Session 3: Selection Practices Overview

Session 3: Selection

• Hiring the right employees is crucial for effective strategy execution.
• Employees represent the organization.
• Organizations succeed with the right people.
• Selecting "winners" is essential, those who align with organizational goals.

Selection Practices by Country

• Data shows various selection practices used across different countries.
• Numerical scores indicate ranking of different methods in varied countries.

Selection Tools Overview

• The Golden Three: Situational interviews, Behavioral interviews, and Job simulations are effective selection tools.
• Not-as-great selection tools: Cognitive ability tests and personality tests are less effective in selection.

First...what doesn't work

• Unstructured interviews are ineffective.
• Different applicants are asked different questions, often unrelated to the job.
• Interviewers struggle to agree on what constitutes good or bad answers.

The Situational Interview

• Measures applicant intentions in likely job situations.
• Assumes intentions predict future behavior.
• Every candidate answers the same interview questions related to the job.
• A scoring guide helps evaluate answers, comparing them to illustrative answers.
• The interview focuses on the applicant's intentions, not what the interviewer wants to hear.

Steps for Creating a Situational Interview Question

• Stage 1: Conduct a job analysis (reviewing incidents, analyzing facts, and evaluating the solution).
• Stage 2: Develop situational interview questions.
• Stage 3: Create a scoring guide that helps avoid bias and ensures consistent evaluation of answers.

Example of a Situational Interview Question

• A situation where an employee's boss needs a strong 4th quarter performance, and a key customer is threatening to take their business elsewhere.
• The example situation requires the applicant to weigh various factors in decision-making: company policy, customer relationship, boss' expectations, etc.

Scoring Key

• Interviewers should rate responses based on pre-defined criteria.
• Current employees are valuable sources for providing examples of outstanding behavior to guide rating criteria.
• Different levels of performance (outstanding, acceptable, and unacceptable) are established.

Behavioral Interview

• Learns about past behavior to predict future behavior. -Analyze current jobs to create in-depth questions.
• Develop a scoring key based on critical incidents.
• A structured process to collect data for job analysis to understand future job behaviors.

Behavioural Interview (Past Behaviour Predicts Future Behaviour)

• Probing and pre-planned questions ensure the collection of reliable behavioral data from candidates.
• Focus on actual behavior, not reasons. -Avoid vague questions and focus on specific situations.

Focus on 'what', not on 'why'

• The importance of focusing on observable behavior rather than speculative reasons.
• Avoiding questions that lead applicants to self-promote .
• Focus on the observable behavior.

Conducting the Interview

• Start with unscored questions to ease candidates into the interview.
• Use a panel for questions and note-taking.
• Panel members independently score candidate responses to minimize bias.

Interviewing errors & How to reduce their occurrence

• Common errors: Halo/horns effect, Contrast effect, Hiring people like yourself, Stereotyping, Making assumptions, Insufficient/irrelevant information.
• Reducing errors: Be aware of natural tendencies, Use structured interviews, Use multiple interviewers, Only use experienced interviewers, Allow sufficient time for the process.

What Drives Initial Impressions in Employment Interviews?

• Factors that influence initial impressions, including job qualifications, extraversion, conscientiousness, emotional stability, agreeableness, openness to experience, verbal and interview skills.

Job Simulation

• Using real-work situations (such as role-plays) for accurate candidate assessment.
• Provides objective and reliable assessments of skills and behaviors in a simulated work environment.
• Use a predetermined scoring key for consistency in analysis.

Role Play Example

• Example of a role-play scenario for a customer relations job.
• Three upset customers to deal with simultaneously by the candidate.

Assessment Centres

• An assessment method that evaluates candidates using a variety of testing methods.
• Useful for managerial and graduate selection.

Range of Activities

• Various activities utilized in an assessment centre, including work simulations, case studies, in-tray exercises, role plays, group discussions, psychological testing, interviews, peer assessment, and personality questionnaires.

New Trends in Selection: Investing in Neurodiversity?

• Discussing the need to recognize the value of neurodiverse candidates.
• Addressing how organizations can adapt techniques to identify hidden talents by overcoming one-size-fits-all techniques.

Neurodiversity

• Encouraging organizations to embrace neurodiversity and how to create a supportive work environment for neurodiverse applicants.

Enabling Neurodiversity Programmes

• Team with experts, train colleagues, implement alternative assessment methods, and create support systems for neurodiverse applicants.

Selection Tools to Avoid: Cognitive Ability Tests

• Tests assess general intelligence, verbal fluency, numerical ability, and reasoning.
• Good predictors of performance in various jobs.
• Controversial due to potential racial bias in scoring.

Selection Tools to Avoid: Personality Tests

• The Big Five (Conscientiousness, Emotional stability, Agreeableness, Extroversion, Openness to experience) are commonly used tests.
• Correlation between scores and job performance is often weak.
• Safer than cognitive ability tests, legally speaking, but not recommended for hiring.

If they are used...

• Validation studies are needed to prove connection between test scores and performance.
• Seek legal counsel for using testing instruments.
• Use tests for developmental purposes, not solely for selection. Use tests as one element in a larger selection plan.

Predictive Validity of Selection Methods

• Table shows predictive validity values for different selection method.
• Validity values range from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating better prediction of future job performance.

New trends in selection

• Use of AI helps in personnel selection.
• Important to understand the benefits and challenges involved.