The Critical Path in Recruiting and Hiring Employees: The Job Benchmark Process Part 1, by Laura Dillingham

“You need to have a collaborative hiring process.” – Steve Jobs

I am going to start by asking two questions…
1. Why do good employees leave?
2. Why do employees leave that have the right skill sets, but are just not a fit for the job?

Take a minute and consider the cost of turnover. Not just training, benefits and payroll, but also the stress & morale of the team and the supervisor, the time it takes to handle applications, interview and more. When you consider just that, then those two basic questions should be asked by companies everywhere.

Everyone is looking to do more with less. Finding and keeping good talent is one way. If you make great hires you can also make great contributors, therefore affecting bottom line and profitability. Let’s look at a process HPISolutions effectively uses with our clients to hire, develop, retain and manage performance. It’s a 3-part Focused Solutions process that includes: Professional Development, Productive Workforce and Profitable Growth.

Using the Venn diagram above let’s start with the first circle on the right labeled Productive Workforce (Coaching) which includes topics like Job Benchmarking, Hiring, Retention and Succession, and Performance Management.
The next circle on the bottom is labeled Profitable Growth (Process Improvement) and includes topics such as Sustainability, Strategic Planning, Financial Analysis, and Stages of Growth.
And the final circle on the left is labeled Professional Development (sometimes called Training and Development) and includes topics like Leadership Development, Sales Skills, Team Building, and Emotional Intelligence.

These tools and processes intersect because all of them are driven by data or what we use which is assessments.

HPISolutions uses a TriMetrix™ Total Position View; we review three validated theories which look at the job and what is needed for success. The three validated theories are:

1. Behaviors: What behaviors are required to be successful in the job.
2. Driving Forces: What driving forces will be rewarded for succeeding in the job.
3. Personal Skills and Talents: What soft skills are needed to be successful in the job.

This information is discovered using an assessment tool called TriMetrix®. Using this process eliminates bias and helps assess first the job, and then the potential candidates, so you hire well. It also gives you the option after hiring to use the TriMetrix® system as a coaching and development tool. *

*If you already have individuals in positions and they’re not performing or not meeting job expectations, you can benchmark the position, assess the person and using the tools provided, create a development plan for them. What if they are performing appropriately against the job description, but the job doesn’t link to the key accountabilities?…the result could be that the organization may not be reaching its strategic goals.

Once a position is benchmarked, your candidates will be measured using the same 3 validated theories (behaviors, driving forces and personal skills and talents). In other words, what skills do they have to succeed, why are they motivated to perform and how do they do respond in a certain environment.

Why would you want to do this? Why should you do this? One reason may be because it will affect the bottom line of your business by eliminating the hidden costs of hiring wrong and dealing with turnover. Most companies do this for one position, see the benefits and then implement it for multiple positions; this also includes key positions in the company!

Next week we will dive into the benchmarking process and how it is conducted. Stay tuned!