Your HR Guy isn’t a scientist

July 17, 2006 · Filed Under For the love of HR, Recruiting in the 21st Century 

Human Resources isn’t a science. Anybody who tells you so is a liar.

I’ll be the first to admit that Human Resources has some scientific principles in place but they aren’t everything and they aren’t the most important. Knowing what questions to ask may be scientific but knowing how to interpret those answers and apply them to a hiring decision is not about science. It may sound silly and very old school, but it has a lot to do with good decision making. It is about looking at your past decisions and what led you to those and what the results have been. You must hire like it is your job (because it…uh…is).

As testing becomes more a part of the hiring process, I have found that testing usually proves what the rest of my analysis tells me. And that’s through statistical analysis, not through some pompous view of what I think I know. Will I keep testing? Of course! And will I keep in place pre-screening and other techniques? You bet. Because nothing beats having additional information even if it simply confirms it (like a background check will do 99% of the time).

In HR school, the first thing they tell you is that in-person interviews are unreliable. The problem is that they are basing it on the fact that most in-person interviews are CRAP. Most interviews are done by people who have no idea what they are really doing. Often times, the concern is over how great of an interviewee are you which is pretty much a complete waste of time.

Anybody…ehem…excuse me…ANYBODY… can be a great interviewee. And often times, doing a great interview means jack to how well you can perform a job.

So why use them? Here’s a universal truth:

Every HR Guy thinks he can interview well

Every HR guy thinks he has a magical gut that let’s him know every last detail about how this person will perform. But it is usually bullshit. In fact, if HR guys were so confident in their statistics as they were with their gut, they would figure out that it usually isn’t that reliable.

So how do you get past this situation? Check back tomorrow for the exciting conclusion.


You’ll find accounting jobs in the UK online at AccountantCareers.co.uk.

Check out HRM Today for the latest in the HR blogosphere.

Comments

One Response to “Your HR Guy isn’t a scientist”

  1. Dan Thai on July 19th, 2007 3:22 am

    It sounds like complicated job. Hope you enjoy what you are doing.

    [Reply]

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