The sun is still rising on a Monday morning as you walk through the back door of your practice. As an experienced optometrist, you have a full schedule and you immediately prepare yourself for your first patient. Then your assistant takes this opportunity to let you know she is turning in her two weeks notice. She found a position in the ophthalmic field with greater benefits and higher pay.
You take a deep breath. You try to say something congratulatory, but inside your mind is reeling: “How am I going to replace her?” you wonder. “I’m tired of going through the hiring process. Not again!”
So many of you have found yourself in the shoes of the optometrist in the above scenario. You’ve successfully hired a staff member who is now fully trained and executing the assigned duties exactly to your specifications. You did all the right things, didn’t you? You followed the guidelines set forth in optometric practice management journals. So how do you protect your investment in staff?
Three ways to keep great staff:
- Ensure they are having fun. – The culture of an optometry practice is a reflection of the leadership. If you are not having fun, your staff will not have fun. In an office that creates a fun atmosphere patients are more likely to feel comfortable and cared for. Having fun during the work day doesn’t mean you are not serious when situations call for seriousness, it just means that you and the staff laugh, smile, and genuinely enjoy life.
- Demonstrate appreciation. – Budget $500 every month to buy gifts for your staff. It can be as simple as bringing a bag of M&Ms to fill the office candy bowl on a Monday morning. If you don’t like chocolate, order flowers and have them sent to the office for the staff. Promotional products websites have great ideas for useful employee appreciation gifts like engraved desk accessories, drink ware, and company logo apparel. Do the little things and their emotional buckets will be full.
- Pay enough to make it hard to leave. – Once you have identified a great staff member, make sure you know the average pay that optometric staff get paid in your area and significantly exceed that. The additional money that you pay your top staff will reap long-term rewards in practice loyalty and patient care. Remember, staff compensation is more than dollars per hour, it includes health insurance, profit sharing, bonuses, etc.
