MODULE: MBALN-609

ORGANIZATIONS & HR MANAGEMENT  

Assignment 3: Human Resources Tool Kit

By Michel Kalemba Muanasaka

26 October-13 December 2015

This is a collection of tools related to trends or best
practices in acquiring and maintaining human
resources.
Topics include:
•How to design a job position and description
•Tips for conducting a successful employee search
•How to conduct an employment interview
•Tools for evaluating employee performance
•How to develop an effective employee training
program
•Effective feedback and performance evaluation
processes and procedures
 1. How to design a job position and description

• The job analysis is a formal system developed to

determine what tasks people actually perform in
their jobs [1].
Job Analysis= Job Description + Job Specification
• Job Description indicates what all a job involves:
tasks and responsibilities tagged to a job

• Job Specification includes the capabilities that the

job holder should possess
Job Description= General Purpose Job Description +
Specific Purpose Job Description
 Job Description Dos and Don’ts[3]
DOS:
•Use a factual and impersonal style when writing the job
description
•Base the job description on the department’s needs
•Write an accurate, concise, and complete job description
•Use complete sentences
•Keep sentence structure as simple as possible, omitting
unnecessary words that do not contribute pertinent information
•Begin each duty/task with an action verb
•Be consistent when using terms like “may” and “occasionally.”
These should be used to describe tasks that are performed once in
a while, or tasks that only some employees perform
• Refer to job titles rather than incumbents, i.e.,
“Reports to _______ Manager” instead of “Reports
to Mary Smith
• Be precise. This is critical for accurate job evaluation
and analysis
• Focus on critical activities
• Use a logical sequence in describing duties and
responsibilities (Key Responsibility first, followed by
the corresponding duties)
• Call your Compensation Analyst for guidance
DON’T:

• Use the narrative form when writing a job

description
• Base the content of the job description on the
capabilities, skills, and interests of the incumbent
• Write the job description based upon the desired job
classification
• Write the job description as step by step guide on
how to do the job
• Include minor or occasional tasks, which are not
unique to a specific job.
 2. Tips for conducting a successful employee search

Lisa McQuerrey [5] gives us an eleven step process for

conducting an employee search:

•Step 1: Develop a detailed job description that

outlines every aspect of what the position entails.

•Step 2 : Create a job opening advertisement that can

be accessed from your company website and can easily
be sent as an attachment via e-mail.
• Step 3: Reach out to other small-business
professionals whose opinion you value and ask for
personal recommendations.
• Step 4: Employ the help of an employment agency
that focuses on finding talented job candidates in
your particular industry.
• Step 5: Utilize local online job posting databases. You
can search resumes posted by job-seekers or post
your ad and screen applicants as they come in.
• Step 6: Advertise in mainstream newspaper
classifieds or niche community papers that reach into
different local neighborhoods.
• Step 7: Let vendors, consultants, volunteers and
long-term clients know you're looking to hire.
• Step 8: Utilize social media platforms that are free or
carry a nominal fee. Encourage friends, customers
and colleagues who visit your site to forward the job
opening to people they think would be interested.
• Step 9: Review applicants as quickly as you can.
Many job-seekers apply for more than one job at a
time, so you need to be expedient in identifying
quality candidates before they accept a job
elsewhere.
• Step 10: Conduct phone interviews with potential
candidates and follow up with a personal interview
of those you find most qualified. Invite final
candidates to meet other members of the staff to get
a feel for how the individual personalities mesh.

• Step 11: Narrow your choice to your top candidate

and extend an offer of employment.
Brittney Helmrich[4] describes 8 tips for hiring the right
person for the job:
1. Focus on the candidate's potential.
Nothing is more important in a new hire than
personality. While having the right skill set may seem
essential, the fact is, skills can be acquired, but
personalities cannot.
2. Check social media profiles: to see what comes up
about that person online.
3. Fit the personality to the job.
A candidate's personality is another really important
factor to consider. You may not want a narcissistic
employee tending to elderly patients in your nursing
home, but it might not be a bad idea to hire one to
model your new clothing line, for example.
4. Ask the right kinds of questions.
You can't come right out and ask someone if they're
a jerk. But, you can ask questions that will help you
figure it out on your own.
5. Let candidates interview you, too.
Don't be the only one to ask questions. To help
determine if your prospective candidate has the right
personality for your particular job, it's important to
help that person understand the company's work
environment.
6. Think of your other employees.
You have a legal obligation to provide your other
employees with a safe and healthy work environment.
If a potential employee gives any indication that he or
she could be aggressive or has an anger problem, you
should find someone else.
7. Don't judge a book by its cover. 
It's easy to write off candidates based on their
appearance, but it's more important that you consider
how well they can do the job and if they're a good fit in
other ways.
8. Know that not all hires work out.
You're only human, so even after following all these
tips, it's entirely possible that you might still make a
bad hire. If you have tried to solve whatever issues
have arisen as a result of a new hire, and your attempts
have failed, it's okay to let the person go. After all, you
want an employee who is going to add to your
company culture, not make it worse.
For Alan Hall [6], there are 7 categories to be considered to find great
employees: 
•1. Competent: This is still the first factor to consider. Does the
potential employee have the necessary skills, experiences and
education to successfully complete the tasks you need performed?
•2. Capable: Will this person complete not only the easy tasks but will
he or she also find ways to deliver on the functions that require more
effort and creativity? For me, being capable means the employee has
potential for growth and the ability and willingness to take on more
responsibility.
•3. Compatible: Can this person get along with colleagues, and more
importantly, can he or she get along with existing and potential clients
and partners?
•4. Commitment: Is the candidate serious about working for the long
term? Or is he or she just passing through, always looking for
something better? A history of past jobs and time spent at each
provides clear insight on the matter.
• 5. Character: Does the person have values that align with
yours? Are they honest; do they tell the truth and keep
promises? Are they above reproach? Are they selfless and a
team player?
• 6. Culture: Every business has a culture or a way that
people behave and interact with each other. Culture is
based on certain values, expectations, policies and
procedures that influence the behavior of a leader and
employees. Workers who don’t reflect a company’s culture
tend to be disruptive and difficult.
• 7. Compensation: As the employer, be sure the person
hired agrees to a market-based compensation package and
is satisfied with what is offered. If not, an employee may
feel unappreciated and thereby under perform. Be careful
about granting stock in the company; if not handled well, it
will create future challenges.
 3. How to conduct an employment interview

• choose the right type of interview(s) for the individual job [1]
(Traditional face-to-face, Telephone, Panel, Informational interview, …)
• Prepare in advance [7]. Create an agenda and a structure for the
interview, including time limits. Work with HR, peers and your staffers
to develop a set of questions and topics.
• Prepare your questions [8], Begin this process by “compiling a list of
required attributes” for the position, looking at your top performers.
What do they have in common? How are they resourceful? What did
they accomplish prior to working at your organization? What roles did
they hold? Those answers will help you create criteria and enable you
to construct relevant questions.
• Come up with questions in four categories: fact-finding, creative-
thinking, problem-solving and behavioral [7].
• Take notes during the interview highlighting things
you want to follow-up on later. Pay attention to
whether the employee is taking notes as well [7].
• Pay attention to the candidate’s nonverbal cues
during the interview and how the employee acts
before and after the questioning [7].
 Principal to remember [8]
DO:
•Lower your candidates’ stress levels by telling them in advance the
kinds of questions you plan to ask
•Ask behavioral and situational questions
•Sell the role and the organization once you’re confident in your
candidate
Don’t:
•Forget to do pre-interview prep — list the attributes of an ideal
candidate and use it to construct relevant questions
•Involve too many other colleagues in the interviews — multiple
checks are good, but too many people can belabor process
•Put too much emphasis on “cultural fit” —  remember, people adapt
 4. Tools for evaluating employee performance

• Job Standards [9]

When you hire a new employee, one of your first duties
should be to set job standards and expectations for
him. Give him a copy of duties required for the
position. Include quantifiable performance measures, if
possible. For example, a sales representative might
need to sell $25,000 worth of products each month for
satisfactory performance. Selling more or less can
equate to a rating of above or below satisfactory. Have
your employee sign the list of job standards and give
him a copy. This tool serves as a guideline when
developing the written employee evaluation so you and
your staff member understand the criteria for ratings.
 Smart Objectives

• develop employee goals and objectives at the beginning of the

performance cycle by using the SMART formula [1]:
SMART stands for
- Specific: Describing in precise terms what will be done
- Measurable:Describing how you will know whether or not the
goal was met
- Attainable: Defining a goal that is challenging but achievable
- Result oriented: Connecting and aligning the employee’s role
with the objectives of the Company/unit
- Time limited: Specifying the time frame within which the goal
should be completed
• Documentation [9]
Performance evaluations should be given regularly,
such as once a year. During the rating period, it can
be difficult to remember events that occurred
several months ago. Therefore, it's important to
document accomplishments and areas of
improvement between formal evaluations. When
positive or negative events take place, write them
down in an informal file as notes to be used for the
evaluation. Record the date, time, dialogue and any
other relevant details that provide enough
information to use for personnel matters.
• Written Evaluation Form[9]
If you are not an expert in human resources, use a
generic appraisal form as a for your formal
evaluation. These will typically have a few general
categories, such as "Job Standard Performance,"
along with ratings describing whether the employees
performance in a particular area is above
satisfactory, satisfactory or below satisfactory. Use
your documentation to add details to support your
ratings.
• Performance Plan [9]
Performance plans are valuable tools in the employee
evaluation process. After a formal review, business
owners can offer staff members performance plans
with future goals and timetables. If an employee is
less than satisfactory, the plan explains the deficient
areas and ways to improve them.
There are different types of employee reviews,
including the following [10]:
•Top-down review
•Peer review
•360-degree review
•Self assessment
 Conduct a performance review meeting [10]

• Establish rapport. Most employees are going to be

nervous and anxious. Remove both visible and
mental barriers. Sit next to each other instead of
across the desk from them. Let them know this is a
mutual conversation, not an interrogation. Even
consider meeting them over lunch or breakfast.
• Concentrate on the meeting and employee
• Take notes
• Observe responses as well as behaviors
• Allow time to ask questions

Follow up
Get employee feedback
Set up a commitment for the next cycle
Discuss goals and career development
 Pitfalls to Avoid in Conducting Employee Reviews

• The Halo Effect. This occurs when an employee

excels in one area and the manager lets that trait or
factor influence their ratings under every category in
the review process.
• Leniency or harshness errors : "When raters see
everything as 'good,' they are lenient raters. When
they see everything as 'bad,' they are harsh raters."
Look over your ratings to see if you display any of
these tendencies and even consider using a
"grading" distribution like they use in school -- with
10 percent of employees exemplary, 20 percent
distinguished, 40 percent competent, 20 percent
marginal, and 10 percent unacceptable.
• Central tendency: Another pitfall is to rate everyone
somewhere near the middle
• First impression: Whether your first impression is
positive or negative, this should not be the basis for
performance evaluation. Some workers end up riding
on that first impression for the rest of the year. To
avoid this, go back to the job description and
performance documentation.
• Personal bias: People tend to identify with others
who are like them; this is true for managers and their
employees who sometimes give a higher rating
because the employee has qualities similar to him or
her (or a lower rating because the employee has
dissimilar qualities).
• Recency Error [11]: Performance-rating error in
which the appraisal is based largely on the
employee’s most recent behavior rather than on
behavior throughout the appraisal period.
 Appraisal Methods [1]

• Graphic Rating Scale

• Essay Appraisal
• Checklist Scale
• Critical Incident Appraisals
• Work Standards Approach
• Ranking Methods
 How to develop an effective employee training
program
• Design a training program: Needs assessment, learning
objectives, Learning styles, Delivery method, Budget, delivery
style, Audience, Content development, Timelines,
Communication, measuring effectiveness [1].
• Jack Shaw [14], in his “All About Training and Development
(Learning and Development)” establishes five phase to be
followed when developing a systematic training and
development program:
– Assessing Your Training Needs: Needs Assessment to
Training Goals
– Designing Training Plans and Learning Objectives
– Developing Training Activities and Materials
– Implementing Your Training Program
– Evaluating Your Training Program
 Effective feedback and performance evaluation
processes and procedures

• NYU’s performance communication process, is

divided into three types of discussions that happen
at specific times during the year [12]:
• Beginning of the Year:
Manager and employee meet to discuss and establish
goals and other performance expectations for the
coming year
• Throughout the Year:
Manager and employee meet regularly to discuss
progress on goals and expectations
• End of the Year:
Employee and manager assess, review and discuss the
employee’s performance
21 Components of Effective Feedback[13]
 References

[1] Organzation & Human Resources Management e-

book chapter 4
[2] Job description and job specification
By Kalpita Potawad M.L.I.Sc 2012-2013,
http://fr.slideshare.net/KalpitaPotawad/job-
description-and-job-specification-15298725
[3] Job description writing guide,
http://www.hr.pitt.edu/sites/default/files/documents/
comp/pdf/jdHowToWrite_printerFriendly.pdf
[4] 8 Tips for Hiring the Right Person for the Job, By
Brittney Helmrich, May 4, 2015,
http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7155-startup-
hiring-tips.html
[5] How to Conduct a New Employee Search
by Lisa McQuerrey,
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/conduct-new-e
mployee-search-39422.html
[6] The 7 C's: How to Find and Hire Great Employees by
Alan Hall,
http://www.forbes.com/sites/alanhall/2012/06/19/the
-7-cs-how-to-find-and-hire-great-employees/ 
[7] Conducting Employment Interviews – Hiring How
To, http://guides.wsj.com/management/recruiting-
hiring-and-firing/how-to-conduct-interviews/
[8] How to Conduct an Effective Job Interview
By Rebecca Knight, January 23, 2015,
https://hbr.org/2015/01/how-to-conduct-an-
effective-job-interview
[9] Tools for Employee Evaluations
by Carol Deeb,
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/tools-employee-
evaluations-40154.html
[10] How to Institute an Employee Review Process,
http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/06/institute-
employee-review-process.html
[11] www.performanceappraisal.com
[12] https://www.google.ch/url?
sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&ved=0ahUKE
wiJ-8-goqDKAhUMAxoKHeuNAHkQFghEMAQ&url=https
%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyu.edu%2Fcontent%2Fdam%2Fnyu
%2Fhr%2Fdocuments%2Fperformance
%2FPerfCommSupervisorsGuide.doc&usg=AFQjCNFwZHe
MUp3gXsii6aBryC_XRqo0sg&bvm=bv.111396085,d.bGg&
cad=rja
[13] 21 Components of Effective Feedback, August
25th, 2015,
https://www.talkdesk.com/resources/infographics/21-
components-of-effective-feedback
[14]All About Training and Development (Learning and
Development) by Jack Shaw
http://managementhelp.org/training/
[15]https://www.go2hr.ca/articles/how-conduct-
effective-interview