[Music] when looking at selection is part of the supply chain think about recruiting is putting out the request for Proposal and selection is narrowing down the best supplier of talent without qualified employees an organization is far less likely to succeed selection is the process of choosing individuals with the correct qualifications needed to fill jobs in an organization the ultimate purpose of selection is placement or fitting a person with the right job placement of people can be seen primarily as the matching process how well an employee is matched to a job can affect the amount and quality of the employees work as well as the training and operating costs required to prepare the individual to perform further employee morale is often enhanced because good fit encourages individuals to be positive about their jobs and what they accomplish selection and placement activities typically focus on an applicant's knowledge skills and abilities known as KSA's but they should also include a candidates motivation and needs psychologists label person-environment fit PE fit PE fit is vitally important to create a good match for both the employee and the organization for maximum job performance and satisfaction employees should be a good fit at all levels of the organization person organization fit is important from a values and culture perspective with many organizations trying to positively link a person's principles with the values of an organization organizations tend to favor job applicants who effectively blend into how the business is conducted in addition to being a good match for the organization it's also important that each individual works well with others in the work unit or department thus person group fit is the congruence between individuals and group or work unit dynamics a qualified employee who does not communicate well share information or otherwise act as an effective team member can drag down the group's performance selection decisions often begin with establishing person job fit that is matching the knowledge skills and abilities and motivations of individuals with the requirements of a job a mismatch results from poor pairing of a person's needs interests abilities personality and expectations with the characteristics of the job available rewards co-worker relationships and the organization if an individual is poorly suited for a job it's difficult to achieve acceptable performance organizations vary in how they allocate selection responsibilities between HR specialists and operating managers meeting Equal Employment Opportunity Commission requirements and strategic implications of staffing have encouraged many organizations to place greater emphasis on hiring procedures and techniques and a centralized selection within the HR department in other companies each department or its management team screens and hires its own staff managers especially those working in smaller firms often select their own employees because these individuals directly impact their work and there's often no HR staff to help make the decisions but the validity and effectiveness of this approach may be questionable because managers may lack the training selection procedures and regulation another approach is to have HR professionals initially screen job candidates and then managers or supervisors make the final selection decisions from a qualified applicant pool generally the higher the position being filled the greater the likelihood that the ultimate hiring decisions will be made by operating managers rather than HR professionals centralized human resource management in selection can improve legal compliance and ensure consistency in selection procedures further HR staff is more likely to be aware of past practices and current trends that can be adopted by the organization since no two individuals are exactly the same the selection process is used to determine how those differences might affect job performance there's a great deal of science and a little bit of art to these decisions a selection criterion is a characteristic that a person must possess to successfully perform job duties humans tend to be creatures of habit therefore the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior of course past behavior is not an absolute predictor but it tends to be a good predictor of how an individual will respond in the future selection methods and measures attempt to capture past behavior to help predict the future regardless of whether an employer uses jobs specific KSA's or a more general skillset approach effective selection of employees involves using selection criteria to predict future employee performance the heart of an effective selection system is an understanding of what constitutes good job performance knowing what good performance looks like in a particular job helps identify the qualities and employees must have to achieve successful performance these are called selection criteria to determine whether candidates possess certain selection criteria such as ability and motivation employers use predictors of selection criteria which are measurable or visible indicators of those characteristics or criteria choosing appropriate predictors is not an easy task but if done well the organization can make better hiring decisions and improve overall performance prediction decisions aren't perfect so we try to reduce the number of errors by using high quality predictors the extent to which a selection tool repeatedly or consistently produces the same results over time reflects and predictors reliability for example if a person took a test in December and scored 75 and then took the same test in March and scored 76 the exam is probably reliable a predictor that's not reliable is of no value in selection further a test that has low reliability is unlikely to be valid the second quality of predictors that we evaluate is validity or accuracy validity refers to how well a test measures what it claims to measure think of a rain gauge a rain gauge may be an accurate tool to measure the amount of rain that falls but not to measure air temperature this emphasizes the idea that a test validity is not assessed in the abstract rather when a test is validated its assessed for accuracy in a specific context several types of validity are used in selection criterion related validity is one method for establishing the validity associated with a predictor criterion-related validity involves obtaining scores on a selection predictor like a driving test and then later measuring the job performance of each employee then statistical analysis is used to identify a relationship between the two scores a criterion-related validity study can be conducted in two different ways using current employees or using applicants concurrent validity uses current employees to validate a predictor or a test concurrent validity may be easier to assess because employees are ready and available and can take the predictor test immediately this shortens the time needed to complete the validation study a disadvantage of concurrent validity is that employees who have not performed satisfactory at work are probably no longer with the firm therefore they can't be tested another method for establishing criterion-related validity is predictive validity to calculate predictive validity applicants test results are compared with their subsequent job performance conducting the predictive validity study involves administering the predictor test to applicants but not using the results to make hiring decisions that allows a company to hire people with a wide range of scores on the predictor and assess whether the subsequent job performance differs job success is then measured by assessing factors such as absenteeism accidents heirs and performance appraisal ratings a key concept in selection is obtaining a comprehensive profile of each applicant it's like putting together a puzzle companies use various methods to collect information about applicants that help them select the best person for the job in particular the uniform guidelines on employee selection procedures define important concepts and practices that organizations must follow job relatedness means that a selection qualification or requirement is significantly related to the successful performance of job duties a thorough job analysis is conducted to establish that every qualification such as a high school education or nursing certification is important for job holders to perform assigned tasks for example requiring taxi drivers to hold a valid driver's license is a job-related qualification business necessity relates to a practice that's necessary for the safe and efficient operations of a business such as restricting employees from wearing garments that might get caught in machinery even though the entire may be required by an employee's religion under federal guidelines any method of collecting information from job applicants used in making hiring decisions is considered a test this definition is very broad covering everything from looking at applicants Facebook profiles to informal conversations during dinner the standards of reliability and validity apply to all such tests and hiring authorities should carefully consider all sources of information used in making selection decisions these concepts are incorporated in the selection process to keep an organization in compliance with legal requirements and to aid in high quality hiring practices realistic job previews provide potential employees with an accurate introduction to a job so they can better evaluate the employment situation many individuals know little about organizations before applying for employment consequently when deciding whether to an accept a job offer they seek out information during the selection process including compensation data work characteristics job location and promotion opportunities unfortunately some employers make jobs appear better they really are organisations can use videos employee testimonials and job shadowing to provide a realistic snapshot of the work environment for applicants a real benefit of realistic job previews is that applicants may withdraw from consideration if they don't think the job will be a good fit this saves the organization time invested in wooing the candidate that will end up turning down the job offer a realistic job preview can directly identify an esse Cerie training and clarify a job in a role pre-employment screening refers to the process of investigating potential employees to verify the accuracy of an applicant's claim the use of electronic pre-employment screening or assessment has grown computer software is often used to review resumes and application forms received during the application process large organizations often use software to receive evaluate and track the applications of many potential employees in order to save time during the screening process electronic screening can speed up the process by using disqualification questions screening questions to get at ksas administering valid assessment tests and performing background screening a good strategy is to use simple electronic assessment early to reduce the number of applicants before requiring applications or interviews which leaves a much more qualified pool of remaining applicants from which to work however the trade-off to increased efficiency is often the elimination of individuals who might be qualified who do not make it through the screening process a controversial trend is screening candidates based on information obtained from their social networking profiles doing so can have negative consequences for applicants and organisations the information found on sites like Facebook or other online platforms can lead to discrimination against applicants the fact of the matter is a large amount of jobseekers are lying on their resumes studies have found that 46% of background checks found inaccuracies in the information the applicant provided an application usually includes a form or collection of forms that an individual seeking employment must fill out as part of the process of applying for a job properly prepared the application form serves five purposes it's a record of the applicant's desire to obtain of a position it provides the interviewer with an applicant profile that can be addressed during the interview it's a basic employee record for applicants who are hired it can be used for research on the effectiveness of selection processes and it's a formal document on which the applicant attests to the truthfulness of all information provided application forms typically include disclaimers and notices so that appropriate legal protections are clearly stated recommended disclosures include the following at-will employment which indicates the right of the employer or the employee to terminate employment at any time with or without notice or cause reference contacts which requests permissions to contact previous employers listed application time limits which indicate how long the application forms are active typically six months and that individuals must reapply or reactivate their applications after that period and finally information falsification conveying information to the applicant that falsification of applicant information can be grounds for serious reprimand or termination an organization should retain all application forms and hiring related documents and records for three years guidelines from the EEOC and Court decisions require that the data requested on application forms must be job-related though frequently found on application forms questions that ask the following information are illegal marital status height and weight number and ages of dependents information on spouses date of high school graduation emergency contact information and social security numbers to avoid problems with negligent hiring organization should dutifully check the truthfulness of the information presented on resumes and application forms selection tests are defined as procedures for determining job suitability this is accomplished by examining knowledge skills and abilities of applicants tests that assess an individual's ability to perform in a specific manner are grouped as ability tests these are sometimes further categorized into aptitude tests and achievement tests aptitude tests attempt to measure potential well achievement tests attempt to measure demonstrated skill or competence cognitive ability tests measure an individual's thinking memory reasoning verbal or mathematical abilities general mental ability testing is well established as a valid predictor for many jobs but since some minority groups tend to score lower on such exams there's considerable controversy over whether such tests ought to be used when these tests are used the case for business necessity must be made and the instrument should be validated for the organization using it if a company can find a better way of assessing candidates then using a cognitive ability test it may avoid problems of disparate impact physical ability tests measure an individual's physical abilities such as strength endurance and muscular movement physical ability tests that assess muscular strength and endurance are likely to result in disparate impact against female applicants but business necessity makes it acceptable to use such tests when they reflect essential job duties and requirements various skills based tests can be used including psychomotor tests which measure a person's dexterity hand-eye coordination arm hand steadiness and other factors many organizations use situational tests or work sample tests which require an applicant to perform a simulated task that is a specified part of a target job requiring an applicant for an administrative assistants job to type a business letter as quickly as possible would be one such task work samples are among the most valid and appropriate tests because they're highly relevant and job-related situational judgment tests are designed to measure a person's judgment in work settings the candidate is given a scenario in a list of possible solutions to the problem it's required to make judgments about how to deal with the situation an Assessment Center is not a place but a selection process composed of a series of a valued of tests during which candidates are assessed by multiple raters in one Assessment Center candidates go through a comprehensive interview a pencil and paper tests individual and group simulations and work exercises individual performance is then evaluated by a panel of trained raters the tests and exercises in an Assessment Center must reflect the content of the job for which individuals are being screened and the types of problems faced in that job personality is a unique blend of individual characteristics that can affect how people interact with their work environment the most widely and accepted approach to studying personality traits is the Big Five personality framework the big five traits are generally considered to be useful predictors of various types of job performance in different occupations emotional intelligence reflects the soft skills that are critical for establishing good working relationships within a work unit and organization emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize our own feelings and the feelings of others and to effectively manage our own in others emotions as organizations use more teams and collaborative methods to accomplish tasks selecting individuals who are aware of emotions in the workplace becomes more important in particular leaders who have a high level of emotional intelligence perform better and achieve superior outcomes than leaders with less of this competence companies use different tests to assess the honesty and integrity of applicants and employees to prevent hiring dishonest employees to reduce the frequency of lying and theft on the job to communicate to applicants and employees alike that dishonesty will not be tolerated and to reduce accidents if used properly honesty and integrity tests can be a valid and broad screening device for organizations research also indicates that even though honesty tests can be expensive to administer they may reduce workers compensation claims and save the organization money however these instruments have limitations for instance socially desirable responses are a key concern and some questions can be considered overly invasive insulting and not job-related the polygraph more generally and incorrectly referred to as a lie-detector is a mechanical device that measures a person's skin response heart rate and breathing rate the idea behind the polygraph is that if a person answers a question deliberately incorrectly the body's responses will reveal the falsification through the recording mechanisms of the polygraph as a result of concerns about polygraph validity Congress passed the employee polygraph Protection Act which prohibits most private sector employers from using polygraphs for pre-employment screening purposes understanding the common elements of a selection test will help you craft an effective and relevant selection process for your organization in fact there are many factors related to interviewers that can influence how well interviewees perform including the ability to prompt a good social interaction personality and the design and structure of the interview itself even the questions that are asked of individuals can arguably affect the quality of interview sessions interviewing skills are developed through training and practice suggestions for making interviewing more effective are as follows plan the interview interviewers should review all information before the interview and then identify specific areas for questioning control the interview this includes knowing the audience and what information must be collected systematically collected during the interview and stopping when the information has been collected use effective questioning techniques use questions that will produce full and complete answers and can be evaluated on the basis of job relatedness and finally get a balanced view to enable informed hiring decisions interviewers should consider both the positive and negative attributes of job candidates the following types of questions should be avoided in selection interviews they include yes/no questions unless verifying specific information the interview should always avoid questions that can be answered yes or no avoid obvious questions an obvious question is one for which the interviewer already has the answer or the applicant knows it and finally questions that rarely produce a true answer avoid questions that prompt a less than honest response for example how did you get along with your coworkers other questions to avoid include leading questions which is one in which the answer is obvious illegal or inappropriate questions involve information about protected characteristics and finally questions that are not job-related all questions should be directly related to the job effective interviewers avoid listening responses such as nodding pausing making casual remarks echoing and mirroring the applicant might try to please the interviewers by observing the feedback provided however giving no response to an applicant's answers may imply boredom and inattention therefore interviewers should use friendly but neutral comments and gestures during the interview managers and supervisors are more likely than HR professionals to use poor interviewing techniques because they lack training or do not interview often let's take a look at the problems that are common to interviews some interviewers decide whether an applicant is suitable within the first two to four minutes of the interview and spend the rest of the time looking for evidence to support their judgement when evaluating suitability unfavorable information about the applicant is often emphasized more than favorable information the halo effect occurs when an interviewer allows a positive characteristic such as agreeableness to overshadow other evidence the phrases devil's horn describes the reverse of the halo effect which occurs when a negative characteristic such as inappropriate dress overshadows all other traits similarity bias occurs when interviewers favor or select people whom they believe to be like themselves on the basis of a variety of personal factors interviewers should also avoid any personal techniques to stereotype individuals because of demographic characteristics and difference managers and others involved in the selection process frequently fall victim to their own unconscious bias without realizing it many interviewers discount candidates whose religions or cultures differ from their own helping people recognize and manage their biases is important for fair assessment of all candidates in the selection process a job interview is a type of selection test that involves a conversation between a job applicant and a representative of the employer interviews are one of the most popularly used devices for employee selection interviews are often conducted at two levels first as an initial screening interview to determine if the person has met minimum qualifications and then later second as an in-depth interview with managers to determine if the person is well fit for the designated job selection interviews must meet the same standards for reliability and validity as all selection methods in general interviews are relatively quite poor predictors because many interviewers are not skilled at the process and rely too much on gut instinct establishing both high intra rater reliability within the same interviewer and inter-rater reliability across different interviewers is difficult but can be achieved through the use of structured interviews inter-rater reliability becomes important because several interviewers are often involved in selecting employees from a pool of applicants interviews must also be valid to enable useful selection to be valid interviews must accurately assess specific candidate qualities such as leadership ability communication skills or collaboration validity can vary depending on the degree of structure that's utilized in an interview format basically an unstructured interview does not usually provide much actual validity leading to growth in the popularity of structured interviews the differences between structured and unstructured interviews are described here let's take a look a structured interview involves a set of prepared job-related questions that are asked of all applicants so that comparisons can be made more easily resulting in better selection decision the structured interview is useful in the initial screening process because many applicants can be effectively evaluated and compared however the structured interview does not have to be rigid the predetermined question should be asked in a logical manner but should not be read word for word applicants should be allowed adequate opportunity to explain their answers and interviewer should probe with additional questions until they fully understand the responses a standardized scoring key can help improve inter-rater reliability the process can make the structured interview more reliable and valid than other interview approaches an unstructured interview occurs when the interviewer improvises by asking questions that are not predetermined a semi structured interview is a guided conversation in which broad questions are asked and new questions arise as a result of the discussion job interviews can be conducted by an individual by several individuals sequentially or by panels or teams a group interview occurs when several job candidates are interviewed together by a hiring Authority this may be especially useful when hiring for entry-level jobs when skill requirements are low and job fit involves factors such as scheduled work hours availability of transportation to the worksite and other practical details they can also be beneficial to assess interpersonal skills and teamwork when an organization must hire high volumes of low-skilled workers it may not have time or the resources for individual interviews in a panel interview several interviewers meet with the candidate at the same time so that the responses are heard by all panel interviews may be combined with individual interviews in a team interview applicants are interviewed by the team members from whom they will work however without proper planning an unstructured interview can occur during these group sessions and applicants are sometimes uncomfortable with the format interviews are one of the most popularly used devices for employees selection background information can be obtained from a variety of sources including past job records credit history testing records educational and certification records drug tests criminal history sex offender lists motor vehicle records and military records failure to check the backgrounds of people who are hired can lead to embarrassment and legal liability for jobs in certain industries such as those that provide services to children services to vulnerable adults security in home services and financial services background checks are mandated in some states federal regulations mandate background checks for people with commercial driver's licenses and who drive tractor-trailer rigs and buses interstate negligent hiring occurs when an employer fails to check an employee's background and the employee later injures or harm someone while performing job duties to reduce the probability of negligent hiring organizations verify applicant information and conduct background screening many organizations use outside vendors that specialize in conducting background checks because these firms can provide such services more efficiently and effectively before contracting with a background screening company it's advisable to verify the agency's reputation and licensure various federal and state laws protect the rights of individuals whose backgrounds may be investigated during pre-employment screening one important step when conducting a background investigation is to obtain a signed release from the applicant authorizing the employer to conduct the investigation another requirement is making sure that background investigations are relevant to the jobs being performed and to business necessity firms that check applicants credit records must comply with the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act which requires disclosing that a credit check is being conducted obtaining written consent from the person being checked and furnishing the applicant with a copy of the report a background check or background investigation is the process of looking up and compiling criminal records of an individual for employment purposes Staffing global assignments involves making selection decisions that impact or take place in other countries the fit between the individual and job characteristics is particularly important when dealing with overseas assignments because employees must have the proper personalities skills and interpersonal abilities to be effective in the international environment the selection process for an international assignment should provide a realistic picture of the life work and culture to which the employee may be sent in addition assessing the candidates ability to adjust to a new culture environment and job assignment are important to achieve good fit for expatriate assignments HR managers start by preparing a comprehensive description of the job that can be done such as typical responsibilities and work duties there are many key competencies for successful global employees which include the following cultural adjustment individuals who accept foreign job assignments need to be able to successfully adjust to cultural differences organizational requirements many global employers find that knowledge of the organization and how it operates is very important personal characteristics the experiences of many global firms demonstrate the best employees in the home country may not be the best employees in the global assignment primarily because of individuals personal characteristics communication skills expatriate employees should be able to communicate in the host country language both verbally and in writing personal and family concerns the preferences and abilities of spouses and other family members can influence the success of expatriate assignments there are many issues that organizations face when making global selection decisions [Music]