Goal Setting, Accountability and Hiring, Oh My!

You’ve started the year off by reviewing your strategic plan and setting S M A R T goals to ensure you have a specific, measurable action plan to achieve the strategic plan. You’re also beginning to use positive accountability to drive results and proactive performance. Whew, glad that’s done. Just when you thought you had it figured out, now you have openings that need to be filled. Now what?

As the economy begins showing signs of life, 2012 may be a busy year for businesses. In a recent CareerBuilder survey 23% of US companies said they plan to add to their full time headcount in 2012; with most job openings anticipated to be in sales and information technology.

Companies also reported an increase in voluntary turnover in 2011, with 34 percent reporting voluntary turnover of employees interested in pursuing other opportunities, seeking higher salaries and a lighter workload. Thirty percent of employers reported losing top performers to other organizations in 2011 and 43 percent are concerned top talent may jump ship in 2012.

No matter how experienced you are in talent acquisition (code name for hiring) you can always improve. With unemployment at an all-time high over the past 3 years, there are tons of good applicants (and not-so-good applicants) just waiting for an opportunity. Combine that with the estimated 40% or more of unhappy employees in the workforce just waiting for greener pastures to emerge and you could be setting yourself up for an avalanche of applicants.

With this kind of data, it looks like organizations should be gearing up for a lot of hiring activity. Are you ready? Do you know where to start to find good applicants or is your strategy to simply call the local headhunter and sit back and wait for the resumes to roll in? If so, what exactly do you plan to do with them once they arrive? How will you evaluate the hundreds of resumes received to determine if you have the right person for your organization? And don’t underestimate cultural fit – most organizations make offers to candidates based on their knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) but fire employees because of a misaligned cultural fit.

If you’re in the hiring mode, remember that opening exists because your organization has a problem and you’re looking for the right candidate to solve that problem. But finding the right candidate is a delicate balancing act between what the company wants/needs and what the candidate has to offer.

Company Wants/Needs Culture Fit Growth Potential Innovation Energy Results Retention

Candidate Knowledge Skills Abilities Experience Performance Professional Presence

When Warren Buffett looks for leaders for his companies, he evaluates potential candidates for three core competencies:

• Intelligence
• Energy
• Integrity

He fundamentally believes that if a person has 2 of these, the lack of the third can kill a business. Do the fast math on the negative side of the equation:

• Low integrity, high energy and high intelligence and you have a smart, fast-moving thief
• Low energy, high intelligence and integrity and you have a shop keeper, not an engine of growth
• Low intelligence, high energy and integrity and you have strong functionary, but not a great problem solver or visionary

Once you’ve identified the core competencies vital to success in your organization, it’s time to develop and/or update the job description.

Developing a Sound Job Description

Employers should develop job descriptions that clearly define the essential functions of the job before advertising the job or beginning the interview process. Here are steps to writing a sound, legally defensible job description:

1. Use clear, concise, non-technical language, and avoid jargon and unnecessary words. Focus on words that have a single meaning and use detailed explanations for words that may be ambiguous. Begin each sentence with an active verb and use the present tense. Provide examples of the expected job functions and the desired outcome of the work to be performed. For example, instead of “writes down notes during meetings” put “records notes during weekly meetings.”
2. Qualify Job functions whenever possible and the desired outcome of the work should be described, rather than the method for accomplishing that outcome. For example, instead of saying, “files folders” use more declarative statements such as “the clerk files folders alphabetically based on category.”
3. Allow applicants to read the job descriptions and provide them an opportunity to voice any concerns or ask clarifying questions. Include in the job description a statement for the applicant to sign indicating they have read the job description and can perform the essential functions with or without reasonable accommodations. If accommodations are sought, allow space for the applicant to describe the type of accommodations they need.
4. Make sure your job descriptions are accurate. To ensure accuracy, gather input from others that interact with the open position, including both managers and employees.

What to Include in the Job Description:

• Job title (job code number if applicable);
• Department or section of the job;
• Relationships to other jobs and the purpose of contact with outside agencies and personnel;
• A brief summary of job functions;
• Duties and responsibilities, estimated time spent on each (when using percentages, these should be allocated to equal 100%), frequency of activity, i.e., whether these are performed daily, weekly, or periodically;
• The quality and quantity of work expected from an individual holding the position;
• The repercussions of not performing each job function;
• Essential and marginal duties;
• Special working conditions such as shift, overtime, or as-needed work;
• Information on the accountability for results; and
• A statement that when duties and responsibilities change and develop the job description will be reviewed and subject to changes of business necessity.

Clearly state the “essential functions” in the job description. The job description should explicitly state the manner that an individual is to perform the job. For example, if the position requires contact with the public, include not only that the job requires the handling of public inquiries, but also that the performance standard requires those inquiries be handled in a prompt and friendly manner.

If the position requires regular attendance and timeliness state it as an essential functions of job.

Update job descriptions regularly so they accurately reflect the essential functions of altered positions or any other pertinent changes (e.g. fewer employees to perform the duties, mechanization, job-sharing, etc.). Send job descriptions for review by all levels of management, from line supervisors to senior management and human resources to be sure all perspectives are captured.

Outlining Qualifications

Employers typically require certain knowledge, skills, abilities/aptitude, training, and previous, relevant experience. However, be careful to remember that qualifications can be met in a variety of ways. For example, an applicant may have gained the required leadership skills through leading a little league team.

Keep in mind that some requirements, if not directly related to the job, may be considered discriminatory, such as stating an applicant “must possess a driver’s license”, unless they are required to drive a vehicle in the course of the job.

Beware of arbitrarily requiring a high school diploma or other educational requirements that may run afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), unless it is specifically job related. Be sure to consider any discriminatory effects of such requirements and provide for any reasonable, necessary accommodations. For example, an employee with a disability may be able to attend a meeting via teleconference or access public transportation to attend the meeting on site.

While there is no legal requirement for organizations to have job descriptions, they are a vital communication tool for establishing performance expectations and invaluable in defending ADA or Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) claims.

Is Your Succession Plan Worthy of a National Championship?

As I watched yesterday’s National Championship game, it dawned on me that college football has the most awesome succession plan on the planet. Consider that they have no choice but to turn over EVERY position every 4 years, not to mention what happens if their star player gets hurt or decides to turn pro early (and companies shudder to think they’ll have to deal with turnover once in 10 years!) So, how do they do it?

1.       Non-Stop Talent Acquisition Strategies– college sports recruiters don’t wait for an opening, they’re constantly sourcing top talent.

2.       Thinking Outside the Field – Recruiters don’t just look for talent within their sports dicipline – they cross over to other disciplines to locate untapped top talent with that “something special”.

3.       Red Shirting for the future – Coaches who want to leverage their current and future talent for maximum team performance will bring in top talent a year or so early and will “red shirt” them so they can assimilate into the team, learn the context of their roles and prepare for their BIG moment in the spotlight. These “red shirted” freshmen learn from more experienced players and show respect for their prowess and accomplishments.

4.       Mentoring – College coaches are just that – mentors focused on honing the skills and talents of their players

5.       Talent Development – Coaches are masters at motivating upcoming talent to strive for higher levels of performance

6.       Emerging Leaders – College football coaches involve their team in the selection of their leaders – the people they respect and want to follow. If you can’t inspire a following, you’re not going to be the leader.

Does your performance management system and succession planning encompass these traits? If not, you may want to reconsider your approach.

ATS Systems & Fast Food – Expect Certain Compromises when Using Either

I had an interesting situation pop up this week with a colleague who is currently in transition. They possess exceptional qualifications and skill in all aspects of HR. They have worked for large multi-national corporations and managed HR departments of all sizes covering both domestic and international locations.

A few weeks ago someone in his network, familiar with his leadership qualities, capabilities and experience called to inform him of an upcoming opening at a well respected local company. They forwarded his resume to the HR team and he subsequently went to the company’s website to apply through the “normal” required channels.

A few days later he received a call from someone in the company’s recruiting department to set up a phone interview. Needless to say, he spent several hours researching the company, talking to current and former employees; mapping out the lay of the land in terms of what the company and culture are like in preparation for the phone interview.

When the phone rang on the day of the interview, he was ready. He skillfully recounted his previous experience as it related to the questions asked. In addition, he had prepared his own thoughtful questions for the recruiter designed to demonstrate both his interest and his research. At the end of the conversation, he and the recruiter agreed on the next steps and he hung up feeling very positive he would be proceeding to the next step in the process.

After ending the phone interview on that high note, he was flabbergasted to receive a canned, computer generated email a few days later stating, “We are fortunate to have many qualified candidates apply to each of our positions. We have reviewed the qualifications of each candidate and after careful consideration; we have determined that the credentials of other candidates may better fit our needs at this time.” His reaction was stunned silence. What happened? How could this be? If he was going to be rejected, he at least expected a personal rejection from the recruiter he talked to. Was this a joke, was this a mistake?

To date, he still doesn’t know what happened. He’s stunned to think he was just summarily dismissed with no more than a thought.  It’s quite possible that this is an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) snafu. For those of you who might not be familiar with ATS, its computer software designed to pre-screen applicants by comparing the position’s qualifications and keywords to the applicant’s submitted resume. Many companies establish a minimum threshold and any resume not meeting that arbitrarily set threshold is rejected.   So, the question is – did the people who received his resume with the personal recommendation “see” something in his qualifications that the computer software missed? Is it possible that without the personal referral he would have been screened out of the process and the company would have lost out on a promising candidate?

ATSs emerged out of necessity when recruiting moved into the internet age. With the advent of internet recruiting, companies became deluged with resumes and human resources (HR) departments were literally overwhelmed by the screening process. In today’s new economy, with rampantly high unemployment, HR departments are receiving hundreds of applications for each opening and thus they are choosing the convenience of ATS systems to help them sort through the madness. The question is, are they choosing convenience over the higher quality of hand screened applicants. It’s no surprise, that applicants are learning to play the game, using methods such as “white texting” to ensure they are able to meet those arbitrary thresholds of qualifications and keywords and get to a live person and an actual interview.

ATS systems are not so different from fast food – you get the sustenance (applicants) you need, but in many cases you have to give up nutrition (quality) for convenience. HR departments beware – if you’re relying exclusively on ATS systems, you may not be getting the top talent needed by your business to drive future results.