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1. |
Importance of proper selection. The importance of proper selection of employes can hardly be over emphasized since an office in the last analysis depends upon the human element for success. The management may provide model equipment and may develop faultless systems but the office will not operate successfully unless the individuals who actually do the work are able to cooperate intelligently. We must consider, too, that poor selection is costly. While it is true that an unsatisfactory worker can be easily removed it must be remembered that every discharged employe represents no small investment of time and money in hiring, training and supervising. Thirty dollars is a conservative estimate of the average loss occasioned by the discharge of a clerk who is not able to measure up to the task for which he or she was hired. Aside from this
loss that can be measured there is an even bigger loss in the weakening of
the esprit de corps caused by a rapid turnover of help. |
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2. |
The art of proper selection. It would be absurd to take the stand that any plan can be developed which would wholly eliminate errors of selection. There are, however,
definite principles and methods that reduce the chance for error to a minimum.
In the first place experience has proved that if the responsibility for
hiring is centered in one individual or in one department it is possible to get
better results than if this responsibility is scattered over a number of department
heads. Secondly, if every position is carefully analyzed so that the requirements
are clearly understood there is much less chance for error in placing employes
than if the requirements are guessed at. |
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3. |
Centralization of employment. Centralized employment is the objective towards which every well organized industry tends. Employers now realize the fact that one man, even tho indifferently equipped, can do a thing better the twentieth time than twenty Men can do the thing the first time. Centralization gives some one person the opportunity of acquiring a cumulative knowledge of men, a wide experience in methods, a control over individual efficiency thru the use of records and a uniform method of dealing with employment problems. In an organization
where employment is not centralized it will be found that the personnel of some
departments is better selected than that of others. This condition in itself presents
an unanswerable argument for centralized employment. It is not the purpose of
the centralization of employment to take away from the department head the privilege
of selecting his own force. The department head must be the final arbiter in all
cases. What centralized employment does do, however, is to refer to the department
head only those employes whose addition to the force would be an asset instead
of a liabilty |
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4. |
The employment manager. In large organizations the centralization of employment has developed the need for an employment manager a relatively new factor in business. An employment manager must have unusual qualifications. He must have experience, initiative, intuition and tact. He needs to know where to secure help the requirements of every position ; the characteristics of applicants and those of his fellow workers. It is obvious that
if an organization hiring in quantity selects a man of unusual ability as employment
manager, smaller organizations should not entrust the hiring of help to a man
of mediocre ability. Therefore, if we are to have a selection of employes, we
must centralize employment
in the hands of some one of real ability and vision. |
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5. |
Job analysis Without an intimate
knowledge of the work to be done, the person responsible for hiring cannot hope
to achieve the best results. Job analysis involves a determination of all the
essential details of each specific job with a view to selecting the person most
suitable for its proper performance. Job analysis ascertains the amount, the
speed, the character of the work and the conditions under which the work is to be done. In smaller offices
it may appear that job analysis is unnecessary. But even here the very act of
setting down in black and white the requirements of each job will often serve
to clarify many debatable points which otherwise might hamper the office work. |
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6. |
Job
specifications. A job specification,
resulting from the job analysis, shows in detail the physical requirements, the
minimum education and the essential qualifications that experience has proved
essential for the successful handling of the work. With these facts at his command,
the person hiring is working with something definite. Moreover, such a specification
obviates the necessity of repeating the discussion each time a similar position
is to be filled. It serves to prevent misunderstandings, both as to pay and to
duties, and above all helps to stabilize a working force. The
following specification for the position of stenographer illustrates what job
specification involves. |
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(a) |
Age;
18 to 25. |
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(b) |
Education; At least
three years High School Training, High School graduate preferred. |
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(c) |
Experience; At
least six months. |
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(d) |
Essential qualifications: |
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1. |
Touch typist (Speed
equivalent to 800 lines a day. |
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2. |
Stenographic
speed equivalent to one hundred words a minute. |
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3. |
Accurate. |
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4. |
Adaptable. |
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5. |
Good hearing. |
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6. |
Personal neatness
above the average. |
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7. |
Pleasing personality
above the average. |
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(e) |
Salary : $18 a week maximum. $14 a week minimum. |
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7. |
Sources of help Proper selection requires that the person responsible for hiring be thoroly familiar with all the possible sources of help and know what sources are best for each different class of help required. Generally it is not wise to rely entirely upon one source of help. Experience usually shows that at times one source is better than another. In this connection, if the facts are available, it will prove profitable to analyze the employment records with a view to determining from just what sources your help has been obtained in the past. This analysis will indicate what sources have proved most profitable in the past and will also serve as a guide in the future. The sources of
help fall into the following classes : employment agencies, recommendations of
employes and friends, advertising, schools and churches, and the concern's own
application file. |
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8. |
Sources of help agencies. Employment agencies
offer a very convenient source from which to secure employes. Reliable
agencies usually refer only applicants that are reasonably worth interviewing. The agency is particularly effective if personal relations are established so that there is a clear understanding of what the client's requirements are. This can be accomplished by visiting the agency in person and if possible by getting a responsible representative of the agency to visit your office. Many organizations
rely entirely upon the agencies for their help and find the plan quite satisfactory.
Those agencies which charge employes for their services are sometimes over zealous
in their desire to place people. If this source is relied upon entirely the advantages
of a wider selection will be lost. Free agencies are usually a little less careful
in their selection but they furnish a source of help that is worth while keeping
in touch with. |
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9. |
Sources of help employes and friends. Trustworthy employes are often glad to recommend persons for employment. The Guaranty Trust Company of New York, for instance, secures the majority of its employes thru the recommendation of present employes. The American Tobacco Company also receives a large number of new employes thru the efforts of previous employes. It must not be overlooked, however, that this system must be used carefully in order to avoid fostering nepotism and creating ill feeling in case the person recommended is rejected. The friends of
an organization will frequently suggest applicants. For more important positions
this source can often be used to good advantage. Rank and file workers recommended
thru this source are not usually as satisfactory as similar workers brought in
by employes because in suggesting this type, the outsider usually gives little
thought to the caliber of the individual and is frequently guided by desire
to do some one a favor. Of course no hard and fast rule can be laid down in this
respect but it is well to realize the dangers incident to this method of securing
employes. |
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10. |
Sources of help advertising, etc. Advertising is
usually less effective in furnishing rank and file workers than the preceding
sources mentioned. This is only natural because in advertising you have no one
reconmiending the applicant. Advertising in the daily press or in technical or
trade journals for applicants for more technical positions is often decidedly
profitable. Care should be exercised in the wording of the advertisement so that
it should appeal to the type of employe desired. Churches, schools and clubs are often able to provide good workers. This is particularly true of positions where experience is not essential. A final source
is the application file made up from applicants previously interviewed but not
hired. It often happens, however, that many good applicants are placed
elsewhere by the time the vacancy occurs. This objection becomes of less importance,
of course, where the organization is one that offers unusual advantages and still
attracts the former applicant. In this case it may prove very desirable to develop
this field. |
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11. |
The interview The interview is the first step in the actual hiring of an employe. It is an exceedingly important step since, if properly handled, it affords a splendid opportunity to size up the applicant. By means of
the interview the person hiring should determine upon a mental and moral rating
for the applieant. He should take into consideration, in determining upon the
mental rating, the dress, general appearance and attitude of the applicant. For
instance, the condition of clothes, hair, teeth, nails, etc., are indications of personal habits. The attitude of the applicant is indicative of sincerity, capacity for development, and general ability. Careful observation of the eyes and face of the applicant should give the interviewer a fairly reliable indication of the moral rating of the applicant. Of course allowance should be made for nervousness on the part of the applicant. If he is not able to make a satisfactory first impression it is rarely wise to add him to the force. During the course of the interview the interviewer should ask himself certain questions : Is the applicant the best that can be secured under existing circumstances ? Has he the necessary ability, character, personality, education and health? Is he capable of
development in this particular position, or in the one to which it may lead? |
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12. |
The application
blank. The application blank is helpful in deciding whether or not an applicant is qualified to fill the position for which he is applying. It should be used in conjunction with the interview and when so used serves as a check against the impression gained from the interview. At the time of the interview there may be no vacancy which the applicant is qualified to fill. The interview will be time wasted unless the application blank be filled in with the definite record of the applicant, to be filed away and referred to at a later date when such an opening occurs. Opinions differ
as to what questions should appear on the application blank. Generally speaking,
it is better to have too much information about an applicant than too little.
In a large office where considerable interest is taken in the welfare of employes,
intelligent action is often based on the information gleaned from the applications. A man who is seeking work is willing enough to give information concerning himself. When he is once employed, he is sometimes antagonistic to further detailed questioning. The Committee of
Employment Plans of the National Association of Corporation Schools has ascertained
some interesting facts on the subject of questions appearing on application
blanks. The following information was secured from a number of organizations as
to the questions asked on their application blanks. |
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Question asked |
Percentage of those who asked that question |
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Previous
employment, general .............................. |
100 |
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Age
....................................................................... |
97 |
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Name
of former employers ................................... |
97 |
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Duration
of employment ...................................... |
94 |
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Nature
of work ..................................................... |
94 |
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Married
or single .................................................. |
92 |
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Reason
for leaving ................................................ |
96 |
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References
............................................................ |
92 |
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Scholastic
education, general ................................ |
89 |
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Drinking
............................................................... |
87 |
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Do
you look up references ................................... |
84 |
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Health,
general ..................................................... |
84 |
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Present
health ....................................................... |
84 |
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Qualification
for clearly defined position .............. |
84 |
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Mental
attitude towards advancement ................. |
82 |
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Pay
during previous employment ........................ |
79 |
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Past
health ............................................................... |
79 |
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Definite
desires ....................................................... |
79 |
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Natural
aptitudes, indicated by studies ................... |
66 |
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Scholastic
standing ................................................. |
60 |
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Habits,
general ..................................................... |
60 |
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Definite
plans for advancement ........................... |
60 |
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Height
................................................................. |
58 |
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Home
environment ............................................... |
55 |
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Parental
supervision ............................................. |
55 |
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Ultimate
aims ........................................................ |
53 |
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Physical
examination ............................................ |
45 |
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Smoking
............................................................... |
45 |
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How
previous employment was obtained ............. |
39 |
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Line
of descent ..................................................... |
37 |
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Hours
of work, previously ................................... |
37 |
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Financial
obligations, general ............................... |
37 |
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Reasons
for debt, if any ....................................... |
37 |
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Church
................................................................. |
32 |
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Societies
............................................................... |
32 |
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Plans
for meeting financial obligations ................. |
29 |
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Social
standing, general ........................................ |
29 |
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Clubs
................................................................... |
24 |
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Texture
................................................................ |
21 |
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Progress
made in society ...................................... |
21 |
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Athletic
diversions ............................................... |
21 |
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Complexion
......................................................... |
18 |
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Color
of eyes ........................................................ |
8 |
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In using the
application blank it is well to explain to the applicant that the questions
are not asked out of idle curiosity but for the best interests of all concerned.
The applicant should be left in perfect freedom in answering the questions. The
failure to answer certain questions often serves as an excellent side |
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Confidential Apllication For
Employment |
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You
ate not only judged on this aplicatio. but it is kept as permanent record of you if employed. Please fill
it out with diis point in mint |
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Date ________ |
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Name
(In Full) ___________________________________________________ |
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Address (In Full)
_________________________Phone___________________ |
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Position
applied for? ________________________Salary expected _________ |
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Whereborn?_________________Date?____________Living
with parent?____ |
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If
not, why not?___________________________With whom ______________ |
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Married?__________________How
long ________Number of children ______ |
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What
is your father's name?__________________Nationality?______________ |
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What
is youi mother's name _________________ Nationality?______________ |
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Are you free from
all duties which are likely to interfere with youi duty to the Institute should
you be employed?____________________________________________ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Education |
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State your education, (beginning with primary school), giving dates, length of time in each school, and whether or not you graduated _____________ |
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______________________________________________________________ |
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______________________________________________________________ |
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_______________________________________________________________ |
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_______________________________________________________________ |
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In school, what
studies did yoy like best?______________________________ |
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______________________ What least?_______________________________
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
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13. | Employment tests As an aid to proper selection numerous tests have been developed. These include tests as to ability, attitude, character, education, training and suitableness for the actual position in question. A detailed discussion of various tests appears in the following chapter While much desirable information may be secured by a study of what has been done in this field in the last few years it is well to realize that no test is infallible, and that tests should not be relied upon to the exclusion of other methods if proper selection is to bemade. From the standpoint of the average business man, probably the best results are obtained by basing all vocational tests on the work actually done in the office. Moreover, the exhaustiveness of tests should always be in relation to the importance of the position. Due regard should be had to the fact that 80 per cent of those to be tested do not earn one thousand dollars a year. | |||||||||||||
14. | References. As a final check on selection, references should be secured both from former employers and from persons known by the applicant other than employers. These references should be secured either while the applicant is under consideration or if there is not sufficient time then immediately at the time the applicant is hired. References from people other than former employers must be accepted on their merits. As a rule, they demand a liberal discount. In most cases the real value of this type of reference is to impress upon the applicant the fact that the organization is very careful in the selection of its employes. References from former employers, however, are frequently of decided value. This is particularly true of late for the modern tendency on the part of employers is to give references that actually tell the truth concerning former employes. In this connection many concerns refuse to give general references since they carry little if any weight. If an employe has been dishonest, insubordinate, or wholly unsatisfactory it is unethical to give a general reference ignoring this fact. Further more, refusal to give reference to unreliable employes goes a long way toward preventing employes from committing questionable acts.
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