Adventures in Nursing Blog

Chic-Fil-A doesn't sell burgers

Chic-Fil-A doesn't sell burgers

I stood in line at Chic-Fil-A for twenty minutes on Monday, and it didn't bother me one bit. As I approached the counter to order, I was reminded that not only do they have the best chicken sandwich on the market, but they have the best employees too. It's interesting to look at their menu and see just how many products they can produce with a simple chicken breast. It makes me wonder, do they get distracted by shiny objects? I think the answer is yes, but you don't see it in their final product.

Here at Atlas we've been asked more than a few times if we staff Allied Health positions. Echo Techs, PT, OT, etc. It's also come up in some contracts with facilities we were trying to sign. They were looking for a one stop shop, like a jack of all trades master of none type of place. Our answer to that is simple. That's not us, and it should never be us. If a national brand like Chic-Fil-A can thrive with just one main product, why can't we?

Six years ago we set out to do it differently. To do it the way it's supposed to be done. To do it right. Our goal was to be the very best travel nursing agency that we could be. The best version of all we've learned over the years of experience we've acquired. As time went on, there were shiny objects that tempted us, ideas that seemed awesome at face value. But we knew that in order to succeed, we had to stay the course and keep our focus. That had to be the priority.

I'm not saying an agency can't do it all. There are plenty out there that do a fine job staffing all those different areas. But there are many that try to do it all and end up fragmented and compartmentalized. They end up with divisions that don't talk to each other. They share very little, even the contracts they staff, and that costs them money. They duplicate work and positions across all business units, also costing extra money. I've also seen companies try to branch out and fail...miserably. In the end I think they realized just how different staffing all those areas could be. Unfortunately for some of their internal employees it was too late.

So as I stood in that line, the answer only became more clear. Six years of work to be the best possible travel nursing agency doesn't lie. There are thousands and thousands of excellent traveling allied health professionals, and there are very good agencies out there for them. Agencies that focus on and own that business unit. That isn't us. We're going to stay in our lane and work to be the very best travel nursing agency we can be, and that isn't going to change.

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