Healthcare hiring is surging—and talent acquisition leaders are under pressure to keep up. The U.S. healthcare sector is projected to add 2.1 million jobs through 2032, accounting for 45% of all job growth over the next decade. Demand for skilled talent is accelerating across key roles:
RPOA: What are some of the challenges that talent acquisition is seeing in the market this year?
Siler: Healthcare, like many other sectors, faces economic challenges that affect its ability to attract and retain talent. During the pandemic, hiring surged, followed by a slight increase post-pandemic, but now hiring rates have stabilized.
Despite these economic fluctuations, healthcare organizations continuously seek to hire. Analysts consistently highlight healthcare as a key sector for talent trends each year. As a result, leaders in talent acquisition increasingly turn to outsourced recruiting solutions. These solutions enhance cost control, accelerate hiring times, and improve workforce management.
Q: What is Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO)?
Siler: Organizations can outsource recruitment functions completely or partially based on strategic needs. Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) providers offer talent attraction and retention solutions through various models.
RPO solutions include complete talent acquisition outsourcing and targeted approaches that focus on geographic regions, process segments, or specialized skill sets. RPOs in the marketplace provide a range of customized solutions designed to meet specific hiring needs.
Q: How would you define project RPO?
Siler: Project RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) offers a specialized approach for hiring, distinct from traditional RPO solutions. This model addresses specific hiring needs, such as facility expansion, product delivery, or targeted retention challenges.
Time constraints or high hiring volumes often prompt the use of Project RPO. For example, an employer may require a specific number of candidates quickly, regardless of the time involved.
Project RPO features clear start and completion points for the hiring process, defined by established criteria. This structure helps employers and recruitment teams maintain focus and organization.
Q: What’s the role of geography as a parameter in healthcare recruitment?
Siler: Healthcare organizations typically require on-site workers, which limits remote work options. This requirement creates hiring challenges for employers. Hospital expansions, acquisitions, and leadership transitions often demand a focus on specific locations during the hiring process.
Recruiting partners can help healthcare organizations by dedicating resources to location-specific initiatives while managing core recruitment functions. This partnership allows organizations to meet ongoing hiring needs while project teams tackle specialized geographic recruitment challenges.
Q: What are some benefits of project RPO
Siler: Project RPO provides enhanced visibility into costs, timelines, and deliverables without disrupting existing talent functions. RPO providers like Hire Velocity set clear expectations and deliverables with defined timelines for project completion.
Dedicated project teams alleviate pressure on internal recruitment resources. This approach prevents capacity constraints and allows operational recruitment to continue smoothly throughout the project.
Siler: A behavioral therapy organization and current client of Hire Velocity, focused on global expansion, partnered with Hire Velocity for targeted recruitment. The project involved team development across multiple European countries, with specific hiring metrics for each location and established timeframes.
The engagement addressed immediate scaling needs and laid the foundation for a smooth transition to ongoing recruitment. This strategy eliminated the need for additional internal recruiters or reallocating resources during temporary volume increases.
Siler: Technology forms the foundation for modern recruitment programs, particularly for time-sensitive projects that use AI capabilities to reduce administrative requirements. This optimization allows recruiters to focus on high-value activities while AI enhances candidate matching, screening, scheduling, and assessment processes. By streamlining these operational elements, organizations achieve faster placements without sacrificing candidate quality or cultural fit assessment.
Siler: Human evaluation remains essential despite technological advancements. AI improves initial sourcing and screening, but comprehensive candidate assessment relies on human judgment. In-person interaction, cultural alignment assessment, and resume evaluation require human perspective. Technology supports these processes, but it cannot replace professional recruitment expertise.
Siler: Project RPO applies across various industries based on specific project parameters. The effectiveness of implementation varies with skill requirements, volume expectations, and timeline factors, necessitating careful provider selection.
Organizations without prior implementation experience should evaluate benefits and ROI potential. A thorough assessment should compare outcomes of internal execution versus outsourced solutions. Clear expectations and consistent communication throughout the project lifecycle drive implementation success.
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Siler: RPO partners operate as extensions of client organizations, not as external providers. They represent employer brands during market interactions, job board presence, and recruitment advertising.
RPO methodology treats each search as unique. It avoids using existing candidate databases. This approach ensures targeted recruitment based on specific position requirements instead of presenting generalized candidates.
Siler: Effective change management and communication drive successful implementations. Leadership support fosters organization-wide adoption during the implementation and engagement phases. Executive engagement guarantees program adoption and measurable outcomes. This foundation defines program success, regardless of design quality or implementation strategy.
Healthcare talent acquisition requires scalable solutions that uphold quality standards while optimizing costs. On-demand recruiting provides targeted support during critical hiring phases without necessitating permanent commitments.
For more insights from other Talent Leader Council contributors, check out our TA Leader Council on the RPO Voice blog, which features interviews with top talent acquisition experts.