The Science of Hiring
by Jack Smith, 1 Dec 2008

Jack Smith is Managing Director of Intelligent Capital Network, a people and solutions company focused on the Marketing and Technology spheres. Jack has 18 years experience in the recruitment and staffing industry, spanning marketing, technology and scientific disciplines. As a business owner and entrepreneur, Jack maintains a close pulse on hiring issues in the Delaware Valley.

Visit them online at www.icn-i.com.

For many years, the predominant method used to hire new employees has emphasized a candidate's employment history and skill sets. And, for a significant amount of time these were the only standards. A few decades ago, in an attempt to give employers more powerful indicators of success within a specific company, background, personality, and logic tests came on the scene. Adding these front-end measurements to the process seemed promising. Still, employers have been seeking a way to make more accurate hiring decisions. The next frontier for the hiring process will be much more holistic to the employer. It will attempt to clarify and quantify the essence of an organization, add past experience and discreet skill sets and measure applicants using sophisticated algorithms designed to take all guess work out of the hiring process.

For the majority of the modern business era, going back to the industrial revolution, employers have viewed and evaluated past performance of prospects as the primary indicators of future performance. This "Traditional Method" usually amounted to crossing off a checklist of qualifications - educational backgrounds, post school training, years in category, years at a competitor, and so on. Generally speaking, assessing these types of experiences worked with a fair degree of certainty. For the most part, employers had a basic yardstick for comparing and contrasting all applicants for a particular position. Added to this rear view mirror approach was a belief that a designated person in the organization (usually an HR generalist) had an uncanny ability to measure the candidates' cultural fit to the organization. This person's "gut check" was usually the final hurdle a candidate needed to clear to be deemed worthy of hire. Unfortunately, this subjective component was neither transferable nor measureable with any accuracy. Metrics consisted of basic, historical events designed to either validate or invalidate a very subjective process.

As the search for talent became greater, and human resource professionals pushed towards more quantifiable measurements to aid in the selection of the most qualified candidates, a push towards a "Testing Method" became the norm. These days, most organizations have some type of testing injected into the hiring process. At some companies, the use of criminal and financial background checks will suffice. For others, it is logic based testing that is administered to measure against a company benchmark. Many companies perform drug testing. And some perform personality based testing to eliminate candidates who will not fit into the culture of their company. Some employers use their method of testing in a ridged manner, with no exceptions. Others use it as a simple guideline, to be used along with traditional methods. The utilization of testing in the recruitment and hiring process certainly has come a long way in practice and acceptance over the past few decades. But, as technology and science move forward at an even faster pace, the "science of hiring" is the next frontier for successful talent acquisition.

Today, a typical job description is created by the Human Resource group (in conjunction with one or several department heads or line managers). A profile of the perfect candidate is created on paper (or digitally) and the addition of "soft skills" to the description will be an afterthought. But, these "soft skills" which include a broad assortment of characteristics not easily definable or quantifiable, are more often than not, the overriding characteristics on which hiring decisions are made. All too often, the "gut feeling" is relied upon to make the final piece of the hiring decision. Even when an organization pro-actively attempts to put form and reason to the uniqueness of its environment, it is subjectively viewed across the organization. How often have you heard (or said) "strong skill sets but not a cultural fit"? How often (if ever) is a rejection based on cultural fit reviewed in the organization for a hint of objectivity?

In the near future, a "Predictive Method" will be the basis for the vast majority of hiring decisions. It will take components of traditional and testing methods, and add a quantitative measure of the "uniqueness" of an organization. This last proposition, accurately measuring those subjective components of "uniqueness" is the underpinning of a more predictive method. As organizations become more adept at looking inward and working collaboratively across the entire enterprise, the ability to define the multiple aspects that are and are not predictive of success becomes achievable. As technology is utilized to wrap form around the "gut feeling" of the organization and candidates are measured objectively, a more efficient hiring process will become generally accepted at most organization. But, the human contact will always be the hurdle of last resort.

For those responsible for making hiring decisions, it is critical to understand the true culture of the organization. But only by including all stakeholders in determining that culture can the standardization process start. And, being able to accurately quantify that culture in a measurable way will lead to a more predictive hiring process.

For those looking to be hired, know your target company's "uniqueness". Only by communicating with a variety of people in your target company will you be able to develop a measured view of that organization. Understanding why each person enjoys working there, and what makes their co-workers excel will afford you the knowledge need to know if it is a right fit for you.