The Metiss Group's Blog

Select (verb) – To choose in preference to another or others; pick out (Random House Dictionary).

Process (noun) – A series of actions, changes, or functions bringing about a result (Random House Dictionary).

A selection process should consist of a series of actions to bring about an ideal choice of candidates.  Many leaders rely on intuition, gut instinct, or some haphazard interview approach when choosing among candidates.  The best hiring managers use a defined, repeatable process for selecting talent.

The selection process should include three phases:

1. Job and ideal candidate definition;
2. Candidate screening;
3. Candidate evaluation.

Define the job and ideal candidate in the definition phase clarifying what is expected of the job and what the ideal candidate will look like.  The screening phase should include consistent behavior-based questioning and assessments that tie back to the job and candidate definitions.  The evaluation phase should analyze gaps and discrepancies between observed candidate behavior and job and candidate requirements.

Hiring managers should define the steps in the selection process, stick to them, and empower those in the selection process for success.

The U.S. Department of Labor stipulates that if hiring managers administer assessments to candidates, the results of the assessments cannot represent more than 33% of the decision to hire or not hire.  That means at least 67% of a hiring manager’s decision to hire or not hire must consist of other screening activities.  Hiring managers should consider the activities in their screening process and how are they weighted.

Below are the steps and percentages many hiring managers follow in their selection process:

•  Phone screen (salary and basic skills fit) – 5%
• Core values email (values and writing skills fit) – 10%
•  First interview (skills, experience, culture fit) – 20%
• Assessment results (personal skills, behaviors, culture, critical thinking fit) – 20%
• Reference checks (screening concerns addressed) – 10%
• Follow-up interviews (screening and reference concerns addressed) – 20%
• Handle selection process (project management skills demonstrated) – 15%

While being in legal compliance is important, the reality is there is a strong business case to have multiple steps in a selection process.  No assessment is 100% accurate because humans are more complex than any one, two, or three assessments; however, they are a great basis from which to create exploratory conversations — with the candidate AND references.  It is equally important to see how a candidate does moving through a process and not just in each specific step in the process.

Empowered hiring managers consider many aspects when hiring and make more successful hires.