In It Together

Investing in employees because ‘we succeed when they thrive’

Founded in 1983 and based in Sunrise, Florida, MedPro is a Joint Commission certified provider of contract staffing services to acute and long-term post-acute hospitals, government facilities and medical laboratories. With over $400 million in revenue (up from $75 million just a few years ago) and a pool of workers that includes both domestic travelers and foreign-educated healthcare professionals, MedPro is an agile, innovative company on the move. Yet year in and year out, its success remains rooted in its commitment to being a fun and supportive place for its 300-plus employees to work. “There is a sense of belonging,” says Employee Relations Manager Charity Capistrano, who has been with the company for over nine years. “I love coming in to work every day.”

Connections in All Directions

Chris Panakal had heard only good things about MedPro before he was hired in May 2021 as an operations support analyst in IT, but it was during the annual company trip to Puerto Rico last year that he realized just how special the sense of togetherness at MedPro is. “From the dinners outdoors by the rainforest to the team-building activities we were doing, everywhere I looked I saw people having a good time together.”

By all accounts, MedPro has created a company culture in which employees feel connected — to each other and to the company. In part, this is the result of MedPro’s commitment to bringing an element of fun and relaxation to its work. Stacey Edwards, VP of talent and marketing, explains that leadership likes to counter the mundane with playful touches like monthly competition days (including “clothing color wars”), a company-wide picnic every year and quarterly sports competitions and wellness days for all. They also sponsor outings to local sports games and host a companywide bowling night. Describing a favorite moment, Panakal recalls, “MedPro rented out a bowling alley for an evening, and the entire company went over, dressed in a variety of costumes. I look forward to this event every year.”

There is also the aforementioned annual company trip, in which all costs are covered for all employees. To add to the anticipation, throughout the year the company runs an incentive program through which employees can earn “holidough” rewards, which can be traded in for cash or used to subsidize the costs of bringing guests on the trip. The trip allows employees across the company to get to know each other in fun new ways, like the beloved Lip-Sync Battle. For this, the company rents a ballroom or theater at the trip site and outfits it for a night of performances by employees with cash prizes. Every trip also includes a ping pong tournament, which draws approximately 50 competitors and at least as many fans. Then there are the scavenger hunts, pickleball games and festive communal meals. In Capistrano’s words, “We are expected to work hard, but the company also makes a serious investment in the social side for balance.”

Investing in Employee Growth

Two company values — “drive and embrace change” and “always learn and grow” — speak to a second element that makes MedPro a great company to work for: investment in employees and in their professional development. “We succeed when employees thrive,” says Edwards.

It begins with a robust orientation and onboarding process for all new employees. In addition to two full days of training that introduces them to the company’s values, culture and key players, within the first few weeks of starting, new employees have lunch with members of the executive team. This creates an opportunity for establishing more personal connections as well as an opportunity for executives to hear about what new employees are looking for in the company. 

Beyond onboarding, MedPro executives work to be responsive to employees and support them in achieving their development goals. “They don’t just talk about having open doors,” says Panakal. “My manager always goes out of his way to help me expand my knowledge of the products we use and of the company generally.” In Panakal’s case, MedPro has covered the costs of Salesforce and other technical IT certification courses as well as exam fees. MedPro has also sponsored training for Capistrano, who now leads the team she joined when she started working as an entry-level employee at MedPro nine years ago. Other recent investments MedPro has made in this area include sponsoring the participation of all employee relationship managers in a Life Coach Certification program and providing monthly leadership training sessions for managers. They also sponsor employee participation in Accountability Builder workshops and encourage employees who complete the workshop to make time for Accountability Results Huddles with their colleagues twice a month. “We also have MedPro Academy,” states Capistrano, “where a lot of training materials and resources are available for each and every employee.”

Winning as a Team

A third key to MedPro’s reputation as a Best Staffing Firm to Work For is the company’s emphasis on celebrating and rewarding success, another of its core values. In addition to the annual all-expenses paid trip and opportunities to earn holidough throughout the year, when the company does well, everyone is rewarded. For example, the company has an incentive program that runs over a three-year period in which every employee is rewarded if the company achieves its goals. This builds employee investment in the company’s success across all departments.

The executive team works to use even challenging times as a way to reinforce the sense that they are all in it together. Whether it was in facing the unknowns of the pandemic or falling short of targets, “company leadership works to maintain open communication with employees about the state of the business, including the potential highs and the obstacles in their path,” says Edwards. “That way there are no surprises.”

Perhaps the only surprising thing is that, despite the challenges that came with the pandemic and could have come with the spectacular speed of the company’s growth, including a huge expansion in their international business, MedPro has managed to maintain a family-like culture that nurtures satisfaction, connection and pride in the people who work there. “People talk about wanting to work at home,” says Panakal, “but for me, coming into the office is enjoyable every day.” Similarly, Capistrano, who has had a front row seat to MedPro’s recent growth, said, “In the nine years I have been with MedPro, we’ve expanded from one floor to three. Every day I can see and feel our success, and it fills me with pride.”