HRM 5820 Test 2 Flashcards

Selection

The process by which companies decide who will or will not be allowed into the organization

Takes the pool of applicants delivered by recruitment and selects a subset of them

The selection process uses a combination of

measures, tests, and instruments

Good and reliable selection measures must be

Reliable, Valid, Generalizable, Useful (Utility), Legal

Reliability is

The consistency of a selection method or test over time, raters, items/scales

The degree to which a measure is free of random error (and therefore more precise)

Sources for random error include

Interviews: Unusual circumstances, distractions

Tests and Surveys: Poorly worded questions, scoring mistakes, item ambiguity, judgment calls

References: Mood of reference giver

Repetition in Items (inter-item reliability)

Give an applicant a survey that asks the same kinds of items multiple times; correlate the items (ex: survey scale)

Repetition in Times (Test-retest reliability)

Example: Give a test to an applicant multiple times, correlation of the administrations (ex: height)

Repetition in Raters (Inter-rater reliability)

Example: Interview an applicant with multiple interviewers; correlate their scores (ex: judges panel)

What does reliability tell/not tell us?

All reliability tells us is whether we’re measuring something consistently, precisely, and without random error

It does NOT tell us whether we are measuring the right thing consistently, precisely, and without random error

Validity

The degree to which a selection method accurately measures what it is intended to measure

Content Validation

Does the measure assess what it is meant to assess?

Concurrent Validation

Give measure to people already on the job, correlate with performance (or some other criterion) at that time

Predictive Validation

Give measure to job applicants but don’t use it to hire (just hire using something else that is unrelated to the measure). Then correlate it with performance (or some other criterion) several months late

Which Bulls-Eye portrays reliability and validity

Low-to-no spread at the center of the target

Generalizability

The extent to which the results of a selection method apply across different contexts, such as different jobs, departments, or organizations.

Utility

The degree to which the selection method adds value to the hiring process by improving decision-making

What are some measures of utility?

Does this selection methodology lead to

1. Increasing overall profitability

2. Allowing us to accurately select those who will succeed on the

job?

Legality

Adherence to employment laws and regulations in the selection process.

Resumes and References

Cognitive Abilities

Cognitive Abilities - Examples

The SAT, GRE, GMAT, and other such tests measure two or three of the cognitive ability dimensions

The most popular tests used by employers (including the National Football League) is the Wonderlic Personnel Test (WPT)

Personality

Personality - things to know

The relatively STABLE/ENDURING organization of a person’s characteristics

50% of personality is inherited, evidenced through studies on twins

Personality vectors of interest

Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Openness, Emotional Stability

Interviews - things to know

Historically unreliable and invalid

There’s a lot of “noise” due to:

• Interviewer tendencies and mood

• Applicant mood and anxiety

• Applicant preparation and coaching

• Interviewer-applicant gender mix, interaction style mix, age mix

How to Improve the Interview

1. Base questions on job analysis

2. Standardize: Ask exact same questions of each candidate

3. Avoid opinion-oriented questions (why would you like to work here, strengths/weaknesses)

4. Focus on situational questions (A customer is getting upset. How would you respond?)

5. Use rating scales on a question-by-question and overall basis

6. Use the same set of interviewers for all candidates

Interviews

What is Training?

A planned effort to help employees acquire job-related knowledge, skill, and behaviors, with the goal of applying these on the job

What does training improve/reduce?

• Job performance

• Customer satisfaction

• Retention

• Job Attitudes

---

• Injuries

• Grievances

The Stages of Training

1. Conduct Needs Assessment

2. Ensure employee readiness for training

3. Create learning environment

4. Ensure transfer of training

5. Evaluate results of training

Under what approach do you develop effective training programs?

“instructional design process” - a systematic approach to training

Why Conduct a Needs Assessment?

Establishes why we are doing the training in the first place

Within a Needs Assessment, you perform

• Organizational Analysis

• Task Analysis

• Person Analysis

Task Analysis

• What tasks and KSAOs need to be the focus of the training program?

• Involves the same kinds of steps used in job analysis

Task Statement

A summary of what needs to be trained

short sentences that describe what the worker does, how the worker does it, to whom or to what it is done, and why

Person Analysis

Who needs training the most?

Are we sure that training is the solution, rather than new equipment, new procedures, or more feedback?

Organizational Analysis

• What aspects of the organization make training more or less effective?

• Is there managerial and peer support for training?

• Does the organization have the resources (budget, time, and expertise) for training?

What are the 2 things that the “Ensure Employee Readiness” step asks?

1. Are employees trainable

2. Are employees motivated to learn

What effects employee motivation as far as training readiness is concerned?

• An awareness of the economic

and career benefits that come

from the training

• Self-efficacy - belief that they can successfully learn the training content

• Personality

• Conscientiousness

• Openness (i.e. Inquisitiveness)

In order to Create a learning environment, you must perform the following steps

• Provide the training objective(s)

• Deliver the training content

• Provide opportunities to practice

• Provide feedback

Provide the training objective(s)

• Take the task statements and turn them into specific goals that trainees will strive to meet

• Ensure that the outcomes are measurable

Deliver the training content

• Content can be delivered using a variety of instructional methods

• These methods can be categorized according to whether trainees:

• Hear the content

• See the content

• Do the content

Hear Content Training Delivery Examples

• Classroom instruction

• Distance learning

See Content Training Delivery Examples

• Classroom instruction with audiovisuals

• Distance learning with audiovisuals

• Interactive video or computer systems

Do Content Training Delivery Examples

• Business games

• Role playing

• Simulations

• Apprenticeships

• On-the-job training

Critical features of the various content delivery methods:

• How similar is it to the task setting?

• How much control do trainees have over the pacing of the instruction

• How many trainees can take part at once?

• How expensive is it?

Common Training Techniques Breakdown

What does it mean to ensure transfer of training

To transfer the KSAO’s gained during training to on-the-job work.

This transfer is increased when trainees practice learned skills in the first days and weeks back on the job

What are some ways to perform training evaluation?

1. Trainee satisfaction

2. Transfer of training

3. New skills/knowledge

4. Performance improvements

5. Return on investment

Trainee Satisfaction Details

Ask the participants how satisfied they are

Ask them:

• Do you perform the task?

• How many times do you perform the task?

• To what extent do you perform difficult and challenging learned tasks?

Little to no relationship between trainee reactions and most other training outcomes, but utilized by 75% of US companies

How do you measure K (Knowledge/Cognitive) Outcomes?

Measured with paper-and-pencil tests or computer-based exercises

How do you measure S (Skill-based) Outcomes?

Measured using trainer, peer, or supervisor evaluation; work sample tests; or computer-based exercises

How do you measure O (Affective/Social) Outcomes?

Measured using surveys & interviews

How do you measure Results?

Improvements in performance, productivity, quality, absenteeism, turnover, etc.

Measured using manager observation or personnel records

Pre-test/Post-test Design Details

• Measure performance, knowledge or attitudes of ALL employees before

training

• Then, train only PART of the employees

• After the training is complete, measure performance, knowledge or attitudes again, and compare the trained group to the untrained group

Pre-test/Post-test Design Caveats

• Groups compared after training may differ for reasons other than training, such as pre-existing differences in KSAOs

• Example: Some training is only offered to people who are deemed to have “managerial potential”

• Ideally, we’d randomly assign, but this is hard!

For selection measures to be good, they must be…

reliable, valid, generalizable, useful, and legal

What affects the legality of selection measures?

whether they hinder Equal Employment Opportunity

Equal Employment Opportunity

• Government’s attempt to ensure all individuals have equal chance for employment, regardless of their membership in certain groups

• This is accomplished using:

• Constitutional amendments

• Congressional legislation

• Executive orders

• State legislation

Who enforces EEO?

Is enforced primarily by the EEOC (commission): The government commission to ensure that all individuals have an equal opportunity for employment

EEOC responsibilities

• Investigate & resolve complaints filed (employees who feel they have been discriminated against must file claim within 180 days

• Monitor and gather information on the hiring practices of organizations

• Issue guidelines that help employers determine when their decisions violate laws enforced by EEOC

Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII)

Makes it illegal for an employer to Fail or refuse to hire or discharge any individual, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his/her compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

Under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), there are two types of illegality

• Disparate Treatment

• Disparate Impact

Disparate Treatment

Intended to treat people differently based on group status

Disparate Impact

“Facially neutral” employment practice adversely affects different groups

How to prove Disparate Treatment

Show that the plaintiff:

• Belongs to a protected group

• Applied for & was qualified for the job

• Was rejected despite qualifications

• Employer either kept seeking or hired someone with similar qualifications

Defendant’s rebuttal for Disparate Treatment

• Hired someone better

- or -

• Gender, religion, national origin is

a bona fide occupational

qualification (BFOQ)

• Race can never be considered a

BFOQ under any circumstances

How to prove Disparate Impact

Must show that the practice in question is disproportionally affects a protected group relative to the majority group

• 4/5ths rule

4/5th’s Rule

There is disparate impact if the hiring rate for a protected group is less than 4/5’s (80%) of the hiring rate for the majority group

*do independent study for the math on this. Not hard, but not easy to replicate on this platform

Defendant’s rebuttal for Disparate Impact

Show employment practice is a “business necessity”

How?

• Job analysis shows it to be critical

• Good criterion-related validity (i.e., there is evidence that this necessity predicts how well people do on the job)

What Acts have supplemented Title VII?

• Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA, 1967)

• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA, 1990)

What is the ADEA (Age Discrimination in Employment Act)?

• Prohibits discrimination against employees age 40 and over

• Protects only the 40+ group: favoring older workers over younger ones is legal

• Firms cannot hire only younger workers, unless it is a business necessity without other valid alternatives

• Firms cannot coerce employees into taking early retirement. If employees accept early retirement they sign an agreement waiving their right to sue under ADEA

What is the ADA (Americans with Disabilities) Act?

Prohibits discrimination against employees with disabilities (subject to specific exceptions) in all employment practices

• Including application procedures, hiring, firing, promotions, compensation, and training

What is the definition of Disability

• A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

• (blindness, deafness, paralysis, etc...)

• A record of having such an impairment...

• (cancer in remission, history of mental illness, etc...)

• Being regarded as having such

• (visible signs, rumored illness, etc...)

Under the ADA, employers must distinguish between the following

• Essential Job Functions: Fundamental duties of the position, as defined by the frequency and criticalness ratings in a job analysis. Must be performed by all job holders

• Marginal Job Functions: Less important duties. Need not be performed by all job holders

ADA Details

• Cannot refuse employment if disability affects marginal job functions

• Can refuse employment if disability affects essential job functions, but only if a “reasonable accommodation” cannot be made without “undue hardship”

Summary of Legal Acts

Affirmative Action distinguishes itself from the Civil Rights Act and the EEOC by

seeking to redress (remedy) discrimination rather than reduce discrimination

What does Affirmative Action involve and who introduced it?

• Involves special training programs and recruitment efforts for minority groups

• Also allows for consideration of group status in making employment decisions

• Qualification screening should occur first. If applicants are equally qualified, preference can be given to protected group member

• John F. Kennedy via Executive Order in 1961