Need to hire and train Cosmetic staff? The staff you employ can make or break your practice. Cosmetic patients paying for elective procedures demand a positive experience with you and your staff at every encounter.
If you let them down, they will go where they are treated better, and they’ll take their friends with them.
Frankly, your staff’s people skills are almost as important as your surgical skills when it comes to growing your cosmetic practice.
Top tips to help you hire and train cosmetic staff AND keep them:
Hire A-Players
Patients will spend more time with your staff than with you, so it is imperative your employees be committed to the success of the practice. Getting a return on your investment on time and money will rest on your staff’s ability to bond with patients so they return and refer their friends.
Your staff is the first voice the patient hears on the telephone and the first and last face they see at every visit.
Finding the perfect staff is an ongoing challenge. However, the odds are in your favor if you set clear and well-defined processes and expectations. For example:
Hire Personality, Train Competency
You have probably hired people you thought would be perfect only to discover in a few short weeks that they are not living up to expectations set during the job interview.
You may have other staff that you love because they’re very efficient with their work, but have personality flaws that upset other employees and patients.
It is much easier to train someone to do the job than it is to change their personality.
There are a few clues to determine whether the applicant will be a suitable team member for your practice.
You need to feel your own personal sense of camaraderie with the applicant. If you think this is a person you would be comfortable working with, then you’ve got one check on your successful hiring checklist.
But what about the rest of the staff? An efficient workplace takes off when everyone gets along. So, have your staff involved in the hiring process. Have them sit in on interviews or conduct their own interviews so you can compare notes. If your staff feels something is “off” with a prospective applicant, pass on the applicant. Or you can move forward but then expect friction to occur in the future.
You are looking for people who are innately friendly, caring, positive, and eager to learn. They are out there so take your time and get the right people on board so you don’t hire the wrong people and have to start over.
Where to Find the Best Cosmetic Staff
Keeping in mind that efficient, enthusiastic, and well-trained staff members are your most valuable practice-building tools, you want to be on the lookout for new employees from the following sources:
Start with Your Own Staff
Your staff has friends, family, neighbors, gym buddies, etc. who would be a good fit (or they wouldn’t recommend them since it would hurt their own credibility). I highly recommend you offer a finder’s fee where they get ½ now and the other ½ after the probationary period when you know you have a keeper.
Professional Injectors and Aestheticians in Your Area
Let your vendors know you are searching since they are “feet on the street” and can spread the word. They may know small business owners in this industry such as skincare people or injectors who are tired of running their own business and would much rather partner with a plastic surgeon by working in their practice.
Employees of Hospitals or Other Practices
These people have experience which helps shortcut the learning process. People are always looking for greener pastures and it doesn’t necessarily mean a bigger paycheck. Sometimes, it’s just a search for a better work environment.
However, be sure they know you have your own personal style and way of doing business, and they must adhere to that. You never want to hear them say, “That’s not how we did it where I worked before.”
Salespeople at Makeup Counters
These people can make for great staff because they are already trained in the art of speaking and dealing with the public, and they have a fondness for sales. Also, their present job is related to the aesthetic industry by virtue of promoting beauty products to women who care about their appearance.
Receptionist or Hostess at High-End Providers
There are people who are naturally gifted at being gracious, enthusiastic, and hospitable at their job. It may be inherent in their personality, which would make for a fantastic new addition to your practice. Keep an eye out for them when you are visiting high-end restaurants, salons, and retail.
Online Resources
Once you have exhausted the above resources, it’s time to go online and post a job with Indeed or ZipRecruiter. Be super specific about what you are looking for and have them take the assessments to narrow things down.
You are not looking for a number of resumes to look through which takes a lot of time. You are looking for quality of fewer applicants who test high and have experience. Also you can check out Linkedin for possible candidates.
Motivating the Best Cosmetic Staff
Now that you have your team in place, the challenge is to keep them happy and motivated, so they bring their best behavior and are happy working for you.
Turnover is expensive, disruptive, and hurts your practice flow. It’s smarter to figure out how to retain your staff than how to find new staff.
Based on my interviews with staff all over the US, I’ve compiled a list of what employees are looking for to stay loyal to a practice:
Recognition and Reward
Everyone wants to be acknowledged for a job well done, and it doesn’t necessarily have to translate to awards and cash. It can even be as simple as a spoken “Good Job” for a specific action they took. Saying please and thank you often, also goes a long way.
A Stress-Free Environment
Admittedly, there is no such thing as a totally stress-free environment. Your staff should understand there will always be days when Murphy’s Law is in effect – anything that can go wrong will go wrong.
What turns the tide is if the stress comes from unnecessary personality clashes, performance issues, or your own reactions to internal affairs that break down the professional environment you have created.
Opportunity for Growth
Nobody wants to view their job as a dead-end, and as much as possible, staff wants the opportunity to move up the ladder and grow as a person and contributing member of your team.
If you don’t have another position available, at least replace some of the tasks they no longer want to do and replace them with more challenging tasks.
Training Staff and Setting Expectations
One of the biggest complaints I hear from staff is that they did not fully understand what was expected of them. As a result, they would use their best judgment, only to be reprimanded for not doing it right. This leads to embarrassment, low self-esteem, and unhappiness with the job.
This is easily remedied. Give them the training tools to be successful. For example, don’t just say, “answer the phones” or “convert consultations”. Provide them with Receptionist Training Tools or Coordinator Training Tools that provides them with the strategies and scripts, so they are more effective and confident in their role.
Competitive Salary and Incentives
When you give your staff the salary they deserve and it’s one that’s competitive enough when compared to the rest of the industry, there will be no reason for your staff to quit. The point is, don’t be cheap. Pay good wages to good, competent staff so they stay put.
And there are plenty of non-cash perks to consider. Things like flex-hours, complimentary services, discounted retail products, and continuing education also show your staff you value them.
Camaraderie
Keeping a sense of camaraderie when you hire and train cosmetic staff is actually the backbone of any practice. Patients can “feel the environment” of your practice so do all you can to keep the energy high and friendly in your practice.
Celebrate Your Best Cosmetic Staff
A team that works together and wins together should celebrate together. Give your staff several opportunities for bonding outside of the practice.
For example, when team goals are reached, go out to lunch or dinner. Or take the afternoon off and go shopping or to the spa.
These events are fun and will be remembered. Celebrations with group activities help ensure a continued healthy work environment with your best cosmetic staff.
Need more help on how to train cosmetic staff, please reach out to me at www.CatherineMaley.com
