Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
Chapter Six: Selecting Employees and Placing
Them in Jobs
Welcome to your guide to teaching Chapter Six, Selecting Employees and
Placing Them in Jobs!
This guide will provide you with a chapter summary, learning objectives, lecture
outlines, solutions to in-chapter case questions and end of chapter discussion questions
and possible responses.
Chapter Six Roadmap
We hope you find each chapter of your Instructor Manual practical and useful, but also,
exciting! You can adapt the chapter text, the PowerPoints, and the video to work in an online
class environment, a guided independent study environment, or a face to face or on-ground
environment.
When presenting Chapter Six, have the students first read the chapter and encourage
them to absorb the “big picture” of Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs.
Use the PowerPoint for Chapter Six to frame your lecture.
Have students read and discuss the Cases and their respective Questions.
Have students validate their knowledge of the chapter by working through the
Discussion Questions at the end of the Chapter.
Lastly, have students review, journal, or discuss the Key Vocabulary Terms at the end of
the chapter. ROADMAP: THE LECTURE
SELECTING EMPLOYEES AND PLACING THEM IN JOBS
Chapter Summary
This chapter explores ways to minimize errors in employee selection and placement. It starts by
describing the selection process and how to evaluate possible methods for carrying out that
process. The chapter then takes an in-depth look at the most widely used methods such as
applications and résumés, employment tests and interviews. The chapter ends by describing
the process by which organizations arrive at a final selection decision.
Learning Objectives
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
After studying this chapter, the student should be able to:
1. Identify the elements of the selection process.
2. Define ways to measure the success of a selection method.
3. Summarize the government’s requirements for employee selection.
4. Compare the common methods used for selecting human resources.
5. Describe major types of employment tests.
6. Discuss how to conduct effective interviews.
7. Explain how employers carry out the process of making a selection decision.
I. Introduction
This opening chapter vignette looks at the new Hiring Our Heroes program designed by
the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as a way to support our returning military veterans.
Hiring returning veterans is a tangible way to support our troops but some companies are
finding some challenges with hiring veterans. One hurdle is the fear of dealing with post-
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Another issue is the assumption that the military has
made veterans uncreative even though evidence indicates the opposite. A third
challenge is for employers to be able to understand how the work the veteran did in the
military is tied to civilian work. To help overcome these hurdles the U. S. Army’s Warrior
Transition Command recently partnered with the Society of Human Resource
Management to create educational resources for employers.
Discussion Question and Suggested Response
1. What should employers consider when looking to hire veterans?
Employers should get educated on the real issues that veterans face when re-entering
the civilian work place. They should get educated on the facts versus myths regarding
issues of PTSD and how the military training can have a positive impact in the
workplace. Employers can gain new employees who have an solid work ethic, self-
discipline, and the ability to perform under pressure.
II. Selection Process
1. Personnel selection is the process through which organizations make decisions about
who will or will not be allowed to join the organization.
2. Selection begins with the candidates identified through recruitment and attempts to
reduce their number to the individuals best qualified to perform the available jobs.
3. Figure 6.1, Steps in the Selection Process, identifies the steps involved in the
selection process.
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
The steps in the selection process include:
a. Screening applications and résumés
A. Testing and reviewing work samples
B. Interviewing candidates
C. Checking references and background
D. Making the selection
4. Nowadays, the ease of applying online coupled with high unemployment rates of the past
few years have made this processing overwhelming for many recruiters. Many employers
are coping by automating much of the selection process with an applicant-tracking system.
a. In addition, selection should measure characteristics that have practical benefits
for the organization.
b. Selection criteria must meet legal requirements in effect where the organization
operates.
A. Reliability
1. Reliability refers to the extent to which a type of measurement is free from random
error.
2. A reliable measurement generates consistent results. Usually, information about the
reliability of tests involves statistics such as correlation coefficients. These statistics
measure the degree to which two sets of numbers are related. A higher correlation
coefficient signifies a stronger relationship.
B. Validity
1. Validity describes the extent to which performance on the measures, such as a test
score, is related to what the measure is designed to assess, such as job performance.
2. As with reliability, information about the validity of selection methods often uses
correlation coefficients.
3. The federal government’s Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures
accept three ways of measuring validity: criterion-related, content, and construct
validity.
4. Criterion-Related Validity: Criterion-related validity is a measure of validity based
on showing a substantial correlation between test scores and job performance scores.
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
5. Figure 6.2, Measurements of a Student’s Aptitude, presents information derived by
a company making a comparison of two measures – an intelligence test and college
grade point average – with performance as sales representative.
6. Two kinds of research are possible for arriving at criterion-related validity:
a. Predictive validation: This research uses the test scores of all applicants and
looks for a relationship between scores and future performance.
b. Concurrent validation: This type of research administers a test to people
who currently hold a job, and then compares their scores to existing measures of
job performance.
7. Predictive validation is more time consuming and difficult, but it is the best measure of
validity.
8. Content and Construct Validity: Content validity is consistency between the test
items or problems and the kinds of situations or problems that occur on the job. The
usual basis for deciding that a test has content validity is through expert judgment.
Content validity is most suitable for measuring behavior that is concrete and
observable. Construct validity involves establishing that tests really do measure
intelligence, leadership ability, or other such “constructs” as well as showing that
mastery of this construct is associated with successful performance of the job. Tests
that measure a construct usually measure a combination of behaviors thought to be
associated with the construct.
C. Ability to Generalize
1. Along with validity in general, we need to know whether a selection method is valid in
the context in which the organization wants to use it.
2. A generalizable method applies not only to the conditions in which the method was
originally developed – job, organization, people, time period, and so on, it also
applies to other organizations, jobs, applicants, and so on.
D. Practical Value
1. Not only should selection methods such as tests and interview responses accurately
predict how well individuals will perform, they should produce information that actually
benefits the organization. Methods that provide economic value greater than the cost
of using them are said to have utility.
2. The choice of a selection method may differ according to the job being filled.
Did You Know?
Selection Decisions Affect the Bottom Line
A CareerBuilder survey said that 66% of U.S. employers had experienced negative
consequences as a result of making a “bad hire” or one who didn’t fit well with their company.
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
The biggest consequence was poor productively and the poor hiring decision cost the company
up to $50,000.
Discussion Question with Possible Response
1. Do the results of this survey indicate that U. S. Companies should spend up to
$50,000 to select an employee for every vacant position? Why or why not?
Answers will vary. Students should consider that the cost of hiring does not necessarily equate
to a “good hire.” What helps to make a good hiring decision is the process of learning about the
applicant. There is not a direct correlation between the money spent on the hiring process and
the outcome of a good hire. However, companies do not want to continue to lose productively
and dollars by making poor hiring decisions. The bottom line is that companies need to develop
effective hiring and selection strategies to make the best deicisons.
E. Legal Standards for Selection
1. The U.S. government imposes legal limits on selection decisions. The government
requires that the selection process be conducted in a way that avoids discrimination
and provides access to employees with disabilities.
2. The following laws have many applications to the selection process:
a. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 – places requirements on the choices of selection
methods and prohibits preferential treatment in favor of minority groups.
b. Equal Employment Opportunity Laws – affect the kinds of information an
organization may gather on application forms and in interviews.
c. The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1991 – requires employers to make
reasonable accommodation to disabled individuals and restricts many kinds of
questions during the selection process.
3. Table 6.1 identifies questions that are permissible and questions that are not
permissible to ask via applications or interview.
4. Along with equal employment opportunity, organizations must be concerned about
candidates’ privacy rights.
5. Another legal requirement is that employers hiring people to work in the United States
must ensure that anyone they hire is eligible for employment in this country.
6. An important principle of selection is to combine several sources of information about
candidates rather than relying solely on interviews or a single type of testing.
III. Job Applications and Résumés
1. The usual ways of gathering background information are by asking applicants to fill out
application forms and provide résumés.
1. Asking applicants to provide background information is inexpensive.
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whole or part.
Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
2. A major challenge with applications and resumes is the sheer volume of work they
generate for the organization.
A. Application Forms
1. Asking each applicant to fill out an employment application is a low-cost way to
gather basic data from many applicants.
2. Employers can buy general-purpose application forms or they can create their own
forms to meet unique needs. (See Figure 6.3 for Sample Job Applications)
Employment applications include areas for applicants to provide several types of
information:
a. Contact information
b. Work experience
c. Educational background
d. Applicant’s signature
B.Résumés
1. The usual way that applicants introduce themselves to a potential employer is to
submit a résumé. An obvious drawback of this information source is that applicants
control the content of the information as well as the way it is presented.
2. Organizations typically use résumés as a basis for deciding which candidates to
investigate further.
3. Review of résumés is most valid when the content of the résumés is evaluated in
terms of the elements of a job description.
C.References
1. Applicants provide the names and phone numbers of former employers or others
who can vouch for their abilities and past job performance.
2. References are not always an unbiased source of information.
3. Usually the organization checks references after it has determined that the applicant
is a finalist for the job.
4. Difficulties can be associated with providing references for former employees. If the
person who is a reference gives negative information, there is a chance the
candidate will claim defamation, meaning the person damaged the applicant’s
reputation by making statements than cannot be proved truthful. At the other
extreme, if the person gives a glowing statement about a candidate and the new
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
employer later learns of misdeeds such as sexual misconduct or workplace
violence, the new employer might sue the former employer for misrepresentation.
D.Background Checks
1. A background check is a way to verify that applicants are as they represent
themselves to be.
2. Verifying credentials and conducting background checks is more complicated when
candidates are not U.S. citizens.
IV. Employment Tests and Work Samples
1. When the organization has identified candidates whose applications or résumés
indicate they meet basic requirements, the organization continues the selection
process with this narrower pool of candidates. Often the next step is to gather
objective data through one or more employment tests. These tests fall into two broad
categories:
a. Aptitude tests: assess how well a person can learn or acquire skills and abilities.
b. Achievement tests: measure a person’s existing knowledge and skills.
2. Other types of employment tests utilized by organizations include: (1) Employment
tests may assess general abilities such as physical strength or specific skills such as
keyboarding speed, (2) Personality tests find applicants who have personality traits
associated with successful job performance, (3) Integrity tests help weed out dishonest
candidates, and (4) Drug testing and medical examinations try to ensure that
candidates meet physical job requirements and will not be impaired on the job.
3. Table 6.2 identifies several sources of information about employment tests.
A. Physical Ability Tests
1. Physical strength and endurance play less of a role in the modern workplace than in
the past thanks to the use of automation and modern technology. When these
abilities are essential to job performance or avoidance of injury, the organization
may use physical ability tests.
2. Physical ability tests evaluate one or more of the following areas of physical ability:
muscular tension, muscular power, muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance,
flexibility, balance, and coordination.
1. Physical ability tests tend to exclude women and people with disabilities. As a result,
they can leave an organization vulnerable to charges of discrimination.
B. Cognitive Ability Tests
1. Cognitive ability tests – sometimes called intelligence tests – are designed to
measure such mental abilities as verbal skills (skill in using written and spoken
language), quantitative skills (skill in working with numbers), and reasoning ability
(skill in thinking through the answer to a problem).
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
2. These tests are especially valid for complex jobs and for those requiring adaptability
in changing circumstances.
3. Concern over legal issues arises with the use of these tests. Race norming is
establishing different norms for hiring members of different racial groups. Banding
is one solution to the problem. This concept treats a range of scores as being
similar.
C. Job Performance Tests and Work Samples
1. To evaluate candidates for certain jobs, the organization may administer tests of the
necessary skills. Sometimes candidates take tests that involve a sample of work or
they may show existing samples of their work.
2. Examples of job performance tests include tests of keyboarding speed and in-basket
tests. An in-basket test measures the ability to juggle a variety of demands, as in a
manager’s job. Examples of jobs for which candidates provide work samples
include graphic designers and writers.
3. Tests for selecting managers may take the form of an assessment center – a wide
variety of specific selection programs that use multiple selection methods to rate
applicants or job incumbents on their management potential.
4. Job performance tests have the advantage of being job specific – that is, tailored to
the kind of work done in a specific job. They can become disadvantages if the
organization wants to generalize the results of a test for one job to candidates for
other jobs. These tests can be expensive.
D. Personality Inventories
1. Employers may want to know about candidates’ personalities. Table 6.3 identifies
five major personality dimensions that are measured by personality inventories.
2. However, high scores are less than ideal for some traits in some situations. For
example, the best performers often score in the middle of the range on emotional
stability.
3. The usual way to identify a candidate’s personality traits is to administer one of the
personality tests that are commercially available. Administration of these tests is
simple and the tests have generally not violated equal opportunity employment
requirements.
E. Honesty Tests and Drug Tests
1. The most famous kind of honesty test is the polygraph or the so-called “lie detector”
test. In 1988, the passage of the Polygraph Act banned the use of polygraphs for
screening job candidates. As a result, testing services have developed paper-and-
pencil honesty (integrity) tests.
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
2. As concerns about substance abuse have grown during recent decades, so has the
use of drug testing.
3. Drug tests are controversial for several reasons: (1) invasion of individual’s privacy,
(2) unreasonable search and seizure, and (3) violation of due process.
4. Employers considering the use of drug tests should ensure that their drug-testing
programs conform to some general rules such as:
c. The tests should be administered systematically to all applicants for the same
job.
b. Testing seems most defensible for jobs that involve safety hazards when not
performed properly.
c. The applicant should receive a report of the test results and should know how to
appeal those results.
d. The organization should respect the applicants’ privacy by conducting tests in an
environment that is not intrusive and by keeping the test results confidential.
5. Even at an organization with the best practices, employers have to keep in mind
that drug testing will not uncover all problems with impairment.
F. Medical Examinations
1. Especially for physically demanding jobs, organizations may wish to conduct
medical examinations to see that the applicant can meet the job’s requirements.
2. Medical exams must be related to job requirements and may not be given until the
candidate has received a job offer.
V. Interviews
1. Interviews bring together job applicants and representatives of the employer to obtain
information and evaluate the applicant’s qualifications.
2. This method is part of the selection process and is used more than any other.
A. Interviewing Techniques
1. Interviews may be nondirective or structured. Nondirective interview: the
interviewer has great discretion in choosing questions to ask each candidate.
Interviews of this type do not have great reliability. Structured interview: uses a set
of established questions for the interviewer to ask.
2. Some of the best results of interviewing come from the use of situational interviews
– a type of structured interview in which the interviewer describes a situation likely to
arise on the job then asks the candidate what he or she would do in that situation.
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
3. Situational interviews have been shown to have high validity in predicting job
performance. A variation is the behavior description interview (BDI). In this type of
interview the interviewer asks the candidate to describe how she or he handled a type
of situation in the past.
4. The common setup for either a non-directed or structured interview is for an individual
(an HR professional or the supervisor for the vacant position) to interview each
candidate face to face.
5. Variations to the face-to-face interview include:
a. Panel interview – several members of the organization meet to interview each
candidate – especially appropriate in organizations that use teamwork.
b. Computerized interviews – no human interviewers involved – candidate
responds to questions presented by the computer – useful for gathering
objective data rather than assessing people.
c. For suggestions on how to apply these techniques to conduct effective job
interviews, see “HR How To.”
B. Advantages and Disadvantages of Interviewing
1. Advantages include: (1) talking face to face can provide evidence of communication
and interpersonal skills, and (2) gain insight into candidates’ personality and
interpersonal style
2. Disadvantages include: (1) can be unreliable, (2) low on validity, (3) can be biased
against a number of different groups, (4) costly, and (5) subjective.
3. Organizations can avoid some of the pitfalls of interviewing by keeping the interviews
narrow, structured, and standardized.
C. Preparing to Interview
1. A well-planned interview should be standardized, comfortable for the participants, and
focused on the job and the organization.
2. The interviewer should: (1) have a quiet place in which to conduct the interview
without interruption, (2) be trained in how to ask objective questions, (3) be aware of
what subject matter to avoid, (4) know how to detect and handle personal biases or
other distractions from fairly evaluating candidates, and (5) have enough documents
to conduct a complete interview including organizational information, if at all possible.
VI. Selection Decisions
The selection decision typically combines ranking based on objective criteria along with
subjective judgments about which candidate will make the greatest contribution.
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Chapter 06 – Selecting Employees and Placing Them in Jobs
A. How Organizations Select Employees
1. The people making the selection decision should look for the best fit between
candidate and position.
2. The usual process for arriving at a selection decision is to gradually narrow the pool
of candidates for each job. This approach is called the multiple-hurdle model.
3. In an alternative approach, a compensatory model is used. This is the process of
arriving at a selection decision in which a very high score on one type of
assessment can make up for a low score on another.
4. Organizations have choices about who will make the decision. Usually a supervisor
makes the final decision, often alone. The decision could be made by a human
resource professional using standardized, objective criteria. A work team or other
panel of decision makers may make selection decisions.
B. Communicating the Decision
1. The human resource department is often responsible for notifying applicants about
the results of the selection process.
2. The person who communicates this decision should keep accurate records of who
was contacted, when, and for which position, as well as of the candidate’s reply.
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