How Nebraska Medicine Transformed Staffing Challenges and Supported Strategic Growth
At Nebraska Medicine, marketing and HR collaborated to rewrite the staff recruitment and retention playbook by creating a compelling employer value proposition.
// By Susan Dubuque //
The health care landscape faces a stark reality in Nebraska: a projected shortage of 5,435 nurses by 2025. Sixty-six of Nebraska’s counties have been deemed medically underserved, nine counties have no registered nurses, and four have just one.
In January 2023, Nebraska Medicine, a comprehensive health network based in Omaha, faced a significant shortfall in its own nursing and other health care positions. Despite being a Forbes-recognized “Best in State Employer,” the health network was losing more employees than it was able to attract.
Against this backdrop, Nebraska Medicine leadership recognized the need for immediate and long-term strategies to address recruitment and retention challenges exacerbated by the pandemic. The health system’s approach went beyond traditional hiring tactics. It turned inward, aligning the organizational culture with a forward-thinking employer value proposition (EVP).
Frank Lococo, vice president of marketing, Nebraska Medicine
Leadership took a deliberate, collaborative approach, with marketing and human resources coming together to reimagine the employer brand. “It makes sense for marketing to devote time and resources to recruitment and retention. Having a strong workforce is essential to achieving our organization’s growth goals,” says Frank Lococo, vice president of marketing at Nebraska Medicine.
“What we produced is not a campaign,” he notes. “It is a movement that creates fundamental changes in who we are and how we operate — based on the voice of our colleagues.”
Read the full article to learn how Nebraska Medicine reframed its employer brand to ensure the stable workforce needed to deliver excellent care and help the organization grow and thrive.