5.19 Exercises/Activities for Teachers and Students

Recruitment

1. Think about a company you have work for in the past. How did they brand their company to attract you to come work with them? Would you work for them again? Brainstorm in large group.
2. Many companies, today, use social media to find/screen potential employees ie. LinkedIn. Do you think this is ethical, prior to see a resume from the person? Or, before you interview the person? Why? Why not? Discuss in small group.
3. Some companies have Employee Referral programs that offer some type of bonus for a successful referral i.e. $50.00 gift certificate. What are the advantages of an Employee Referral program? What are the disadvantages of an Employee Referral program? Would you as an HR Specialist initiate such a program? Discuss in small group.
4. Form a team of 4 students. Each student will write down their career goals, individually. Share with the small group. In a “round robin” each student will be asked: Has your career goal changed over the years? What happened over the years (the events) that changed your career path/goals? What would you do differently if you could related to your career path? Students share their answers in small group.
5. Research details about Trend Analysis on the internet. What are the challenges of this model? Work with a partner.
6. Pay Equity is narrowing the gap between men and women’s wages. Research the wage gap between men and women. What did you discover? Why do you think there still is a wage gap between men and women? Discuss with a partner.
7. Why would a company hire a professional recruiter if they already have an HR Specialist? Brainstorm in large group.
8. Research on the internet professional associations that you might want to utilize as an HR Specialist for 1. Engineering position 2. Teaching position 3. Accounting position 4. Crane operator 5. Mining manager. List the Association names on the whiteboard individually.
9. Recruitment is expensive. Think of all the costs that are incurred in the recruitment process, including time and wages. Share in small group.

Selection

1. Think about an interview you participated in as the interviewee. Read the An Interview Story in the text, individually. Is this story similar to your story? Different, and how? Share with a partner.
2. Go back and review job analysis, individually. What is the connection between job analysis and selection? With a partner, describe job analysis and selection to each other, as you understand the terms. Decide, with your partner, how these two processes are connected.
3. Validity and reliability are important in selecting employees. Why? Share with a partner.
4. Research the NOC (National Occupational Codes) and find any job. Read the job description and specifications, individually. Design a behavioural question you would ask a person applying for this job? Design a situational question you would as the person. With a partner, share the job description highlights, and the questions you have designed. Ask your partner to critique your questions.
5. Do you believe it is ethical to complete a social media search on an applicant prior to interviewing them? Why? Why not? Work in small group.
6. When an employer suggests to an interviewee, they are looking for the “right fit” for the company, what do you think they are really saying? Do you think, in some cases, this could be seen as discrimination, and if so, in what situations? Share with a partner.
7. What is most important to an HR Specialist when decided whether to interview an applicant, the resume or the application? Why? Share with a partner.
8. An an HR Specialist with a strict upbringing about values, beliefs and attitudes that women are as smart as men in the world of work related to trades i.e. Plumbers, electricians, etc., how would you deal with a male Supervisor who thinks women ought to remain in domestic type jobs? This is an obvious bias called stereotyping. Share with a partner your answer.
9. You, as the Customer Service Manager, are hiring for a customer service rep who has the same education, length of experience, and has characteristics similar to you such as eager, polite, outgoing. How do you avoid similar-to-me bias in hiring? Share with a partner.
10. Do you believe that Personality Based Questions are ethical in making hiring decisions? Why? Why not? Share with a partner.
11. Group interviews are becoming more popular. What are the advantages? Disadvantages to group interviews? As an HR Specialist, what would the steps be to set up a group interview? How would you ensure it was fair to all candidates? Share in a small group.
12. Personality tests have been debated for years. Some companies believe in them, while others do not think they are good “deciders” in hiring. What might the challenges be in offering personality tests for a new Canadian? Brainstorm with larger group.
13. In what situation might you use the multiple cutoff approach? And, the multiple hurdle approach? Share with a partner.
14. To minimize hiring errors, as the HR Manager, what type of process would you put in place? Share with a partner.