Chapter 13 - Staffing System Management

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Chapter 13: Staffing System Management
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Sample Answers for Ethical Issues
Issue 1
It has been suggested that the use of staffing technology and software is wrong because it
dehumanies the staffing e!perience" ma#ing it nothing but a mechanical process that
treats applicants li#e digital widgets$ E%aluate this assertion$
There is certainly a mechanical aspect to the increasingly use of technology in human
resources activities. Although the proper use of technology is ultimately directed towards
ensuring that all applicants and employees are treated fairly, there is the potential for
treating all employees the same to mean ignoring individual circumstances or special
needs. To limit the etent to which applicants and employees are treated as if they were
nameless and faceless pieces of data, organi!ations should ta"e steps to ensure that there
is a human aspect to the staffing process. Small interpersonal touches, such as ta"ing time
to let applicants "now the status of their application or having #$ staff accessi%le to
answer employee &uestions, can go a long way towards preventing an assem%ly-line
approach to human resources. Technology can actually %e a positive component of the
staffing process %ecause computers and other forms of digital communication can ma"e it
easier for an organi!ation to contact applicants or employees.
Issue &
Since there are no standard ways of creating staffing process results and cost metrics" is
there a need for some sort of o%ersight of how these data are calculated" reported" and used
within an organiation' E!plain$
'ields li"e accounting and the law have evolved very speciali!ed techni&ues for
record"eeping and reporting that guide all practitioners in the way that they should do
their wor". (enerally, staffing systems do not have similar guidelines yet, although there is
a growing recognition of the importance of standardi!ed staffing measurement procedures.
The use of standardi!ed procedures monitored %y a central overseer within the
organi!ations provides several important outcomes. 'irst, multiple methods of selection
can %e evaluated fairly against one another such that the organi!ation can determine which
hiring strategies will %e optimally effective for %oth the organi!ation and its employees.
Second, standardi!ed reporting allows the organi!ation to detect deviations from policies
and procedures. Third, re&uired reporting of performance often has the effect of
encouraging individuals to increase their efforts towards meeting the goals which are
%eing assessed.
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Sample Answers to (iscussion )uestions
1$ *hat are the ad%antages of ha%ing a centralied staffing function" as opposed to
letting each manager be totally responsible for all staffing acti%ities in his or her
unit'
The main advantage of centrali!ing the staffing function is greater control, coordination,
and standardi!ation of the staffing process. That is, centrali!ed control will help to ensure
that staffing policies and procedures are carried out consistently throughout the
organi!ation. This would not %e li"ely to happen, if managers were free to conduct their
own staffing activities. The consistency of staffing processes is a%solutely critical given the
magnitude of the legal conse&uences which may result for failure to comply with laws and
regulations.
&$ *hat are e!amples of staffing tas#s and acti%ities that cannot or should not be
simply delegated to a staffing information system for their conduct'
The tet discussed a software program from the $esumi Corporation which automates
many staffing activities from scanning resumes and identifying )SA*s to matching
applicants with +o% openings and posting +o% openings. Most of the staffing activities
which a program such as this can perform will %e highly %eneficial to organi!ations in
terms of efficiency. #owever, there are some staffing activities which may not %e
appropriate for this type of program to perform. *ne eample might %e the person,+o%
matching process which identifies a ran"-ordered list of candidates. There may %e other
factors which the person doing the hiring wants to consider other than simply the )SA*
match %etween the person and +o%. Second, sending out +o% offer letters may not %e an
appropriate tas" for an automated system to handle. -hen a +o% offer is %eing made, it is
critical for the organi!ation to do everything possi%le to ma"e the +o% offer letter as
attractive as possi%le to the applicant so he,she will accept the +o% offer. Also, if a
company is going through downsi!ing, it would not %e appropriate to inform people that
they are losing their +o%s with a .form letter./
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3$ *hat would be the ad%antages and disad%antages of outsourcing the entire staffing
system to a %endor'
The most important advantage of outsourcing the entire staffing system to a vendor is
that a well-selected, eperienced vendor will %e a%le to apply years of practice in
implementing staffing systems to your organi!ation1s situation. 2ternal vendors are
li"ely to have more "nowledge of the legal and statistical principles regarding staffing
%ecause that is pro%a%ly all they do. *n the other hand, eternal vendors may have little
"nowledge of the particular circumstances faced %y your organi!ation. They may %e
tempted to use a .one si!e fits all/ approach to staffing that emphasi!es predictors that
wor" well in general, %ut which do not apply to specific populations of employees or
organi!ations with very uni&ue cultures.
+$ In de%eloping a report on the effecti%eness of the staffing process being conducted
for entry,le%el -obs" what factors would you address in such a report and why'
The most appropriate indicators of the effectiveness of a staffing process involve
eamining &uantitative measures and ratios. These measures are particularly useful
%ecause they are &uantitative, there%y ma"ing it possi%le to trac" effectiveness over time.
Moreover, these measures are useful in that they eamine process and outcome varia%les
in relation to the staffing process.
Specifically, the measures of staffing process effectiveness are3
1. Applicants,vacancy - this indicates the effectiveness of recruitment activities in
attracting people to the organi!ation.
0. 4ield ratio - this indicates the percentage of people who moved on to one or more
net steps in the staffing process.
3. Time lapse - shows the average amount of time lapsed %etween each step in the
staffing process.
5. $etention rate - the percentage of hirees who are still with the organi!ation after
various periods of time.
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.$ /ow would you try to get indi%idual managers to be more aware of the legal
re0uirements of staffing systems and to ta#e steps to ensure that they themsel%es
engage in legal staffing actions'
*ne way to raise the awareness levels of managers in terms of understanding legal
staffing re&uirements would %e to send out a memo to communicate the need for greater
manager accounta%ility in staffing activities. This would %e followed %y a training
program which all managers would %e re&uired to attend. The focus of the training
program would %e to3 1. educate managers regarding relevant staffing laws and
regulations, and 0. to educate managers regarding the negative conse&uences which
could occur, if a staffing law or regulation is violated. The first part of the training
program 6understanding staffing laws and regulations7 would have to %e pretty factual
and straightforward. #owever, the second part 6understanding the impact of failure to
comply with laws and regulations7 could involve case studies, role plays, and other
.hands on/ training techni&ues.
Application 11: 2earning About 3obs In Staffing
4he organiation5s products and ser%ices" sie" and staffing function$
This hotel,resort is a 899 room hotel,resort located in a northern su%ur% of Chicago,
:llinois. :t offers premium &uality hotel accommodations and a wide range of services and
amenities including an 1; hole golf course, theater, swimming pool, four restaurants, and
retail stores.
The staffing function for entry-level +o%s is %ased mostly on +o% postings and wal"-ins.
:nterested applicants complete application %lan"s and then they are interviewed %y an #$
staffing specialist. :f the applicant performs ade&uately up to this point, he,she is
scheduled for an interview with the relevant supervisor manager. 'inal selection decisions
are made at this point.
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Chapter 13 - Staffing System Management
4he -ob,holder5s -ob title" and why you chose that person5s -ob to study$
<o% Title3 #$ Staffing Specialist
A summary of tas#s performed by the -ob holder" and the 6SA7s necessary for the -ob$
4as#s 6SA7s
1. Coordinating interviews with
managers.
:nterpersonal s"ills
*rgani!ational s"ills
0. =eveloping interview structure and
content.
#$ staffing "nowledge
Analytical s"ills
#$ laws and regulations "nowledge
3. Conducts interviews. :nterpersonal s"ills
Analytical s"ills
5. -or"s with managers to ma"e final
selection decisions.
Analytical s"ills
Consultative s"ills
>ro%lem-solving s"ills
A summary of the e!trinsic and intrinsic rewards recei%ed by the -ob holder$
E!trinsic 8ewards Intrinsic 8ewards
Annual Salary3 ?0@,999 <o% autonomy
Merit :ncreases of 0-AB per year S"ill variety
Cenefits Tas" significance
591)
#ealth :nsurance
E$ 9ni0ue characteristics of the -ob that you did not e!pect to be part of the -ob$
1. The pu%lic relations function of the +o%. 2ach contact with an applicant was
actually a >$ opportunity for the company.
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Application 1&: E%aluating Staffing :rocess 8esults
1$ (etermine the yield ratios ;offer recei%ers<applicants" new hires<applicants=" time lapse or
cycle times ;days,to,offer" days,to,start=" and retention rates associated with each
recruitment source$
>ewspaper Ads Employee 8eferrals Employment Agency
*ffer $ec.,App. D 03.3B *ffer $ec.,App. D A9B *ffer $ec.,App. D AB
Eew #ire,App. D 18.@B Eew #ire,App. D A9B Eew #ire,App. D AB
=ay to *fferD 89 =ay to *ffer D 39 =ay to *ffer D 89
=ay to Start D @9 =ay to Start D 59 =ay to Start D @9
$etention D @9B $etention D F9B $etention D 59B
&$ *hat is the relati%e effecti%eness of the three sources in terms of yield ratios" cycle times"
and retention rates'
The days-to-offer measure refers to the average num%er of days it ta"es for the staffing
process to ma"e +o% offers to candidates. The days-to-start measure indicates the average
num%er of days it ta"es from the %eginning of the staffing process to the time the new
hires start their +o%s.
:n terms of yield ratios 6offers,applications, new hires,applications7, the ordering of the
recruitment methods is 6from highest to lowest effectiveness73 1. employee referrals, 0.
newspaper ads, and 3. employment agency. That is, employee referrals possessed the
highest ratios in terms of offers,applications and new hires,applications.
:n terms of cycle times 6days-to-offer, days-to-start7, the ordering of the recruitment
methods is 6from highest to lowest effectiveness73 1. employee referrals, and 0.
employment agency and newspaper advertisements 6tied7. Specifically, employee referrals
had the smallest days-to-offer and days-to-start figures.
:n terms of retention, the ordering of the recruitment methods is 6from highest to lowest73
1. employee referrals, 0. newspaper advertisements, and 3. employment agency.
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Chapter 13 - Staffing System Management
3$ *hat are possible reasons for the fact that the three sources differ in their relati%e
effecti%eness'
:t is not surprising that employee referrals were the most effective recruitment method
%ased on yield ratios, time lapse, and retention rates. *ne eplanation for this is that
current employees understand the organi!ation, its culture, and the %asic +o% re&uirements.
Cecause of this, they are in a particularly good position to recommend people they "now
who might fit well with the +o% and the organi!ation. Thus, even though this method
generated %y far the fewest num%er of applicants, it was the most effective recruitment
method. This occurred %ecause current employees did a good +o% prescreening individuals
%efore they %ecame candidates.
The newspaper ads and employment agency recruitment methods did not fare nearly as
well as the employee referral method. This may have %een the case %ecause these methods
can generate very large num%ers of applicants %ecause of their %road eposure and
etensive data%ases, %ut many of these individuals can simply apply for the +o% and
%ecome candidates without any real screening ta"ing place.
+$ *hat would you recommend that (e!ter do differently in the future to impro%e his
e%aluation of the staffing process'
'irst, it is recommended that =eter continue to evaluate its staffing process on a regular
%asis in the future. This will permit the identification of important trends. Second, if
=eter has another wor" unit which is hiring people for similar +o%s, the results a%ove
could %e compared against this internal standard. Third, =eter can %enchmar" its staffing
data against eternal standards more thoroughly in terms of other data provided %y the
Saratoga :nstitute and the 2mployment Management Association. 'inally, =eter could
also calculate other yield ratios and eamine retention rates %eyond si months.
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