Recruiting Specialist Caregivers with a Streamlined Application Journey

CareLink Community Support Services has been helping people with developmental disabilities and mental illness enjoy a better quality of life since 1959. Operating 30 facilities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the nonprofit organization provides a range of residential care, supported living, and community outreach services, plus educational support and employment training.

James Mickey, Chief Financial Officer, explains: “We’re guided by the belief that people with disabilities can play an active role in their communities if they receive support. By offering personalized care, we aim to help people with disabilities to live with independence and dignity.”

To fulfill that mission, CareLink relies on a specialized workforce of direct support professionals (DSPs), including residential counselors and rehabilitation specialists. In an increasingly competitive labor market, finding staff with the right skills is an ongoing challenge.

“Recruitment is our number one headache,” adds James. “Turnover among DSPs is relatively high across the sector, so we are constantly looking to onboard new counselors and supervisors. But there are many healthcare providers recruiting from the same talent pool. We all offer similar pay and benefits, so we need to find other ways to attract the best candidates.”

CareLink realized there was room for improvement in its application process, which was outdated and cumbersome. As its Paychex system offered little scope for innovation in the recruiting pipeline, CareLink made a fresh start, building a new application journey with Paylocity.

The Challenge: Modernizing the Applicant Experience

CareLink planned a more intuitive, frictionless online applicant experience to help attract talent. But first, the nonprofit organization would have to overhaul its HCM platform.

Outmoded Processes Hinder Recruitment

For candidates applying for roles at CareLink, the online process was disjointed and complex. Rather than posting openings on its own website, the organization used various third-party job boards, where applicants entered information, and were then taken to a separate domain to complete forms. “The process only worked on desktop – there was no mobile support,” adds James. “The look and feel were very archaic — it was like something from the 1980s.”

CareLink realized the user experience was potentially pushing talented candidates towards competitors who could offer a simpler, quicker application journey. “Despite offering sign-on bonuses and referral fees to existing staff, we were still struggling to get applicants,” explains James. “The process was hurting our ability to fill roles.”

Limited Legacy Systems Block Design Innovation

To help redesign the application journey, CareLink turned to advisory services provider EisnerAmper. The objective seemed simple: create a more intuitive, mobile-friendly process, accessible via the CareLink website. However, EisnerAmper demonstrated this would be difficult to achieve with Paychex. As thoughts turned to a new platform, other problems with Paychex became clear. For example, the biometric timeclocks provided by the vendor were inflexible and available only via a costly leasing agreement.

Manual Work Complicates Shift Planning

Beyond the recruitment process, CareLink faced other operational HR challenges. For example, care facilities managed their shift schedules manually using spreadsheets, and finding staff for some timeslots meant chasing via phone or email. “Our front-line staff are just too busy to check their inboxes regularly,” notes James.

Furthermore, CareLink had limited visibility into the billing processes used by its contract staffing agencies. “It was difficult to align the invoices with our agency workers’ timecards,” comments James.

The Solution: Selecting a Platform for Innovation

CareLink worked with EisnerAmper to assess new HCM platforms, before a detailed and informative demo convinced the project team that Paylocity was the best option.

To move to Paylocity, CareLink needed to migrate thousands of employee and payroll documents from the old system to the new. To achieve a seamless changeover, the organization completed detailed planning with Paylocity, while EisnerAmper created a customized import-export process to move data between platforms. EisnerAmper IT Consultant Ronan Leahy says: “We worked closely with the CareLink team to ensure this was a smooth process for everyone. Paylocity made this simple for us and for CareLink.”

Creating Simpler Application Forms and Fields

Next, CareLink and EisnerAmper built an all-new job application process, using Paylocity’s Recruiting module. Now, candidates can find open positions on the redesigned CareLink careers webpage, then click through a set of simple forms, where they enter personal and employment details, and upload documents. “We have to complete specific background checks for some roles,” notes James. “The Paylocity team created a unique integration with a third-party provider to handle those screenings.”

Gaining Deep Insights into HR Operations

CareLink also achieved a major step forward using the Time & Attendance module. “Rather than the ongoing cost of leasing biometric timeclocks, we were able to purchase the Paylocity tablet kiosks outright,” adds James. “They’re much more flexible than the old system, allowing us to allocate expenses to the specific location where people clock in. We couldn’t do that before.”

CareLink also uses the Insights and Recommendations module to analyze its HR and finance operations. “A big proportion of our expenses is overtime and shift differential pay. We now pull reports during every pay cycle to track those expenses,” explains James.

Boosting Engagement with Mobile Capabilities

In addition, CareLink is planning to use Paylocity’s employee engagement modules to connect with front-line staff. Even before the go-live, the organization achieved an almost 90 percent signup rate for the Paylocity Mobile App, and is now deploying the Community collaboration hub. “Sending out notifications and thank you notes via the app will be great for our culture,” adds James.

Next on the rollout plan are the Performance, Benefits, and Scheduling modules.

The Results: Attracting More Specialist Talent

CareLink has successfully created a new online application process that makes things easier for both candidates and the HR team, and minimizes the risk of missing out on the best talent.

Launching a More Modern, User-Friendly Design

Working with Paylocity and EisnerAmper, CareLink has made huge improvements to its careers webpage and application journey. Ronan notes: “What was previously complex and cumbersome is now more visually appealing, with a modern look and feel. Paylocity helped us bring the vision to life." And James is confident that the new process will have a positive impact on recruitment: “If people are looking at two or three DSP roles, they are much more likely to opt for the provider that makes things easy for them. Replacing the different forms and websites with a frictionless, modern workflow will definitely attract more talent,” he explains.

Boosting HR Efficiency and Productivity

The new process helps the HR team at CareLink work more efficiently, too. “Previously, we spent a lot of time uploading documents sent by applicants into our systems. Now, documents flow straight from the application workflow into our back-end platform,” explains James. “It’s a big time saving that we can use to focus on other recruitment work or engaging with our staff.”

The move to Paylocity has also enabled CareLink to reduce its costs. Using the integrated platform allows the organization to switch off additional Paychex tools, saving $4.500 every month.

Improving Control over Staffing Costs

CareLink has also made improvements across its HR operations with Paylocity. For example, the organization now has a separate entity set up in the platform to track timecards of contracted staff, which the finance team then checks against agency invoices to prevent overcharging errors.

And James believes the Scheduling module will have a big impact when up and running: “We’ll be able to publicize schedules and highlight open shifts via the app rather than using spreadsheets and phone calls. It’ll make it much easier for us to manage everything and fill shifts,” he concludes.