Human Resources

Activity 3 - 20 minutes
The following details have been taken from application forms submitted by candidates for the post of Buying Department Manager. The job description can be found in Example 1 and the person specification in Table 1. Imagine that you have already shortlisted three good candidates and need to add only one more to complete your shortlist.

	Terry Churchill	Anne Olsen	Colin Compton	Renate Schmidt
Address	Suburbs	Village 50 miles away	City centre	200 miles away-willing to relocate
Age	58	34	45	43
Driving licence	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Nationality	British	British	British	German
Current employer	ABC Computers pic	Cheapshops	Compact Manufacturing Ltd	Deutsch Chemicals
Size of organisation	£400m turnover p.a.	£35m turnover p.a.	£60m turnover p.a.	£600m turnover p.a.
Position held	Purchasing Manager	Senior Buyer	Buyer	Senior Buyer
Number of previous employers	None	Five	Four	None
Professional qualifications	Member of professional institute	Member of professional institute	Member of professional institute	None
Education	3 A-levels, 8 GCSEs/O-levels	5 GCSEs/O-levels	2 A-levels, 8 GCSEs/O-levels	Arbitur
Further education	Degree in Chemistry; MBA	Certificate in Management	Degree in Operations Management; Certificate in Management	Degree in Economics from Wuppertal University; Diploma in Management
Court convictions	None	None	Yes: driving offence	None
Other information	Member of the local Chamber of Commerce	Studying for Professional Diploma in Management; fluent English and Danish	Studying for Professional Diploma in Management	Fluent English, German and French; studying for MBA

Who would you shortlist? Why did you make this choice?

The following table might help you to make a decision. It records whether each candidate reaches the ‘minimum’ or the ‘desirable’ level.

	Terry Churchill	Anne Olsen	Colin Compton	Renate Schmidt
Education	Desirable	Minimum	Desirable	Desirable
Further education	Desirable	Desirable	Desirable	Desirable
Professional qualifications	Desirable	Minimum	Desirable	None
Experience of purchasing	Desirable (too much?)	Possibly	Desirable	Desirable
Management of people	Desirable	Minimum	Minimum	Desirable
Languages	None	Some	None	Desirable
Travel	Desirable	Desirable	Possibly	Desirable

Several of the characteristics on the job specification are impossible to determine from a candidate's application form. And several of the observable characteristics require some guesswork. You must, therefore, be careful not to put too much weight on subjective judgements. However, the following factors may affect your decision.

Anne Olsen seems the least qualified candidate, mainly because the buying skills required for a retail shop are likely to be very different from the buying skills that you are looking for.
Colin Compton seems excellent, apart from his lack of a driving licence and his conviction. But he lives locally and could easily get to work. How essential is a driving licence for the fortnightly visits to suppliers? As for the conviction, he has paid the penalty – should he be further disadvantaged?
Terry Churchill seems an excellent candidate, but two factors might have influenced you against him: his age and his experience. He is 58 years old and he seems very senior. Is he too senior? But is that a fair question to ask? His motivation for applying is important, not his age. It is important to ask questions in order to reveal whether the candidate is able to do the job, and not for other reasons.
Two factors appear to weaken Renate Schmidt's application: she is not a member of a professional body and she needs to relocate. However, in Germany it is not common for people to join professional bodies and she has applied for the job in the knowledge that she must relocate.

References

References can be useful, but they do have some limitations: no one would supply the name of a referee who was likely to give a bad reference. However, it is always a good idea to request them of the candidates who have been shortlisted (but, as we have already said, bear in mind that some candidates may not want their employers approached until they have actually been offered a job). It is helpful for referees if you enclose all the information sent out to the prospective candidate and point out clearly any essential requirements of the job. You may want to ask specific questions relating to the candidate's suitability in certain areas.

Candidates Make Decisions Too

In the past people have tended to see selection primarily as organisations choosing between individuals. However, we must not forget that candidates are also making choices: about whether to write in for an application form, whether to apply, whether to attend an interview, whether to accept an offered job. This makes it important for organisations to treat candidates in a sensitive and responsive manner. They will need to pay attention to their recruitment materials, to provide realistic job descriptions and to be aware of how candidates are treated.
Recruitment processes vary between sectors and between organisations. They are also constantly changing (Box 4).
Box 4: Internet recruitment
There has been a significant increase in the use of the Internet for recruitment purposes. One way of using the Internet is to post vacancy advertisements on some of the specially created ‘job boards’ – electronic versions of a newspaper's situations pages. Another method is to incorporate a recruitment section in a company website. Although there are capital costs to this, they may represent a modest investment considering the price of national newspaper advertisements and the potential long-term use of a website. Organisations need to encourage potential recruits to visit the site by placing small advertisements on job boards and in the press indicating the organisation's web address.
The audience for recruitment websites has been concentrated in younger age groups and professional occupations, although this is likely to broaden out. Recruitment costs may be reduced – some US firms claim a 45 per cent saving by using the Internet.
Criteria for success are that visitors to a company website should find it convenient to use, up to date and offering online application facilities. The advantage to the organisation is the technical simplicity of adding applicant details to its database and in conducting online dialogue with applicants about job and career requirements so that they can be advised when a suitable vacancy arises.
Thus the Internet offers several attractions to both recruiters and job hunters.

Methods of selection

The Interview as a Selection Method: Pros and Cons

Traditionally, the interview has been the main means of assessing the suitability of candidates for a job. Almost all organisations use the interview at some stage in their selection process. Similarly, most applicants expect to be interviewed. Interviews are useful for assessing such personal characteristics as practical intelligence and interpersonal and communication skills. The interview can be used for answering applicants’ questions, selling the organisation and negotiating terms and conditions. It is a matter of debate whether an interview accurately assesses ability at work, relevant experience and work skills. A further problem with interviews is that factors that are not related to the job influence the decision: clothing, colour, ethnic origin, gender, accent, physical features or a disability might be such factors. There is also evidence that interviewers make decisions very rapidly on little information. You need to be aware of the potential pitfalls in using selection interviews and may choose to supplement them with a variety of tests. Some of these are considered below.

Tests as a Selection Tool

There are various types of tests and ways in which they might be used as part of the selection process (see Box 5). Before using any kind of test you should ensure that you know why you are using it and how it relates to the job specification.
Box 5: Selection tests
Aptitude tests

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  Tests of physical ability: used for the selection of manual workers. For example, a test of the ability to perform lifting operations might be used.
  
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  Mental ability tests: tests of literacy, numeracy and intelligence.
  
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  Analogous tests: tests which simulate some of the actual tasks in the job, for example a typing or word-processing test for secretaries. Group problem-solving exercises and presentations may be suitable for managerial jobs.
  

Personality tests

The use of these in selection comes from the assumption that certain jobs require certain personalities and that tests can identify them. The most common form of personality test is questionnaires designed to rate respondents on various personality dimensions. The individual is rated for being persuasive, socially confident, competitive, decisive, introspective, artistic, conceptual, traditional, independent, extravert, stable, optimistic, and so on. Most reputable personality tests need to be administered and scored by trained and licensed users. Organisations selling personality tests usually recommend that they are not the only method used for selection.
Assessment centre
This is a process, rather than a place, that uses a number of selection techniques in combination. A typical assessment centre would assemble 12 applicants after screening and subject them to tests such as intelligence tests, presentations, group work and interviews.
Tests can be very useful in the selection process as they actually replicate certain parts of the job, whereas a selection interview can only indicate whether the person has that ability. However, most tests are time-consuming to administer and can be used indiscriminately. It would be very unusual to use a test as the sole means of selecting and, particularly with personality tests, it should not be the major evidence on which the decision to appoint or not is made. Very often the results of personality tests are used in interviews as the basis for further investigation and questioning about an applicant's abilities.

The Selection Interview

The aim of the selection interview is to determine whether the candidate is interested in the job and competent to do it. A selection interview also has the following functions:

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  to explain the work of the organisation, the job and any features such as induction and probation
  
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  to set expectations on both sides, including a realistic discussion of any potential difficulties (if appropriate)
  
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  to enable the candidate to assess whether they want the job being offered.
  

Selection interviews are not easy to conduct and it is preferable – some organisations insist on it – that everyone involved has participated in some kind of training. Most managers believe they can interview competently but probably few have subjected their interviewing practice to close scrutiny and thought about how they can improve their performance. Important decisions have to be made, such as how many people should be on the interview panel, who would be the most appropriate people, and what role they should play. One-to-one selection interviews are difficult to conduct, not least because there is more likelihood of subjectivity creeping in.

Preparation is an extremely important stage in the process. Box 6 indicates four factors to consider in preparing for an interview and gives some examples.
Box 6: Considerations in interview preparation
What does the interviewer(s) need for the interview?

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  Job description, person specification
  
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  Individual application forms, CVs, etc.
  
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  Details of terms and conditions of employment: hours of work, fringe benefits, perks, etc.
  
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  Information on general prospects, training, induction etc. within the organisation
  

What does the candidate need?

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  Details of venue; to be met on arrival
  
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  Access to facilities: toilets, any special needs for candidates with disabilities
  
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  Comfortable waiting area
  

Location requirements

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  Suitable room and layout: consider whether formal or informal and what type of setting to create
  
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  Freedom from interruptions and other discomforts and distractions such as extraneous noise, uncomfortable furniture, extremes of temperature, etc.
  
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  Appropriate access for people with special needs
  

Requirements of a good interview

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  A structured interview plan enabling the interviewer(s) to assess what they are looking for in the candidate and whether the person:
  
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    could do the job (assessment against the person specification)
    
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    would do the job (judgements of motivation and commitment)
    
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    would fit (elements of person-organisation fit) (Note: a well-developed person specification should include criteria relating to all three areas.)
    
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  A clear idea of the areas of questioning for each candidate to check that they fulfil the criteria
  
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  Agreement on the roles of those involved in the interview if there is a panel: who will chair and how questions will be divided among the panel members in an organised way
  
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  A disciplined approach to timing: enough time for each candidate and not too many candidates per day
  

Interviews have distinct and recognisable stages, and individuals have certain expectations about what should happen when, but try not to become routinised or mechanistic in your approach.

Structuring the Interview

Introduction and starting
In a panel interview one member will need to take the chair; this person will then be responsible for initiating, controlling and closing the interview. It is also the role of the chair to link and control the contributions of the panel members.
If you are the chair, you should always introduce the panel members to the candidate and explain how the interview will be conducted. A relaxed and skilful lead interviewer will then continue to establish and maintain rapport throughout the exchange with the candidate.
The main body of the interview
Your main objective is to gather information. A practical target is to expect the candidate to talk for 70 per cent of the time. Example 2 describes the kind of conduct to avoid when interviewing.
Example 2: Interview weaknesses
David was really pleased to have been asked to an interview for the job of Project Manager. He spent a lot of time preparing for the interview, finding out more about the organisation in his local library and collating the documentation required, such as qualification certificates, additional references and so on.
On the day of the interview, David arrived early but was not asked into the interview room until 30 minutes after his allotted time. The first thing he was asked to do by a member of the panel was ‘describe your major weaknesses and what you have done to overcome them’. This completely floored David and he struggled to respond. It was not a good start. A second member of the panel quizzed him closely about his fluency in other languages but was sharply reminded by his colleague that it was not that job they were interviewing for. The third member of the panel asked some relevant questions, but all the time David was talking he was looking through a pile of papers on the desk in front of him.
David received a letter a week later offering him the job; he decided not to accept.
Some essential interviewing skills are outlined below.
Effective questioning. The level of detail you require from a question should determine the way you ask it. Some questions have a very broad focus and will stimulate the candidate to talk at length while you look out for specific things you want to check on. When you find something, you can zoom in on it and ask a probing question so that you receive a precise answer (a ‘closed’ question). The skill in questioning is, therefore, to frame your questions to suit your purpose. When you open up a new area of enquiry, you need to use ‘open’ questions that will start the candidate talking. Take care not to make them too broad, especially in the early stages, or you will leave the candidate floundering and wondering what to say. As you identify specific items that you want to concentrate on, you can start to focus your questions using different types as appropriate.
Another common approach is the use of questions about specific incidents from the past that demonstrate the candidate's suitability for the current job. This is sometimes known as behavioural interviewing. Consider approaches to assessing whether someone is a good project manager. You could say to them, ‘Tell me what you know about project management.’ Equally, you could ask, ‘How would you ensure that a project runs to plan?’ The skilful interviewee will take this opportunity to present their wide range of knowledge about project management approaches and techniques, almost textbook fashion. However, does this mean that they are a good project manager in practice? An alternative approach would be to ask them about actual instances when they have managed projects and what they did to ensure the success of the project. For example, a question such as ‘Tell me about the most complex project you have had to manage in the past’ will open up the discussion. You could then listen for cues to probe specifically what they contributed to that project in order to assess their project management skills. The interviewee might say, ‘There was one particular project that was really difficult as we were working to such tight deadlines, but we met them.’ The interviewer's probing question would be something like, ‘What did you do personally to ensure that the deadlines were met?’ The probing is used to elicit actual examples of what someone has done in the past to show they are skilled in a particular area. This can be much more effective than asking hypothetical questions that only test a person's knowledge.
Some examples of questions you might ask in relation to other aspects of managerial jobs are set out in Table 2.
Table 2: Examples of behavioural questions for managerial jobs

Aspect of job	Possible questions
Developing staff	What has been your most satisfying experience in the past of developing a staff member? What did you do specifically to achieve it?
Managing conflict	Tell me about a time when you have had to mediate in a conflict between two people. What did you do?
Representing your group or organisation	What has been the most difficult representational role you have had to perform in the past? How did you ensure that the best interests of the group/organisation were safeguarded?

There are some general points about interview questions:

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  The questions should be capable of eliciting information that is relevant to success or failure at work.
  
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  They should not be random or overlapping; rather, they should be comprehensive, grouped in an organised way and clearly distinguishable.
  
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  Similar areas of questioning should be used for all candidates.
  
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  The questions should allow you to compare each candidate with the job/person specification.
  

We have been looking at examples of questions about the job itself, but how can you assess the degree of fit between the person and the organisation, as discussed previously? Box 7 provides some examples of questions related to fit with the organisation which you might find useful.

Box 7: Examples of organisation fit questions

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  Could you compare the cultures of the organisations where you have worked before and say how the differences affected your behaviour at work?
  
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  Where were you happiest at work? (followed by) What was it about the place that made you feel like this?
  
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  Why did you decide to join each of the organisations you have worked for?
  
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  What factors will cause you to decide whether or not to leave your current employer?
  
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  How is your effectiveness measured in your present job?
  
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  How do you cope with working in teams?
  
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  What are the things you have regretted leaving behind at places where you have worked in the past?
  

(Source: based on Billsberry, 2000, pp. 156–7)

Controlling the flow of the interview. This is the second key interview skill: the ability to keep a candidate talking about the things you need to know about. Different kinds of interview require different levels of control. A good interviewer can adjust their style to the particular circumstances of the interview while it is in progress. To be able to control the direction and flow of the interview so that it corresponds closely with the plan, an interviewer needs to be aware of the control mechanisms available. These can be the types of questions asked and encouraging sounds and body language, such as maintaining eye contact, sitting forward, nodding and smiling as appropriate.
Using listening skills. Your third essential skill is active listening. This means you need to concentrate, give all your attention to someone and, where appropriate, summarise and reflect on what they say. Be aware of factors – personal and environmental – that can interfere with your ability to receive and interpret signals, such as noise outside the room, room temperature and clarity of speech.
Evaluating the information. Your fourth skill is concerned with assessing what you hear from the candidate. As the interview proceeds you will need to be assessing whether the answers to your questions are producing useful evidence of job suitability, or are superficial and raise doubts about suitability.

Closing and Deciding

Drawing the interview to a close
Up to now we have been considering how to control and conduct the main body of an interview. There remains, however, the need to draw it to a satisfactory close. You should remember that, while you are trying to select the best candidate, the candidates are also ‘selecting’ you. You need to remember that you as an interviewer are being assessed and selected, and you need to ensure your presentational and interpersonal skills are up to the job.
When you are satisfied that you have all the information you require, it is important that you give the candidate two invitations:

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  first, to tell you about anything that has not been covered, or to expand on anything that has not been adequately covered (for example, a relevant accomplishment that the candidate wants you to know about)
  
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  second, to ask you questions in order to clarify any features of the job or the terms and conditions associated with it.
  

Only when the candidate has had this opportunity should you begin concluding the interview. It is good practice to summarise any agreements or understandings that may have been reached and to give a clear indication of what is likely to happen next, and when.

Reaching a final decision
Having seen all the candidates, you can now start to pull together your notes and impressions and make a final decision. It is probably worth allowing a little time to gather your thoughts and/or discuss initial observations with colleagues or the interview panel after every interview so that your memory is not confused. The person specification should again play a major role in your final decision. Your questions should have been geared to elicit the necessary information from each applicant to enable you to ascertain their suitability against the agreed criteria. Example 3 shows the importance of meeting the person specification.
Example 3: Meeting the criteria
In the city hospital, the Personnel Manager was called upon by the Outpatients supervisor to help in a case of poor performance – the individual concerned was generally offhand with staff and patients and was only meeting minimum standards in her written work. She had been in post for about six months.
The Personnel Manager asked about the appointment. The supervisor admitted that the individual's references had not been all that impressive. She also admitted later: ‘No one on the panel wanted to appoint her but she met all the criteria so we felt we had to – we can never recruit to these posts anyway.’
The Personnel Manager was worried by this and made a mental note to talk to her colleagues about it. She was aware that it was extremely difficult to fill advertised posts in certain departments in the hospital. However, she felt strongly that this should not result in the appointment of staff who did not meet the person specification. More thought was required in terms of where the posts were advertised and the shortlisting and interviewing skills of staff in the hospital.
The planning of the selection process will help you to reach an objective decision, but intuition cannot be completely ignored. What is important is that you can explain objectively – preferably to colleagues and not just to yourself – the basis of your intuition. If you feel that one candidate would fit perfectly into your team, what is it – precisely – that gives you that impression?
Activity 4 - 10 minutes
Think back to the most recent interview you have participated in, either as an interviewer or as an interviewee. With the models and suggestions of this session in mind:

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  Identify and explain at least one positive aspect of the way the interview was conducted.
  
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  Identify and explain at least one weak aspect of it.
  
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  Make a note of three things from this session that you will try to apply when next conducting an interview.
  

There is no universal formula for conducting interviews successfully. Your own style and your panel's self-confidence in pursuing what they want to ascertain are important ingredients of an effective interview. However, the discussion of common pitfalls and proven techniques may help you to increase your confidence and effectiveness in this important selection medium.

Summary

This unit has looked at specifying the requirements of a job by drawing up a job description and a person specification. We considered how you might indicate the qualities required of individuals in relation to person-organisation fit as well as the more traditional approach of person-job fit. We then considered various methods of attracting candidates and the process of arriving at a shortlist. We have stressed the importance of preparing for the selection process, be it an interview alone or with accompanying tests. The importance of effective interviewing skills was also emphasised.

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  Objective recruitment requires preparation and an awareness of the tendency of recruiters to look positively on similarities with themselves and negatively on differences (halo and horns effects).
  
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  The person–job fit approach concentrates on measuring the candidate's attributes in relation to the specific job vacancy.
  
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  The person–organisation fit approach considers how well suited the candidate is to the organisation.
  
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  The key stages of good selection are: the job analysis; the job description; the person specification.
  
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  Applicants can be attracted by a wide range of media, but all advertising requires effective back-up recruitment administration, including the shortlisting and reference processes.
  
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  Job advertisements need to be carefully constructed to attract high-quality applicants.
  
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  Aptitude and personality tests can supplement interviews, sometimes using assessment centres.
  

Key features of effective selection interviews include:

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  training of interviewers
  
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  composition of panel
  
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  preparation, including details of who will ask which questions
  
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  timing
  
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  role of panel chair
  
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  the candidate doing most of the talking
  
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  open and behavioural questions
  
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  organisation fit questions
  
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  controlling the flow
  
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  listening skills
  
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  closure
  
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  using the person specification to reach final decisions
  

References

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  Billsberry, J. (2000) Finding and keeping the Right People, 2nd edn, London, Prentice-Hall
  
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  Cowling, A.G. and Mailer, C.J.B (1981) Managing Human Resources, London, Edward Arnold.
  
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  Ludlow, R. and Panton, F. (1991) The Essence of Successful Staff Selection, London, Prentice-Hall.
  

Acknowledgements

The content acknowledged below is Proprietary (see terms and conditions) and is used under licence.
Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to reproduce material in this product:

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  Box 1 Reprinted from "Managing Human Resources", Cowling, A.G. and Mailer, C.J.R., p.9, © 1981, with permission from Elsevier;
  
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  Example 1 Reprinted from "Managing Human Resources", Cowling, A.G. and Mailer, C.J.R., pp 12-13, © 1981, with permission from Elsevier;
  
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  Table 1 Reprinted from "Managing Human Resources", Cowling, A.G. and Mailer, C.J.R., p.19, © 1981, with permission from Elsevier