The LETTER:
Official Report Of The L Group

THE TOP 10 EMPLOYEE SELECTION MISTAKES…. AND SOLUTIONS
by Lee J. Colan, Ph.D.

The L Group helps companies achieve their Business Objectives by leveraging their Human Capital.  We accomplish this by aligning the organizational backbone and providing customized solutions within the three vertebrae of the organizational backbone:  Strategies, Systems and Skills. 

Our prior Reports and Executive Briefings have focused on the Strategies and Systems vertebrae.  This Report addresses a Skills challenge that we frequently hear from our high-growth clients.

Selecting the right people is a key leverage point to support and drive your company’s growth. 

However, the pressures of a tight labor market exaggerate the mistakes managers typically make during the Employee Selection process. 

The cost of turnover averages 40% of annual salary in hard costs only (i.e., does not include ripple costs).  Although there are many things managers can do to reduce turnover, making the right selection decision is where you get your bang for your buck.  You can do the math:  reduce your turnover by just 10 employees with a $40,000 average salary, and you have just dropped $160,000 back to your bottom line.

To help you reduce your turnover and improve your bottom line, below are simple solutions to avoid common employee selection mistakes.  These solutions are based on our experience and research that support the effectiveness of structured, behavioral interviews.

TOP 10 Employee Selection Mistakes:

10. Use only “gut feel” approach.

Experience and intuition are important, but so are more reliable and valid ways to collect data such as testing, simulations and work samples. No one aspect of the selections process should be relied on exclusively; rather they should be weighted based on the company’s values.

SOLUTION:  Design and train on a selection process that contains various forms of data collection (qualitative and quantitative).  Design your process and weigh each selection component based on your company’s values.

9. Don’t know what you are looking for.

It is hard to find “it” when you do not know what you are looking for.

SOLUTION:  Like most decision-making, employee selection is fundamentally emotional.  Therefore, it is important to define and prioritize the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for the job in advance.  This enables clear thinking to establish a specific position profile.  Yes, it takes time, but it is effective use of time versus “shooting in the dark”.   Fill out the Applicant Evaluation Tool that helps you avoid this mistake.

Application Evaluation Tool

Applicant _______________ Hiring Manager _______________ Position _______________ Interviewer _______________ Department _______________ Date _______________

Rating Scale:   1 = Does not meet position requirements  2 = Meets position requirements  3 = Exceeds position requirements

(A)   (B)   (C) SAMPLE Critical Success  Factors (CSFs) Weight (importance  to job) Exceeds (3 pts) Meets  (2 pts) Does not Meet (1 pt) Rating  (A X B) 1. Credentials ____ X ____ ____ ____ = ____ 2. Job Knowledge ____ X ____ ____ ____ = ____ 3. Interpersonal     Skills ____ X ____ ____ ____ = ____ 4. Relevant     Experience ____ X ____ ____ ____ = ____ 5. Motivation ____ X ____ ____ ____ = ____

Total Weight = 100 Overall Rating =  ____

Comments:___________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Would you hire this candidate: __Yes __No __Other position

8. Go with the flow.

Most interviewers do not take control of the interview. 

SOLUTION:  Remember, it is your interview.  YOU set the process, timing, roles, pace and questioning -  not the candidate. 

7. Talk 80% and listen 20%.

The reverse should be true.  If you are not doing this, then you are selling the job too much (see #4 below) or simply being an ineffective interviewer.

SOLUTION:  The interviewer should listen 80% of the time. 

6. Take candidates at their word.

Do not settle for vague general responses just because you want to be polite. 

SOLUTION:  You are on a data collection mission.  Probe for specific examples and situations where the candidate has demonstrated the CSFs you are looking for.  Let the candidate know at the beginning of the interview that your goal is to fully and specifically understand his/her capabilities.

5. Give in to work and market pressures.

The vast majority of managers hire too quickly and fire too slowly.  In a tight labor market, it is not uncommon for a hiring manger to meet the candidate only once then make an offer. 

SOLUTION:  Use the 3x3x3 Rule:  3 employees interview 3 candidates 3 different times.  You are thinking, “All that time for one hire?”  We can guarantee you that you will spend much more time than that if you make the wrong hire.

4. Selling the job.

Another mistake that is exacerbated by a tight labor market.  Managers want to sell the candidate on their company because they know that the candidate likely has an offer on the table from a competing company.

SOLUTION:  The effective, long-term objective is to look for a good “fit” for the job and the company, regardless of the labor market conditions.  Southwest Airlines approach is to “hire for attitude and train for skill”.  The financial and workforce records for Employers of Choice, like Southwest speak for themselves.

3. Oblivious to the legal Do’s and Don’ts.

This may not prevent you from making the right selection decision, but it sure will increase your company’s liabilities. 

SOLUTION:  Ignorance is no excuse.  Know, train and enforce the law in your selection processes.

2. Questions are not purposeful.

This comes down to lack of preparation.

SOLUTION:  Once you have identified the CSFs and prioritized them, then prepare questions (and appropriate follow-up questions/probes) that will extract the necessary information from the candidate.  We provide our clients 15 pages of sample questions, by topic, to help them add purpose and power to their interview questions.

1. Listen only to candidate’s words.

About 93% of all communication is nonverbal, so being attuned to the multitude of nonverbal cues provides an interviewer with much richer information about the candidate. 

SOLUTION:  Don’t stop at the traditional cues:  eye contact, posture, facial expressions and gestures.  Consider intonation, pacing of speech, energy level, self-confidence.  How did you feel after the interview?  Enthused, tired, impressed?  Perhaps those who work with the candidate will feel the same way.

The L Group has created simple tools to help prevent these selection mistakes. Contact us to learn more about how these tools can put you on the road to greater profitability.

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