Predicting Performance Through Accurate Assessment Abigail Clayton - PDF document

Predicting Performance Through Accurate Assessment Abigail Clayton November 2011 1

Getfeedback improve business performance through the accurate selection, development and engagement of people at work Here at Getfeedback over the past 10 years we have been working with our clients to improve business performance through the selection, development and retention of people at work. In relation to recruitment our services range from ad hoc psychometric testing to recruitment process outsourcing. During this presentation I will briefly review impact of the current economic environment on the recruitment landscape and look in more detail at the processes and tools utilised by our clients to predict performance through their assessment processes. You will all be aware of the current economic environment with slow economic growth and increased unemployment but what does that mean for us as recruiters? 2

Unemployment 2.57 million 17 year high Office for National Statistics September 2011 With unemployment at a 17 year high Job seekers are becoming increasingly desperate to find work – and as a result are applying for more jobs – perhaps applying for sectors and roles they may not have applied for in the past. Most of our clients have seen an increase in the number of applicants per vacancy which is a direct impact of more individuals in the job market but also each individual are applying for more jobs. Just to review some specific figures - PWC had 1,200 new graduate starters in September after sifting them down from 22,000 applicants – which was more than double the volume they received last year and there is an average of 83 applicants per graduate vacancy. To put it in perspective this has increased from 69 in 2010, 49 in 2009 and 31 in 2008 – Association of Graduate recruiters 2011, 3

Average 18 applicants per vacancy Total Jobs Barometer July 2011 Reviewing other roles the total jobs barometer is a good place to start. It revealed that online job seekers are facing highest level of competition for over 2 years with an average of 18 applicants per vacancy although huge variations dependent on sector, role and region. So there are lots of applicants out there, so how can you accurately assess them to predict performance in role and do so in a cost effective way? To ensure the accuracy of their selection techniques many organisations are taking a step back in the process to increase the accuracy of their hires. 4

Engage Define Attract Select Many of our clients use the model as illustrated here to review each key stage of their recruitment process. •Define the role, person specification and performance measures. •Attract the most suitable candidates setting clear expectations of role requirements. •Select the best candidate using accurate, cost effective sifting techniques •Engage them, develop them and embed them in your organisation 5

Business need Job Establishment Role Profile Person Specification Define To predict performance you have got to know what you’re looking for and therefore prior to any recruitment process you need to clearly define the skills and attributes that will lead to success in role. Once the business need is confirmed and job requirement established it is important to confirm the both the details of the role and the specification of the individual you wish to recruit. This information should be defined, agreed and clearly documented to feed into each of the following stages of the recruitment process. Once you have your role profile and person specification you can then begin to attract applicants. 6

Define Adverts Job Boards Agencies + Head-hunters Social Media Milk Rounds Networking/referral Attract Real Job Previews - Self Selection Questionnaires Killer Questions Attraction techniques vary considerably based on type of role and organisation. They can be used in isolation or combined for greater effect and some such as adverts have been around for a while whilst others such as the use of social media are still being debated. However with increasing numbers of individuals looking for work, generating applicants for more general roles is not proving too much of a problem for the majority of our clients however, dealing with the vast numbers of applicants per role however is becoming a greater challenge. Because of this many organisations are turning to self selection techniques and tools to enable unsuitable candidates to self select themselves out of the process prior to entering the system at all. Many clients choose to be explicit in their marketing material –a number of legal firms are very clear about the commitment they are looking for example Freshfields state “The work is complicated. The hours can be long”. Self assessment questionnaires are frequently becoming more wide spread, good examples include Herbert Smith, BP, Aldi. But once you have defined your role, attracted the most suitable candidates the process then enters the selection phase. 7

CV/Application Form Screening Business Interviews Ability Testing Situational Judgement Tests Personality/Motivation Assessment Skills Based Assessments Select Behavioural Assessment Assessment Centres There are lots of selection techniques available for sifting out candidates all which have varying costs and time requirements. •CV/Application Form Screening •Ability Testing •Interviews •Personality/Motivation Assessment •Skills Based Assessments •Behavioural Assessment •Assessment Centres So which tools and selection techniques should you use and when? 8

Recruitment accuracy 4. CV, I nterview + Full Assessment Centre (psychometrics, Behavioural Competency Interview, Assessment Centre) 3. CV, I nterview + I nitial and Detailed % Accuracy Sift (Personality and Motivation Measures or of predicting Behavioural success in Competency Interview ) role 2. CV & I nterview + I nitial Sift (Ability Assessment, SJTs or Skill and Safety reports) 1. CV & I nterview Selection Methodology Select Research has sown that increasing the selection methodology employed in your recruitment process increases the accuracy of predicting success in role. As shown here you can see the increasing accuracy with introducing additional selection methods Most companies have historically focused their recruitment activities around the traditional interview process and CV or application form review however research shows that if companies utilise more sophisticated, objective selection techniques alongside these measures this can drastically increase the accuracy of their process. Including an initial sift in your recruitment process has been shown to more than double its accuracy. 9 9

I nitial Sifting Tools Situational Judgement Tests Ability Assessments Skill and Safety Instruments Select These initial sifting tools are increasingly used by clients due to their ability to cost effectively and accurately sift large volumes of applicants for a wide variety of roles. They include: •Situational Judgement Tests •Ability Assessments •Skill and Safety Instruments Primarily these assessments are completed on line allowing candidates to complete remotely 24/7 and results to be available immediately upon completion. They also tend to have right or wrong answers allowing clear sifting on the results. It is no surprise that over 75% of the times top 100 companies now use online testing at some stage within selection processes. To take each one in turn: 10

Situational Judgement Tests Realistic scenarios and situations Improved diversity Enhanced employer brand Rigorous research and testing Tailoring Self-selection 24/7 access and instant reports Over the past 3 years we have seen a dramatic increase in the use of Situational Judgement Tests by our clients for sifting volume applicants for standard roles. Situational Judgement Tests are work simulations designed to assess candidates against a broad range of behaviours and skills including problem solving, decision making all required for effective performance. They typically take candidates through real life work situations and ask them to rate specific responses. Off the shelf assessments are available for standard roles such as Customer Service Representatives, and Junior Managerial roles; they can also be tailored to other specific roles. Through situational judgement tests candidates quickly gain a clear understanding of both the job and the company whist accurately being screened against essential attributes for the role. Alongside the cost effectiveness of this method of selection other benefits include: •Realistic scenarios and situations •Improved diversity •Enhanced employer brand •Rigorous research and testing •Tailoring •Self-selection •24/7 access Getfeedback offer situational judgement tests from both Talent Lens and SHL PreVisor and also offer a bespoke design service. 11