Ch 6-Employee Selection

Selection

process of choosing individuals who have relevant qualifications to fill existing or projected job openings

HR managers typically

make the final decision about hiring people in their unit

The cost of one type of miss (false positives)

Is the direct and indirect expense of hiring someone who turns out to be unsuccessful

False negatives

• are someone who could have been successful did not get a chance

• misses are especially problematic because they are difficult to detect and may be disproportionately screening out members of protected groups

What is this graph showing?

The goal of selection: Maximizes “Hits“ and Avoid “Misses“

Job specifications help identify what?

Job specifications help identify the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs)that lead to superior performance.

Managers use WHAT selection methods to measure applicant KSAOs against the attributes required for the job?

• Interviews

• References

• Preemployment tests

What are the steps in the selection process?

1. Hiring decision

2. Background investigation Reference Checking

3. Supervisor/Team Interview

4. Preliminary Selection in HR department

5. Employment testing (Aptitude, achievement)

6. Initial interview in HR department

7. Completion of application, Submission of resume

What is important to remember about the selection process?

• The steps in the selection process vary depending on

  • Organization

  • Job type & lvl

• Step assessed in terms of how it contributes to overall process

• Not all qualified applicants will go thro all procedures (Some will be rejected)

What is important, no matter if the position is filled internally or externally?

• Information is obtained

  • Reliable

  • Valid

  • Legal

• Privacy of applicants is protected

Reliability

The degree to which interviews, tests, and other selection procedures yield comparable data over time

Validity

The degree to which a test or selection procedure measures a person’s attributes

• Reliability is required for measure to have validity

Initial Screening

Initial screening includes cover letters and résumés, application forms, and Internet checks and phone screening

Cover Letters & Resumes (6)

• Reviewed first with an eye toward who can be eliminated because they do not have the MIN skills, abilities, education, or experience outlined in the job advertisement.

• Evaluating résumés can be a subjective process with low reliability between the ratings of evaluators

• Bias can also enter the process.

• Many firms are now using software to scan résumés to find qualified applications

• Fewer ppl lie on application forms than resumes

• application forms might be more valuable than résumés as they collect
  standardized information that can be more readily compared across candidates
  experiences, interests, skills, and abilities

Application forms

• Provide a quick and systematic means of obtaining a variety of information about the applicant

• Meets the minimum requirements for experience, education, and training

• Source for reference checks

List 2 forms of application forms

• WAB

  • A standardized employment application, more objective and statistical approach to analyzing data

• biodata

  • Shown to correlate with on-the-job success.

  • collects biographical information about candidates and has been shown
    to correlate with on-the-job success; candidates are questioned about events and behaviours that reflect attitudes, experiences, interests, skills, and abilities

Video résumés

short video clips that highlight applicants’ qualifications beyond what they can communicate on their résumé

What are the disadvantages of conducting internet searches?

• applicants' privacy is at risk

• possibility of bias and discrimination

• difficult to verify the truthfulness of information posted on the internet

Internet check

Before inviting applicants for a face-to-face interview, HR professionals and hiring managers will frequently "Google" their names

What is this describing?

The variables in the employment interview

Describe employment interviews

Depending on the type of job, applicants may be interviewed by one person, members of a work team, or other individuals in the organization

Researchers have raised doubts about interview validity but it is still a mainstay of selection because…(3)

1. Practical when there are only a small # of applicants

2. Serves other purposes, such as public relations

3. Interviewers maintain faith & confidence in judgements

Nondirective Interview

An interview in which the applicant is allowed the maximum amount of freedom in determining the course of the discussion, while the interviewer carefully refrains from influencing the applicant’s remarks

Structured Interview

An interview in which a set of standardized questions with an established set of answers is used

Situational Interview

An interview in which an applicant is given a hypothetical incident and asked how they would respond to it

Behavioural Description Interview (BDI)

An interview in which an applicant is asked questions about what they did in a given situation

Panel Interview

An interview in which a board of interviewers questions and observes a single candidate

Sequential Interview

A format in which a candidate is interviewed by multiple people, one right after another

Interview techniques can be used…

•Interview techniques can be used to broaden the talent pool and make interviewing easier, faster, and less costly.

−helpful for geographically dispersed candidates or unique situations, such as the COVID-19 pandemic

Video Interviews

Interviews conducted via videoconferencing or over the Web

Computer-Administered (Automated) Interviews

Interview in which the questions are administered to applicants via computers; the interview can be conducted at a firm’s facilities, using kiosks, online, or via phone

What is the benefit and drawback of Computer-Administered (Automated) Interviews for managers?

Benefit: Managers can watch at their convenience

Drawback: Managers can’t ask candidates follow-up probing questions based on their answers.

Interviewees should be aware of what in guidelines for employment interviewers?

Interviewees should be aware of the legal obligations when conducting employment interviews in order to meet the criteria for entry-level employment

Best practices to follow for guidelines for employment interviewers include..(5)

• understand the job

• establish an interview plan

• establish and maintain rapport

• listen actively

• provide information as freely & honestly as possible.

Who has limited the areas of questioning for interviewers?

Human rights commissions

Reference checks

The most reliable information usually comes from previous supervisors who are
in the best position to report on an applicant’s work performance
• Despite their reluctance, organizations should feel free to evaluate their former
employees because they cannot be sued by those former employees so long as
the information provided is accurate—the legal concept of “qualified privilege”
protects employers from defamation lawsuits

Background checks

Standard procedure for many companies

Organizations using Internet searches to uncover background information on
candidates

For example, checks for previous employment history, academic qualifications,
criminal record

What are examples of post-interview screening?

• Reference checks

• Background checks

• Credit Checks (financial responsibility & high power, CFO)

Preemployment test

an objective and standardized measure that is used to gauge a person’s knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) relative to other individuals

Types of Preemployment Tests: (9)

−Job Knowledge

−Work Sample

−Cognitive ability

−Personality and Interest Inventories

−Polygraph

−Honesty and Integrity Tests

−Physical Ability Tests

−Medical Examinations

−Drug Testing

Assessment Centres

process by which individuals are evaluated as they participate in a series of situations that resemble what they might encounter on the job

Preemployment tests that simulate job functions are…

Preemployment tests that simulate job functions are becoming more common, and these tests are being administered using software.

Criterion-Related Validity

•The extent to which a selection tool predicts, or significantly correlates with, important elements of work behaviour

3 approaches to validation

1. Criterion-Related Validity

2. Content validity

3. Construct validity

2 Types of Criterion-Related Validity:

1. Concurrent

2. Predictive

Concurrent validity

The extent to which test scores (or other predictor information) match criterion data obtained at about the same time from current employees

Predictive validity

The extent to which applicants’ test scores match criterion data obtained from those applicants/employees after they have been on the  job for an indefinite period

Regardless of the method used, what is essential in determining the validity of tests?

cross-validation

cross-validation

process in which a test or battery of tests is administered to a different sample of people (drawn from the same population) for the purpose of verifying the results obtained from the original validation study

•Content Validity

−The extent to which a selection instrument, such as a test, adequately samples the knowledge and skills needed to perform a particular job

•Example: driver’s license examinations

•Construct Validity

−The extent to which a selection tool measures a theoretical construct or trait.

•Example: intelligence, personality, and anxiety.

−Broad, general categories of human functions that are based on the measurement of many discrete behaviours.

What does it mean when in reaching a selection decision, Summarizing information about applicants

Summarizing information about applicants includes:

• An employer is interested in what an applicant can do and will do.

• Evaluating candidates requires systematically organizing  all the relevant information about them.

The strategy used to select managerial and executive personnel will..

will likely be different from that used for selecting administrative and technical personnel.

Questions managers must consider include:

• What impact will the hiring decision have on the organization's diversity considerations

• how will the new hire's job performance be measured?

•Two basic approaches to selection:

1.Clinical (personal judgment)  - subjective

2.Statistical – objective

Statistical approach to selection includes:

• Compensatory Model

• Multiple-cutoff Model

• Multiple-cutoff Model

Compensatory Model

a high score in one area can make up for a low score in another area

Multiple-cutoff Model

requires an applicant to achieve a minimum level of proficiency on all selection dimensions

Multiple-Hurdle Ratio

Sequential strategy; only applicants passing the cutoff score at the initial stage go on to the next

Selection Ratio

The number of applicants compared to the number of people to be hired

= # of hired candidates / Total # of candidates

What is a related factor that contributes to selecting the best qualified people

Having an adequate number of applicants or candidates from which to choose is a related factor that contributes to selecting the best qualified people.

Steps in Final Decision in hiring:

• Managers make the final decision on who to hire in large organizations and communicate their decision to HR.

• HR then informs the candidate of the decision and extends a job offer.

• It is critical to put the offer in writing so that there are no misunderstandings or disagreements about its terms.

What is important to note in rejection in the final decision process? (3)

• Rejecting both internal and external candidates is a difficult task but
  rejecting internal candidates can be particularly tricky

• The manager delivering the bad news should explain to the employee
  that the decision was made in a systematic manner based on objective
  criteria and provide specifics if requested

• Failing to notify rejected applicants happens too often with both internal
  and external candidates

Statistical approach

involves identifying the most valid predictors and weighting them using statistical methods, such as multiple regression

Clinical approach

those making the selection decision review all of the data on the applicants; then, on the basis of their understanding of the job and the individuals who have been successful in that job, they make a decision

Drug testing

human rights tribunals and courts have imposed very strict
limitations on the right of employers to require drug tests; if the job is a safety-
sensitive one, then an employer may be permitted to offer the position
conditional on the successful passing of a drug test

Medical Examinations

can be conducted only after an offer (preferably written) of employment has been made

Physical Abilities Test

these tests should be carefully determined on the basis of the essential functions of the job with a representative and diverse group of employees

Honesty and integrity tests

good predictor of job performance and do not have problematic differences in scores for protected group member

Polygraph Tests

a lack of reliability as well as negative applicant reactions are important reasons why these tests should be avoided in selection

Personality Tests

can be predictive of job performance (especially the dimension of conscientiousness) and tend to not have adverse impact or subgroup differences

Cognitive Ability Tests

robust predictor of performance across a wide variety of jobs; these tests remain a stronger predictor of job performance than EI

Work Sample Tests

cost effective, reliable, valid, fair, and acceptable to applicants

Job knowledge tests

have been found to be predictive of job performance

What happens when a qualified and diverse applicant pool has been recruited

the company’s efforts can turn to hiring the best and the brightest from amongst those applicants

Using the best practices from the research literature can..

Using the best practices from the research literature can help organizations become more productive while saving money

Proper Selection practices…

Proper selection practices can allow organizations to reach their equity,
diversity, and inclusion goals while avoiding costly litigation

Organizations place high priority on..

• Requirements of the job

• Selecting individuals who match the values and culture
  of their organization

Values-based hiring

hiring candidates who share the values of the organization

To address the issue of potential discrimination in résumés

Organizations use “Name Blind“ resumes