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Government Support Fuels Demand for Home Care Managers in Australia: Aged Care Recruitment Trends

One of the significant factors influencing aged care recruitment trends in Australia is the government funding into home care services. The Australian government provides funding for home care packages through the Home Care Packages Program, which offers four levels of care based on the needs of the individual. This funding allows older adults to access a range of services, including personal care, nursing care, domestic assistance, and social support, among others. With the government’s financial support, more older adults are able to access home care services, creating a higher demand for home care managers to oversee and manage these services.

We’re finding our recruitment screening is heavily skills-based assessing, and we’ve nutted out some of the key skills required for successful Home Care Managers. It is a diverse skill set:

  • Aged care or other ‘care’ based policies knowledge: Understanding of regulations, guidelines, and compliance requirements. Or if from an adjacent industry, the ability to pick up relevant sector policies quickly
  • Organisational skills: Ability to manage schedules, tasks, and resources efficiently
  • Communication skills: Effective communication with clients, families, and staff
  • Interpersonal skills: Building relationships and managing conflicts with clients, families, and staff
  • Problem-solving skills: Ability to identify and address issues in home care services

Salary Expectations for Home Care Managers

  • Average salary range for home care managers in Australia is anywhere from $85,000 upwards
  • There is an impact of higher demand than supply of mobilised talent, and this raises salary expectations, putting upward pressure on aged care employers on salaries
  • Use of competitive salary packages, benefits, and incentives to attract and retain talent in aged care recruitment is key
  • Importance of fair and competitive remuneration to attract and retain skilled home care managers

Recruiting Home Care Managers from Adjacent Industries

We recently wrote a Blog about https://shorturl.at/tNWY1 recruiting talent from adjacent industries. This makes sense for home care managers as well.

  • Employers are seeing trends and are seeking candidates with transferable skills and experience from related fields
  • Recruiting people out of the home care sector brings benefits like diverse perspectives and fresh ideas in the aged care sector
  • We widen the talent pool in aged care recruitment by considering candidates from nursing, healthcare management, social work, or community services backgrounds
  • We are aware of the importance of assessing transferable skills and aligning them with the requirements of home care management, when we move people through our recruitment funnel

Challenges and Opportunities in Aged Care Recruitment for Home Care Managers

  • Addressing the talent shortage in the home care sector is something all employers and aged care recruitment agencies are facing
  • Strategies for attracting and retaining qualified home care managers might include:
    • Offering professional development opportunities and career progression
    • Providing a supportive work environment and recognition for their contributions
    • Creating a positive organisational culture and values-based approach
  • Opportunities for candidates with transferable skills to contribute to the aged care sector
    • Highlighting the value of their skills and experience in home care management
    • Providing relevant training and support to bridge any knowledge or skill gaps

Conclusion

  • The Government is growing the home care sector, this is a given and aged care recruitment agencies are aware of this. So some innovative ideas need to be thrown into the mix to attract a suitably sized workforce to fill home care manager positions, along with others.
  • There is real importance of addressing the increasing demand for home care managers in aged care recruitment
  • It’s important to ‘sell’ future prospects and opportunities in the home care sector for qualified candidates from adjacent industries
  • All aged care employers need proactive strategies to attract and retain skilled home care managers to meet the growing demand

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Does P.J. Recruitment and Executive Search tap adjacent sector to fill roles

Yes

Does P.J. Recruitment and Executive Search recruit Home Care Managers

Yes

Do we provide real live candidate feedback on what candidates are wanting, salary-wise, when we are head-hunting aged care managers?

Yes

Call us on (02) 9144 4544 to see if we can help recruit your next Home Care Managers. www.pjrecruitment.au