Job Match – The Power of Hiring Right

 

Studies show that employees who match their jobs are 2.5 times more productive on the job. “Job Fit” improves job satisfaction and engagement, resulting in increased productivity. Harvard Business Review followed 360 000 people over a 20 year period that showed job match was a key ingredient in retaining people.

“Job Match” is influenced in terms of an individuals abilities (thinking Style), occupational interests and personality traits. Commonly accepted factors such as education, job training and experience are, according to the study, secondary to the job matching approach which more accurately predicts job success.

We are all “DUC’s”

Professor Alfonso Lopez, while at Texas University would use the acronym DUC‘s to describe people. He would say that we are all Different, Unique and Complex. Because of these differences we have likes and dislikes. We have different intellectual and physical capacities. Our Emotional Intelligence and circumstances are different. “You cannot send a Duck to Eagle School” is a book written by Mac Anderson and a good reminder that those looking to upgrade their talent need to hire smart and train effectively.

It has been said that you cannot manage anything that you do not measure. For example, if I want to manage my health, there are certain things that I need to measure. My weight, body fat content, blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol levels are but a few things that are very important. The same applies to people. If you want to manage people, you have to measure them. When last did you measure your people from a hiring and development perspective?

Replicating Top Performers

It is easy to recognise top performers when you review their numbers and see them performing in the workplace. The challenge is understanding the differences between them and the average and below average performers. Why are they successful and how can we ensure that future candidates share these success factors?

Steps to identifying and assessing top performers.

1. Look at the sales performance, customer satisfaction surveys, quality metrics, output volume and other KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) to identify your top performers.
2. Use a reliable and valid assessment such as the ProfilesXT to determine their thinking style, behavioural / personality traits and their occupational preferences.
3. Create a high performance model as a benchmark.
4. Evaluate candidates relative to this high performance model for maximum engagement and productivity in the job.
5. Remember to look at Skills fit and Company fit when making your final decision.

Hiring and Selection Summary

It is recommended that when making people decisions in an organisation we look at 3 areas that influence the suitability of a candidate.

1. Past – SKILLS FIT -Does the individual have the necessary technical skills to do the job?
2. Present – COMPANY OR ORGANISATIONAL FIT -Does the individual fit into the culture within the organisation and does he have the right values.
3. Future – JOB FIT – Does the individual have the right cognitive ability, behavioural traits and occupational interests?

Using employee assessments in your hiring and selection process will give you a competitive edge while increasing success and consistency in hiring talented employees. “Job Matching” people with the work they do, creates a solid workforce that has the right people in the right positions.