How predictive is your recruitment method?

Transcription

1 How predictive is your recruitment method? Andrew Marty Managing Director SACS Consulting Page 1

2 SACS Consulting Human Resource Management Consulting Firm Executive Search and Selection Human Resource Management Consulting Page 2

3 Turning latest research into best practice Page 3

4 How predictive is your recruitment method? Andrew Marty Managing Director Page 4

5 Objectives To review the league ladder of recruitment methods To examine the most predictive methods in more detail To suggest an optimum approach. Page 5

6 Evidence The findings in this information come from research, some time honoured and some very recent, particularly that relating to personality measures. If you want references I am happy to provide them. Page 6

7 Recruitment methods are measures They should allow us to rank and rate candidates They should be valid and reliable The most powerful (and difficult to achieve) form of validity is predictive validity. This is the one you should care about. Page 7

8 League Ladder of Recruitment Predictiveness Measures Validity (r) Cognitive ability and Integrity 0.65 Cognitive ability and Structured Interviews 0.63 Cognitive ability and work sample 0.60 Work sample tests 0.54 Cognitive ability 0.51 Structured interviews 0.51 Job knowledge tests 0.48 Integrity Tests 0.41 Personality tests big 5 with a focus on Neuroticism, Conscientiousness and Agreeableness 0.40 Assessment Centres 0.37 Unstructured interviews 0.35 Biodata 0.35 Conscientiousness 0.31 References 0.26 Years job experience 0.18 Interests 0.1 Years of Education 0.1 Graphology 0.02 Age Source: Modified from Robertson, I.T & Smith, M. (2001) Personnel Selection Journal of Occupational and Organisational Psychology (2001), (74), Page 8

9 Things which do not predict Graphology sad for the French Age Years of education Years of work Page 9

10 What does work? Testing is better than interviewing significantly better in the top 5 methods all involve some form of testing. I know we find this hard to believe, but this finding has been replicated for decades. Work sample testing Cognitive ability Integrity testing Job knowledge tests Page 10

11 Cognitive ability testing Assess your candidate s intelligence. Very predictive -.51 Verbal reasoning The capacity to use words effectively People higher on this measure are better able to express ideas easily, and to influence others Good predictor of communication success Page 11

12 Cognitive ability testing Numerical reasoning The capacity to use and understand numbers Large impact on ease of dealing with finances, performance measures, statistics, etc. Abstract reasoning The capacity to solve abstract problems which do not involve numbers or words Very important ability in areas such as strategy, planning, problem solving Page 12

13 How are they accessed? Easily accessed tests ACER ML/AL ACER MQ/AQ ACER APTS Cognitive ability tests partner well with other methods because they assess elements which other assessment methods do not Page 13

14 Integrity tests Assess the person s values as they relate to integrity and ethical values Surprisingly predictive.41 by themselves and when coupled with cognitive ability tests.65. They add together well because they are assessing such different things They get more predictive over the years. Bizarre but true! Aim to eliminate candidates with negative characteristics up to 90% in some studies Targeting candidates with positive attitudes i.e. organisational citizenship behaviours Page 14

15 Examples EG Reid Report Integrity Attitude Social Behaviour Safety/substance abuse Personal achievements Page 15

16 Integrity tests Theorised to be so predictive because they relate closely to a whole positive value set which indicates a good employee Extremely rarely used in Australia, apart from the forces Should be used more! Page 16

17 Interviews Unstructured =.35; Structured =.51 The better the structure the more predictive The vital elements of the most predictive structure are: A competency analysis for each job Behavioural interview questions targeting the key competencies A scoring structure for each of the key competencies. Page 17

18 Competency analysis A competency analysis is a professional version of a person specification Much more valuable than a job description Page 18

19 Competency anlaysis What are the Key Result Areas (KRA) the job needs to deliver? Competencies necessary to deliver the KRAs Skills Experience/qualifications Style, values, approach Look totally laterally for candidates who have these competencies Page 19

20 Behavioural interview questions Ask about Critical Incidents Please Give an Example (PGAE questions) Eg: Please give an example where you have been successful in recruiting high calibre people, improving the outcomes of a work unit Way more predictive then tell us about yourself or what would you do in the following situation questioning Page 20

21 Worksample testing Very predictive.54 in its own right Take real examples of work to be completed and put them in a form which can be undertaken in a pre-employment format. For example: Analyse a set of financials from the organisation rate their analysis the same way you would for an employee Ask them to write a report similar to what they would do on the job Solve a problem from the workplace, and make a presentation, either by themselves, or in a group Internships Page 21

22 Worksample testing is not. Role playing picks out good actors rather than good employees In-basket exercises Very helpful in staff development, but not predictive of employment success. They also tend to pick out good strategists rather than implementers. Page 22

23 Job knowledge tests Tests designed to assess the candidate s subject matter knowledge -.48 The more specifically tailored the more predictive Work best when knowledge of subject matter is critical to a role compliance, technical, design, product knowledge, etc. There are standard job knowledge tests for certain standard jobs some are created by large employers. Page 23

24 Personality tests A recent entrant into the top half of the league ladder -.40 Big 5 model of personality is more predictive than anything previous Neuroticism * Extraversion Openness Agreeableness* Conscientiousness* - also has some integrity testing elements to it Page 24

25 Neuroticism and Conscientiousness If you assess any personality measures you should assess these Conscientiousness gives.31 in its own right. Adding multiple measures of conscientiousness adds validity. Up to.45 Neuroticism and agreeableness are excellent predictors of negative outcomes. Now estimated to be.3+ Irrespective of what the job is, the research suggests that you should hire people with low neuroticism scores and high agreeableness and conscientiousness scores. Page 25

26 NEO personality measure Neuroticism Agreeableness Conscientiousness Anxiety Angry hostility Depression Self consciousness Impulsiveness Vulnerability Trust Straightforwardness Altruism Compliance Tender mindedness Modesty Competence Order Dutifulness Achievement striving Self-discipline Deliberation Page 26

27 N+E- Gloomy Pessimists These people face a dark and dreary life. There is little that cheers them and much that causes anguish and distress. Especially under stressful circumstances, they may succumb to periods of clinical depression, and even when they are functioning normally, they often find life hard and joyless. Style of Well-Being Vertical Axis: Neuroticism (= 41 T ) Horizontal Axis: Extraversion (= 68 T ) High Neuroticism N+E+ Overly Emotional These people experience both positive and negative emotions fully and may swing rapidly from one mood to another. Their interpersonal interactions may be tumultuous because they are so easily carried away by their feelings. They may show features of the Histrionic Personality Disorder, but they may also feel that their lives are full of excitement. Low Extraversion High Extraversion N-E- Low-keyed Neither good news nor bad has much effect on these people; they maintain a stoic indifference to events that would frighten or delight others. Their interpersonal relationships may suffer because other people find them to be "cold fish." Their emotional experience of life is bland Low Neuroticism N-E+ Upbeat Optimists These people are usually cheerful because they are not unduly troubled by problems, and they have a keen appreciation for life's pleasures. When faced with frustration or disappointment, they may become angry or sad, but they quickly put these feelings behind them. They prefer to concentrate on the future, which they view with eager anticipation. They enjoy life. Page 27

28 Personality testing continued Beware any personality measures which are proprietary we have no idea how good they are We use only peer reviewed measures We are so committed to this we are making it part of our standard recruitment method. Page 28

29 Assessment Centres Evidence for their predictiveness varies very widely For research purposes, there has been little distinction between different types of assessment centres The best seem to be very predictive, the worst only moderately predictive Average of.37 Page 29

30 Pluses and minuses Assesses characteristics which can be assessed only in a social context Assesses very different material from any other recruitment tool Powerful in assessing values, style etc Can be very economical for prequalifying candidates low cost per assessment Allows for multiple assessors Can only be used where confidentiality issues do not matter People feel they can be applied only to junior hires Can be expensive to set up in the first instance Need to be well designed appear to be very sensitive to poor planning lack of competency analysis, etc. Page 30

31 A/C Centre design features Should be tailored to each application if it is off-the-shelf, it will be less predictive. Most assessment centres are standard. Virtually all outsourced ones are Should be based on competency analysis and behavioural principles Should involve work sampling elements Role playing is less valuable than work problem solving Should be used as a pre-selection device for structured interviews and psych testing Page 31

32 Typical components Introductions all assessors and then participants Group discussion questions, based around the competencies sought Problem solving or other work sampling activities, often requiring participants to present results to the larger group Question and answer session on the job being sought assessing quality of questions and responses of candidates. Page 32

33 Traditional method of assessment Construct Rating out of Commitment to customer service 2. Problem solving ability 3. Oral communication skills 4. Etc. TOTAL Page 33

34 More predictive method of assessment Activity Rating out of Introduction 2. Group Discussion 3. Problem solving activity number 1 4. Etc. TOTAL Page 34

35 Biodata Once you have identified the competencies required to achieve the KRAs, consider what kind of work experience indicates these competencies Develop a simple scoring method for backgrounds. As simple as A B C! Predictiveness of.35 Page 35

36 Biodata assessment example Activity Rating out of Evidence of profit centre management experience 2. Evidence of having managed growth 3. Has led teams in multiple locations 4. Etc. TOTAL Page 36

37 Toward an optimum method Start with a competency analysis for the role the only way you will end up with a truly structured interview. High performance modelling is best, but single case competency analysis is fine. Page 37

38 High Performance Modelling IDENTIFICATION OF HIGH PERFORMERS - EXEMPLARS AND THEIR KRAs Psychological testing What psychological characteristics do they have in common? Behavioural Interviews What skills, knowledge, values and attitudes do they have in common? HIGH PERFORMANCE MODEL Use the psychological tests and their scale scores which pick out the high performers. List the competencies which all your high performers have in common. Write behavioural interview questions and a simple scoring system for each. Page 38

39 An optimum assessment method Evaluate candidates through biodata scoring. Invite only A candidates to the next stage Use an assessment centre if possible Use structured interviews involving behavioural interview questions and competency ratings Psych test the candidates who make it through Cognitive ability verbal, numerical, abstract reasoning Big 5 personality measure with an emphasis on conscientiousness and neuroticism Integrity testing Page 39

40 Optimum assessment method continued Those who are still live are told they are at the last stage of assessment and are given the opportunity to participate in a work sampling activity. Choose a sheep from goat activity out of the work place and rate their ability to do it. Can be done even at very senior levels. Undertake behavioural reference checking assessing the previously identified competencies. Get your last.26 worth of value! Page 40

41 Outcome? If you do these things you should reliably achieve predictiveness above.70. The predictiveness of most organisations methods is around This is what s known as a competitive edge. Page 41

42 Summary and conclusions Recruitment without psych testing is unsupportably risky We now have better information than ever as to what kind of psych testing works Beware proprietary instruments which have not been peer reviewed Undertake competency analysis and behavioural interviewing processes they make a huge difference Build work sampling into your recruitment methods. A little creativity can add enormous benefit Consider integrity testing infrequently used, but highly predictive. Page 42

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