Overcoming Staff Recruitment and Retention Challenges
Recruiting and retaining staff within a dental practice is one of the many challenges faced by dentists. Especially now as the current hiring market is highly competitive and there is a shortage of qualified candidates to fill open positions.
Setting Up for Success
One important recruitment tactic that is becoming common is to encourage and incentivize your current employees to help by asking their family and friends if they know anyone who is considering a career move. And if you’re lucky enough to hire someone through this route, a heartfelt thank you and a modest referral bonus is a good way to motivate your current employees and engage them in your business.
While you might be the most caring and amazing boss in your community, the number one motivation for employees is still salary and benefits. A study from Glassdoor.com backs this up. Money is the No. 1 motivator for 67% of job seekers and employees looking elsewhere for career opportunities, according to a survey of 1,100 workers and job seekers.1 While compensation is always a finite line on your books, to recruit the best candidates, you may want to consider offering other benefits that will set you apart from other practices.
When recruiting, having an employee assistance plan available for your staff is another important resource that should appear in your job ad. CDSPI sponsors the Members’ Assistance Program (MAP) as a benefit of dental association membership. This benefit extends to staff of members as well as their immediate families. Free, confidential support for all of life’s challenges is available 24/7 and provided by LifeWorks, Canada’s largest provider of Employee and Family Assistance.
In a recent CDSPI seminar, Paula Allen, the Global Leader, Research and Total Wellbeing and a Senior Vice- President at LifeWorks spoke in-depth about employee well-being and retention and how they are inexorably related. Foremost, she says is that an employees’ sense of belonging at work is very strongly correlated with their intent to resign during what has been termed “The Great Resignation” by Dr Anthony Klotz and refers to the significant number of employees expected to leave their current roles during or toward the end of the pandemic.
Intent to Resign |
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| Very strong sense of belonging | 16% |
| Sense of belonging | 29% |
| Unsure | 53% |
| Little sense of belonging | 58% |
| No sense of belonging | 67% |
While a sense of belonging is one of the key motivators, Allen goes on to advise that the key is to “Invest in the well being of your team” to:
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- Understand the increased importance of mental health support at work
- Recognize the psychological needs for most everyone has been heightened - implement strategies to support the 5 needs
a. Control - flexibility
b. Connection - belonging
c. Meaning - being valued
d. Psychological Safety
e. Support - Retention requires a support for wellbeing - mental health wellbeing, belonging and workplace culture
- The mental wellbeing of employers impacts the workplace culture.²
To find out more about MAP or to speak with someone for more information, call the confidential MAP number at 1.844.578.4040 to get started.
For more details about the support and resources available, visit one.telushealth.com. You can login in with the acronym of your dental association and the password CDSPI.³
The Bonus of Benefits
In today's competitive environment, smart employers also see Group Savings Plans for their employees as another big incentive to attract and retain top talent.
A survey from Nest Wealth found that 82% of Canadians believe it is important to have a Group Savings Plan through work and 69% say they would leave their job without a company savings plan to go to a company with a Group RRSP. 4
Getting Started is Easy
CDSPI has made it easy to set up a savings program for your dental staff with a group Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) or Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA). We do all the work so you can focus on your patients and your practice.
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- Staff can contribute to the plan on their own, with OR without any contribution from the dental practice as the employer. Plus, they can enjoy an immediate tax reduction at source if they contribute to a group RRSP through payroll deduction. Employees can start with as little as $50 per pay period – with no admin fees or transaction costs.
- Staff can design their own portfolio of funds or select a bundled portfolio to suit their risk tolerance – not to worry, we’ll be there to guide your team on that decision!
CDSPI’s family of funds offers a range of asset classes, investment managers and styles—with a history of strong long-term performance.
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- Low fees
- Highly Competitive Performance
- World Class Investment Management
- No Sales Commission
Our Team is Here For You
As a not-for-profit organization whose sole mandate is to develop programs exclusively for dentists who are members of dental associations, we are here to help dentists provide an easy, convenient savings program for you and your staff.
Talk to real people and get personal, friendly service from non-commissioned advisors at CDSPI Advisory Services Inc. who can provide advice based on the needs and goals of your practice.
To learn more about setting up a Group RRSP or TFSA, please book a meeting or contact us at 1.800.561.9401 or investment@cdspi.com.
1 https://www.glassdoor.com/press/
2 Wellbeing and Retention by Paula Allen, Global Leader Research and Total Wellbeing, Lifeworks. March 12, 2022.
3 BCDA members can access additional assistance and support through the Dentist Wellness Program (DWP).
4 Press Release from Nest Wealth, 2018. https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/69-of-canadian-employees-say-they-would-leave-their-job-without-a-company-savings-plan-to-go-to-a-company-with-a-group-rrsp-695009481.html