Our Hiring Hero Series showcases talent acquisition pros across the globe who are dedicated to connecting people with their next great opportunity.
Matthew Soto leads talent acquisition at MGA Homecare, a company that delivers personalized pediatric nursing and therapy. In order to deliver exceptional care, Matthew and his TA team must recruit a high volume of talented medical professionals every month.
So how does he do it? We recently sat down with him to uncover his strategies for success.
“Being able to connect medical professionals to meaningful work has been very fulfilling. What they do can change a family’s life for the better, and that’s what makes MGA a truly special place to work.”
What does it mean to you to be a Hiring Hero?
“I have always wanted to help make people’s lives better. MGA is an organization that is really making a difference in communities across Arizona, Colorado, and Texas. So, they’re the heroes! I am just happy that I can be a part of it.”
What is MGA Homecare?
“MGA is an organization that delivers personalized nursing and therapy to children in the comfort of their homes.”
That’s fantastic! And what do you love most about your job at MGA?
“Being able to connect medical professionals to meaningful work has been very fulfilling. What they do can change a family’s life for the better, and that’s what makes MGA a truly special place to work.”
What are some of the roles your team is recruiting for? And which is typically the most challenging to fill?
“We hire a wide range of roles including physical therapists, speech pathologists, client service managers, clinical case managers, and registered nurses. The hardest-to-hire roles have typically been registered nurses and there is always a need for them at MGA. We need caretakers at a moment’s notice and in cities big and small.”
Can you talk more about the challenges of recruiting RNs at MGA?
“To meet the demands of our patients, we must consistently recruit and hire over a hundred registered nurses every month. And that is challenging because there’s been an ongoing shortage of nurses across the industry and an increase in demand for home healthcare workers. On top of that, compassion is at the heart of everything we do so it’s important that our pediatric nurses are not just providers, but also a comforting presence in our patients’ homes. We are not only looking for nurses with a degree but we need candidates who have high emotional intelligence, exude compassion, and can effectively communicate with families and help them navigate challenging decisions.”
“We don’t just offer RNs a job, we provide exceptional training and tools to succeed. MGA understands that great nurses may not have in-home experience, so we go above and beyond to provide extensive training.”
That can’t be easy and yet you continue to find and hire hundreds of top nurses every month. How?
“I ask my team to take the time to get to know candidates and really listen. We want to hear a certain level of excitement when they talk about helping others, we want to know about their previous work, their knowledge of MGA—we are looking for genuine answers and for people that will go above and beyond for their patients.”
It is incredibly competitive to land top nursing talent. What is one way you’ve been able to stay ahead?
“We don’t just offer RNs a job, we provide exceptional training and tools to succeed. MGA understands that great nurses may not have in-home experience, so we go above and beyond to provide extensive training. That includes access to simulation labs closely resembling the in-home environment. In medicine, the worst-case scenario happens, and caretakers need to be ready for that. Our competitors simply do not prepare their nurses the way we do.”
Can you talk about what happens to the business if you don’t find the right candidates for the job fast enough?
“Our goal is to be reliable for our patients right from the get-go. That means matching them to top medical professionals quickly. If we don’t find qualified nurses for the job fast enough, it puts the family in the position to potentially have to stay longer in a hospital or miss work to care for an ill child. That starts a tough cycle where we’re playing catch up and trying to help the family out of a bad situation.”
Matthew’s Tips for the Future of Recruiting
“Technology will continue to allow recruiters to work faster and be more efficient. However, interactions between the recruiter and the candidate will always be crucial…that piece will never change no matter how advanced the technology gets. So it is important for recruiters to hone in on their communication skills, take the time to really connect with candidates, and understand if it aligns with the requirements of the job. Paying attention to what candidates say and delivering that personal touch is what will make a recruiter a standout today, tomorrow, and always.”
Join the MGA team! Committed to providing exceptional training and promoting from within, MGA is offering employment opportunities to people who want to make a difference in the lives of others. Check out some of the roles Matthew and his team are hiring for right now!
