P71 MBAS8 Unconvential edit.qxd 19/2/08 10:45 Page 3
Editorial
MBA
Unconventional Recruiting
Methods
The War for Talent and the
need for big businesses to
recruit the best people has led
to some intriguing recruiting
methods, with varying
responses in the HR
departments of the
world.
positions, working within a legal framework they did, where's the correlation with being a
(particularly in the US and EU) that prevents successful employee? The interview process
Ross Geraghty
indulgent recruitment practices. Businesses also should result in a confidence as to which candi-
takes a look at such
spend time and energy promoting their unique date has the characteristics to be a successful
company culture. Google wants to be associated employee. I have not found a better way to
approaches and
with fun and creativity, so evaluate this than behavioural
asks if they are
Lego is the perfect tool. B&Q
"Companies are
interviewing. Since the best
suffered little from the predictor of future behaviour is
valid approaches or
dancing escapade and it
beginning to look
past behaviour, one needs to
could be that its corporate know what a candidate has actu-
merely gimmicks.
image is seen as less stuffy as a
further than just
ally done in various situations, not
direct result. Perhaps there is what they say they would do in a
here are some famous incidents no such thing as bad press!
the skills and
given situation.”
T
of unconventional recruiting. For Tom Adam, a James Thompson, lead talent
According to The Economist, California-based contract
competencies to
search partner at AstraZeneca in
PricewaterhouseCoopers has taken recruiter who has worked for the UK, agrees. “We’re looking
a lead from Google and has been several high-tech industries,
do the job.”
for people with certain skills and
known to use Lego when recruiting at British the problem is validity. “I'm experience; to attract people who
universities, asking potential recruits to build a afraid many recruiters who use these approaches will flourish, and identify those that will not. There
tower using the smallest number of bricks. don't make an effort to validate them. They'll make are techniques we’ll use such as psychometric
In South Korea, one company gets recruits to assumptions about their validity, but rarely provide testing and motivational questioning and these
climb a hill, in order to identify potential leaders solid data to support these methods.” give us an idea of how an individual will interact,
and see how people will react in given situations.
British company B&Q encountered criticism in
“I'm afraid many recruiters who use these approaches don't make an effort
early 2007 when potential recruits were asked to
to validate them. They'll make assumptions about their validity,
dance to a Jackson Five song. While the union said
but rarely provide solid data to support these methods.”
the practice was “demeaning and irrelevant”, the
company said it was, “to make sure candidates
were relaxed before the interview process." The point is, if an unconventional approach which people take control and who the ideas
Nicola Monson, of the Chartered Institute of doesn't accurately predict success, it is not a people are. We wouldn’t take a decision on how
Personnel and Development (CIPD), in London, useful exercise. Do B&Q operatives need to someone builds a bridge out of Lego, but it could
supported the company on this occasion, saying, be good dancers to be good workers? Will a be used as part of the process.”
"Companies are beginning to look further than just South Korean, who shows leadership skills on a It’s unlikely that businesses are trying to create
the skills and competencies to do the job. This mountain, replicate this on the shop floor? gimmicks to attract recruits. After all, work is a
(dancing) is a creative and innovative way of Tom Adam continues, “If a recruiter asks a serious business and an overly flippant approach
checking that people have the right attitude to fit in candidate what kind of tree they would be, they'll could be counter-productive. However, many are
with the company's culture." suggest they're evaluating the candidate's realising that innovation requires doing things a
Finding creative ways of looking beyond core creativity, looking for what qualities that tree has little differently; and doing things a little differently
competencies, without crossing the line into the that the candidate believes they have. However, could also be what potential recruits want from
irrelevant, is a headache for recruiters. Many spend they don't have much evidence that such questions companies today.
fortunes differentiating the right staff for their actually measure those characteristics, and even if
TopMBA CAREER GUIDE
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