Interviewing Candidates The interview is the most widespread selection method used to fill positions in organizations. Unfortunately, research on employment interviews has shown that, without proper...

Interviewing Candidates

The interview is the most widespread selection method used to fill positions in organizations. Unfortunately, research on employment interviews has shown that, without proper care, interviews can be unreliable, low in validity, and biased against different groups. One way to improve the interview process is for HR staff to keep the interview structured, standardized, and focused on accomplishing a small number of goals. Moreover, using situational interviews—where applicants are confronted with specific issues, questions, or problems that are likely to arise on the job—have provided pertinent information about the way an applicant may handle the job he or she is applying to fill. In the following case, a local small business is overwhelmed by responses to a job posting and asks an HR consultant to assist in the selection process.

David Holmes is an HR consultant hired by Beds O' Plenty (BOP), a local mattress company. BOP is a fairly new business that has grown dramatically in the past year. BOP needs to expand its customer service group and is looking to hire two customer service representatives. The HR manager (who also doubles as the head of customer service) is overwhelmed by the response to the company's job opening posted on CareerBuilder.com. The current customer service reps are relatives of the company's owner, and they signed on as a favor to him—even though they had little professional experience in customer service. Now that the department needs to expand, the owner and the HR manager need guidance in setting up a formal selection method for the new employees.