Find good people

William V. Day, president and CEO, St. Barnabas Health System

William V. Day, president and CEO of St.
Barnabas Health System, says going to
places where you can meet potential
employees, hearing their story and then
communicating yours is a good way to
find solid workers.

Over the years, the January cover subject says he’s talked with people about his
organization and describes its journey
and how they and their families would
enjoy it.

“As we say, ‘If you want to shoot a
moose, go where the moose are,’” he says.

“It’s probably a poor expression, but I’ve
used it over the years. In other words, I’ve
gone and obviously swiped people from
other organizations, but I would go to
meetings and seminars and luncheons
and observe and listen and try to find people that I thought would fit my team.”

Day says during a conversation, he is
impressed with someone who wants to
work hard. He also wants to be associated with winners, and when it comes to
resumes, he focuses on the results.

“So many of them talk about process
rather than results,” he says. “We hire
people because they know how to do
things and how to produce results.”

Day says he would advise someone else
who is looking for help to not only go out
and meet people but to try to find someone from a similar business.

“If you find someone who has been a
winner in another organization and has
produced the results, you can save an
awful lot of time and effort and money by recruiting someone from a similar field,”
he says. “If not, be out there, keep the
antennae up and find someone who has
done well in sales or finance or who
knows operations.”

The key is not waiting for the good
employees to come to you.

“You have to be proactive,” Day says. “I
say it here often. ‘Get up off your seat, or
whatever you want to call it, and go out
and talk to somebody.’”