mgmt 441 staffing prof. howard miller. staffing function among several human resource functions ...

Mgmt 441 Staffing

Prof. Howard Miller

Staffing Function

Among several human resource functions

Benefits Compensation Safety Labor Relations Training

Staffing . . .

Involves getting people in, or out, of a company

We’ll concentrate on the “getting people in” part

Staffing has 2 main purposes

“Get the best talent” for the firm at the price we can offer

Conform to national, state and local regulations concerning staffing practice, or in short “keep it legal”

How to Staff?

Derive “demand for labor” Update job requirement information Identify knowledge, skills and

abilities required for success on job Develop measures of job-related

KSA’s Recruit from relevant labor markets Screen using “valid” tests Make offer, provide orientation to

accepts

Staffing Project Steps

Choose job to study Find real setting to perform job analysis Perform job analysis Develop job description, job specification Find/develop tests to measure job

specifications Identify “Relevant” labor markets Define recruiting methods Spell out hiring process to client in full

detail

What do you mean “valid test”?* Note importance of Supreme Court

case Watson v. Ft Worth Bank and Trust

(1988) Supreme court states (paraphrasing): “A test is any hurdle you have to clear

to get a job” - especially important for interviewing, which was at core of case

* A “valid test” is a hurdle that allows better talent to get over, while lesser talent is screened out

How do we establish if a test is “valid” Note importance of “The Uniform

Guidelines for Employee Selection Procedures” (1978) Uniform Guidelines link

Three methods recognized by courts – “Content validation”

“Criterion-related validation” “Construct validation”

The logic of hiring validity illustrated Consider classic payoff matrix, which we’ll

label “selection decision matrix” in our setting.

Good decisions result when applicants who will succeed are hired (“true positive”), and applicants who will not succeed are rejected (“true negative”)

Bad decisions involve rejecting people who will work out (“false negative), and accepting those who don’t work out (“false positive”)

Selection Decision Matrix

Content validation …

A logical analysis by subject matter experts (SME’s) of the overlap between the content of screening tests and the content of job requirements

Note the deceptive simplicity of the requirements for a typist at the university

Criterion-related validation The main way it’s done 2 types: Predictive Validation and

Concurrent Validation

Predictive uses test data from applicants, and job performance data from those hired

Concurrent uses both test and performance data from current employees

Construct Validation . . .

More complex than the other two

One has to show that measures of applicant traits and job performance really measure those things (Classic construct validation)

AND then show trait measures correlate with job performance measures

the vast majority of the time

we’ll be referring to “concurrent, criterion-related validity evidence” because of it’s overwhelming use

Valid tests mean lower error rates in hiring decisions More true positives and negatives Fewer false positives and negatives Lower exposure to successful

litigation Higher “utility” of the staffing

function

Research on validity tells us what works!

Find tests that are shown to be valid

How is this done?

Within the “concurrent, criterion-related validation” approach, it means showing a significant correlation between test scores and job performance scores – the essence of a concurrent validity study.

What would such validation data look like?

See “Ma and Pa Consumer Electronics Store” data set illustration

Ma and Pa Consumer Electronics Data Set 1.xls

Valid Hiring Tests

A hiring test – anything you must get through to get the job

A “Valid” hiring test – one where applicants who score better on the test do a better job if hired

In criterion-related empirical test validation, it is one where there is a “significant correlation between hiring test scores and job performance scores”

Empirical validation

Obtain a representative sample of people Have them take the hiring test(s), and

measure their job performance Compute the statistical correlation of hiring

test scores and job performance scores Compute the “statistical significance” of the

sample correlation If “significant”, cross-validate in new

sample If correlation remains significant, put test(s)

into use

Some key statistical concepts “Mean” the average score for a

group of people “Standard Deviation” the average

variability around the average score for a group of people

“Correlation” a number that reveals the degree of linear association between hiring test scores and job performance scores

Correlation properties

Correlation is notated with lower case “r” It can range in value from -1.00 to +1.00 r=0 means “zero” correlation, no linear

association between the test (x) and job performance (y) – that’s not happy

r=+1.00 (or r= -1.00) means there is a perfect association of hiring test and job performance - doesn’t happen in reality, tho’ we’d love it if it did!

Correlations from real samples RARELY exceed values of r=.50

More on correlation

Correlation can be used to “summarize” the pattern in a 2-variable scatterplot, like the hiring test (x axis) versus job performance (y axis) scatterplot

In this application, correlation is a special case of linear regression – using a straight line to summarize what’s happening in a data set

Plot interview score against job performance in the Ma and Pa data set

Statistical analysis of interviews in relation to

monthly sales

Compute the correlation of hiring test scores with job performance scores

Compute the regression of job performance scores (Y) on hiring test scores (X)

Things to do

Review material covered

Read the “Uniform Guidelines”

Find a company/organization where you can perform job analysis on real job