Physicians Aren’t Scarce. Flexibility Is.

Recruiters who spend their days talking to physician candidates have an observation: The physician shortage is not due to a lack of interested candidates, nor due to insufficient compensation, nor due to roles stuck in inconvenient locales. It’s because of a failure of employers to be, well, a little bit flexible.  

Physician hiring usually goes like this: hiring managers read a candidate’s resume. If it’s strong but it doesn’t quite meet the predefined role criteria, the candidate is declined. No one calls the candidate. Repeat fifty times. The hiring manager concludes that there is a shortage of qualified candidates. “Hirers are making assumptions based on CVs,” says Elizabeth Johnson, talent acquisition manager at Korn Ferry, who specializes in national physician searches. “Maybe they have good reason for declining candidates, but let’s ask the questions first, and reject second.” 

Most organizations evaluate physician candidates as though there is an abundant talent pool; this is no longer the case — though there are still plenty of physicians to go around. Recruiters emphasize that there are doctors who do want most roles, even in rural or inner-city environments. “We definitely are finding interested individuals,” says Diane Fleischmann, vice president of talent acquisition at Korn Ferry—but talking to them is essential. The conversation begins with asking what they want. Today’s physician candidates are increasingly prioritizing schedule design, lifestyle & cultural alignment, workload sustainability, and geographic fit. That’s at odds with the rigid job descriptions many healthcare firms are still recruiting against. “What we’re seeing is a lack of organizational flexibility,” she says.  

Candidates are particularly interested in jobs that mix outpatient and inpatient, combine in-person and remote, and allow half-time or three-quarters-time schedules. Many outpatient physicians also prioritize predictable weekday schedules with limited call responsibilities, unlike the nights, weekends and emergency coverage that can come with inpatient roles. Candidates whose resumes signal a need for these are often screened out.  

Flexibility around job logistics matters more than ever, as recruiters report that many physicians are willing to explore new locations and settings under the right arrangements. For example, physicians later in their careers may be interested in relocating to destination markets, even in rural areas, but prefer four-day schedules or reduced call responsibilities. Other physicians may be willing to expand beyond a highly specialized practice area if expectations and support structures are clearly discussed. “You may not be able to discern this from the CV alone, but you can learn it through conversation,” said Li Ern Chen, MD, MS market leader for the physician workforce solutions practice at Korn Ferry. 

Recruiters also see organizations making the mistake of recruiting for a single opening, without considering how else that person might fit into their physician ecosystem. "If we have somebody that’s a quality candidate, but not the right fit for one market, the question is how we integrate them into the broader organization,”" says Jim Vincoli, vice president at Korn Ferry’s global healthcare practice. “Don’t lose an interested candidate.” This requires a shift in approach: asking how a strong candidate could advance clinical and cultural goals across regions, specialties and care models, rather than checking a box for a single role.

“You have physicians who are interested in the organization, interested in the geography, interested in practicing there, and we’re still losing them because they don’t perfectly match a static job description,” says Ashley Youngs Cooper, vice president of client solutions at Korn Ferry. For healthcare organizations, “that’s a prescription for failure.”  

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