Bangladesh Human Resource Society (BHRS)

HR is all about “right job for the right man at the right time.” My cynicism about the veracity of this statement has grown over the years. At times, it makes me feel that HR managers cater to notional beliefs of goodness rather than serving as an important area that influences the company’s bottom line.

I get quite peeved by the ludicrous nature of this statement. It puts human beings and organizations in a static unchanging time zone where everything is put to a stand still. There are three aspects that bother me: Right job, right man, and right time. I place my argument for each of these aspects below.

Right job:
Now, what is a right job? How does one define a right job? Is right job taken in perspective with the environment or the applicant? Does the right job stay constant in a variable environment? Let’s take a case scenario. In the beginning of the dotcom era, Internet seemed to be the way to go. Everybody who was anybody wanted to be in the dotcom business. Software, hardware, internet solutions, and ecommerce business mushroomed in every part of the Web. Dotcom seemed like the right place to be. Times changed, industries changed and the dotcom era was not so hot anymore. Now the focus has shifted to telecom and business process outsourcing. So what is the right job in the new scenario? In a dynamic environment, how can employees match up with the ‘right job’ every time that the economy changes?

Right man:
Just like the right job, the right man also has limited application. Human beings are constantly evolving. With passing time, people change, their preferences change and so do their values and beliefs. How then, can the concept of right man be held true even for a single moment?

Right time:
This totally defeats the statement. Time is ever changing. If the statement of right job for right man at the right time needs to be upheld, it would require us to constantly improvise on our employee selection list. No employee could suit every changing moment.

In dynamic business environment, this statement seems superfluous, if not misleading. HR managers need to focus on hiring talent that meets organizational objectives. Perfectionism in the process of hiring can only delay results. Neither organizations nor employees can afford to be rigid. It is important that employees align their individual goals with the organizational goals, but at the same time organizations have to be flexible to adjust to individual needs and preferences. With a flexi organization and flexible personnel, organizations can achieve greater success.

Src: http://www.hrprofessor.com/article14.html

It is always easy to make the silliest of mistakes while hiring employees. Several managers make silly hiring mistakes all the time without even realizing it. Sometimes the consequences of poor hiring decisions are not seen for a long time, while in other cases, bad hiring can have catastrophic effect on the organization.

How do you hire right? When you receive an overwhelming response to a job application, it is difficult to sieve the good from the bad applicant. There are many ways to refine your employee search. Let’s talk about effective hiring techniques. As there are several hiring techniques available, you have to find what best suits your organizational and personal needs. The trick is in finding innovative ways to make your hiring techniques scrutinize the personal profile of your candidates.

Organizations who follow good HR practices should never hire at the eleventh hour. Deadlines and time crunches invariably find a way to seep into the decision making process of recruitment. Hiring should be an ongoing process, where talent is brought in early into the organization and developed for future business prospects. However, if situations present unforeseen business challenges that require quick hiring, then it is safer to hire ex employees with a proven track record. Why? Ex employees have a comfort equation with the organization and the learning process is not prolonged nor resource intensive. Employees who return to the organization (after a failed adventure) have greater loyalty and realistic expectations from the organization.

Screen employees judiciously. When scrutinizing bundles of job applications, make sure that you don’t reject indiscriminately. Hold on to applications that may or may not match your expectation levels. Reject only if they fall short of minimum standards set by the organization. Sort the application forms in the priority order, so that you know which ones to interview first.

Resumes can be very misleading or very informative depending on how you choose to read it. Many times, employers are bedazzled by the gamut of activities undertaken by the job applicant. But a shrewd employer would always try to read the fine print in between the lines. If you want to know your employee’s personality, take a closer look at his past records. Find out more about his interpersonal relations, his social status, his relations with family and friends. You will get a lot of hints about his personality from these relations. His past helps you forecast his future with the organization.

Many HR executives tell me that it is tough to crack a person during an interview. Applicants go through in-depth interview preparation. Their answers are so convincing and endearing that it is tough to see through their con-job.

My take on interviews is that an interview is the platform where both parties put their best foot forward. If the interviewee has done a thorough job of preparing for an interview, that is good. It means that he takes his job seriously. A person who cannot package himself well when he is selling his skills is not worth the job.

However, if an interviewer is unable to penetrate through the exterior, then the interviewer has not done his job well. Effective interviews can bring out every hidden trait of employees that influences the employment decision. Remember, that an interviewee can outguess most of the questions you can ask. The trick is to ask unexpected types of questions that throw the applicant off guard. In fact, the less predictable you make the interview format; the more likely you are to truly understand your interviewee.

Observe every verbal and non verbal signs that the interviewee communicates. Sometimes an applicant gives a lot away with small gestures that speak volumes about his persona. Notice his shoes, his bag, his personal etiquettes and manners. If possible, escort him to the door or to his car. A lot can be revealed even at the exit stage. For instance, an ink blotch on a part of his sleeve can tell you a different tale than his crisply ironed shirt. When you escort your applicant to the door or out of the premises, many times the applicant puts his guard down and eases off to speak unhindered. This information may be more meaningful than the one you received in the last hour.

Finally, make a serious reference check. Find out from past employers or referrers specific information about the applicant. While most references may turn out to be neutral or nonchalant, you may be able to learn a few more things about your employee that can influence your decision.

Hiring techniques don’t come from a book of recruitment rules. Each technique is evolved and improved by using trial and error methods. Each company uses hiring techniques that serve best to their individual needs. You have to customize your hiring techniques to suit your organizational demands. With a continual process improvement, you will have a bunch of effective hiring techniques that works best within your organization.

Src: http://www.hrprofessor.com/article13.html