Chiropractic Competency Toolbox®
Introduction to
Competency Management
A competency is defined as a written description of the knowledge, skills, abilities, motives, drives, and attitudes causally related to effective performance of a job. A competency can either be associated with a certain job or position within an organization, or it can be possessed by an individual.
The basic purpose of competency management is to align each team member's capabilities with the specific needs of their respective jobs. The jobs, in turn, should help the organization fulfill its mission and purpose.
A competency management system clearly identifies workforce performance needs, as well as existing capabilities and, when properly implemented, becomes the foundation for all workforce management decisions. A competency management system is a powerful HR tool designed to inform decision-makers and shape personnel decisions.
There is nothing like this product anywhere in chiropractic industry! Harkcon's Competency Toolbox® integrates the effectiveness of competency modeling with the power of information technology and data management in a truly unique way. It fully leverages years of expert chiropractic, personnel, leadership and management experience and presents a simple, yet profound application. It can literally transform your practice. Allow the Competency Toolbox to be the "Best Practice for Your Practice™".
What It Is
The Competency Toolbox is a collection of customizable documents and tools to help you complete some of the more time-consuming Human Resources (HR) tasks which face a chiropractic office owner/manager -- tasks ranging from posting the perfect job announcement for an open position, to conducting applicant interviews, and from developing existing personnel to evaluating the performance of employees.
The documents and tools provided in the Competency Toolbox are based on the principles of Competency Management (see sidebar) and allow a manager with just a basic level of HR management training and knowledge to find and retain the best-qualified and most professional people for a chiropractic office.
How It Works
You simply choose the competencies (ie. the qualities and knowledge) you desire for each position in your office, and the tools are automatically created for you, ready-to-use, based on your selections.
Tools that you purchase and create for a position may be printed or downloaded (in an easily stored and printed PDF format). Or, you can keep your tools in your own web-based Toolbox which is automatically created for you when you purchase, and which allows you to quickly edit & modify your tools according to the changing needs of your business.
The "Tools" of the Competency Toolbox
The Hiring Tool
- A simple listing of the competencies required, by position in a typical chiropractic office.
- A template to create a targeted job advertisement based on the competencies of the position.
- A custom-made interview guide sheet, by position, with room for notes.
- A listing of interview questions that target those competencies.
Functional Areas
- General Knowledge
- Work Standards
- Basic Chiropractic Knowledge
- Customer Service
- Typing and Correspondence
- Computer Skills
- Filing
- Maintain Patient Accounts
- Health Insurance Portability & Accountability (HIPAA)
- Telephone Operation
- Ethics
The Screening Tool
The Screening Tool was developed to assist Chiropractors by streamlining the hiring process and ensuring the best candidates are selected for positions within the chiropractic office. The Screening Tool serves to filter out less qualified candidates, thereby allowing the chiropractor to select from a pool of candidates who are best qualified for the position.
The Screening Tool involves a comprehensive online exam that evaluates applicants’ competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, motives, drives and attitudes) that are critical to effective job performance. Using a fully automated and customized system of questions designed specifically for chiropractors, testing can take place anywhere there is Internet access and results are received immediately via email. Depending on the position for which you are hiring, the Screening Tool tests applicants in various functional areas. See the side bar to the right.
Here’s an example of the Screening Tool in use:
THE PROBLEM - An extremely busy, 3-person chiropractic practice was in the process of hiring a new Front Desk Chiropractic Assistant. There were only two people available to conduct the interviews; the Office Manager and the Chiropractor. Available time was a significant factor since the recent departure of the previous Front Desk Assistant was unforeseen, requiring the Office Manager to work two jobs until the new employee was hired. The initial group interview was very successful and netted 10 strong candidates. The chiropractor strongly believed that personal interviews were essential but could not whittle this number down any lower without devoting a tremendous amount of personal time. How does the chiropractor (already extremely busy attending to patients and managing a growing practice) hold 10 personal interviews and feel confident they can quickly fill an integral position in their office with the right person?
THE ANSWER - The answer is to have a screening process in place that helps identify the top candidates for the job. Harkcon’s Screening Tool significantly reduces the time needed to conduct interviews, and longer term tends to increase retention since the right employee is chosen for the job. Better retention means savings associated with the high cost of turnover and retraining employees. As in the case described above, you could use the Screening Tool to quickly narrow your pool of candidates from 10 to 3 without spending a minute of your own time. This would allow the chiropractor to invest his or her valuable time in the final interview process with only those most highly qualified candidates, greatly increasing the odds that an outstanding new employee will be selected.
The Professional Development Tool
A template to create a targeted Individual Development Plan (IDP) based on the competencies of the position, complete with a listing of suggested tools and techniques to build and enhance the competencies you selected.
The Evaluation Tool
A comprehensive evaluation tool to enable managers to quickly and effectively evaluate a worker's performance based on job competencies. The tool provides a written standard designed to help both supervisors and employees recognize satisfactory and/or outstanding performance, as well as identify and document (as necessary) performance shortcomings and weaknesses.