Name: AltaText Book: Human Resource Management – Gaining a Competitive Advantage 10eResearch Paper Selection My research paper selection topic is:Interviewing Methods in the Selection ProcessI have

8 The Enterprise June 7-13, 2010 Take algebra? Why? I'll never use it in real life!

Interviewing and selecting your next new hire When I have more money than I need (which these days seems farther away than it did a few years ago), I want to travel around the world and speak to high-school freshmen and sophomores. Ninth and 10th graders.

1 want to talk to them about the hidden power of mathematics.

In math of all sorts, you're given problems to solve. In the beginning, they're easy.

Add. subtract, multiply and divide.

Then come fractions. But still the same big four solve all the problems.

Then algebra, and a whole new language of math appears. It's pretty confusing at first, but as you're given each series of similar prob lems to solve and you begiti to work them, at some poini you "get it" and can figure out the answers to the rest relatively quickly.

Many people say, "Why do I have to take algebra?

VU never use it in my real life!" And that may be the most incorrect statement of your life.

Algebra teaches you to solve problems logically.

When you're given a math prob- lem, here's what happens:

1.

You study it to see if you know how to solve it or not.

2.

If yes, you go to the next step of using the prescribed system, pro- cess, formula or answer path to solve it.

3.

If no, you have to do addi- tional study and research to figure out, or leam how to solve it, then go back to step 2, and come up with the correct answer.

"Jeffrey, what's your point?" you whine. "Come on, I've got a quota to meet, cold calls to make, e-mails to follow up on and voice mails to leave that will most likely go unanswered.

Help me with the real stuff here." Relax. This is a "big picture answer" that transcends your self- created sense of urgency and lack of sales dilemma.

Math is a science. A logic-based, formula-based science.

Selling is also a science. An emotion-based science.

In sales, business and life, you are presented with problems and obstacles. You may know them as cus- tomers, competition, bosses, cowork- ers, service issues, complaints, over- coming objections and otber sales and business hurdles that you must solve or resolve in order to have a success- ful transaction or resolution.

It's the logical side of what would otherwise be seen as an emo- tional process. Emotion is to engage, show your passion, love and belief, be compelling, prove by example, congratulate when completed and cel- ebrate the victory.

I admit, Vm an emotional sales- man, but I am a superior salesman Jeffrey Gitomer because I am able to add the under- standing of logic into the total sales and relationship building process.

The reason you need to study math is that it provides you with the logical side, and the thinking side of the sale.

From the customer side of the decision, the simple rule is: The sale is made emotionally and then justified logically. (First you say, "I love this house." Then you say, "I wonder if we can afford it?") "Eh. what's up doc?" is the emotional open- er. In the world of logic the question converts to,"What's up.

Spock?" If you want to redis- cover how logic fits into your selling, business and life process, go back to your algebra class and you will find the answers:

• Math taught you to think about the solution or the answer logically and use the process or the formula to come up with an answer.

• Math taught you to see if the answer applies to all the problems or whether there are exceptions.

• Math taught you to think about and visualize your moves in advance (chess is a great example for think- ing three moves in advance - so is predictable customer service after a sale).

• Math taught you to see ele- ments of the solution, the answer, or the probable outcome in advance.

• Math lets you see that there's always a way to solve the problem and arrive at the desired result. Math logic says if you study it hard enough and deep enough you can find, or should I say discover, the answer.

• Math taught you to solve prob- lems logically, and you will continue to face problems the rest of your life, in every aspect of your life. Your job is to balance the emotional side and derive the best result.

Tbese math awareness bites will help you understand why you should have paid more attention in your math classes. And these are messages I'd like to deliver to every high school kid in America.

If you want to see the Spock versus Bugs Bunny answer that will create more sales, go to www.gitomer.

com and enter the word SPOCK in the GitBit box.

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible and The Little Red Book of Selling. President of Charlotte, N.C.- based Buy Gitomer, he gives semi- nars, runs annual sales meetings, and conducts Internet training programs on selling and customer service at www.

trainone.com. He can be reached at (704) 333-1112 or salesman@gitomer.

com.

20fO Ail Rights Reserved With the unemployment rate steadily climbing, a greater number of qualified job candidates are battling it out over the same open positions. That can be both a blessing and a curse for companies currently hiring. Identifying the best candidate amid a host of possible posers, pretenders or just plain poor choices can be tricky, Implementing à disciplined process that begins by thoroughly defining the open position and ends with effectively on-boarding and orienting a new hire to your company is vital.

Job Descriptions When a position opens within your company, resist the temptation to till it as quickly as possible no matter how prepared you think you are or how desperate you might feel. Instead, start by developing a well-defined job description. Compiling a job description requires you to carefully consider the position you seek to fill and how it impacts other positions. Make sure the job description includes the position's responsibilities as well as the qualifications, qualities and experience you seek in an applicant.

A thorough job description will serve as a useful tool throughout the hiring process. It can help as you prepare an employment ad and as you develop a list of interview questions. Closely matching an applicant's skills and experience to the job description ensures tbat you are zeroing in on the best candidate and - considering the litigious culture in which we live, it can also help prevent any potential claims of discrimination or unfairness.

Applications and Resumes Applications and resumes are another crucial tool in identifying the strongest candidates and weeding out weaker ones. After all, these devices are a reflection of the candidates. Does his or her resume or application demonstrate quality, professionalism, creativity or leadership potential? While a strong candidate can sometimes appear weak on paper, in most cases applications and resumes are a good initial indicator of an applicant's strengths and weaknesses.

When reviewing a resume or application, pay as much attention to a candidate's employment history as you do his or her job qualifications and experience. Are there any inconsistencies that are a concern? These days, frequent moves are to be expected and gaps in employment may be explainable, but take note of such things and be sure to ask about them during an interview.

Interviewing Once you have sorted through the resumes and identified tbe candidates you wish to meet, the interview process can begin. Be prepared. Use the job description to develop targeted questions.

Use the same questions for each candidate so you can compare responses. Remember to ask any specific questions about a candidate's work history if you are concerned about gaps on the resume.

Begin every interview by putting the candidate at ease. Spend some time telling the interviewee about the company and the position, but try to adhere to the 80/20 rule. That means the interviewer should only do about 20 percent of the talking while the interviewee should do 80 percent of the talking as he or she responds to the questions.

When posing questions to an interviewee, there are a number of potential pitfalls to avoid.

In the course of a conversation, it may seem natural to discuss children or personal interests, but be carefiil. Certain questions could be John Allen considered discriminatory, and if asked, could lead to lawsuits if a candidate believes he or she was not hired as a resuit of a presumed "wrong" response. Instead, ask open-ended questions that focus your discussion on work experience and qualifications. Below are some basic "dos and Don'ts" for interviewers.

Do Ask:

• What kind of experience do you have?

• Of all your work experience, where have you been most successful?

• What were the primary responsibilities of your most recent job?

• Describe how your job related to the overall goals of your department and company.

• What would you have changed about your last job? What did you like best?

• What are you looking for in your next job?

Don't Ask:

• How old are you? When did you graduate from high school?

• What is your nationality/race/religion?

•Are you a U.S. citizen?

• Are you married/si ngie/dating?

• Do you have children, or for women, are you pregnant?

• What is your sexual preference?

• What are your political affiliations?

• Do you have a disability?

• Have you everfileda workers'compensation claim?

• Have you ever undergone a psychiatric evaluation?

• What type of discharge did you receive from the military?

Encourage interviewees to ask questions themselves. Not only will tbeir questions help them leam more about your company and tbe open position, but they can also reveal candidates' priorities and how they think.

The answers to their questions can also help the candidate with their own decision-making process if you ultimately offer a position. Before completing the interview process, it may be belpful to have co-workers or other supervisors interview a final slate of candidates so you can get different opinions and perspectives before making a decision.

Selection When it comes time to decide which candidate is the best fit for your company and the position, there are a number of considerations and common mistakes to avoid. Be careful not to favor a candidate too strongly because he or she followed a weaker candidate during the interview process. Conversely, you may need to give extra consideration to a candidate you perceived weak if they followed an especially strong candidate in the process. Could there be more there than what you perceived initially?

Human nature causes many of us to favor candidates most like ourselves - we tend to connect with tbose whom we share a common background or similar experiences, but those individuals are not necessarily the most qualified for the position. However, there is something to be said for selecting a candidate who not only fits the position, but also fits the company's culture.

A seasoned and successful techie from IBM may not adapt well to the unconventional cultures of Apple or Google.

The best guide for picking the best candidate is the job itself Refer to the job description and evaluate candidates based on how you believe see HIRE page 10 10 The Enterprise June 7-13, 2010 GET OUT OF LINE Now you don't have to wait in line for govemtnent services and inforEnatinn because now the government is officially online at In an instant, you can print out tax and Social Security forms you used to wait in Une for. You'll also find passport and student aid applications and more. Lose the wait.

The official web portal of the Federal Government For govcrnmcnl inioririaitioD by pnonc, eall I-SOD-TED-INFO (Ihal'n 1-B00-.133-463«).

A public acrvicv meisaiie ironi thv U.S. General Service» Administration.

THREDGOLD fi-om previous page the future of the euro currency, as well as the European economy.

Regaining investor conñdence is mandatory.

At the same time, steps by China's political leadership to slow this behemoth's economy down are underway. Whether such steps can be successful, while avoiding a real estate bust, will go a long way to determining Asia's near-term economic future.

The Bottom Line?

The Great Recession has given way to a reasonable U.S.

economic growth pace, although serious challenges remain. I also expect unprecedented budget deficits in coming years, better employment news, modest inflation this year, extremely low short-term and attractive long- term interest rates and an anxious global economy.

Jeff Thredgold is the only econo- mist in the world to have ever earned the CSP (Certified Speaking Professional) interna- tional designation, the highest earned designation in profes- sional speaking. He is the author of econAmerica, released by major publisher Wiley & Sons, and serves as economic consul- tant to Zions Bank.

HIRE ß'om page 8 they measure up relative to all the skills and experience required for the job.

Don't fixate on one criterion or one characteristic you may have been looking for - consider the whole job as well as the whole candidate and all they have to offer.

Extending a Job Offer Once you have identified the ideal job candidate, the obvious next step is to extend a job offer, and while that sounds simple enough,there are potential pitfalls throughout the offer process. Job offers should be made orally, either in person or over the phone. A written offer letter or package can follow, but you would hate to lose Mr. or Ms. Right because he or she accepted another offer while yours was traveling via snail mail.

When you extend a job offer, include tbe following information about the position: title and department; work location and schedule; salary (of course, this may be open for negotiation); benefits; start date; any employee paperwork required by the company; contingencies that could lead to a withdrawal of the offer (i.e., drug testing, background checks, etc.); and the date by which you expect a response to the offer.

Remember to avoid making any promises you cannot keep. Don't imply that the new hire will be able to work a flexible schedule if the team he or she is joining has been working 60 hour weeks for the past 18 months. Instead, set realistic expectations - it will help prevent disappointment, potential performance issues and perhaps even litigation down the road.

Next Steps Now let's assume the ideal job candidate accepts your offer, joins your company and becomes the new person at the office. In a perfect world, he or she wouid hit the ground running and contribute at optimum performance levels on day one, but such a world doesn 't exist. Even the most experienced professionals need time to get up to speed on the organization's proprietary practices and unique protocols.

Unfortunately, too often companies do little to properly introduce new hires to the company.

Effective onboarding and training can accelerate new employees' productivity and help to ensure tbat they stay on the job, thus decreasing your company's cost of turnover. The sooner new employees become oriented to a company's culture and understand what is expected of them, the sooner they can begin to positively contribute to your organization's operations and its bottom line.

John Allen is president and COO of G&A Partners, a Texas-based HR and administrative services company that manages human resources, benefits, payroll, accounting and risk management for growing businesses.

Allen grew up in Salt Lake City and later returned to attend the University of Utah and Brigham Young University. The local office of G&A Partners can be reached at (801)302-8930.

ZIONS BANK" BUSINESS PLUS MAKING Presenting a comprehensive approach to business banking.

Zions Bank Business Plus Better business involves forming relationships. And the best business relationships involve trust. At Zions Bank, partner with the dependability and expertise of Zions Bank Business Plus, This all-in-one kit offers flat-fee business checking accounts and several personal banking benefits. Find the flexibility you want and the personal attention your company needs. As the number-one SBA lender the past eight years, we'll help you build your dreams. To learn more, drop by a local branch, or visit zionsbank^oni.

ZIONS BANK" WE HAVEN T FORGOTTEN WHO KEEPS US IN BUSINESS?

Member FDIC All loans are subiect to approval. Restrictions apply. Ask branch for details. Copyright of Enterprise/Salt Lake City is the property of Enterprise/Salt Lake City and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.