Insider Q & A: CompHealth’s Melissa Byington On How a Fortune “Best Place” to Work Hires

Melissa Byington is President of CompHealth’s award-winning locum tenens division,overseeing strategy and operations for a staffing service that places over 1,000 physicians per month in temporary placements in 47 medical specialties across all 50 states. Ms. Byington started at CompHealth in 1997 as a recruiter. During her tenure at CompHealth, the locum tenens division has doubled in size.

We asked Melissa to tell us more about CompHealth, as well as what she looks for in prospective employees.

 

How does a candidate get your attention as a prospective CompHealth employee? What do you look for?

 

We are fortunate to have a strong referral network.  Many of our prospective candidates are referred in by our current employees.  Cultural fit is a major component of our hiring – we look for people who are fun, have a great work ethic and are strong communicators. 

 

We also consider a solid track record of success through advancement or increased responsibility in prior roles a good indicator of fit.  We take our responsibility to help our clients and doctors provide the best healthcare very seriously.  So, while we do have a lot of fun here, we want to find candidates who are willing to work hard and stay with us long term.

 

What types of positions are you hiring for right now? Any subsidiaries of CompHealth that job seekers should also be on the lookout for – and might not know about?  Where are your jobs located?

 

We are a hiring and recruiting company. We hire healthcare professionals – physicians, nursing, and allied health care professionals – to work for our clients so we like to think that hiring is something we do well.

 

We are growing rapidly; we have openings for candidates in almost every area of our company, especially in sales and leadership. We also put a tremendous amount of focus on quality and supporting the process of staffing.  We are always looking for business partners in the areas of credentialing, housing, travel and payroll. 

 

Training and development is also a very important part of our culture, we want our team to stay with us long term and consider making CompHealth their career. Our parent company, CHG Healthcare Services, is on Fortune Magazine’s list of Top 100 Employers to Work For; we also recently won the Inavero Best of Staffing Award for our Customer Service.

 

Do you have any “never do” tips for individuals for working with recruiters?

 

Today I had a candidate reschedule an interview with an hour’s notice. Rescheduling the interview on the same day is never a good idea. It is poor form to do that in any interview situation. 

 

Treat the interview as if it were your first date. If someone rescheduled a first date with me, I’d rethink whether I want to go out with him or her. I can’t help but wonder if the candidate is serious about wanting to join our team.  I will look at them slightly differently when I do meet them. I am debating whether to have my rescheduled interview come in at all.

 

We have so many qualified and fantastic people. The people who really want the job are the people we want to see. You need to actively show your interest from the start. You need to show that you are responsible out of the gate. 

 

Any bad assumption that you see job seekers make in applying for jobs at CompHealth? 

 

Because we operate primarily through phone sales, there are some candidates that make assumptions about the importance of our work and don’t quite understand the critical nature of what we do.

 

There are hundreds of examples of how our people and providers positively affect patient lives. Last week we had a client who called us after hours with an emergency need for a pediatric specialist to administer anesthesia to a sick infant. Had we not had dedicated people answering the phones after hours and been able to find a credentialed, qualified physician fast—the procedure wouldn’t have been scheduled as quickly as it was. These types of situations happen every day. There are patients nationwide – in cities and in rural areas – whose lives are impacted because of the amazing people who work at CompHealth.

 

Are there any questions I haven’t asked that I should be asking? What’s the question, and what’s your answer?

 

Use it now—actionable—advice for job seekers:

Check the spelling on your resume one more time. I’ve turned down candidates for this before. Your first impression is really important. I see a sloppy resume as a sign of something to come. 

 

We are fortunate to have a strong referral network.  Many of our prospective candidates are referred in by our current employees.  Cultural fit is a major component of our hiring – we look for people who are fun, have a great work ethic and are strong communicators. 

 

We also consider a solid track record of success through advancement or increased responsibility in prior roles a good indicator of fit.  We take our responsibility to help our clients and doctors provide the best healthcare very seriously.  So, while we do have a lot of fun here, we want to find candidates who are willing to work hard and stay with us long term.

 

2. What types of positions are you hiring for right now? Any subsidiaries of CompHealth that job seekers should also be on the lookout for – and might not know about?  Where are your jobs located?

 

We are a hiring and recruiting company. We hire healthcare professionals – physicians, nursing, and allied health care professionals – to work for our clients so we like to think that hiring is something we do well.

 

We are growing rapidly; we have openings for candidates in almost every area of our company, especially in sales and leadership. We also put a tremendous amount of focus on quality and supporting the process of staffing.  We are always looking for business partners in the areas of credentialing, housing, travel and payroll. 

 

Training and development is also a very important part of our culture, we want our team to stay with us long term and consider making CompHealth their career. Our parent company, CHG Healthcare Services, is on Fortune Magazine’s list of Top 100 Employers to Work For; we also recently won the Inavero Best of Staffing Award for our Customer Service.

 

3. What makes a great candidate beyond doing research on CompHealth? Does it help – for example – to have experience in the healthcare industry?

 

Healthcare experience is nice but not required. Most of our business happens over the telephone. Experience with inside sales is helpful. If you are applying for a sales role, prior sales experience is a must.  On the leadership management side, experience in a people-centric culture is important. Again, we look for a track record of success and improvement in the past, that’s always a good indicator of potential for success in the future.

 

4. Do you have any “never do” tips for individuals for working with recruiters?

 

Today I had a candidate reschedule an interview with an hour’s notice. Rescheduling the interview on the same day is never a good idea. It is poor form to do that in any interview situation. 

 

Treat the interview as if it were your first date. If someone rescheduled a first date with me, I’d rethink whether I want to go out with him or her. I can’t help but wonder if the candidate is serious about wanting to join our team.  I will look at them slightly differently when I do meet them. I am debating whether to have my rescheduled interview come in at all.

 

We have so many qualified and fantastic people. The people who really want the job are the people we want to see. You need to actively show your interest from the start. You need to show that you are responsible out of the gate. 

 

5. Any bad assumption that you see job seekers make in applying for jobs at CompHealth? 

 

Because we operate primarily through phone sales, there are some candidates that make assumptions about the importance of our work and don’t quite understand the critical nature of what we do.

 

There are hundreds of examples of how our people and providers positively affect patient lives. Last week we had a client who called us after hours with an emergency need for a pediatric specialist to administer anesthesia to a sick infant. Had we not had dedicated people answering the phones after hours and been able to find a credentialed, qualified physician fast—the procedure wouldn’t have been scheduled as quickly as it was. These types of situations happen every day. There are patients nationwide – in cities and in rural areas – whose lives are impacted because of the amazing people who work at CompHealth.

 

5. Are there any questions I haven’t asked that I should be asking? What’s the question, and what’s your answer?

 

Are there any similarities in hiring for recruiters and for physicians?

 

Don’t assume that there aren’t other candidates who have the background that you have.

 

You have to always assume that there is someone who wants the job as much – and who is just as qualified.

 

Yes. A common assumption is that the technical skills – a doctor’s ability to treat patients and a recruiter’s ability to find candidates – are more important than the soft ones. That’s not true. I can often tell the cultural fit in an interview based on the answers that I receive from a question. If a leader interviews that fails to mention people or coaching, I am unlikely to move them on to the next phase. The same goes for the physician who doesn’t mention bedside manner.

 

Just being strong in the technical aspects of a job isn’t enough. Conveying a positive attitude is really important.[1]

 

6. Use it now—actionable—advice for job seekers:

 

Check the spelling on your resume one more time. I’ve turned down candidates for this before. Your first impression is really important. I see a sloppy resume as a sign of something to come. 1. How does a candidate get your attention as a prospective CompHealth employee? What do you look for?

 

We are fortunate to have a strong referral network.  Many of our prospective candidates are referred in by our current employees.  Cultural fit is a major component of our hiring – we look for people who are fun, have a great work ethic and are strong communicators. 

 

We also consider a solid track record of success through advancement or increased responsibility in prior roles a good indicator of fit.  We take our responsibility to help our clients and doctors provide the best healthcare very seriously.  So, while we do have a lot of fun here, we want to find candidates who are willing to work hard and stay with us long term.

 

2. What types of positions are you hiring for right now? Any subsidiaries of CompHealth that job seekers should also be on the lookout for – and might not know about?  Where are your jobs located?

 

We are a hiring and recruiting company. We hire healthcare professionals – physicians, nursing, and allied health care professionals – to work for our clients so we like to think that hiring is something we do well.

 

We are growing rapidly; we have openings for candidates in almost every area of our company, especially in sales and leadership. We also put a tremendous amount of focus on quality and supporting the process of staffing.  We are always looking for business partners in the areas of credentialing, housing, travel and payroll. 

 

Training and development is also a very important part of our culture, we want our team to stay with us long term and consider making CompHealth their career. Our parent company, CHG Healthcare Services, is on Fortune Magazine’s list of Top 100 Employers to Work For; we also recently won the Inavero Best of Staffing Award for our Customer Service.

 

3. What makes a great candidate beyond doing research on CompHealth? Does it help – for example – to have experience in the healthcare industry?

 

Healthcare experience is nice but not required. Most of our business happens over the telephone. Experience with inside sales is helpful. If you are applying for a sales role, prior sales experience is a must.  On the leadership management side, experience in a people-centric culture is important. Again, we look for a track record of success and improvement in the past, that’s always a good indicator of potential for success in the future.

 

4. Do you have any “never do” tips for individuals for working with recruiters?

 

Today I had a candidate reschedule an interview with an hour’s notice. Rescheduling the interview on the same day is never a good idea. It is poor form to do that in any interview situation. 

 

Treat the interview as if it were your first date. If someone rescheduled a first date with me, I’d rethink whether I want to go out with him or her. I can’t help but wonder if the candidate is serious about wanting to join our team.  I will look at them slightly differently when I do meet them. I am debating whether to have my rescheduled interview come in at all.

 

We have so many qualified and fantastic people. The people who really want the job are the people we want to see. You need to actively show your interest from the start. You need to show that you are responsible out of the gate. 

 

5. Any bad assumption that you see job seekers make in applying for jobs at CompHealth? 

 

Because we operate primarily through phone sales, there are some candidates that make assumptions about the importance of our work and don’t quite understand the critical nature of what we do.

 

There are hundreds of examples of how our people and providers positively affect patient lives. Last week we had a client who called us after hours with an emergency need for a pediatric specialist to administer anesthesia to a sick infant. Had we not had dedicated people answering the phones after hours and been able to find a credentialed, qualified physician fast—the procedure wouldn’t have been scheduled as quickly as it was. These types of situations happen every day. There are patients nationwide – in cities and in rural areas – whose lives are impacted because of the amazing people who work at CompHealth.

 

5. Are there any questions I haven’t asked that I should be asking? What’s the question, and what’s your answer?

 

Are there any similarities in hiring for recruiters and for physicians?

 

Don’t assume that there aren’t other candidates who have the background that you have.

 

You have to always assume that there is someone who wants the job as much – and who is just as qualified.

 

Yes. A common assumption is that the technical skills – a doctor’s ability to treat patients and a recruiter’s ability to find candidates – are more important than the soft ones. That’s not true. I can often tell the cultural fit in an interview based on the answers that I receive from a question. If a leader interviews that fails to mention people or coaching, I am unlikely to move them on to the next phase. The same goes for the physician who doesn’t mention bedside manner.

 

Just being strong in the technical aspects of a job isn’t enough. Conveying a positive attitude is really important.[1]

 

6. Use it now—actionable—advice for job seekers:

 

Check the spelling on your resume one more time. I’ve turned down candidates for this before. Your first impression is really important. I see a sloppy resume as a sign of something to come.