Larger staffing agencies with massive client pools often sacrifice quality for quantity. Boutique agencies (like Blu Med) invest not only in professional development but in personal growth, empowerment, and support.
Have you ever had that conversation with yourself about the company you keep and whether the relationship has been growing with you or away from you? We think about that all the time. Mainly because it’s how we evaluate our relationship with our travelers. Mortified wouldn’t even cover it if we became the friend who made a habit of gaslighting you or leaving your texts on read receipt. The Blu Med team strongly believes that this people-first value system is why many healthcare travelers turn to smaller boutique medical staffing agencies.
Travelers don’t feel like a number
Larger staffing agencies with massive client pools often sacrifice quality for quantity. To fill many positions as quickly as possible, they must comb through copious resumes during a time crunch where ideal candidates may get lost in the shuffle. However, boutique staffing firms prioritize getting to know their clients so they can match them with highly qualified candidates. Due to the smaller number of clients, they can focus on finding valuable matches rather than filling a large quota of placements.
Furthermore, boutique staffing agencies are typically composed entirely of elite, seasoned recruiters with extensive experience due to their smaller size. As such, there is a single point of contact for each client. This differs from larger agencies where it’s common to place seasoned employees in management positions overseeing entry-level recruiters, resulting in multiple points of contact. Client communication often suffers, which leads to drawn-out search processes and poor employee placement and overall experience.
Blu Med’s people first-approach
At Blu Med, our secret sauce is our recruiters’ commitment as coaches from start to finish. Many travel nurses say that the recruiter is the most critical part of the equation regarding agencies; claiming a good recruiter can make a bad company good, and a bad recruiter can ruin a good company. We’ve taken that to heart and have introduce our team by providing information about our recruiters upfront that travelers can use to distinguish their ideal coach, whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned pro. What are your hobbies? How do you like to work? Where do you want to go? What goals do you have? Our diverse and growing team of recruiters strives to match the right personality that aligns with the right schedule—right away. Although being a travel nurse often entails working independently, you should never feel alone.
More flexibility
Let’s go back to that metaphor from the beginning for a second. Larger companies have their systems, often taking the generalist approach, and obviously, these systems work for them— however, it means they can hesitate to meet travelers halfway to make things more mutually beneficial. Do you want to work with someone who only values you when it’s convenient for them but ignores any suggestion you might bring up that could improve your experience?
Boutique staffing agencies take the time to fully understand the facility, their needs, and who would work best to meet them. Likewise, they take time to gain a firm understanding of travelers’ goals and needs. They then create an individualized, pliable strategy for success. This is rare at traditional agencies with standardized processes.
Company culture plays a more significant role
Working in the healthcare profession is not for everyone— travel or permanent position. Likewise, working with smaller companies like Blu Med isn’t for everyone. Some people are okay with casual acquaintances, and we love that for them. But for those who want more than an email signature, smaller agencies can often provide a sense of a larger community. Boutique agencies (like Blu Med) invest not only in professional development but in personal growth, empowerment, and support. They celebrate with you because they know you outside of your role.
Our biased opinion
We know we’re a little biased, but c’mon, it’s hard for us not to be. While working with a large recruitment agency can bring great results, you may have better outcomes working with a boutique recruitment agency. With a boutique agency, you’ll also benefit from a vast network of industry contacts and have a search strategy that’s tailored to exactly what you need.
Although there are many perks to the traveling healthcare field, we believe the people clearly define the experience. These people are adventurous, thrive off stress, look for challenges, and celebrate curiosity. This is why Blu Medstaff works in this industry; we love working with these kindred spirits.
We’d love to get to know you better and provide a valuable relationship for the long run, so if you’re willing to give us a shot, contact us today.
