Secret Shopping

 

 

When looking for a job, it pays to be a “secret shopper.”

 

 

 

Make a routine appointment with a physician in the health system at an office where they don’t know you’re applying for a job.

 

 

 

Do the whole thing, the scheduling, the office visit, the exam.

 

 

 

Make it for a limited problem.

 

 

 

Pay cash, it should only cost a couple of hundred dollars and under the right circumstances, you can deduct it as a job searching expense (if the charge is unreasonably high, that in itself is a red flag).

 

 

 

Check to see how happy or frustrated each staff member is—including the clinician.

 

 

 

If the experience is miserable, you will be miserable, too.

 

 

 

It’s not a perfect indicator, there are false negatives.

 

 

 

But given the impact a lousy job can have on your life, you should always use this tactic to screen a potential employer.

 

 

 

It can save you a lot of grief.