While a few organisations still seem to believe that a 40-minute chat is sufficient to assess candidates, it may be worth taking a little while to think about the potential investment value that we are considering as an outcome of the recruitment and selection process.

Realistically we can assume that a 40-minute interview will only be effective in gathering information for half of that time at best. That may be sufficient to recruit a temporary worker on a short-term contract or do as an introductory chat but is not a sound basis for the appointment of anyone who will have to hold any degree of responsibility.

Consider the following example - a middle manager on £30,000 salary. Ideally you want them to stay with the organisation for at least five years. With salary plus statutory costs, benefits including pension, even just basic training and forgetting about the various non pay costs such as work area, computer, etc. the investment committed could easily exceed £200,000.

At the risk of repeating a mantra from previous articles, how many organisations would consider it prudent fiscal practice to invest £200,000 on a machine with no warranty and no guarantee - based on just a 20-minute inspection?

The implications of poor selection can be significant. Disruption to efficiency, impact on morale, time to deal with discipline, additional training and repetitive recruitment are just some of the reasons why you should invest time and resources right at the start of the process and try to get it right the first time.

It is impossible to prescribe which elements of selection are appropriate for an individual organisation and for a specific post without knowing the relevant details specific to that organisation and that particular appointment. It also has to be accepted that there is no perfect method of selection, no one panacea to all the potential pitfalls.

The following general thoughts and suggestions are deemed to apply whether selection is carried out in-house or where an external specialist takes part in all, or just some part of, the process.

Of course it goes without saying that using the right specialist consultant, should give you access to a breadth of experience that allows you to tap into a wide range of services and help guide you through the whole process.

USING A PERSON SPECIFICATION

Ideally a job description should already exist, in a format appropriate to the job. This obviously describes the job, however, consideration of the human input to successfully carry out the job is a different element that needs to be covered in a person specification.

There will be certain criteria, qualifications, characteristics or experience that you have already identified or are able to establish as fundamental for the particular role. You may already have used most of the key elements when preparing an advertisement. Regardless, now is the time to ensure that you have a list of essential criteria without which a candidate is not likely to be successful in the post. Alongside this you should also have a further list of desirable criteria.

There does now exist a number of diagnostic tools that allow individual managers or groups of managers to specify the type of personality they feel is right for the role. These are psychometric based analyses that can be useful if there are varying opinions as to how a role should be performed. This allows for any differences of opinion to be ironed out in advance of the selection process being initiated.

Having decided on the essential and desirable criteria, it should be relatively straightforward to identify where you would expect to see evidence from the candidate that he/she meets the requirements. This could be one or more of the following:

• Their CV or application form.

• The interview process (including alternative techniques as part of the process, such as selection tests, exercises etc)

• Certificates of qualifications

• References

ALTERNATIVES TO THE TRADITIONAL INTERVIEW

There are a number of alternatives, or more accurately, supplements to the traditional format interview. The most common forms are described below, along with some slightly less common.

When choosing your method or methods of selection, the following criteria are relevant:

• Practicability: consider the administration and other costs, the benefits and the likely value of information gathered. Also, consider whether those responsible for recruitment are able to carry out what is required or should specialist support be used.

• Sensitivity: will the method used be able to differentiate (fairly) between candidates? - if all candidates pass or fail we will be no further forward in selecting.

• Reliability: has the method worked in the past? This is easy to assess by considering the longer-term performance of previously selected candidates.

• Validity: does the method actually measure what it is meant to? (Many years ago, a study was carried out on a well-used personality test and found that some of the questions measured different attributes to those claimed.)

SELF-SELECTION

On the face of it obvious but there can be a surprising number of people who turn up for an interview only to find out the role is not what they thought it was.

By providing a candidate with as much accurate information as possible, much time can be saved by voluntary withdrawal of the application, based on a realisation that he/she is not really suited to the organisation or role. On a negative side, good candidates may withdraw if the recruitment and selection process is badly handled, so effective and accurate communication is essential to set a good first impression. Careful planning throughout the process is extremely important.

TELEPHONE SCREENING

Screening initial applications via the telephone can be extremely useful in a number of circumstances. Obvious examples are where distance is a factor, to cut out any potential for wasted journeys, where there is a high volume of response from suitably qualified/experienced people.

It can also be a good method where effective communication skills and rapport building are essential criteria - even in this era of e-commerce a lot of business is still conducted over the telephone.

GROUP DISCUSSIONS/EXERCISES

These can be valuable, for example where it is important to establish the ability of people to interact in a team environment or to demonstrate leadership.

There are many off the shelf packages available to develop such exercises although it can be more beneficial to tailor any exercises to fit the specific job and organisation. The skills required to assess candidate performance in such an exercise are complex and it may be advisable to seek specialist support - at the very least any personnel conducting such an exercise should have undergone the correct specialist training.

SELECTION TESTING

Psychometric tests are perhaps the most common form of specialist test that most people will come across. These are designed, primarily, to measure personality and identify traits or characteristics that are usually measured and then compared to a peer group (norms). This can be useful when looking at the elements and make up of teams in the working environment.

Aptitude tests can also be used. These come in various forms and are designed to test mental ability. This may be knowledge or capacity based and are typically used to measure specific job requirements e.g. numeracy etc.

Selection testing is becoming increasingly popular and tests are available in many different forms and from many different organisations. They can provide valuable information but all should carry the same general caveats.

First of all, those interpreting the outcomes must be fully trained - in both the basic theory behind the nature of the tests and in the specific characteristics of the particular tests being used.

Secondly, they should not be used instead of other selection methods but to supplement them - they are just one part of the overall process. Thirdly, they often appear to be more reliable and offer more convincing detail than is really the case.

Personality questionnaires can be a useful tool to inform further discussion with an applicant. There may be occasions where a test may be the prime indicator of suitability for a job, for example where there is a clear requirement for a basic level of a skill e.g. numeracy. Here there may be a minimum standard below which experience has shown that candidates who cannot achieve this are not suitable.

ROLE PLAY

Role-play can prove a useful tool in selection as well as in training. This can vary from a simple selling or negotiating situation to more complex and sophisticated role situations supported by professional actors.

ASSESSMENT CENTRES

An assessment centre is a generic description of a process of combining a variety of selection methods into a single session, which can be as short as two or three hours or as long as two days. Commonly, they will combine one or more written tests, possibly including psychometric tests/ personality questionnaires, in-tray exercises or reports, a suitable role playing exercise, some group exercises, a presentation and one or more interviews.

GRAPHOLOGY

A few organisations use graphology, the study of handwriting. This is clearly an area for the expert. It is not one of the more scientific of tests and for some of us is perhaps more a truer indication of a person's basic writing ability rather than a meaningful insight into their personalities.

REFERENCES

Views vary considerably concerning the validity of references. We shall cover this in more detail next month, along with "interviewing".

THE INTERVIEW PANEL

Interviewing is a definite skill and generally only the most experienced interviewers should conduct a one to one interview. This may not be necessary if part (but not all) of the process is a discussion with a potential supervisor/manager or even a peer. It is still surprising that many people reach positions of responsibility and are expected to perform these tasks without any formal training in the process.

Remember that in a relatively tight labour market little things can often sway the better quality candidates and as a first impression as to how a company operates the way these first meetings are conducted, and by who, can have a major influence on how they perceive the company and significantly influence their decision as to whether they wish to pursue any opportunity that may have been discussed.

Similarly important is not only the calibre of the interviewer but also the number.

Generally, we would suggest that, if an organisation is considering a panel style of interview, it is not a good idea to submit a candidate to a panel of interviewers comprising five or more people. A better number varies between two and three depending on the job.

The advantage of having more than one person in the process includes sharing the load to give free time to observe the applicant and listen to their answers, without having to think about the next question.

THE INTERVIEW PROCESS

Once we have established a shortlist of potentially suitable candidates and explored the various means of assessment then at some stage we have to accept that a traditional interview will form a key part of the process. This is such an important area that it will form the main topic for next month's MorePeople page.

FINDING THE TIME: THERE IS ANOTHER WAY

One statement that we often hear is that there is not the time or resources to carry out a proper selection exercise. One solution is to pass part, or all, of the task to an external supplier. This would usually take the form of a recruitment and selection specialist conducting a preliminary interview in order to filter out candidates who:

• Do not match the criteria as specified on the job/person brief and

• Do not fulfil the promise showed in their original application/CV.

However, beware the recruitment and selection consultant who offers to pre-select applicants without first spending real time getting to know your operation and the key players in it.

For most companies, the chemistry or bonding of a good team is the one thing that offers them the chance of gaining a true competitive advantage over their rivals. In order to do this effectively, any recruiting partner needs to understand your business.

Do not be tempted to try and short cut the process entirely as the one element of time that cannot be cut out of the recruitment cycle is the time taken to find the right recruitment partner for your business. If part of the rationale behind using an external partner is to trade time for cost then you need a partner that can actually do this by putting forward only those candidates that have been selected on the right criteria.

The worst possible scenario is to have the added cost without the time saving. Without getting to know you and your business, and you getting to know them, it is very unlikely that any recruiter will be able to pick up effectively on the culture and the little subtleties that exist within the business to enable them to find the right candidates for your organisation.

Look out next month for further tips on the recruitment interview and how to use references.