Case study 2: Renee’s New Job

Renee Swimmer is a qualified secretary with 15 years’ experience working in a

variety of industries. Last year she successfully applied for a job advertised by a
large financial services company. At the time she was working as a director's
PA in a small manufacturing firm. While happy in this job, and by all accounts
highly successful, she felt that after five years it was time to move on. The new
job attracted her because of the high rate of pay being offered and because
she wanted a new challenge. The company’s website was attractive and Renee
felt that her skills matched the advertised job description. The application
process was straightforward - after sending in her application form, she was
interviewed by the HR manager and the departing line manager. Renee felt
that the job perfectly suited what she was looking for. She would now work
with a team and was told that if she could prove herself, in a few years’ time
she could be managing it as a team leader.
However, within two weeks of arriving at her new desk she began to realise
that she had made a major mistake in moving jobs. Whereas in the previous
company she had been responsible for organising her own work and that of
her boss, in the new job she was part of a ten-strong team of administrators
who shared a range of duties and responsibilities. Previously she had enjoyed
a close personal relationship with her manager, but her new boss (an
employee who had spent 10 years in the department and was recently
promoted) was a seemingly insensitive woman whose manner Renee found
patronising. She also found it hard to empathise with the other team
members. She didn't wish to join in with their cynical banter and could not
share their harsh jokes or unequivocal acceptance of the manager's
instructions. Moreover, she found their approach to work to be far too chaotic
and disorganised. She was unable to feel comfortable participating in the
team-building activities that were held two or three times a week and yearned
to be able to express her own feelings and opinions openly without fear of
losing credibility with her colleagues. Above all, being used to the calm and
privacy of her own office, she disliked the open-plan arrangement in which she
was now obliged to work.
Within three weeks she found that she did not want to go to work in the
mornings. At lunchtime she avoided the company of her new colleagues,

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preferring instead to sit in her car listening to the radio. She spent each
afternoon looking anxiously at her watch and working out how early she could
leave without giving the appearance of idleness. In the fourth week she
developed a slight temperature one night.
Previously this would never have interfered with her work, but she now found
herself using it as an excuse to phone in sick. After a month she started
applying for new jobs. Soon she was offered a new position working for a
manufacturing company. The pay was not quite as good and commuting
distance was further, but she would have accepted a good deal less in order to
get away from the company.
A year on and Renee is happily settled in her new place of work. She has been
promoted twice, is well respected by her colleagues and has successfully
pioneered new initiatives.

(from CIPD case studies)

Questions
1. Why do you think Renee couldn’t fit into the new job? Discuss relevant
theories to support your answer.
2. What are the likely costs to the employer associated with the departure
of Renee after such a short period of employment (a little over a
month)?
3. Suggest two alternate selection methods that might have been more
effective. Give reasons for your answer.