workforce
True believers
Donald Trump proved that polls
and reality are poles apart. In
politics, as in aged care, values
and beliefs are centre stage.
By Ross Bell
D
onald Trump stunned the world last year when he beat
the most qualified candidate in history, Hillary Clinton.
How did he do it? By demonstrating a clear understanding
of the values and beliefs of a large number of American people.
Clinton’s political machine was all over the data, but data doesn’t
drive behaviour, people’s values and beliefs do.
Love him or hate him, those hiring frontline staff in the aged
care sector can learn from Trump. As the values and behaviour of
their employees directly affect the care and support outcomes for
clients, gaining insights into an applicant’s behaviour and values
before they are hired is critical.
With the sector amid the Consumer Directed Care (CDC) rollout,
relying on traditional methods of recruitment, such as interviews
and resumes, is no longer enough. The new empowered
consumer environment presents a unique opportunity to
organisations in the sector.
Those that are nimble, innovative and able to recruit the right
frontline staff will own the market.
Behavioural screening tools that use a values-based approach
provide specific insights into the individual’s performance,
motivation and engagement.
For an industry grappling major change, building strong
foundations for an effective workforce by properly screening
frontline staff represents the easiest and best return of any
workforce strategy/intervention.
But let’s first look at why the sector needs to embrace a more
innovative approach to the recruitment of frontline staff.
THE NEW, EMPOWERED CONSUMER
Today’s aged care sector operates within an empowered
consumer environment. Frontline staff, as the voice and face
of the organisation, has a direct impact on the day-to-day
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experience of clients. Faced with ongoing negative interaction
with staff, perceived negligence or even elder abuse, clients can
now simply find an organisation that offers better solutions. From
the staff’s perspective, an aged care workplace can be a difficult
environment requiring specific sensitivities and interpersonal skills.
It is essential frontline staff are fit for purpose and can cope with
the specific challenges presented to care staff in their roles.
According to a survey by Leadership IQ, 46 per cent of new hires
fail within the first 18 months, 89 per cent of the time because they
didn’t have the right personality traits. Relying on resumes and
interviews isn’t providing the necessary insight into an applicant’s
behaviour, values and beliefs.
RECRUITMENT OF FRONTLINE STAFF A CRITICAL
BUSINESS ISSUE
With staff costs accounting for most operational expenses, getting
the recruitment of frontline staff right is now a key driver of
commercial performance. The recruitment of frontline staff, once
a risk-management exercise, is now a critical business issue.
Consilium Research and Consultancy’s 2016 Study into the
impact of a values based approach to recruitment and retention,
commissioned by UK-based Skills for Care, has shown that fit-
for-purpose candidates – those with the personal values and
behaviour suited to the sector – stay longer, are more reliable and
perform better. Attracting and retaining these candidates is critical
for business sustainability, growth and client retention.
Research has shown that using a values-based approach to
recruitment and retention delivers a return on investment of up to
23 per cent. Apart from a significant improvement to the bottom
line of an organisation, hiring effective frontline staff impacts
positively across the business – employee engagement, turnover,
disciplinary issues – as well as positively for clients through better
engagement, support, stronger relationships, recommendations
and retention.
ELDER ABUSE AND IMPROVED SCREENING
One of the most significant challenges facing the sector is elder
abuse. It is an issue that’s not going away. The World Health
Organization World report on ageing and health (2015) reports
that the prevalence of elder abuse in high- and middle-income
countries ranges from 2-14 per cent.