The document summarizes the key elements of the personnel selection process. It discusses gathering background information on candidates, using tools like application forms, tests, interviews, and background checks. Selection methods must be valid, reliable, legal and non-discriminatory. The goal is to identify candidates that are the best fit for the job based on their abilities, skills, and motivation.

1. McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2011 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
fundamentals of
Human Resource Management 4th
edition
by R.A. Noe, J.R. Hollenbeck, B. Gerhart, and P.M. Wright
CHAPTER 6
Selecting Employees and Placing
Them in Jobs

2. 6-2
What Do I Need to Know?
1. Identify the elements of the selection
process.
2. Define ways to measure the success of the
selection method.
3. Summarize the government’s requirements
for employee selection.
4. Compare the common methods used for
selecting human resources.

3. 6-3
What Do I Need to Know? (continued)
5. Describe major types of employment tests.
6. Discuss how to conduct effective interviews.
7. Explain how employers carry out the process
of making a selection decision.

4. 6-4
Personnel Selection
• Personnel Selection: the process through which
organizations make decisions about who will or
will not be allowed to join the organization.
• Selection begins with the candidates identified
through recruitment.
• It attempts to reduce their number to the
individuals best qualified to perform available
jobs.
• It ends with the selected individuals placed in
jobs with the organization.

5. 6-5
Figure 6.1: Steps in the Selection Process

6. 6-6
A Strategic Approach
to Personnel Selection
• Organizations should create a selection
process in support of its job descriptions.
• The selection process should be set up in a
way that it lets the organization identify
people who have the necessary skills.
• This kind of strategic approach to selection
requires ways to measure the effectiveness of
the selection tools.

7. 6-7
Selection Methods Standards
• Several generic standards should be met in
any selection process.
• 1 Reliability
• 2 Validity
• 3 Generalizability
• 4 Utility
• 5 Legality

8. 6-8
Selection Methods Standards
• Reliability – this looks at a measure to quantify
applicants based on certain characteristics that
should be consistent overtime and in varied
context.
• Validity – this looks at measuring only aspects
relevant to job performance.
• Utility- this looks at the degree to which
information provided by selection methods
enhances the bottom line effectiveness of the
organization

9. 6-9
Selection Methods Standards
• Generalizability – is defined as the degree to
which the validity of a selection method
established in once context extends to other
contexts.
• Legality – this ensures all selection criteria
conforms to laws, rules and regulations

10. 6-10
Practical Value and Utility
• Being valid, reliable, and generalizable adds value
to a selection method.
• Another consideration is the cost of using the
selection method.
• Selection methods should cost significantly less
than the benefits of hiring new employees.
• Methods that provide economic value greater
than the cost of using them are said to have
utility.

11. 6-11
Legal Standards for Selection
• All selection methods must conform to
existing laws and legal precedents.
• Three acts have formed the basis for a
majority of the suits filed by job applicants:
– Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 1991
– Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
– Americans with Disabilities Act of 1991

12. 6-12
Table 6.1:
Permissible and
Impermissible
Questions for
Applications and
Interviews

13. 6-13
Test Your Knowledge
• Which of the following questions is
permissible?
A. Will child care demands affect your ability to get
to work?
B. Do you have a car so that you will be able to get
here on time?
C. This job requires you to be here from 8:00am to
5:00pm. Can you meet that job requirement?

14. 6-14
Legal Standards: Candidates’ Privacy Rights
• The information gathered during the selection
process may include information that
employees consider confidential.
• This is a particular concern when job
applicants provide information online.
• Employers should collect data only at secure
Web sites.

15. 6-15
Legal Standards: Candidates’ Privacy Rights
(continued)
• The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires
employers to obtain a candidate’s consent
before using a third party to check the
candidate’s credit history or references.
• If the employer decides not to hire based on
the report, the employer must give the
applicant a copy of the report and summary of
the applicant’s rights before taking the action.

16. 6-16
Legal Standards: Immigration Reform and
Control Act (1986)
• Immigration Reform and Control Act (1986): Federal
law requiring employers to verify and maintain
records on applicants’ legal rights to work in the
United States.
• They do this by having applicants fill out the Form I-9
and present documents showing their identity and
eligibility to work.
• The law prohibits the employer from discriminating
against the person on the basis of national origin or
citizenship status.

17. 6-17
The Selection Process

18. 6-18
Gathering Background Information

19. 6-19
Application Forms
• A low-cost way to gather basic data from
many applicants.
• It ensures that the organization has certain
standard categories of information:
– Contact information
– Work experience
– Educational background
– Technical experience
– Memberships in professional or trade groups

20. 6-20
Background Checks
• 8 out of 10 large companies and 2/3rds of
smaller orgs report conducting background
checks
• Internet allows for faster and easier searching
for convictions (60% of males have been
arrested at some point)
• Requests for expunging police records has
been on the rise so background checks may
not be as complete as employers would
prefer

21. 6-21
Employment Tests

22. 6-22
Table 6.2: Sources of Information About
Employment Tests

23. 6-23
Employment Tests and Work Samples

24. 6-24
Table 6.3: Five Major Personality
Dimensions Measured by Personality
Inventories

25. 6-25
Rules for Administering Drug Tests
• Administer the tests systematically to all applicants
for the same job.
• Use drug testing for jobs that involve safety hazards.
• Have a report of the results sent to the applicant,
along with information about how to appeal the
results and be retested if appropriate.
• Respect applicants’ privacy by conducting the tests in
an environment that is not intrusive and keeping
results confidential.

26. 6-26
Interviews

27. 6-27
• When interviewing
candidates, it’s valid to ask
about willingness to travel if
that is part of the job.
• Interviewers might ask
questions about previous
business travel experiences
and/or how interviewees
handled situations requiring
flexibility and self-
motivation.

28. 6-28
Interviewing Effectively
1. Be prepared
2. Put the applicant at ease
3. Ask about past behaviors
4. Listen – let the candidate do most of the
talking
5. Take notes – write down notes during and
immediately after the interview
6. At the end of the interview, make sure the
candidate knows what to expect next

29. 6-29
How Organizations Select Employees
Multiple-Hurdle Model
• Process of arriving at a
selection decision by
eliminating some
candidates at each
stage of the selection
process.
Compensatory Model
• Process of arriving at a
selection decision in
which a very high score
on one type of
assessment can make
up for a low score on
another.

30. 6-30
Communicating the Decision
• When a candidate has been selected, the
organization should communicate the the offer
to the candidate. The offer should include:
– Job responsibilities
– Work schedule
– Rate of pay
– Starting date
– Other relevant details

31. 6-31
Summary
• Selection typically begins with a review of
candidates’ applications and résumés. The
organization administers tests to candidates who
meet basic requirements, and qualified candidates
undergo one or more interviews. Organizations
check references and conduct background checks. A
candidate is selected to fill each vacant position.
Candidates who accept offers are placed in the
positions for which they were selected.

32. 6-32
Summary (continued)
• Organizations need to measure the success of
selection methods. Criteria used include:
– Validity
– Reliability
– Utility
– Legality
– Generalizable

33. 6-33
Summary (continued)
• An important principle of selection is to combine
several sources of information about candidates,
rather than relying solely on interviews or a single
type of testing.
• The sources should be chosen carefully to relate to
the characteristics identified in the job description.
• This increases the validity of the decision criteria.
• Organizations are likely to make decisions that are
fair and unbiased.
• They are more likely to choose the best candidate.

34. 6-34
Summary (continued)
• The selection process must be conducted in a way
that avoids discrimination and provides access to
persons with disabilities. This means selection
methods must be valid for job performance, and
scores may not be adjusted to discriminate against or
give preference to any group.
• The organization should focus on the objective of
finding the person who will be the best fit with the
job and the organization. This includes an
assessment of ability and motivation.