LESSON 4

EMPLOYEE SELECTION:
RECRUITING AND INTERVIEWING
 Recruitment
An important step in selecting employees is
recruitment: attracting people with the right
qualifications (as determined in the job
analysis) to apply for the job.
MEDIA ADVERTISEMENT
NEWSPAPER ADS
Running ads in periodicals such as local
newspapers or professional journals is a common
method of recruiting employees. newspaper
advertisements typically ask the applicant to
respond in one of four ways:

Respond By Calling- when an organization

wants to either quickly screen applicants or
hear an applicant’s phone voice (e.g., for
telemarketing or receptionist positions).

Apply-In-Person Ads- when they don’t want

their phones tied up by applicants calling (e.g.,
a travel agency or pizza delivery restaurant),
want the applicants to fill out a specific job
application, or want to get a physical look at the
applicant.
Media Advertisements
Send-Resume Ads- when the organization
expects a large response and does not have
the resources to speak with thousands of
applicants.

Blind Box
1. the organization doesn’t want its name in
public.
2̀. the company might fear that people
wouldn’t apply if they knew the name of the
company.
3. on rare occasions, a company needs to
terminate an employee but wants first to
find a replacement.
 Although little research is available, there is plenty of
expert advice on the best way for an employer to
write recruitment advertisements.

▪ Ads displaying the company emblem and using

creative 7 illustrations attract the greatest number of
applicants, but ads that include the salary range
Writing Recruitment and a company phone number attract the highest-
Ads. quality applicants.

▪ Ads containing realistic information about the job,

rather than information that is “too good to be true”
increase applicant attraction to the organization.

▪ Ads containing information about the selection

process affect the probability that applicants will
apply for a job.
Electronic media

Television Recruitment: Television commercials

can be an effective way to showcase your
company's culture and attract specific
demographic groups.

Radio Recruitment: Radio offers extensive reach

as a medium, with a large percentage of the
population listening to the radio regularly.

Movie Theater Advertising: Innovative Use of

Media: use of film clips in local movie theaters
is a creative way to reach potential job seekers.
 Situation-wanted ads are placed by the applicant rather than by organizations.

Point-of-Purchase Methods- Point-of-purchase (POP) methods for recruitment take

inspiration from the principles of POP advertising in the consumer marketing world.
Just as products are strategically placed to encourage consumers to make impulse
purchases while shopping, job vacancy notices are strategically displayed in places
where prospective employees are likely to see them. These methods can include a
variety of creative approaches:

Examples of Point-of-Purchase Recruitment:

Fast-Food Restaurants: Some fast-food restaurants, such as McDonald's, Arby's,
Burger King, and Carl's Jr., have printed help-wanted ads with application blanks on
their paper placemats. Customers can easily apply for jobs by filling in their
information on the placemats.
Domino's Pizza: Domino's Pizza places help-wanted ads on its pizza boxes, offering
customers the opportunity to consider employment while enjoying their meal.
Recruiters
Recruiters

Campus Recruiters - Campus recruiters play a

pivotal role in an organization's hiring process,
particularly when it comes to attracting young
talent from colleges and universities. The
behavior and attitude of these recruiters can
significantly impact students' decisions to
accept job offers.
Virtual job fairs - Virtual job fairs allow
applicants to engage with recruiters from
various organizations through web-based
platforms. Applicants can chat or send instant
messages to recruiters, explore company
details, and submit their résumés.
Outside Recruiters - Outside recruiting sources,
such as private employment agencies, public
employment agencies, and executive search
firms, are valuable resources for organizations
seeking talent
Executive Search Firms/ Head hunters
Executive search firms, often referred to as "head hunters," serve a distinct role in
the recruitment industry. These firms specialize in filling higher-paying, non-entry-
level positions, such as executive, managerial, engineering, and computer
programming roles. Here are key points to consider regarding executive search
firms:

High-Level Positions:
Fees Charged to Organizations:
Fee Structure:
Pressure on Applicants:
Applicant's Freedom of Choice:
Employment Agencies and
Search Firms

Employment agencies operate in one of two ways.

They charge either the company or the applicant
when the applicant takes the job. The amount
charged usually ranges from 10% to 30% of the
applicant’s first-year salary
Public Employment
Agencies

Public employment agencies are a valuable

resource for both job seekers and employers.
These agencies, typically operated by state
and local governments, are primarily focused
on assisting the unemployed in finding work.
They offer a range of services to facilitate
employment opportunities.
Employee Referrals

Employee referrals are a recruitment method that

relies on current employees recommending friends
and family for job openings. This approach is
widely used in the hiring process.
Direct Mail in Recruitment

Direct mail is a recruitment method that

involves sending help-wanted letters,
brochures, or other materials to potential job
candidates through the postal mail. This
approach leverages the principles of direct
marketing and advertising to attract
candidates, especially those who may not be
actively seeking employment.
Internet Recruitment:

Internet recruitment has become a significant and

rapidly growing source for attracting job
applicants. Employers and hiring managers use
various online methods to reach potential
candidates. Internet recruitment methods can be
divided into two main categories: employer-based
websites and Internet recruiting sites.
Job Fairs

Job fairs are events organized to provide a

platform for job seekers and employers to
interact. They are used by approximately 70% of
organizations as a recruitment method. Job
fairs aim to offer personal interactions between
employers and a large pool of potential
applicants.
Incentives for Recruitment

In a competitive job market with low

unemployment rates, organizations often need to
offer various incentives to attract and recruit
employees effectively.
Recruiting from
nontraditional populations

Recruiting from nontraditional populations is an

effective strategy for organizations to tap into
diverse talent pools and address specific
workforce needs. These populations may
include individuals who are often overlooked in
traditional recruitment methods.
Recruiting “Passive”
Applicants

Recruiting passive applicants, who are currently

employed and not actively seeking new job
opportunities, can be a valuable strategy for
organizations looking to identify top talent.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of
Recruitment Strategies
Considering the number of potential recruitment sources, it is important to
determine which source is the best to use.

Applicant Yield
Cost per Applicant
Number of Qualified Applicants
Cost per Qualified Applicant
Number of Successful Employees
Diversity and Inclusion Metrics
 Realistic Job Previews

Realistic Job Previews (RJPs) play a crucial role in

the recruitment process by providing applicants
with an honest and accurate depiction of the job
they are applying for. The main objectives of RJPs
are to ensure that applicants have a clear
understanding of what the job entails and to set
realistic expectations about job conditions,
responsibilities, and advancement opportunities.
Effective Employee Selection
Techniques
Effective employee selection systems share three characteristics. They are valid,
reduce the chance of a legal challenge, and are cost-effective.

Employment Interviews- Undoubtedly, the most commonly used method to

select employees is the employment interview.
Types of Interviews
Structure
A structured interview is one in which
the source of the questions is a job
analysis (job-related questions),

An unstructured interview is one in

which interviewers are free to ask
anything they want
Style
One-on-one interviews
Serial interviews
Return interviews
Panel interviews
Group interviews
Serial-panel-group interview
Medium
Telephone interviews
Videoconference interviews
Written interviews
 Advantages of
Structured Interviews
Though some HR professionals think they are using a structured interview
because they ask the same questions of everyone, it is the job relatedness and
standardized scoring that most distinguish the structured from the
unstructured interview.
Problems with Unstructured
Interviews

1. Poor Intuitive Ability

2. Lack of Job Relatedness
3. Primacy Effects or first impressions
4. Contrast Effects
5. Negative-Information Bias
6. Interviewer-Interviewee Similarity
7. Interviewee Appearance
8. Nonverbal Cues
 Creating a Structured
Interview
1. Determining the KSAOs to Tap in the Interview
2. Creating Interview Questions
Clarifiers
Disqualifiers
Skill-level determiners
Future-focused questions
Past-focused questions
Organizational-fit questions
3. Creating a Scoring Key for Interview Answers
Right/Wrong Approach
Typical-Answer Approach
Benchmark answers
Key-Issues Approach
4. Conducting the Structured Interview
BUILD RAPPORT; do not begin asking questions until applicants have had time to “settle their nerves.
Job Search Skills
Successfully Surviving the Interview
Process
Scheduling the Interview
Before the Interview
(“What do you know about our company?”)
During the Interview
After the Interview
done on the effects of thank-you letters.
Writing Cover Letters
Cover letters tell an employer that you are enclosing your résumé
and would like to apply for a job. Cover letters should never be
longer than one page.

Salutation
Paragraphs
Signature
Writing a Resume
Resumes are summaries of an applicant’s professional and
educational background.
Views of Résumés
Résumés can be viewed in one of two ways: as a history of
your life or as an advertisement of your skills.

Characteristics of Effective
Résumés
The resume must be attractive and easy to read.
The resume cannot contain typing, spelling, grammatical, or
factual mistakes.
The resume should make the applicant look as qualified as
possible—without lying.
Types of Résumé
Chronological resumes
A chronological résumé lists your previous jobs in reverse
chronological order, starting with the most recent position
and moving backward.
Functional resume
A functional résumé organizes your qualifications and skills
by function or skill sets, rather than by the order in which
you worked in different positions.
Psychological resume
A psychological résumé combines elements of both
chronological and functional résumés. It is structured to
make a psychological impact on the reader.
 LESSON 5

EMPLOYEE SELECTION:
REFERENCES AND TESTING
 Predicting Performance Using
References and Letters of
Recommendation
A reference check is the process of confirming the accuracy of information provided by
an applicant.

A reference is the expression of an opinion, either orally or through a written checklist,

regarding an applicant’s ability, previous performance, work habits, character, or
potential for future success.

A letter of recommendation is a letter expressing an opinion regarding an applicant’s

ability, previous performance, work habits, character, or potential for future success. The
content and format of a letter of recommendation are determined by the letter writer.
 Reasons for Using References
and Recommendations
Confirming Details on a Résumé

Resume fraud—lying on their résumés about what experience or education they

actually have.

Checking for Discipline Problems

A second reason to check references or obtain letters of recommendation is to

determine whether the applicant has a history of such discipline problems as poor
attendance, sexual harassment, and violence. Such a history is important for an
organization to discover to avoid future problems as well as to protect itself from a
potential charge of negligent hiring.
Discovering New Information
About the Applicant
Employers use a variety of methods to understand the personality and skills of job
applicants; references and letters of recommendation certainly can be two of these
methods.

Predicting Future Performance

Leniency. Research is clear that most letters of recommendation are positive: Fewer
than 1% of references rate applicants as below average or poor “applicants choose
their own references”.
Knowledge of the Applicant. A second problem with letters of recommendation is that
the person writing the letter often does not know the applicant well, has no to
observed all aspects of an applicant’s behavior, or both.
Reliability. The third problem with references and letters of recommendation involves
the lack of agreement between two people who provide references for the same
person.
Extraneous Factors. The fourth problem with letters of recommendation concerns
extraneous factors that affect their writing and evaluation.
Ethical Issues
Because providing references and letters of
recommendation is a rather subjective process,
several ethical problems can arise involving
their use.
First, explicitly state your relationship with the
person you are recommending.
Second, be honest in providing details.
Let the applicant see your reference before
sending it and give him the chance to
decline to use it.
Predicting Performance Using
Applicant Training and
Education
For many jobs, it is common that applicants must have a minimum level of education or
training to be considered.

Cognitive ability
Cognitive ability tests
Perceptual ability
Psychomotor ability
Physical ability tests
dynamic strength (strength requiring repetitions)
trunk strength (stooping or bending over)
explosive strength (jumping or throwing objects)
static strength (strength not requiring repetitions)
dynamic flexibility (speed of bending, stretching, twisting)
extent flexibility (degree of bending, stretching, twisting)
gross body equilibrium (balance)
gross body coordination (coordination when body is in motion)
 Though few people would disagree that it is better for
Job Relatedness a police officer to be strong and fit than weak and
out of shape, many argue whether it is necessary to
be physically fit.
 A second problem with physical ability tests is
determining passing scores; that is, how fast must
Passing Scores an applicant run or how much weight must be lifted
to pass a physical ability test? Passing scores for
physical ability tests are set based on one of two
types of standards: relative or absolute.
When the Ability A third problem with physical ability requirements is
the point at which the ability must be present.
Must Be Present
 Predicting Performance Using
Applicant Skill
Rather than measuring an applicant’s current knowledge or potential to perform a job
(ability), some selection techniques measure the extent to which an applicant already
has a job-related skill.

Work Samples
Assessment Centers

An assessment center is a selection technique characterized by the use of multiple

assessment methods that allow `multiple assessors to actually observe applicants
perform simulated job tasks.
Development and
Component
Although many different techniques may be
used in assessment centers, the basic
development and types of exercises are fairly
standard. The first step in creating an
assessment center is, of course, to do a job
analysis.
Simulations

Simulation exercises are the real backbone of

the assessment center because they enable
assessors to see an applicant “in action.
Work Samples

Usually, when a simulation does not involve a

situational exercise, it is called a work sample
Leaderless Group
Discussions

In this exercise, applicants meet in small groups

and are given a job-related problem to solve or
a job-related issue to discuss.
Business Games

Business games are exercises that allow the

applicant to demonstrate such attributes as
creativity, decision making, and ability to work
with others.
Evaluation of Assessment Centers
Even though an assessment center may be excellent in predicting certain
aspects of employee behavior, other, less expensive methods may be as good if
not better.

Experience Ratings
Biodata
 Development of a Biodata Instrument

FILE APPROACH, we obtain information from personnel files on employees’

previous employment, education, interests, and demographics.

QUESTIONNAIRE APPROACH is that information cannot be obtained from

employees who have quit or been fired.
Criterion
Vertical Percentage Method
Derivation Sample
 Criticisms of Biodata

First holds that the validity of biodata may not be stable—that is, its ability
to predict employee behavior decreases with time.

Second criticism is that some biodata items may not meet the legal
requirements stated in the federal Uniform Guidelines, which establish fair
hiring methods. Of greatest concern is that certain biodata items might
lead to racial or sexual discrimination.
Predicting Performance Using Personality,
Interest, and Character

Personality inventories are becoming increasingly popular as an employee

selection method, in part because they predict performance better than was
once thought, and in part because they result in less adverse impact than do
ability tests.
 Tests of Normal Personality

Tests of normal personality measure the traits exhibited by normal individuals

in everyday life.

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), Popularly known as the

“Big Five” or the five-factor model, these dimensions are:
openness to experience ( 7 bright, inquisitive),
conscientiousness (reliable, dependable),
extraversion (outgoing, friendly),
agreeableness (works well with others, a team player), and
emotional stability (not anxious, tense).
Tests of
Psychopathology
Tests of psychopathology (abnormal
behavior) determine whether
individuals have serious psychological
problems such as depression, bipolar
disorder, and schizophrenia.
Projective tests
Rorschach Ink Blot Test
Thematic Apperception Test
(TAT).
Interest Inventories
The most commonly used interest
inventory is the Strong Interest
Inventory (SII) ,which asks individuals
to indicate whether they like or dislike
325 items such as bargaining,
repairing electrical wiring, and taking
responsibility.
Integrity Tests
Personality-based integrity tests
Conditional
Reasoning Tests
Conditional reasoning tests were
initially developed by James
(1998) to reduce these inaccurate
responses and get a more
accurate picture of a person’s
tendency to engage in aggressive
or counterproductive behavior.
Graphology
An interesting method to select
employees is handwriting analysis.
Predicting Performance Limitations Due to
Medical and Psychological Problems

Drug Testing
Psychological Exams
Medical Exams
Rejecting Applicants
What is the best way to reject an applicant? The most
interesting is to give them rejection letter.
Send rejection letters to applicants
Don’t send the rejection letter immediately
Don’t send the rejection letter immediately
Do not include the name of a contact person
Information needs to include on
the letter
A personally addressed and signed letter
The company’s appreciation to the applicant for applying for a
position with the company
A compliment about the applicant’s qualifications
A comment about the high qualifications possessed by the
other applicants
Information about the individual who was actually hired
A wish of good luck in future endeavors
A promise to keep the applicant’s resume on file