Selecting Office Employees

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Chapter 7
Selecting Office Employees
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Ways to Improve the Effectiveness of Employee
Recruitment
1. Use a sufficient number of recruiting sources.
2. Use appropriate recruiting sources for the
position being filled.
3. Identify clearly the requirements of the
vacant position.
4. Recruit from a sufficiently wide
geographical area.
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Recruiting Sources

Internal
External
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Internal Sources
Employee Referral
Employee Promotion
Data Banks
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External Sources
Unsolicited Applications
Advertising
Educational Institution Placement Services
Professional Organizations
Employee Leasing
Public Employment Agencies
Private Employment Agencies
Temporary Help Agencies
Electronic Resume Banks
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Internal Sources
Advantages
1. Provides tangible evidence that employee
competence is rewarded.
2. Organization is familiar with
qualifications of employees who apply for
higher-level positions.
3. Current employees may require less
orientation and training than new employees
will.
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Internal Sources
1. Employees who are continuously passed
over tend to become discontent.
Disadvantages
2. Organizations dont have access to ideas
brought in from outside.
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Employee Referral
Employees recommend individuals for
open positions within the organization.
Can cause a concern when a referred individual is
hired and does not perform satisfactorily.
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Employee Promotion
Advantages
1. Employees are apt to perform better when
they know promotions are available.
2. Morale is likely to increase and
turnover decrease when employees can be
promoted.
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Employee Promotion
1. Reduces the number of new ideas that are
brought in by new employees.
Disadvantage
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Data Banks
Involves maintaining in a computerized data
bank a list of employee qualifications.
To fill a position, the data bank is scanned
to determine which employees possess
the qualifications for the open position.
The information has to be continually updated
to remain a viable recruiting source.
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External Sources
Advantages
1. Potential applicant pool is often larger
than is available with internal sources.
2. New ideas are brought in from outside.
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External Sources
Disadvantages
1. Tends to produce a large number of
applicants.
2. Applicants backgrounds are difficult
to check, which may result in
less-than-satisfactory employees.
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Unsolicited Applications
Is used when applicants apply for a position
not knowing whether an opening is available.
Some organizations view unsolicited applications
negatively because of the extra work they cause.
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Advertising
Involves the use of electronic, print, and
broadcast media.
Often produces a significant number of
marginally or unqualified applicants.
Typically enables an organization to hire a
large number of employees in a short time period.
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Educational Institution Placement Service
Is often viewed as a fairly costly recruiting
source.
Is more likely to be used for filling
salaried positions than hourly positions.
Educational institution placement services
provide important services for both the employer
and the job seeker.
Lack of diversity in applicants backgrounds
is caused when an organization recruits at only a
few colleges/universities.
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Professional Organizations
An increasing number of professional
organizations are developing and operating
placement services for their members.
They tend to produce a fairly homogeneous pool of
applicants.
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Employee Leasing
Is also known as contract staffing.
Employees of the leasing company are leased
to various community employers.
Is an attractive arrangement for organizations
that have only a handful of employees.
Leasing company handles all benefits, payroll,
etc., for its employees.
Leased employees are permanently assigned
to the organization in which they work.
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Public Employment Agencies
Are controlled by the United States Employment
Service.
Any individual who is receiving
unemployment compensation must register with the
states public employment agency.
Any individual who receives a suitable
employment offer must be willing to accept it.
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Private Employment Agencies
Are fee based.
Fee is largely determined by the nature of
the open position.
Full cost of the fee is often borne by the
employer.
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Temporary Help Agencies
Used to obtain employees on a short-term basis.
Often used to deal with busy times of the year
or to cover for vacationing or ill employees.
Temporary agency pays temporary employee
and handles all fringe benefits and salary
details.
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Electronic Resume Banks
May be fee based.
Two types Web-based and non-Web based.
Common Web-based services Monster
Board, careerWEB, JobHunt, etc.
Applicants register with the bank and
provide information about their background, such
as that found on resumes.
Search process is often computerized.
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Outsourcing
Involves the organizations turning over certain
of its functions to an outside agency that has
the specialization necessary to perform those
functions well.
1. Is often more economical that
traditional staffing system.
Advantages

2. Outsourced employees often provide
specialized support, resulting in
increased work quality.
3. Organization is no longer responsible for
supervision and management of functional area.
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Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and 1980
Amendments
Provided the impetus to hire people with
disabilities.
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Americans with Disabilities of 1990
Mandates that employers not discriminate against
an individual with disabilities as long as the
person is otherwise qualified for the job.
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Advantages of Hiring Individuals with
Disabilities (1of 2)
1. Contrary to what some believe, insurance
costs do not increase.
2. Job performance of many individuals with
disabilities equals and often exceeds the
performance of people without disabilities.
3. Absenteeism and tardiness of people with
disabilities tend to be lower than those of
people without disabilities.
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Advantages of Hiring Individuals with
Disabilities (2 of 2)
4. Accident rates of people with disabilities
tend to be lower than those of persons
without disabilities.
5. Tax incentives are available for
organizations that employ disabled persons.
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Elements of the Selection Process
1. Employee requisition blank 2. Job
descriptions and job specifications 3.
Screening interview
4. Application blank 5. Biographical
information blank 6. Employee testing
10. Payroll change notice 11. Employee
file
7. Background and reference
investigation 8. Selection interview 9. Medical
examination
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Employee Requisition Blank
Is used to notify the human resources
department that an opening exists.
Lists a number of qualifications that have a
direct, obvious relationship to successful job
performance.
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Job Descriptions and Job Specifications
Descriptions
Specifications
Identify the duties and responsibilities of
a particular job.
Outline the requirements of the job.
Employees should be shown both documents early so
they can determine whether they are interested in
or are qualified for the position.
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Screening Interview
Is used to screen applicants further.
Helps determine whether applicants are qualified
or not qualified for a position.
Interviewer needs to avoid asking inappropriate
questions of the interviewee.
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Application Blank
Is used to collect from each applicant the
same categories of information.
Is used to compare one applicants background
with another applicants background.
Federal and state laws prohibit asking certain
questions.
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Biographical Information Blank
Is used by the applicant so he/she can inform
the organization about his/her work preferences
for specific positions.
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Employee Testing
Organizations use both standardized and their
own tests.
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Background and Reference Investigation
These investigations are used to
1. Verify information provided by the applicants.
2. Obtain information about the applicants
backgrounds.
3. Obtain information about the applicants
performance while employed elsewhere.
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Selection Interview
The two or more applicants thought to have the
greatest potential for succeeding will have
been identified.
These individuals are interviewed by the manager
or supervisor of the department in which the
opening exists.
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Medical Exam
Applicants cannot be required to undergo a
medical exam before being hired.
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Payroll Change Notice
Is used to notify payroll to begin paying a new
hire.
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Employee File
Is created after an applicant is hired.
Contains a variety of employment related
information.
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Test Reliability and Test Validity
Must be determined for any test before it can be
used as a measurement or assessment tool.
Determines the extent to which the test produces
consistent results.
Test Reliability
Determines the predictive value of the test.
Test Validity
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Types of Test Validation (1 of 2)
Criterion-related Validity
Is the process of statistically relating measure
of job performance to test scores.
Construct Validity
Provides a measure of specific theoretical
constructs, such as aptitude and intelligence,
that are crucial to job performance.
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Types of Test Validation (2 of 2)
Measures the relationship between test items and
job tasks.
Content Validity
Differential Validity
Provides test results for each cultural subgroup
as a means of predicting job success for its
members
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Testing Program Must be Consistent with Various
Provisions of
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and
the Tower Amendments
Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972
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Types of Tests (1 of 2)
Determine how well an applicant can perform those
tasks for which he or she is being considered.
Performance or Achievement Tests
Determine the potential a person has to learn the
tasks for which he or she is being considered or
the tasks he or she might be expected to perform
in the future.
Aptitude Tests
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Types of Tests (2 of 2)
Intelligence Tests
Determine ones mental and reasoning abilities.
Determine whether an applicant possesses certain
characteristics needed for job success.
Personality Tests
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Interviewing Process
Is often considered as the most crucial step in
the selection process as well as the most widely
used tool in the hiring process.
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Functions of the Selection Interview
1. The interviewer can ask questions to clarify
any ambiguous areas about the applicants
background.
2. The interviewer can emphasize areas of
particular concern to the organization.
3. The applicants self-expression, confidence,
poise, and appearance can be readily
assessed.
4. The applicant can ask additional questions
about the job and the organization.
5. The applicant can emphasize certain areas
about his or her background that might be
helpful in making an employment decision.
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Types of Interviews
Patterned

Functional
Direct
Indirect
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Patterned Interview
Requires the use of a form on which the
interviewer records the interviewees responses
to each question.
Is helpful when a number of people are
applying for the same position.
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Direct Interview
Is a quickly conducted interview.
Interviewee is asked questions that are related
only to his/her particular job.
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Indirect Interview
Covers a much broader range of topics than
the direct interview.
Is basically unstructured in format.
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Functional Interview
Is comprised of a series of job-related questions
accompanied by predetermined answers.
Is objective because it facilitates deriving a
score for each applicant.
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Any question asked during the interview has
to relate to a bona fide occupational
qualification.
Questions that are not related cannot legally
be asked during the interview.
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Types of Common Interviewing Mistakes (1 of 2)
1. Jumping to hasty conclusions about the
applicant.

2. Allowing nonverbal behavior to have an undue
influence.
3. Possessing inadequate knowledge about the job.
4. Allowing negative impressions to have an
undue influence.
5. Allowing the order of interviews to affect
overall rating.
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Types of Common Interviewing Mistakes (2 of 2)
6. Doing too much talking.

7. Not involving other employees in the
interview process.

• Not planning the questions to be asked ahead
• of the interview.

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Questions That Help Assess the Adequacy of the
Affirmative Action Program (1 of 2)

1. Does the recruiting phase of the program
attract a balance of applicants in terms of
race or gender?
2. Are all jobs open to women and minorities?
3. Is a concerted effort made to place women
and minorities in top-level positions?
4. Do managers and supervisors attempt to
achieve a balance of applicants by race and
gender?
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Questions That Help Assess the Adequacy of the
Affirmative Action Program (2 of 2)

5. Does the system have the necessary machinery
and procedures to effectively monitor the
affirmative action program?
6. Does management regularly communicate the
importance of establishing, reviewing, and
updating affirmative action goals?
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Legislation That Impacts the Selection Process (1
of 2)
1. Civil Rights Act of 1964
2. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
3. Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972
4. Executive Orders
5. Vocational Rehabilitation Act of l973
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Legislation That Impacts the Selection Process (2
of 2)
6. Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment
Assistance Act of 1974
7. Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978
8. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1978
9. Civil Rights Act of 1991
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Two Approaches Used in Making the Hiring Decision
Single Predictor
One predictor, such as an interview or test, will
be the primary determinant of who gets hired.
Multiple Predictor
Information is gathered by several means to
determine who gets hired.
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Ways to Monitor the Selection Process
Calculated by dividing the number of
applicants by the number of individuals
hired. 31 or 41 ratio is desired.
Offer-to Hire Ratio
Calculated by dividing the number of offers
by the number of individuals hired. 11 ratio
is desired.
Selection Ratio