As a seasoned placement firm for Physicians and Service Line Leaders, our Corazon team is always taken aback by both clients and candidates with unrealistic salary expectations that are not based on current market rates. This can not only cause frustration on both sides, but also become a terrible waste of resources. This situation can further result in negative perceptions on behalf of either the hiring hospital or candidate that can be very hard to turn around.
Experienced search firms such as Corazon provide this insight from real world experience. However, when hiring or hoping to be hired, this kind of research should be considered mandatory due diligence prior to start of your search. With a wealth of electronic information at our fingertips, there should be an assumption that whoever is on the other side of the search equation has already done this and you would be at a disadvantage if you cannot speak to your expectations based on solid research.
For Physicians, using a source such as MGMA as a starting place and combining this with current program data is a great first step. Adding to this, data-based projections for the length of the proposed contract length must be considered. The hiring facility must also be willing to share this information in a transparent way at the start of the process, just as a candidate must be prepared to share their expectations.
For Leadership roles, there are great sources that can be utilized as well. It’s a simple process these days to click into sites such as Salary.com. to get a realistic picture. Here you can enter key indicators for a specific role including:
- Location
- Education
- Years of experience
- Direct reports
- Performance
- Reporting to
Keep in mind that your current value to an organization may not always translate at a new facility, but rather should be based on concrete factors such as these. In the same way, an employer must develop a realistic salary range based on the same indicators prior to a search initiation.
Most importantly, the sooner these open conversations occur regarding salary in the process, the sooner everyone is on the same page. The salary component of an offer should NEVER be a surprise. If so, the failure to communicate can be attributed to both sides and the trajectory of the placement is doomed to be a downward spiral. With a reasonable offer on the table, the final step of negotiation can begin in earnest and the end result is a win-win on both sides.
