Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1472872
11 BECKER'S DENTAL + DSO REVIEW // VOL. 2022 NO. 2 EXECUTIVE BRIEFING 2 EXECUTIVE BRIEFING SPONSORED BY Flexibility, personalization and actionable data: How Heartland Dental attracts top talent for consideration by hiring managers T he labor shortage rippling through the economy is affecting all positions in the dental industry. Today's competition for top talent is forcing dental support organizations to adopt creative approaches for the recruitment and retention of top talent. To get insight into a leading DSO's practices for attracting talent in this challenging labor market, Becker's Dental + DSO Review recently spoke with Josie Martinez, senior director of talent acquisition at Heartland Dental. Heartland Dental has 20,000 employees and supports over 1,550 dental offices across 38 states. Ms. Martinez has been at Heartland Dental for more than five years and has about 20 years of experience focused specifically on talent recruitment and retention. Today's labor market: An imbalance of supply and demand While Heartland Dental has sustained growth and is experiencing increased demand for dental support services, the organization has also seen a decline in the number of organic applicants across all positions. Ms. Martinez defined organic applicants as an individual who comes to the company's website, completes an application and applies for a position. Heartland Dental provides non-clinical administrative support to over 1550 dental offices across the United States. This support includes, but is not limited, to assistance with recruiting dentists for the professional corporations and offices that it supports. In particular, Heartland Dental as well as the professional corporations and offices they support are seeing a decline in applications among experienced providers, including both dentists and hygienists. "There's a decline of organic applicants, especially as it relates to experienced providers, coupled with an increase in demand as the number of dental offices we support grows," Ms. Martinez said. That's a real math problem." However, despite increasing competition for fewer organic applicants, Ms. Martinez still sees an abundance of talent in the market. "It doesn't necessarily mean there's less available talent," she said. "It means you have to actively search and compete for talent." Heartland Dental is focused on potential Historically, employers seek candidates possessing a specific skillset along with certain knowledge and experience. However, current market conditions have spurred Heartland Dental to shift its thinking to "focus on the candidate's potential," Ms. Martinez said. "We are helping our hiring leaders assess talent through the lens of what's possible, rather than what's typical. There's no room in this labor dynamic for rigidity; you've got to be flexible, and you've got to consider what's possible." Heartland Dental focuses both on an individual's potential and makes significant investments in training and development. "We ask hiring managers to be reflective about what they can teach versus what a candidate absolutely needs to have on day one. Ultimately, it's about finding great people who have a passion for their craft, who have a desire to achieve and to learn and grow," Ms. Martinez said. "That keeps us focused on screening talent in as opposed to screening talent out. That adjustment, which is subtle, has a very significant impact." The importance of a data-driven approach In addition to seeking candidates based on potential, Heartland Dental is also incorporating actionable data as a key part of its recruiting process. This includes data about the labor dynamics of a particular market, such as the number of open positions and the number of candidates in a regional market. This data helps hiring managers better understand the supply and demand for a specific position within their specific market. Data is also used as part of Heartland Dental's applicant tracking system. This system is used by the organization's campus team and sourcing team to identify leads and carefully track the status of each candidate. Analysis of this data helps inform decisions about how best to allocate the organization's time, resources and money in the recruiting process. Heartland Dental also uses and plans to expand the use of various tools to collect data as candidates go through the recruiting process. This tracking data holds the potential to better understand how candidates are feeling during the recruiting process and will help Heartland Dental identify any possible gaps or shortcomings in the recruiting process and respond quickly to address these gaps.