When It Comes to Recruiting, High Tech Needs High Touch

I remember when John Naisbitt first published Megatrends in 1982 and introduced the idea of high tech/high touch. He was making the case for balance between technology and human touch, and it made sense. We were starting to think about technology as a way to be more efficient, but we could not have imagined that today we'd be thinking about how to use technology to build relationships. It turns out we need John Naisbitt's wisdom more than ever.

I'm in the business of physician recruiting, and it's typically a very high-touch business. We are matching physicians with communities or healthcare systems who hope to keep them for a long time, and who are making a big investment in terms of both time and money. It's a business that's built on personal relationships, and while candidate sourcing in particular requires the use of technology to make us more productive and effective, nothing can replace the value that comes from our people.

As I look across our recruiting teams, I see those who excel at relationship building — managers who have honed their intuition and built their careers on being discerning, thoughtful, creative, and nimble when it comes to those hard-to-fill placements in an increasingly competitive landscape.

Could an algorithm put together a candidate slate that includes the right mix of experience, personality and potential? Could a bot judge cultural fit or spot a leader in the making? And could either find people who are actually interested in the job? I don't think it could, and I'm not willing to bank my company on the idea that it might. That doesn't mean I don't believe in technology; it simply means that I don't believe in an overreliance on technology.

It's not about rejecting technology; it's about acknowledging its limits. It's also about getting clarity around what your business is and what it is not.

In "The Nordstrom Way," author Robert Specter unpacks the idea that high-caliber customer experience — a bigger concept than customer service — starts with empowered employees – people who are trained in the art of service, and then trusted to manage customer relationships to long-term success. The building blocks of the highly regarded Nordstrom culture are decidedly human — respect, trust, compensation, and fun. It's an approach that has endured since 1901, and that has been expanded to embrace digital tools, but not to use them in place of the human touch. It's considered the bible of customer experience, and for good reason. If you've ever used any of Nordstrom's high-touch services, like shopping for a special occasion, having something altered in-store, or returned something after a long delay, you know the Nordstrom difference.

We may not all be building legendary customer experiences like you'd find at Nordstrom, but it's worth it to think about what kinds of businesses require something that technology can't deliver. In our recruiting business, we think of it as white glove service, and as much as it's about going the extra mile, it's also about getting back to basics when it comes to what it means to be high-touch in a high-tech world. Here's how we do it:

Hire for service.

Creating a customer-first culture starts with hiring for service. You can tell a lot about a recruit based on how they show up during the interview process. Are they prompt and responsive, is their follow-up timely, and does their communication with you demonstrate that they listen well and have empathy? Do they answer and return calls without an overreliance on texting and email? Do they respond thoughtfully when you present them with scenarios that involve problem-solving? These are hallmarks of a customer experience mindset.

Empower employees.

Once you've made the hire and provided a solid onboarding experience, your customer-facing teams should be empowered to solve clients' problems promptly and by going the extra mile. In our business, that might mean making or taking calls at night or on weekends, when physicians have downtime and the availability to talk about a potential job change. It might mean making more than one site visit to a rural hospital or far-flung healthcare facility to help a client prepare to put their best foot forward for visiting recruits, and for using their judgment to advise clients in the midst of fast-moving negotiations.

Pick up the phone.

The more transactional your business is, the more important it is to distinguish yourself through personal outreach. Make a phone call, make a lunch plan, invite your customer to visit in person. Once your relationship is established and trust is built, you can use technology — texting, email, etc. — to communicate, but it shouldn't be the only way you are in touch, and it should never take the place of personal connection.

Think of time like an hourglass.

The sand in the hourglass waits for no one, and when the time runs out, it is gone. Delivering on commitments is like that sand — once the chance to deliver on your commitments runs out, it's gone, so make sure that your word is good and that you deliver on the promises you make to your clients.

Richard Branson is quoted with saying, "Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients." If you hire for service, empower your employees, and demonstrate personal connection and delivering on your commitments, you'll build a team that excels at creating an outstanding customer experience.