Introduction
This is a recommendatory paper for the staffing of a flagship store of Tanglewood in Spokane. More specifically, we are looking for a Manager who can best run the store and answer to the needs of the leadership of this area of the Tanglewood branch. A job analysis had to be instituted first to guide us to select and assess the potential applicants for the job of Manager. On the other hand, the site is a strategic as well as a symbolic location for the organization, for various and obvious reasons, a few of which are:
- it is a few blocks away from the first Tanglewood store;
- it has elaborate features, and the management has poured enough funds for its improvement;
- managers and top-rank employees spend some valuable time in Spokane as part of their initial training.
The organizational structure of Tanglewood evolved from the traditional line of leadership and operation, with the President as head, followed by the Chief Operating Officer who heads/supervises the Managers and Department Heads of the various branches and departments of the Organization. This centralized form of management is entirely answerable to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors is headed by the Founding Chair.
The sought-after vacancy – the Manager of the new Spokane branch – will have the same, regular duties as the managers of other Tanglewood stores. However, since this is supposed to be modern and a bit larger in scope than other stores, it is expected that there is an extra load of work and more workforce needed. Applicants come from managerial positions of the organization, from other branches who have been encouraged to submit their bio-data for the assessment.
Method Used in Selection
There are various tools and procedures available for assessment and staffing in organizations. How these tools and procedures are applied depends upon the organization itself.
Pulakos (2005) says, “Most organizations use a funneling approach to selection, where more informal tools and procedures are used initially to reduce the pool of candidates to a manageable number of individuals who may then be put through a more extensive assessment process.”
KSA (or KSAOS) was used for assessment.
Twenty individuals passed on as potential candidates. They came from the managerial line of the organization, advised and encouraged to apply for the job. Normally, the applicants were used to fill their bio-data and to pass through an examination, the Marshfield Application Examination.
We used multiple predictors in determining the scores, i.e. combining the resultant scores to arrive at a model for selection. The compensatory model was used to stress its advantage of recognizing “that people have multiple talents and that different constellations of talents may produce success on the job” (541, textbook).
Added to this were structured interviews, biodata, and cognitive ability. We modified a recommendation of Hattrup and Rock (2002), who quoted a study of Schmitt et al (1997) that says: “Schmitt et al. (1997) examined the effects of combining an expanded set of predictor measures, including structured interviews, biodata, personality, and cognitive ability, on the adverse impact of a final composite formed from various combinations of these measures.”
Our method is a modification in that we disregarded “personality testing” for the reason that using personality testing as part of recruitment and promotion processes is not anymore effective. Professor Frederick P. Morgeson of Michigan State University says that “personality testing as a predictor of job performance is often tenuous” (Management Issues Ltd. 2007).
Moreover, this kind of test suffers from “serious limitations”. Robert L. Dipboye of the University of Central Florida says, “we need to engage applicants in a more open process where we disclose what we are looking for and gain the trust of test-takers rather than playing paper-and-pencil games with them.” And Kevin Murphy adds, “as predictors of job performance, their (meaning personality tests) validity is disappointingly low.” (Management Issues Ltd. 2007)
In this sense, we believed we were going on the right track in pursuing the right man for the Manager of Spokane. We used work samples, cognitive ability tests and structured interviews, and “all areas in which organizational psychology could greatly benefit human resource managers” (Management Issued Ltd. 2007).
After the applicants had filled up all the necessary forms and the examination, the proper assessment was made, assessment scores and weighting schemes were done. After analyzing the job description, we used KSAO analysis to focus on the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the prospected manager.
The Marshfield Application Examination and structured interviews were effective in finding the right candidate. A cursory examination of the bio-data and results of interviews were employed, and we found five vital candidates suited to the job. We have narrowed it down to this number; they are assistant managers of other branches of Tanglewood. However, final interviews should follow on these lucky persons, with a panel of interviewers composed of the COO, the President of the Organization of Tanglewood, and the Chairman of the Board of Directors or his authorized representative.
For the final and last step in choosing from among the applicants, we will use an interview through the internet, or a teleconference with the two applicants. They have to be interviewed through a limited teleconference; limited because the interviewer and the interviewee are confined to each other, with no other audience except those concerned in the staffing/selection process, which will be recorded in the entire process of assessment.
Structured interviews can be very effective in the job of a Manager. This can be coupled with cognitive ability tests given in the process.
Conclusion
We were able to narrow down our search to a few applicants because our method proved quite effective. KSAO was used to determine the applicant’s ability to perform the task of a Manager should one be selected. The final interview through a teleconferencing process using the internet will serve as the last leg of the selection. This will be done by a panel of interviewers who will really choose who should be the right man for the job.
The five final applicants are not new to the job of a Manager. They were recommended by a group of applicants from inside the organization, and all of them possessed quite good and superb credentials. From among the five finalists, the selection will be narrowed down to three, and then two, until the “winner” will be selected to become the Manager of the Spokane branch of Tanglewood.
The process is not tenuous but can prove to be very effective. This should be done because the position involved is not an ordinary job of a Manager. This is the most valuable position that can make or break the organization. It has to be done meticulously to be able to pick the right man for the job.
Analyzing the knowledge, skills, and abilities of applicants proved effective in determining capabilities and assessing a potential manager for the new branch of Tanglewood. We used multiple selection methods to reach an effective solution to finding the right man.
Works Cited
Pulakos, Elaine D. Selection Assessment Methods: A guide to Implementing Formal Assessments to Build a High Quality Work Force. 2005. Society for Human Resource Management Foundation. Web.
Management Issues Ltd. 2007. Personality tests poor predictors of job performance. Web.
Hattrup, Keith and Rock, Joanna. A Comparison of Predictor-Based and Criterion-Based Methods for Weighing Predictors to Reduce Adverse Impact. Applied H.R.M. Research, 2002, Volume 7, Number 1, 22-38. Web.