from real people.

When I think about the work Help at Home is doing, we are so fortunate to be able to directly impact the care for someone who needs it. For every person we hire, a client receives the help they need and a caregiver has a meaningful job with an opportunity to grow their career.