The Subjectivity of Selection Interviews - Essay Example

?Learning Development through Feedback: I have studied the text as well as some HR journals on the which helped me look at the practical aspects and difficulties faced in the Interview process. In spite of its deficiencies, the Interview is still the most important part of the selection process. Interviews must be combined with some other tests to get a better picture of the overall suitability of the candidates. Subjectivity of Selection Interviews Name of the Writer Name of the Institution Subjectivity of Selection Interviews Q. Discuss the notion that the selection interview can never be anything other than subjective. Introduction Like it or not, the majority of people in the workforce have all gone through the hiring process at some time in their lives. In fact, we go through the HR selection process at an organization every time we apply for a job and are fortunate to meet the selection criteria. However, this is only the beginning of the process as we find that there is still a long road ahead before we can be offered the job. The typical selection process can involve oral and written tests, psychological tests, a series of Interviews and even job simulation scenarios that test the ability of candidates in various ways before the final selection is made and the jobs are offered to the qualifying candidates. The HR Selection Process Unless you are fortunate enough to be the owner’s son or daughter or be related to the top management in a firm, you are likely to go through the same HR selection process as everyone else who applies for a job in that organization. The HR department is entrusted with filling available positions in an organization with the staff needed to run them. The HR hiring plan is created as an outcome of a management review meeting in the beginning of the year, at which time performance is reviewed and growth plans are decided for the year, to accomplish which additional staff is required. Once the overall and departmental requirements have been budgeted, it is up to the Departmental Heads to liaise with the HR Department to decide the timing of hiring of staff. A hiring requisition is filled with the details desired for candidate profile, qualifications, job responsibilities, reporting line etc. After this HR can post the advertisement in the newspaper, magazines or online to get job applications. In case of high profile jobs requiring secrecy and confidentiality, recruitment agencies or headhunters can be employed. In the HR selection process they have to first weed out the candidates that meet the initial criteria in terms of profile, experience etc. Then they have to line up the selected candidates in terms of most promising and proceed to coordinate with the candidates and the departments concerned for initial tests, preliminary and in depth interviews, and whatever else they have developed in order to screen out the best candidates from the rest of the lot. In the case of hiring candidates as Management Trainees, often a one day Evaluation Session is conducted at an Assessment Center in which the candidates are made to take part in business games, job simulation scenarios and other decision making processes that tell about how the candidate is likely to react and whether he would make the right decisions under pressure. Sometimes candidates can be invited to spend a day with the department in which they can observe how things are done and how decisions are made. For the candidates that make it through, final interviews are conducted with top management after which a job offer can be made to selected candidates (Werther & Davis, 2005, p228). Importance of the Interview The interview is perhaps the most important part of the overall process of getting hired. That said, every part of the process is important. One has to get through the selection criteria and pass the written IQ tests that are normally conducted for job applicants. There may be a preliminary interview with HR or the Department Head, in which the profile and qualifications of the candidate are discussed. It also gives the candidate an idea of the organization and its operations, the way things are done and the expectations of the candidate regarding on the job performance. If the candidate makes it through the preliminary interview, a second one is held called a Departmental Interview in which a more in depth discussion is held with the Departmental Head or his representative. The workings of the department are explained, and the candidate’s specific or general knowledge ascertained about the work he is expected to carry out. In this way both HR and the Departmental Heads make up their mind about the overall suitability of the candidate for the position applied for and also grade each candidate in terms of suitability and overall performance. There can be different types of interviews- structured interviews, unstructured interviews, mixed interviews, behavioral interviews, stress interviews- but the purpose of all of them is the same- to judge the overall suitability of the candidate in terms of the job being applied or selected for, and potential for further development in the organization (Newstrom & Davis, 1993). There can be no substitute for a one to one discussion or evaluation of a candidate, in a closed room discussion without any interruptions. An interview is like a conversation between the Interviewee and the Interviewer. The interviewee tries to make his best impression upon the Interviewer, while the latter is concerned with finding out the answers to many important questions, like: 1. Can the candidate do what is expected of him on the job? 2. Will the candidate fit in and does he have the right attitude? 3. How does he compare to all the rest of the job applicants? 4. What is the candidate’s potential for further progress? It is commonly thought that a candidate’s past performance is the best indicator of his future performance and potential as well. That is why the traditional interviewer will focus on chinks in the armor or deficiencies in performance or gaps in employment on the resume of the candidate. He tries to see how a candidate will react to criticism and stress. However this is not always true, as a candidate can reform and choose to perform better if he really wants to. Yet once again it is the impression he makes on the decision maker that is the most important- and that person is the interviewer. No matter what type of interview is being taken, you may be sure that its purpose is related to how the candidate will act in the job situation. Even behavioral interviews are conducted to see how the candidate measures up in social situations e.g. dealing with clients (Fowler,1995). Is the Selection Interview Subjective or Objective? Most of us will agree that the selection interview is quite objective. This is because we see that the interview is being conducted and evaluated by one person only- that is the Interviewer. But believe it or not, the Interviewer can be under stress too and want to get the interview over and done with as soon as possible. Since a typical job opening involves interviewing a number of candidates, it takes a lot of time and effort for the interviewer to conduct the interviews, evaluate and grade each candidate, and put them in order of merit. To get all this done after a five to fifteen minute talk with an interviewee can weigh heavily on a person’s mind, as to whether he has made a fair decision and evaluation of each candidate appearing before him. Sometimes a particular attribute of a candidate or even his clothing may appeal to an interviewer and give him an unfair advantage- this is called the Halo Effect. So interview evaluations can be quite subjective (Koontz & Weihrich, 2007, p232). Trying to Be Objective In order to reduce the impact of the subjectivity of the interview process, HR departments normally point to other means of introducing objectivity into the process. This can range from having structured interviews, in which all the candidates are asked the same questions in the same order and then evaluated and compared on the answers given. Others point out that since the written tests are similar and are objective, having one right answer only, the objectivity in the selection procedure is being employed here. Tests must be checked for validity and reliability. Of course the most important part of the interview is a check for knowledge and capability of the candidate and this is usually done by asking a series of on the job questions and noting how the candidate would handle each situation. This is where the candidate’s demeanor and attitude and intelligence at handling work all come together and gives the interviewer an insight into the ability and attitude of the candidate. Another way of reducing subjectivity is to have the interview conducted by a group of people and then getting a consensus on their evaluations along different traits, attributes or attitude required on the job. Preparation for the Interview by the Interviewer A good and conscientious interviewer will take the time and effort to prepare himself for the interview process as much as possible. He will review the job specifications, desired profile, key skills and attributes to be tested. He will go through each resume carefully and note questions or areas that he wants clarification about. The objective is to find out what happened and why, rather than to stress the candidate. Anyway it is good to see how the candidate reacts to a difficult situation and whether he is able to get out of it without causing too much damage to his evaluation. Before the interview is conducted, he will be present at the location and see that all is ready, and that there is no noise and a minimum of interruptions. He will ask someone to make sure that the candidates are seated properly in a waiting area and can relax while waiting. He will have copies of all the resumes as well as the evaluation sheet to be filled for each candidate. He is likely to put the candidate at ease and establish rapport before launching into the interview questions (Fowler, 1991, 266). He makes notes as the candidate answers the questions, pausing for the candidate to complete sentences, and nodding in support to show that he is listening. He also gives a little time for the candidate to think before answering, and clarifies questions when the candidate asks for it (Fink, 2005, 82) . Before evaluating, he takes a little time to reconsider the answers given by each candidate. The most objective interviews are structured ones, because all candidates are asked the same questions. Unstructured interviews do not allow for consistency in questions or evaluation, while mixed interviews are a combination of both. The candidates all get the required questions as well as a chance to express themselves in the unstructured part, which shows their knowledge, personality and potential. Grading of the Candidates Grading or evaluation of the candidates is a very important aspect. One has to make sure that all candidates are graded on the same criteria or attributes. In order to aid the interviewer a rating scale from 1 to 10 is generally used. The total points for each attribute are totaled to get an overall score, and candidates are usually placed in order of merit in terms of total score obtained. The Final Selection Procedure The final selection procedure generally consists of an informal interview with the head of the organization, so he can see the new talent that is coming into the firm. At this stage the final list is prepared and is only changed if the CEO prefers that a candidate be placed in another area where fresh blood is more urgently needed. Otherwise the candidates are just given their offer letters and asked to return their acceptance by a stated date and time, after which the selection process is brought to an end. Candidates are also encouraged to express why they decided to decline offers made to them, so that HR can address these reasons and make the organization a better place to work. Conclusion Like it or not, the truth is that subjectivity cannot totally be removed from the interview process. This is because there are humans interviewing humans for a place in the firm. Even if the selection process were made totally objective, it is doubtful that the Interview could be dispensed with. It is a very important tool, and must be carefully used. References Fink, K. (2005). Knowledge Measurement & Interview Bias. Proceedings of I-Know Conference, Austria, 2005, pp 79-86. Fowler, F.J. (1991). Reducing interviewer-related error through interviewer training, supervision and other means. Measurement Errors in Surveys, pp 259-278. Fowler, F. (1995). Improving Interviewer Questions, Design and Evaluation. Sage Publications. Koontz, H . & Weihrich, H.(2007). Management-An International Perspective, 7th ed. McGraw Hill. Newstrom, J. & Davis, K. (1993). Organizational Behavior: Human Behavior at Work, 9th ed. McGraw Hill. Werther, W. & Davis, K. (1995). Human Resources & Personnel Management, 5th ed. McGraw Hill Publications. Read More