Building the perfect team can feel like finding a needle in a haystack, especially in the demanding world of healthcare. But what if the entire system we’ve been using to find that needle is fundamentally broken? In a recent episode of the Health and Wealth Power Hour, Dr. Michael Neal, founder and CEO of Build My Team, shared how he flipped traditional hiring practices on their head to help healthcare businesses hire smarter, faster, and more effectively.
Let’s dive into some of the game-changing insights from Dr. Neal’s innovative approach to hiring for healthcare practices.
Breaking the Mold: Why Experience Isn’t Always a Good Thing
“Experience is a red flag in our model,” Dr. Neal says. While most office managers and practice owners look for experience as a key indicator of a candidate’s suitability, Dr. Neal’s system views it differently.
“Do they have experience or not? If they have experience, it’s a red flag,” Dr. Neal explains. “Why wouldn’t I want somebody with experience?” The problem lies in the habits and baggage that experienced candidates often bring to a new role. Instead of adapting, they default to their old ways of doing things, which may not align with the needs of the new workplace.
Instead, Build My Team focuses on assessing candidates’ natural strengths and talents. “We measure how fast they learn,” Dr. Neal explains. “You take a person who doesn’t have experience, but we know can do the job, they learn incredibly quickly.” These qualities—like stress tolerance and attention to detail—are essential for long-term success in high-pressure healthcare roles.
Flipping the Hiring Pyramid
Dr. Neal’s hiring model draws inspiration from companies like Disney and the Four Seasons, known for their world-class teams. “They weren’t looking for people who could do the job,” he explains. “They were determining who couldn’t do the job first, and then focused on the ones left. They flipped the hiring pyramid upside down.”
Instead of spending hours screening resumes or conducting endless interviews, Build My Team uses an automated system that sends candidates through a multi-layered assessment process. “Most of them didn’t make it,” Dr. Neal says, describing how the process evaluates traits like stress tolerance, problem-solving abilities, and natural fit for the role.
The result? Hiring decisions that are 97% accurate in predicting success. This approach ensures healthcare practices don’t waste time on candidates who aren’t a good fit for administrative or clerical positions—roles that are critical for the smooth operation of any practice.
Transforming Healthcare Teams: A Proven Success Story
Dr. Neal’s system isn’t just theory—it’s been tested in the real world, starting with his own healthcare practice. “Our practice went from 14 full-time equivalent employees down to 10.5,” he shares. “We went up 50% in gross revenue, and the net almost tripled—all in just two and a half years.”
The key to this transformation? Replacing underperformers (C and D players) with high-performing A players. “A players will tolerate B players, but they won’t stick around if you surround them with C players,” Dr. Neal explains. “They’ll leave and find a team where they’re supported by excellence.”
By creating a team of top performers, Dr. Neal eliminated the tension caused by underperformers dragging others down. “Almost exactly 50% of the applicants don’t end up getting the job they apply for,” he says. “We switch them to a different role that matches their strengths and talents.”
This approach ensures that the right people are in the right roles, which is especially critical in healthcare settings where patient care and administrative efficiency depend on the team’s cohesion and reliability.
The Cost of Hiring Desperation
Desperation hiring—filling a role with “just a warm body”—is a trap many healthcare practices fall into. But according to Dr. Neal, this approach only creates bigger problems down the line.
“You can’t hire random folks and expect them to be able to do those jobs,” Dr. Neal warns. When practices are desperate to fill a position, they often ignore critical red flags, leading to higher turnover, increased training costs, and lowered morale among high-performing employees.
Dr. Neal shared a story about a retinal specialist who texted him on a Sunday night saying, “I need a heartbeat.” By Wednesday, the practice had a new hire, and by Thursday, she was already working. That employee stayed with the practice for five years, proving that a deliberate yet efficient process can make all the difference in even the most challenging hiring situations.
Why Resumes Are Overrated
One of the most radical aspects of Dr. Neal’s approach is the de-emphasis on resumes. “We don’t even look at resumes until the very end,” he reveals. “And when we do, it’s only to verify their work history, not to judge their potential.”
Instead, Build My Team relies on assessments that measure candidates’ cognitive abilities, stress tolerance, and natural fit for the role. “Resumes tell you nothing about a person’s natural strengths or talents,” Dr. Neal says. “They don’t tell you how someone will handle stress, follow processes, or learn new skills.”
This shift in focus has allowed healthcare practices to find exceptional candidates who might otherwise have been overlooked due to a lack of traditional experience. “When you prioritize strengths over history, you’re opening the door to talent you didn’t even know was out there,” Dr. Neal adds.
What This Means for Healthcare Practices and Job Seekers
Dr. Neal’s insights don’t just apply to business owners—they’re also valuable for job seekers. If you’re struggling to land a role in healthcare, it might not be about your skills or qualifications. Instead, it could be that you’re applying for positions that don’t align with your natural strengths.
“It’s not you—it’s the broken system,” Dr. Neal explains. He encourages job seekers to focus on understanding their own strengths and looking for positions where they can thrive naturally, rather than forcing themselves into roles that don’t fit. For healthcare practices, this means rethinking how roles are defined and how candidates are evaluated to ensure long-term success for both parties.
Dr. Neal’s Build My Team system offers a revolutionary approach to hiring that changes the game for healthcare offices, from small practices to large clinics. By focusing on strengths, leveraging automation, and eliminating the inefficiencies of traditional hiring, Build My Team helps doctors and office managers create high-performing teams that thrive.
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