 Congratulations, you made it through the selection process and appointed the winning candidate- a perfect match. The crystal ball of selection worked, after all. Now you need to keep up the engagement levels as it is as when they first walked in the door. Using the match-making metaphor, post contracts exchange is the honeymoon period for the new starter and the employer. Apparently, this is between two months to a year of post-employment.
For most of us, the honeymoon destination is the induction process or onboarding. There are several articles on induction and why induction leads to retention. I will not go into details about this, but if you were wondering about the link between induction and retention, read this article. I would like to focus on the extra bits that can enhance staff engagement levels during this honeymoon phase and beyond, as there is no second opportunity to make a good first impression. What is engagement, and why is it important. I would like to piggyback on the CIPD and their adopted definition of engagement. The CIPD adopts Utrecht's university group of occupational psychologists' definition of work engagement which defines work as a state of mind in which the employee shows:
The manager must understand the new starters' motivations to achieve this successfully. There are several theories of motivation, but Herzberg's two-factor theory is particularly insightful during induction. I am drawn to this theory because it sees job satisfaction and dissatisfaction on two different continua rather than as opposite ends of the same. When our new starter joins, they are usually on the motivated continua, and the line manager's role is to ensure that they stay on the job satisfaction continua. Herzberg talks about the hygiene factor and the motivation factor. A new starter would ideally be high on the hygiene factors. For example, the salary on offer would be satisfactory for the candidate to accept. The working relationship is still new, so there is an opportunity for both parties to have a good working relationship. Hopefully, the working conditions meet the basics of the health and safety laws of the land, etc. To stay on the motivation continuum, the line manager needs to create a working environment that supports recognition, achievement, responsibility, growth, advancement, and the work content. Recognition- create a recognition profile of your staff as they join. I came across this idea about two years ago from some colleagues from Boston University. You can use Microsoft Forms or any other survey tool to ask how they like to be recognised. Achievement- Build vigour and dedication by ensuring that the induction is a mixture of orientation and actual work. Regardless of our motivation, most of us get satisfaction from achieving something. We must recognise this power during induction as that sends a message to the new starter that they are up to the task and that the organisation trusts them to deliver. Depending on the complexity of the role, it can start with little actions such as asking for their thoughts and contributions on a task that is almost completed or providing them with an almost completed knowledge-based task and asking the new starter to complete it. Responsibility- This goes beyond the responsibility within the role profile. Consider other informal opportunities beyond their role. In one of my blog posts, I talked about informal roles in the team. A manager's ability to spot both the formal and informal role the new start plays within the team, and utilise those, the more the new starter gets embedded into the team. Possibility for growth- This is where having a completed learning gap analysis is sound. I raised this in a previous post, a successful candidate will have a development area that can be gleaned from the recruitment process. Even the perfect candidate would need to learn the organisation's internal rules. Offer your new starter the opportunity to complete a learning gap analysis in the early days. The timing for learning will, of course, be role-specific but helpful to glean other areas of interest beyond their contractual role. Advancement doesn't mean promotion, as it is still early days but the positive status of the new starter in the workplace. A manager can activate this in the early days through storytelling. This can create a vision for the staff of the possibilities available in the organisation. This can also build a sense of dedication by ensuring that the new starter has opportunities to understand the team's successes. Mainly showcasing the areas where the organisation has enabled people to shine. The line manager can play a crucial role here in ensuring that there is an alignment between how the new starter sees themselves and how they see the organisation. Achieving all of this is no mean feat but is a sure recipe for extending that post-selection honeymoon phase.
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 Last post, I discussed the different types of selection processes available to us. With variety comes decisions. How do we determine which cocktail is the best for our candidate assessment process? Most of us do not have access to organisation psychologists that can help us with the reliability and validity of the process available to us. Still, simple tips can help decide if your selection process needs revising and what to use for your selection, regardless of your role.
Tip point one- Understand the performance of your current employees. Are they high performers? If yes, your selection process is valid and reliable. This means you have a good understanding of the performance base rate of your staff. If your performance base rate of your current employees is over 70%, then you are doing well and don't need to make many changes. You should reconsider your selection process if it is less than 70%. Tip point two- Seek feedback from incumbents shortly after the recruitment process to understand if the selection process fits the expectations of the role. You could also get them to repeat the selection process and assess the difference between their original and new results. The variance in results and a discussion afterwards help you identify gaps in the current process. Tip point three- Review your selection ratio. Your selection ratio is defined as the number of job openings divided by the number of applicants. If you have a high selection ratio, consider reviewing your selection process to ensure that people are dealt with fairly. For example, suppose you have five open positions and five applicants. In that case, your selection ratio is one, and you may choose a pragmatic approach and use only one selection process to avoid losing candidates. In that case, focusing on transferable skills and a personality test based on the Big Five model would be beneficial. For those who are new to the big five, check out this link Big 5 Personality Traits | Psychology Today Look out for candidates who scored high on conscientiousness and emotional stability. Research suggests that conscientiousness and emotional stability are the best predictors of performance. If the role requires a strong entrepreneurial spirit, you are looking for candidates who are high on conscientiousness and low on agreeableness. Some of you are surprised as I am that openness to experience is not a strong predictor of performance. Apparently not, but if you have someone high on conscientiousness, emotional stability and openness to experience, you have hit a jackpot candidate. Hogan Assessment Tool is recommended. It has been scientifically proven to be valid and reliable. When your selection ratio is high, reviewing your selection process is worthwhile to ensure you choose fairly and can appoint the best from your applicants. A multiple-hurdle approach to selection might be helpful too. For example, if you have 100 applicants for five jobs with a selection ratio of 0.05. I mentioned a few selection processes in my last post: you could either employ an organisational psychologist or experiment with the different selection processes available to you with your incumbent to get feedback on how well the various processes assess on-the-job performance. Final Tip- Ensure that your selection process does not discriminate against minority groups. One way to do that is to review the outcome between the majority and minority groups. Regardless of how much your process indicates performance, it could still impact minority groups. If different groups have different outcomes, it is worth revisiting your tests. It is also vital that it is clear to candidates what each selection process is testing. A positive reaction from all candidates is essential. Hence it is important to gather feedback from all your candidate on the process, both successful and unsuccessful. Perhaps you already have the selection crystal ball and you have tips that has proved successful. Please share your tips. |
AuthorJust me, 
a HR professional listening, learning and working towards an enhanced people experience at work
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