Put people first
While people are a vital component in the success of most businesses, in the staffing industry, the key is the quality of the workers
placed on assignment. In addition, clients rely on the expertise of
recruiters to make critical placement decisions. With people dictating the company’s success at every turn, relationship prowess and
execution consistency not only sustain the AMN Healthcare operating model, they directly impact the company’s industry leadership
position. Because AMN Healthcare must compete for acquisitions,
contingent workers, recruiters and clients, Nowakowski is adept at handling people and leading the way with
her talents.
“We were vying to acquire MHA Group and
closing the transaction was a critical step for
our organization because having physician
placement capabilities was vital to becoming
a full-service provider,” Nowakowski says.
“There were several times during the negotiations when the deal was off the table. I
think what finally helped move the process
forward, is that I envisioned the deal
through the eyes of the other party. The
contract included a post-acquisition earn-out bonus for the owners, if certain results
were achieved. They were concerned they
wouldn’t earn the minimum bonus, so I
finally agreed to a guarantee. I think, sometimes, you have to put your ego aside when
things get off course and come back to
what makes a good partnership, which is
trust.”
Each brand has its own sales force, so it’s
important to keep the business development team focused on winning the battle
against outside competitors, not merely
diluting revenue generation by competing
for the same business against other AMN
Healthcare representatives. Clients can also
be confused when multiple brands are
offered under a single company umbrella —
a reason why many executives often favor
brand consolidation following acquisitions.
Nowakowski relies on her people management skills to build a cohesive team focused
on taking down the company’s outside competitors — not each other.
“I think it’s important to discuss how the
sales teams will work together as part of the
acquisition discussions and involve the
managers and the sales teams in the strategy,” Nowakowski says. “We use a cross-selling model, and the sales teams’ incentives are aligned, which encourages the
representatives to help their counterparts.
They visit the client in teams, presenting our
offerings only under the AMN Healthcare
brand. Going to the client as a unified team
creates trust between the sales groups and
message uniformity with the client.”
Building and developing an internal staff
has been vital to executing the company’s
growth plan, which includes competing for
the attention of the more than 2 million
nurses in the U.S., who have their choice of
jobs. Nowakowski says the company went
from 800 associates to 2,000 seemingly
overnight, in part because staff chose to
remain with the company after acquisitions
but also because she delivers on her promise of providing career opportunities to
up-and-comers. Last year, 40 percent of
the company’s promotions were awarded to internal staff in accordance with
Nowakowski’s belief that talented personnel should be given the opportunity to
spread their wings.
“I moved one consultant from Deloitte
over our payroll and billing system, and he
created the entire infrastructure that pays
and bills our 7,000 assigned clinicians
every other week,” Nowakowski says. “I
gave him the opportunity to run our allied
health division, even though he had no
sales experience, because I was so
impressed with his work. Sometimes, passion and commitment can make up for a
lack of experience.”
In addition, having the staff and resources
to assimilate acquisitions effectively and
continually assessing the adequacy of the
company’s infrastructure to sustain growth
is something she reviews every day because
both are vital to maintaining the lead.
“You can’t effectively integrate an acquisition with staff who can only dedicate themselves to the task part time,” Nowakowski
says. “It’s a full-time job to do the job correctly and to make sure people are working together cohesively. CEOs should evaluate their staff and infrastructure before
attempting an acquisition to make certain
there are enough capable resources to
assure a seamless transition.”
