5.3 Selection Criteria and Job Analysis
HR managers must be knowledgeable about the jobs performed within the organization before they can develop the selection criteria for hiring. These criteria are used to evaluate candidates during the selection process to determine who is the best fit for the job.
A job analysis is performed to gather the information about a given job. The job analysis identifies the tasks, responsibilities, and skills that the job entails and the knowledge and abilities needed to perform it. Think of the analysis as “everything an employee is required and expected to do.” Managers use the information collected to prepare two documents:
- A job description which lists the tasks, duties and responsibilities of a position and
- A job specification lists the qualifications, called KSAOs, or knowledge, skills, abilities and other personal characteristics that make a person successful.
HR Managers can now create a list of selection criteria directly related to the ability to perform the job duties using the job description. The job specification details the minimum qualifications needed, such as education level and years of experience. Additional selection criteria might include the attitude of the potential hire, the ability to take the initiative, and other important personal characteristics and professional abilities.
Selection Criteria Example
Selection criteria for a project management job might include the following:
- Two years of experience managing a $1 million or more project budget
- A bachelor’s degree in business or closely related field
- Ability to work on multiple projects at once
- Problem-solving ability
- Conflict-management ability
- Ability to manage a team of five to six diverse workers
- A score of at least 70 on the cognitive ability test
By setting criteria ahead of time, the hiring team has a clear picture of exactly what qualifications they are looking for. As a result, it is easier to determine who should move forward in the selection process. For example, given this criterion, if someone does not have a bachelor’s degree, their application materials can be filed away, perhaps for another job opening. Likewise, the HR manager can include those résumés with two or more years of experience and a bachelor’s degree in the interview pile.
Selection criteria may not always be demonstrated in an application form or resume. A specific score on a personality test, quality of work samples, and other tools to determine qualifications should be included as part of the criteria. The selection criteria are also used to develop interview questions that show the candidate’s problem-solving, multitasking, and conflict-management abilities.
In other words, selection criteria outline exactly what you are looking for in an applicant before you begin screening through résumés, testing and conducting interviews. This allows for a streamlined selection process with specific guidelines already set! When organizations develop selection criteria that are accurate, reliable, and legally defensible, it leads to better selection decisions and improved organizational performance.
Your Perspective: Why is criteria development important to the selection process? Give examples of types of criteria that can be developed.
“Managing Human Resources” from Fundamentals of Business: Canadian Edition by Pamplin College of Business and Virginia Tech Libraries is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.—Modifications: Used section Job analysis, edited, expanded on.
“Criteria Development and Résumé Review” from Human Resource Management by Anonymous is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.—Modifications: Used introduction and section Criteria development considerations, edited, reorganized, expanded on.
