As the saying goes “No man is an island…” Everyone needs someone, or in my case, several women. Their names – Cecelia, Rita, Halene, and Monique. These women were listed as employees but they were so much more! They were my front office people – the first people my clients met when they entered any of my offices.
They greeted clients, did all of that paperwork that I dreaded, made sure I knew what I was supposed to be doing, quietly told me the name of a client when I forgot, etc. and occasionally brought me a cup of coffee. At times, they were more my partners/friends than they were my employees. Two of these ladies even helped me pour concrete when I was building a pond in my back yard. You should have seen them, and their husbands, thigh deep in wet cement as we tried to form the pond walls. It ended up being the center piece of the yard.
All of this is to remind you that a truly competent person sitting at your front desk is worth almost anything you have to pay. And when I say competent, I mean more than just being efficient at making sure the day’s receipts balance with the deposit. That kind of person is easy to find. What I always looked for were people who liked talking with and helping others. As another saying goes, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.” A cheerful face who takes a genuine interest in the needs of each of your clients, whether in person or on the phone is an absolute must when dealing with people who don’t want to enter your office to spend money on a problem they don’t have that does not even hurt!
One method I used to help me hire each new front office employee was to use a small local employment agency to find me several candidates. They worked as employees of the employment agency. When I found the “right” person, I bought out their employment contract from the agency. It was a lot easier and less expensive than working my way through seventy or more candidates who would answer my ad in the employment classified section of the newspaper. I did that just once, and quickly realized I should leave that kind of work (at least the first interview and the winnowing) to professionals.
Each of the above ladies stayed with me at least seven years. I may have been the boss, but they ran my offices. There was even a time in one of my full time branch offices where a PhD. Audiologist and the front office person had a disagreement on office procedures. I took the side of my “lady” (who had properly interpreted our written office procedures) and found another Audiologist. If my “ladies” (I hope I don’t sound sexist) did not get clients in the front door, there was no need to employ professional people, men and women, to fill the chairs in the back.
We are a people business. Our clients are important, as are all of our employees.
