Making hiring decisions

Currently, all hiring decisions are being made by our human resources (HR) department. Of course, job applicants are passed on to the requesting department for their review. However, there are times when a requesting department hires someone without going through HR. Who has the final authority in hiring new workers? Is it the HR department or the requesting department? — Tiny Bubbles.

That question has no easy answer. It will depend on many variables, like the nature of the position and the long-established job specifications provided by the requesting department. The real trouble comes up when a department, with the consent of the chief executive officer (CEO), wants to rig the system and treat HR as a mere record keeper.

Even if applicants are recommended by the CEO, a department head, a politician, or a government bureaucrat, the hiring process must be fully observed and respected. There should be no exceptions. Otherwise, one exception will open the floodgates to more exceptions.

In real life, the strict hiring procedure is difficult to adhere to when the CEO becomes actively involved. Even if an applicant fails an intelligence quotient (IQ) test, normally reserved for those applying for an entry-level post, the only consideration that an organization could resort to is to give the applicant another chance by offering a different IQ test set.

That’s assuming applicants are bold enough to undergo another test that could validate their incompetence.

SELECTION
Selecting the best candidate is critical to ensuring the growth of any organization. The responsibility of setting up an effective and efficient selection process rests on the dynamic partnership between the HR department head and the line executive of a requesting department.

The CEO should be the one to resolve all disputes and not engage in destroying an established system. The HR department must have the responsibility of announcing vacancies to the outside world, administering the first step screening process (including the IQ test and initial interviews), and shortlisting the applicants for the final decision by the requesting department.

There should be no exceptions. No applicants may be hired without passing HR’s evaluation and endorsement process. HR is the internal expert in recruitment. When an organization is forced to hire someone due to a political accommodation, it eventually produces a bad hire and the termination of employment.

For that reason, it is best for all concerned to follow the standard selection process to produce a shortlist of the top three candidates. This way the best hiring decision can be made.

Rather than short-circuiting the process because of certain accommodations, the job must be offered only to the best candidate based on careful deliberation using an objective job specification.

APPLICATION FORM
In addition to the decision-making process in hiring new employees, it is important to understand that the resume, biodata, or curriculum vitae of applicants are the starting point in the selection process. They include a summary of the applicant’s education, work experience, career accomplishments, and training programs attended, among others.

Many companies used to place more importance on the applicant’s education and school attended. Today, there is a growing list of companies that don’t assign much weight to the applicant’s education and experience.

Instead, employers in the business process outsourcing and those in the information technology industries value the applicants’ general intelligence, cognitive ability, and passion for using the latest digital tools.

Also, even when job candidates submit their biodata, dynamic organizations still require those who pass the initial screening process by HR to fill out application forms in addition to their biodata. It is considered a best practice since biodata often contain exaggerated information.

The employment application form tends to be more accurate as the applicants are forced to attest to the accuracy and truthfulness of the information they are providing their prospective employers. It also contains their consent that the organization can verify the information under the Data Privacy Law, even after receiving their appointment papers as regular employees.

Unfortunately, many HR departments do not know this important part of the screening process. Sometimes, they skip the employment application form by requiring the applicants to sign every page of their biodata. But that is not enough. Still, the best approach is for the HR department to require the three shortlisted candidates to sign the application form designed by seasoned HR professionals and their lawyers.

If there’s one thing that should give pause to executives who rig the hiring process, it’s a negative report commissioned by HR on the new employee’s background information, supplied by an independent, third-party professional.

Bring Rey Elbo’s “Kaizen Blitz Workshop” to help your management team in problem-solving and decision-making. Contact him on Facebook, LinkedIn, X or e-mail elbonomics@gmail.com or via https://reyelbo.com