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PART TWO STAFFING: WORKFORCE PLANNING AND EMPLOYMENT
C H A P T E R
T S i x
Selecting Employees
6
Lecture Outline
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I. The Basics of Testing and Selecting Employees
A. Why Careful Selection Is Important
B. Legal and Negligent Hiring
C. Reliability
D. Validity
E. How to Validate a Test
II. Types of Tests
A. Tests of Cognitive Abilities
B. Tests of Motor and Physical Abilities
C. Measuring Personality
D. Achievement Tests
E. Computerized and Online Testing
F. Improving Performance through HRIS
G. Work Samples and Simulations
H. Situational Judgment Tests
I. Management Assessment Centers
J. Value-Based Situational Testing
K. The Miniature Job Training and Evaluation
Approach
L. Computerized Multimedia Candidate Assessment
Tools
III. Interviewing Candidates
A. Types of Selection Interviews
B. Diversity Counts
C. How to Avoid Common Interviewing Mistakes
D. Using Competencies Models and Profiles in
Employee Interviews
IV. Using Other Selection Techniques
A. Background Investigations and Reference
Checks
B. Honesty Testing
G. Tapping Friends and Acquaintances
H. Making the Selection Decision
I. Complying with Immigration Law
J. Developing and Extending the Job Offer
V. Employee Engagement Guide for Managers
A. Building Engagement: A Total Selection Program
B. The Toyota Way
In Brief: This chapter gives an
overview of the selection process,
testing concepts, types of tests, and
selection techniques. It also addresses
the factors that can undermine an
interview’s usefulness, background
checks, and how to develop and
extend a job offer.
Interesting Issues: Reference
checking is part of the care an
employer must take to ensure that the
potential employee will not pose a
threat to current employees or
customers. Employers who fail to
exercise “due diligence” in checking a
job candidate’s background may find
themselves legally liable if the
candidate is hired and subsequently
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I. The Basics of Testing and Selecting Employees
A. Why Careful Selection Is Important — Selecting the right employees is
important for four main reasons. 1) improved employee and
organizational performance; 2) your own performance depends partly on
your subordinates; 3) screening helps reduce dysfunctional behaviors at
work; and 4) it is costly to recruit and hire.
B. Legal and Negligent Hiring — Violating discrimination laws is one legal
implicaiton of selection. Negligent hiring is hiring workers with criminal
records or other such problems without proper safeguards.
C. Reliability — Refers to the consistency of scores obtained by the same
person when retested with identical or equivalent tests.
D. Validity — Refers to evidence that performance on a test is a valid
predictor of subsequent performance on the job. It answers the question,
“Does this test measure what it’s supposed to measure?”
2. Content validity shows that the test contains a fair sample of the
tasks and skills actually needed for the job in question.
E. How to Validate a Test (See Figure 6.2)
Step 1: Analyze the job and write job descriptions and job specifications.
Step 2: Choose the tests that measure the attributes (predictors)
important for job success.
Step 3: Administer the test selected to old or new employees for
concurrent and predictive validation.
II. Types of Tests
A. Tests of Cognitive Abilities — Cognitive tests include tests of general
reasoning ability (intelligence) and tests of specific mental abilities like
memory and inductive reasoning. Intelligence tests are tests of general
intellectual abilities, ranging from memory, vocabulary, and verbal
fluency to numerical ability. Specific cognitive abilities (aptitude) tests
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include inductive and deductive reasoning, verbal comprehension,
memory, and numerical ability.
B. Tests of Motor and Physical Abilities — Employers may use various tests
to measure such motor abilities as finger dexterity, strength, and manual
C. Measuring Personality — Can be used to assess personal
characteristics such as attitude, motivation, and temperament.
1. Interest Inventories — Compare one’s interests with those of people
in various occupations.
2. Personality Test Effectiveness — Industrial psychologists emphasize
five personality dimensions as they apply to personnel testing:
D. Achievement Tests — Measure what a person has learned.
E. Computerized and Online Testing is increasingly replacing pencil-and-
paper and manual tests.
F. Improving Performance through HRIS — Data analyitics is using new
number-crunching software to dig through (“mine”) existing employee
G. Work samples and simulations — Focus on measuring job performance
directly.
H. Situational Judgment Tests — Personnel tests “designed to assess an
applicant’s judgment regarding a situation encountered in the
workplace.”
I. Management Assessment Centers — Provide simulations in which
candidates perform realistic management tasks under the observation of
J. Video-based Situational Testing — Presents examinees with scenarios
representative of the job, each followed by a multiple-choice question.
K. The Miniature Job Training and Evaluation Approach — A selection
procedure in which the employer trains candidates to perform a sample
of the job’s tasks, and then evaluates their performance.
L. Computerized Mulitmedia Candidate Assessment Tools — Using
multimedia to design a work sample test.
III. Interviewing Candidates
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A. Types of Selection Interviews
1. Structure — Structured or directed interview. Acceptable answers
2. Type of Questions — Interviews can be classified according to the
3. How to Administer — One-on-one where two people meet alone and
one interviews the other by seeking oral responses to oral inquiries.
Sequential interviews occur when several interviewers question the
4. A computerized selection interview is one in which a candidate’s oral
and/or keyed replies are obtained in response to computerized oral,
visual, or written questions and/or situations.
B. Diversity Counts — Bias Against Working Mothers — Some managers
may view working mothers negatively.
C. How Useful Are Interviews? — Studies confirm that the validity of
interviews is greater than previously thought. Structured, situational, one-
D. How to Avoid Common Interviewing Mistakes
1. Snap judgments — One of the most consistent findings is that
2. Negative emphasis — Interviewers tend to have a consistent
3. Not knowing the job — Interviewers who don’t know precisely what
4. Pressure to hire — Pressure to hire can undermine an interview’s
usefulness.
6. Influence of nonverbal behavior — Can have a surprisingly large
impact on an applicant’s rating. Inexperienced interviewers may try
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E. Drug Screening
Because drug abuse is a serious problem for employers, it is common
practice for most employers to conduct drug screening just before
employees are formally hired.
1. Problems — Drug testing does not always correlate closely with
actual impairment levels.
F. Realistic Job Previews — Being explicit about work schedules,
preferences, and other job standards at the point of interview can help
reduce turnover later.
G. Tapping Friends and Acquaintances — Don’t ignore the opinions of
people you trust who have direct personal knowledge of the candidate.
H. Making the Selection Decision — You may use one predictor such as a test
score, you may use an intuitive (clinical) approach, a mechanical
(mathematical) approach, or a combined approach.
I. Complying with Immigration Law — Under the Immigration Reform and
Control Act of 1986, prospective employees must prove they are eligible
to work in the United States.
1. How to comply — Employers must have new employees complete
J. Improving Performance through HRIS
1. Comprehensive applicant tracking and screening systems — Can be
used to screen out applicants that do not meet minimum,
nonnegotiable job requirements.
K. Developing and Extending the Job Offer — The employer must
V. Employee Engagement Guide for Managers
A. Building engagement: A total selection program — A manager should
formulate several behavioral and/or situational questions to determine if
a candidate has the traits to become an engaged employee. A total
selection program is aimed at selecting candidates whose totality of
attributes best fits the employer’s total requirements.
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Interview
A procedure designed to solicit information from a person’s
oral responses to oral inquiries. A selection interview is a
selection procedure designed to predict future job
performance on the basis of applicants’ oral responses to
oral inquiries.
Structured situational
interview
A series of job-relevant questions with predetermined
answers that interviewers ask of all applicants for the job.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
6-1. Explain what is meant by reliability and validity. What is the difference between
them? In what respects are they similar? (LO 6.1: Define basic testing concepts,
6-2. Discuss at least four basic types of personnel tests. (LO 6.2: Discuss at least four
6-3. Explain the shortcomings of background investigations, reference checks, and
preemployment information services, and how to overcome them. (LO 6.4: Explain
how to do background checks on job candidates.) First, whichever approach you use,
6-4. For what sorts of jobs do you think computerized interviews are most appropriate?
Why? (LO 6.2: Discuss at least four basic types of personnel tests.) This item can be
6-5. Briefly discuss and give examples of several common interviewing mistakes. What
recommendations would you give for avoiding these interviewing mistakes? (LO
6.3: Explain the factors and problems that can undermine an interview’s usefulness and
the techniques for eliminating them.)
Snap judgments: This is where the interviewer jumps to a conclusion about the candidate
during the first few minutes of the interview. Using a structured interview is one way to
help avoid this, as well as properly training the interviewers.
Copyright © 2019 Pearson Education, Inc.
explain why you chose each selection technique. (LO 6.2: Discuss at least four basic
types of personnel tests.) The students should use the selection information presented in
the chapter to list their selection techniques of choice with their supporting rationale.
6-10. Working individually or in groups, contact the publisher of a standardized test
such as the Scholastic Assessment Test and obtain from them written information
regarding the test’s validity and reliability. Present a short report in class
discussing what the test is supposed to measure and the degree to which you
think the test does what it is supposed to do, based on the reported validity and
reliability scores. (LO 6.1: Define basic testing concepts, including validity and
6-11. Give a short presentation entitled “How to Be Effective as an Interviewer.” ? (LO
6.3: Explain the factors and problems that can undermine an interview’s usefulness and
the techniques for eliminating them.) First, it is important to carefully choose the type of
interview to conduct. It is best to choose the type based on evidence of its effectiveness
6-12. Write a short essay discussing some of the ethical and legal considerations in
testing. (LO 6.1: Define basic testing concepts, including validity and reliability.) State
6-13. Give some examples of how interest inventories could be used to improve
employee selection. In doing so, suggest several examples of occupational
interests that you believe might predict success in various occupations, including
college professor, accountant, and computer programmer. (LO 6.2: Discuss at least
four basic types of personnel tests.) Interest inventories can improve employee selection
6-14. For this activity, you will need the documents titled (1) “HRCI PHR® and SPHR®
Certification body of Knowledge” and (2) “About the Society for Human Resource
Management (SHRM) Body of Competency and KnowledgeTM Model and
Certification Exams.” Your instructor can obtain these documents from the
Pearson Instructor Resource Center and pass them on to you. These documents
list the knowledge someone studying for the HRCI or SHRM certification exam
needs to have in each area of human resource management (such as in Strategic
Management and Workforce Planning). In groups of several students, do four
things: (1) review the HRCI and/or SHRM documents; (2) identify the material in
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this chapter that relates to the required knowledge the appendix lists; (3) write four
multiple-choice exam questions on this material that you believe would be suitable
for inclusion in the HRCI exam; and (4) if time permits, have someone from your
team post your team’s questions in front of the class, so the students in other
teams can take each other’s exam questions. (Covers all learning objectives) The
Students can find the following assisted-graded writing questions at
6-15. Explain the factors and problems that can undermine an interview’s usefulness
and techniques for eliminating them. (LO 6.3: Explain the factors and problems that
6-16. Why is it important to conduct preemployment background investigations? How
would you go about doing so? (LO 6.4: Explain how to do background checks on job
candidates.)
HR in Action Case Incident 1: Ethics and the Out-of-Control Interview
6-17. How would you explain the nature of the panel interview Maria had to endure?
Specifically, do you think it reflected a well-thought-out interviewing strategy on
the part of the firm or carelessness (or worse) on the part of the firm’s
management? If it was carelessness, what would you do to improve the interview
process at Apex Environmental? (LO 6.3: Explain the factors and problems that can
6-18. Do you consider the managers’ treatment of Maria ethical? Why? If not, what
specific steps would you take to make sure the interview process is ethical from
now on? (LO 6.3: Explain the factors and problems that can undermine an interview’s
6-19. Would you take the job offer if you were Maria? If you’re not sure, is there any
additional information that would help you make your decision, and if so, what is
it? Students’ answers will vary. Many students would want to know if the interview was
6-20. The job of applications engineer for which Maria was applying requires (a)
excellent technical skills with respect to mechanical engineering, (b) a commitment
APPLICATION EXERCISES
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to working in the area of pollution control, (c) the ability to deal well and
confidently with customers who have engineering problems, (d) a willingness to
travel worldwide, and (e) a very intelligent and well-balanced personality. List 10
questions you would ask when interviewing applicants for the job. (LO 6.3: Explain
HR in Action Case Incident 2: Honesty Testing at Carter Cleaning Company
6-21. What would be the advantages and disadvantages to Jennifer’s company of
routinely administering honesty tests to all its employees? (LO 6.2: Discuss at least
6-22. Specifically, what other screening techniques could the company use to screen
out theft-prone employees, and how exactly could these be used? (LO 6.4: Explain
6-23. How should her company terminate employees caught stealing, and what kind of
procedure should be set up for handling reference calls about these employees
when they go to other companies looking for jobs? (LO 6.4: Explain how to do
background checks on job candidates.) Terminating employees for theft should include
Experiential Exercise: The Most Important Person You’ll Ever Hire
Purpose: The purpose of this exercise is to give you practice using some of the interview
techniques you learned from this chapter.
Required Understanding: You should be familiar with the information presented in this chapter
and read this:
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How to Set Up the Exercise:
6-24. Set up groups of five or six students. Two students will be the interviewees, while
6-25. Instructions for the interviewees: The interviewees should leave the room for about
20 minutes. While out of the room, the interviewees should develop an interviewer
assessment form based on the information presented in this chapter regarding
factors that can undermine the usefulness of an interview. During the panel
interview, the interviewees should assess the interviewers using the interviewer
assessment form. After the panel interviewers have conducted the interview, the
interviewees should leave the room to discuss their notes. Did the interviewers
exhibit any of the factors that can undermine the usefulness of an interview? If so,
which ones? What suggestions would you (the interviewees) make to the
interviewers on how to improve the usefulness of the interview?
6-26. Instructions for the interviewers: While the interviewees are out of the room, the
panel interviewers will have 20 minutes to develop a short, structured situational
interview form for a nanny. The panel interview team will interview two candidates
for the position. During the panel interview, each interviewer should be taking
notes on a copy of the structured situational interview form. After the panel
interview, the panel interviewers should discuss their notes. What were your first
impressions of each interviewee? Were your impressions similar? Which
candidate would you all select for the position and why? (LO 6.3: Explain the factors
and problems that can undermine an interview’s usefulness and the techniques for
eliminating them.)
1. Describe in one page or less with examples how you would use www.secondlife.com
to help orient or train employees in your company. The Web site Secondlife.com is an
2. Use sites such as www.HRDQ.com to list three programs you could use to develop a
project management training program for a company. Project management is the
3. Based on http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/index.html, how would you use Cisco
products to build a worldwide training program for employees in a company? Cisco
WEB-e’s (Web exercises)
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1. Use the Internet to find employers who now do preliminary selection interviews via the
Web. Print out and bring examples to class. Do you think these interviews are useful?
Why or why not? How would you improve them? (LO 6.2: Discuss at least four basic
2. In groups, discuss and compile examples of “the worst interview I ever had.” What
was it about these interviews that made them so bad? If time permits, discuss as a
class. ? (LO 6.3: Explain the factors and problems that can undermine an interview’s
3. In groups, prepare an interview (including a sequence of at least 20 questions) you’ll
use to interview candidates for a job teaching a course in Human Resources
Management. Each group should present theirs in class. (LO 6.3: Explain the factors and
ADDITIONAL ASSIGNMENTS