Augusta.care Webinar Review: “How to Help Your Boss Understand the Caregiver Hiring Funnel,” A Masterclass in Managing Up
On March 5, 2025, I attended Augusta’s webinar, Managing Up: How to Help Your Boss Understand the Caregiver Hiring Funnel, and it was nothing short of exceptional. I expected a well-structured presentation from industry expert Jen Waldron, and she certainly delivered—but in ways that far exceeded my expectations. Instead of a sales-heavy pitch, the session focused on groundbreaking data insights and actionable strategies to improve caregiver recruitment and retention.
A Data-Driven Approach to Workforce Challenges
Jen Waldron, an industry veteran with experience from the frontlines to the executive circle, led the session with a deep dive into the biggest challenge facing the home care and long-term care industries: the workforce shortage crisis. Rather than just highlighting the problem, she provided tangible data and solutions that agencies can use to proactively address hiring and retention challenges.
A core theme of the webinar was the importance of bringing data-driven solutions to leadership. Waldron laid out a roadmap for structuring conversations with decision-makers, ensuring that data supports the case for making changes in the hiring process. She emphasized the power of telling a story with data—an invaluable skill for anyone looking to influence business decisions and drive real change.
Key Takeaways from the Webinar
Understanding the Hiring Funnel
One of the most valuable insights from the webinar was Augusta’s detailed breakdown of the caregiver hiring funnel, which can help agencies optimize their recruitment strategies:
Applicant-to-hire rate: On average, 3.5% of applicants become hires, while top agencies achieve rates of 10%.
Biggest bottleneck: The largest drop-off in the hiring funnel happens between applicants and scheduled interviews—not between scheduled and completed interviews.
Time to interview: If a caregiver waits more than four days for an interview, they are 100% less likely to take the job. Speed is crucial in today’s hiring environment.
Interview capacity limitations: The number of available interview slots per month directly impacts hiring speed and efficiency. Organizations must evaluate whether interview duration, type (phone vs. in-person), and scheduling constraints are slowing down the process.
The Formula for Success
Waldron shared a key formula for determining recruitment ad spending based on applicant-to-hire rates:
Hires ÷ Total Applicants × 100 = Applicant-to-Hire Rate
By tracking this metric, agencies can better allocate resources to job advertisements and recruitment efforts, ensuring they attract enough applicants to meet hiring goals.
Identifying Patterns and Reducing Disqualifications
One particularly insightful discussion centered on analyzing disqualification trends. For example, if many applicants are being disqualified based on geographic constraints, agencies should consider adjusting their advertising strategy or expanding their service radius.
A Masterclass in Recruitment Strategy
Waldron accomplished something rare in webinars: in just 45–60 minutes, she equipped attendees with the tools and knowledge to have a game-changing conversation with their leadership teams. The session wasn’t just about understanding data—it was about using it strategically to improve recruitment processes, increase efficiency, and ultimately, hire more caregivers to meet the growing demand for home care services. Waldron, an exceptional steward of the industry, taught others how to enhance their stewardship at their organizations.
This was one of the most insightful and well-executed webinars I’ve attended in a long time, and I look forward to the next one. If you’re interested in improving your agency’s hiring strategies, I highly recommend checking out Augusta’s resources at Augusta.care.
