With over two thirds of travel nurses being hired through managed service provider (MSP) programs and/or vendor management system (VMS) technologies, it can feel more competitive than ever for staffing agencies to place a candidate into a temporary assignment. In some cases, openings may receive multiple profiles, while difficult-to-recruit positions may receive very few or zero submissions.

Speed has become a critical factor for staffing agencies to turn their submissions into offers for temporary assignments. Beyond speed, what else can agencies do to increase appeal and move profiles forward to placement?

Build the best possible candidate profiles:

• If an open position already has multiple candidates in submission, avoid submitting a candidate profile that doesn’t meet 100% of the requirements. Submitting lower quality candidates wastes hiring manager time and diminishes your reputation as a recruiter.
• To increase candidate appeal, highlight what makes the candidate a compelling match: years of experience in a clinical specialty or setting, hard-to-find licenses, technology skills, previous traveler experience.
• To show a candidate is easy to work with, highlight: willingness to start soon or work various shifts and overtime or is not requesting time off.
• Increase candidate appeal through pre-credentialing: candidate’s credentials are already verified and uploaded, or ready to be uploaded into the VMS, and references are already complete.

Manage the candidate’s expectations in advance:

• Be transparent with first-time travelers about what to expect. It’s better to set realistic expectations than to have travelers back out of a contract and cancel at the last minute.
• Avoid submitting a candidate’s profile to too many open positions. Having too many options can overwhelm a candidate and cause indecision and anxiety.
• Pre-close candidates by making sure they are excited enough about opportunities to want to accept an offer upon receiving one.

Build the best relationship possible with your MSP/VMS provider:

• Don’t be a number. Build rapport and trust with the MSP program management team and learn more about what will make your profiles stand out to their clients.
• Seek feedback on your individual and company performance to identify ways to accelerate presentations and receive client feedback.

Operating within a competitive VMS/MSP environment requires both speed, efficiency and recruitment best practices. Creating compelling candidate profiles that highlight important hiring priorities, while at the same time setting realistic expectations, can greatly improve placement rates from your recruitment efforts.

About AHSA

Founded in 2003, AHSA is a full-service, comprehensive MSP and VMS technology workforce solutions provider to healthcare organizations nationwide. As a vendor-neutral MSP, AHSA manages contingent work programs using its proprietary Trio VMS, developed specifically to provide an enterprise-wide solution for simplifying staffing processes within healthcare. As a pioneer in the industry, AHSA was the first to provide physician locum tenens and advanced practice technology workforce solutions in addition to nursing, allied health, medical office, IT and non-clinical MSP/VMS services.