According to a recent study from Monster.com and The Human Capital Institute, employers are out of touch with employee attitudes toward their jobs in light of the current recession.  The report notes that while only 20% of employers think that workers are looking for jobs elsewhere, the reality is that 79% of workers reported that they are aggressively pursuing jobs outside their current employer (1).

Pathway Medical Staffing, a nurse case management and non-clinical nursing recruiting firm, conducted an informal survey to understand if these results held true for nurse case managers and other nurse management professionals. The results proved to be closely aligned with the broader employment study from Monster.com and the Human Capital Institute.

In December 2009 Pathway Medical Staffing surveyed 147 nurse case managers and non-clinical nursing professionals to understand their new year career resolutions for 2010. The study represented nurses from 23 states in the U.S. with the majority (65%) from the New York Metro Area.

The survey revealed that a whopping 57% of nurse case managers and non-clinical nursing professionals plan to look for a new job in 2010.  Not surprisingly, the majority (53%) of respondents indicated that they plan to look for a new job to increase their salary.

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However, there are several other areas that are causing nurse case managers and non-clinical nurses to look for employment elsewhere.  Forty-one percent (41% ) of respondents indicated that they are looking for a job that is more challenging or makes better use of their experience and will help advance their career.   Closely following, were 31% of respondents that are seeking new opportunities to gain better benefits than they have with their current employer.

Other motivators for finding a new job included: being closer to home (19% of respondents), better schedule (14% respondents) and plans to semi-retire and search for project or temporary work (5% respondents) (2).

These results may be disturbing to employers that hire nurse case managers and related nursing professionals, especially in light of a December 28, 2009 report from the The Wall Street Journal.  The WSJ article noted that “Healthcare is expected to continue to see a surge in hiring with more than four million new openings estimated by 2018… [including] new specialties, particularly in case management (3).” There will be more opportunities for case managers and non-clinical nurses to pursue their career goals elsewhere if these career goals are not met by their current employer.

While these statistics may be troubling to healthcare employers, there is an opportunity for employers to address nurse manager concerns.  Employers should keep in mind the reasons that nurse case managers and non-clinical nurses are looking for new opportunities. While employers may have limited to no control over salary, there are other benefits that may help retain this specialized nursing talent.

One career resolution noted by 63% of nursing professionals was to further their education.  Offering to cover expenses for continuing education may be enough incentive to retain top talent.  Other possible benefits to retain talent may be offering flexible hours, more vacation or telecommuting options.  Succession planning may also help top talent to understand their opportunities for advancement within the organization so that they see the possibility to move to the next level in their career without leaving the organization.  Some employees may simply feel that they are not challenged enough or their skills are being underutilized.  Healthcare organizations should pay close attention to star performers looking for new challenges.  Significant effort should be made to retain these employees, or they will surely be lost to one of the many healthcare organization that can provide what they are seeking.

New Opportunities for Healthcare Employers to Attract Top Talent

There is also an upside for healthcare employers in light of the significant number of nursing professionals searching for new jobs.  Given that the majority of nurse case managers and related nursing professionals are seeking more rewarding opportunities, now is the time to attract this top talent.  However, it is often difficult to identify these specialized nurses.  Not only do healthcare organizations need to make sure that job opportunities are in front of nurse case managers and non-clinical nursing professionals looking for a change, the jobs must also be enticing enough to appeal to the nurses’ career goals. Attracting this top talent can be quite a challenge if your organization does not have the resources to make a dedicated effort to the process.

If your organization is like most, you are pressed for resources to attract top talent. This challenge is especially difficult in recruiting nurse case managers an non-clinical nurses given that they are usually hard to find.

Pathway Medical Staffing specializes in the recruitment of nurse case managers and non-clinical nurses with access to thousands of these professionals carrying out confidential job searches.  Since 1998 the company has successfully placed these hard-to-find candidates at hundreds of leading healthcare organizations by keeping job opportunities in front of candidates on a regular basis.

If you are looking to attract top talent start your search for nurse case managers and non-clinical nursing professionals today.

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Since 1998 Pathway Medical Staffing has placed hundreds of nurse case managers and non-clinical nurses in great jobs at leading healthcare organizations.

Sources:

1. Monster.com and The Human Capital Institute.  “The Great Recession From the Worker Perspective.”  August 2009.
2. Pathway Medical Staffing.  “2010 Nurse Case Manager Career Resolutions.” January 2010.  Survey of 147 nurse case managers and non-clinical nurse managers regarding 2010 New Year resolutions for their nursing career. Survey conducted in December 2009.
3. Wall Street Journal. “Landing a Job in the Future Takes a Two-Track Mind. December 28, 2009.