hiring smart

Smart Hiring – Selecting High Performance Employees for the New Economy

The Smart Guide to Human Resource and Management Seminars

Presented byWarren J. RutherfordThe Executive Suite

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Program

Smart Hiring Survey Our new economy – knowledge based Company future strategies - planning Person – future fit - asking Alignment Company needs Applications & Interviews Job Descriptions Assessing Person – Position Alignment Decision attributes – thinking our talents Assessment process Selection

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Smart Hiring SurveyStatement Score

4. We have developed interviewing questions thatwill give us the information we need about acandidate’s fit to our future needs.

5. We use assessments to put people in positionsthat best suit their skills, behaviors, and values.

Average = Total/5

2. We have developed a recruiting strategy to getthe workers that the company needs for its future.

3. We have developed a job application form thatwill give us the information we need about acandidate’s fit to our future needs.

1. Employees are trained and qualified for thefunctions they perform and to meet the future needsof the company.


Smart Hiring Survey

Results - If your average score is 4 to 5,

you are hiring smart. If your average score is 3 to

3.8, you are in the caution zone & need improvements to your hiring program. You can benefit from better alignment, making you much more productive & profitable.

If your average score is < 3, you are in the danger zone & are probably out of alignment, and much less productive & profitable than you could be.


The Economy We Knew

1978 NYU Stern School of Business Study (5,000 companies)

95% correlation between balance sheet and business value

Balance Sheet

Intangible


The New Economy We Need to Know & Understand 2005 NYU Stern School of

Business Study 28% correlation between

balance sheet and business value

Intangibles – the 72% Intellectual Property Strategy Brand Systems Processes Access to Capital Off balance sheet items Customer reputation Executive Team

Balance Sheet

Intangible

Why it is Important!

Only 5% of a workforce understands their company’s strategy.

Only 15% of senior management spends more than 1 hour a month defining strategy and aligning operations to it.

Only 25% have their operations aligned to the strategy.

Only 40% align company from budget to strategy.David Norton, Balanced Scorecard Report, Vol. 3, No. 5 (Sep/Oct 2001)

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Strategies to Succeed

How do people contribute to the success of our business?

Cornell Study – Workforce alignment requires -

The right types of people, In the right places at the right times, Doing the right things right. A company with the right types of people has

employees with the knowledge and skills necessary to help that company achieve its goals.


Person – Future Fit

3 different strategies companies use to select employees – Person job fitPerson job fit - match job applicant’s knowledge and skills to the

requirements of specific job openings and focus on an applicant’s ability to perform well right away without extensive training.

Person organization fitPerson organization fit - focus on how well the individual fits with the culture or values of the company and hire people with the capacity to work well with other company employees

Person future fitPerson future fit - focus on the potential long-term contribution of applicants, often to the extent that they are willing to leave positions open until the find the best and brightest new employees.

Creating and maintaining that person-future fit that the Cornell research identified as creating the best, long-term workforce alignment.

Better to define where we are going and who we need to get us there to create a more aligned and focused workforce.


Alignment Enhances Productivity and Profit Doesn’t it make sense that -

An aligned workforce increases productivity and profit, We need to better understand our employees to

further drive the success, growth, and performance of our business.

A study of large publicly traded firms, found that companies using “high performancehigh performance” human resource practices have market values that range from between $16,000 and $40,000 per employee higher than firms that do not use such practices.


Aligning Your Hiring Practices to Hire the Right Types of People Requires - Better understanding the company’s needs by defining

and communicating our long-term company strategy and plan;

Communicating that strategy and plan as a recruitment strategy – attracting who we want and need for our future success;

Refining the application and interviewing process to solicit information about current talents as well as future potential and interests;


Aligning Our Hiring Practices to Hire the Right Types of People Requires - Identifying an applicant’s current potential to perform the

functions of a job by understanding what is important in the job and matching that to what is present in the applicant;

Assessing and understanding how an applicant’s long-term potential can match with the company’s long-term strategy; and

Enabling job role changes to better fit a person’s natural talents – by understanding a person’s natural strengths and adapting the job role(s) as needed.


Company Needs

What is your company’s long-term company strategy and plan? Mission, vision, values, purpose.

Have you involved your employees in its development? What are some of the steps you used – retreat, questionnaire?

Are you communicating that strategy and plan to your existing employees, (in person, email, postings, meetings, interactive discussions) and

Are you communicating that strategy and plan to job applicants so that you can - attract who you want and needwant and need for your future success?


Application and Interviewing Process Remember – we are seeking AlignmentAlignment to your

company’s future strategy and plans, so – Do you ask an applicant to describe their future

position responsibilities, What talents they believe that they have that will

enable them to achieve their future vision, What talents do they believe they are strong in, and Why?


Application and Interviewing Process For each of the common interviewing questions,

ensure there are questions on the application which solicit this information.

For certain positions you may want the applicant to write out the response so that you can go over it in the interview.

These questions and this process will help to identify their behavioral tendencies, their values, and their decision-making patterns.


Application and Interviewing Process Get specific with them on their future interests –

What type of position do they want to have, Why, With what level of responsibilities, Who do they want to interact with, What type of guidance or direction will they want or need, What kind of company environment will they be most

comfortable in. Let them describe these responses in their own words –

in writing. Do these answers ALIGNALIGN with your future vision?


Interview Questions

Six common question types – 1. Credential verification – ask and expect accuracy. Example

– “How long were you at…?”“How long were you at…?”2. Experience verification – verifies experiential features of his

background. Example – “What were your responsibilities in “What were your responsibilities in that position?”that position?” Look for an answer that shows how such experience made use of one of their strengths.

3. Opinion – an opportunity to subjectively analyze how an applicant would respond to a scenario, and gauge their level of self-awareness. Look here for their confidence level in their self-awareness. Examples – ““What would you do in this What would you do in this situation?” “What are your strengths and weaknesses?”situation?” “What are your strengths and weaknesses?”


Interview Questions

Six common question types –4. Dumb Questions – yup, gets past the pre-programmed

answers to find out capability of original thought. Example – ““What kind of animal would you like to be?”What kind of animal would you like to be?” Tests ability to think on their feet. Look for an answer that goes with their gut, is light, not too serious.

5. Behavioral – anticipates predictable future behaviors based on past responses. Example – “Can you give me a specific “Can you give me a specific example of how you did that”?example of how you did that”? or “What were the steps you “What were the steps you followed to accomplish that task?”followed to accomplish that task?” Look for a reply that demonstrates how they used a skill strength to accomplish the task.


Interview Questions

Six common question types – 6. Competency – identifies alignment of past

behaviors with specific competencies required for the position (problem solving, leading, initiative, etc.). Example – “Can you give me a specific “Can you give me a specific example of your leadership skills?” “Explain a example of your leadership skills?” “Explain a way in which you sought a creative solution to a way in which you sought a creative solution to a problem.”problem.” Look for a reply that identifies HOWHOW their strengths (understanding others, concrete organization, leading others) are used to answer the question. These questions are usually key to the interview process.


Interview Questions

Competency Question Examples – ““Give me an example of a project that you were Give me an example of a project that you were

responsible for organizing from beginning to end. How did responsible for organizing from beginning to end. How did you go about it?”you go about it?”

““Give me an example of a lesson you have learned from Give me an example of a lesson you have learned from making a mistake. What did you do differently going making a mistake. What did you do differently going forward?”forward?”

““What is the one thing in your life that you have not been What is the one thing in your life that you have not been able to accomplish or complete that gives you the most able to accomplish or complete that gives you the most frustration? Why didn’t you complete it?”frustration? Why didn’t you complete it?” (Note – this helps to identify what they perceive as their weakness and how they have adapted (or not) to not rely on that weakness for their success.)


How to Gauge a Quality Question Response Shake ‘em and make ‘em remember Did he take time to think through what he was think through what he was

going to saygoing to say? Remember the proverb – “It is better to remain “It is better to remain

silent and be thought a fool, then to speak and silent and be thought a fool, then to speak and prove them right.”prove them right.”

Did he give a specific example of a personal specific example of a personal strength or weaknessstrength or weakness to support his answer?

Did he qualify the questionqualify the question – did he ask you to qualify what you were asking or looking for?


Interview Essentials Some basic standards –

Brief answersBrief answers – applicant ~ 1/3rd of the time, interviewer rest of time to ask questions and answer questions.

Appropriate dressAppropriate dress – Did you tell them “casual” was OK? Did he identify his goalsidentify his goals up front and ask you what you

were looking for? Did he ask you what you wantask you what you want, what you think, how you

know when you will have found it and your opinions? Did he explain why he left his last positionexplain why he left his last position? Honestly? Did he make a personal connectionmake a personal connection on a personal level

with you, are there shared values, behaviors, or strengths you have in common?


Interview Essentials

Some basic standards – Did he ask what you are looking for in a solutionask what you are looking for in a solution and did

he ask you what you think of his ability to be that solution? How does he handle rejectionHow does he handle rejection – if you indicated that he

has not shown how his experience and future vision fits your position – how does he respectfully respond to your concern?

How does he show you he is interestedinterested in your company – research, questions?

Did he bring up his weakness weakness before you asked about it? Did he follow upfollow up after the interview – handwritten, at least

an email? Thank you, and reiterate his interest?


Job Descriptions

Do they effectively summarize the type of knowledge, skills, & abilities necessary to ensure that the essential functions are fulfilled.

Do they effectively identify functions that can describe the major categories of the position – management, sales, finance, marketing, process?

Do they identify how the position contributes to the accomplishment of company objectives?

Do job descriptions exist?


Functional Assessment of Each Position We know that there are 3 ways we can think about anything –

Our head – systems & structure Our hands – practical, let’s get it done Our heart – empathy, the impact on others

Each of us has a different balance of these 3 styles & explains why our decisions and actions are different.

The way we make decisions & how we use them are at the core of who we are. They are key to our preferences, our strengths, and our weaknesses.

What are the dominant thinking patterns required for people in each position?

How does knowing that help to ensure that the person filling the position will be more successful in achieving position objectives and be more able to accomplish the desired person-future fit?

Think Position-Person Alignment & Workforce Alignment.Think Position-Person Alignment & Workforce Alignment.


Assessment Process

Identify position tasks Aggregate tasks up to categories Identify decision attributes for each

category Develop a position-specific profile to

measure applicant match to profile as part of selection process.


Selection

Seek alignment to Company needs Application and Interview Applicant needs Job Description Assessment match Remember –

A company with the right types of people has employees with the knowledge and skills necessary to help that company achieve its goals.


Thank you!For more information -

Warren J. RutherfordOwnerThe Executive Suite129 Airport RoadHyannis, MA 02601wjr@theexecutivesuite.comwww.theexecutivesuite.com508-778-7700

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