Put Me In Coach, I’m Ready To Play

It’s summer! For me this time of year is full of barbeques, the beach and baseball. There’s nothing like going to baseball games in the summer. To be honest I don’t find them very exciting but it’s the nostalgic feeling I get when I’m there that I love. My ears are filled with vendors selling hot dogs, the crowd singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and John Fogarty’s classic, “Centerfield.”

I was at a Cleveland Indians game last week and Fogarty’s classic started playing throughout the stadium. It’s about someone who is begging to get in the game because he thinks he could help. He feels he is being underutilized.

In many respects this can be said for a lot of staff members in long-term care. Many current employees would relish the opportunity to pick-up additional shifts if given the chance. Make sure to take full advantage of the talent already on hand by tracking how well current staff members are being used to fill open shifts. Here are a few tips to track and measure employee utilization:

• Set Hours-Available Thresholds: Take the time to know when staff members can work. Many employees have a lot to balance in their daily life – childcare, school, other jobs and numerous other responsibilities. These responsibilities may make it impossible for them to work at certain times throughout the week. By understanding staff members’ true availability you gain a much clearer view into how well they are being utilized when day-to-day staffing decisions are made.
• Compare Hours Worked To Thresholds: Having thresholds established allows you to get a better view of employee utilization. Simply divide an employee’s hours worked by their hours available threshold to determine their utilization.  For example, if an employee is willing to work 24 hours per week but is only working 16 hours per week – they are underutilized (67%).  Conversely if an employee has a 40 hour threshold but is working 48 hours – they are over utilized (120%) and that staff member has incurred overtime. In each case this has the potential to cause dissatisfaction in work schedules.

By analyzing employee utilization you’ll be able to fill open shifts and provide the hours your staff wants.  It also provides insight into true hiring needs and allows you to more critically evaluate the necessity of overtime and/or agency use.

To make this easier, we’ve introduced OnShift Insight that analyzes employee utilization and staffing patterns to determine staffing needs and proactively recommend positions to hire.