Resumes just help the screening process
Company: Xbiosceuticals
Job Position: Territory Sales Manager
Number of vacancies: 1
Number of resumes received: 1200
Note the alarming ratio... 1:1200. Not surprisingly, this disproportionate ratio is much lesser compared to the higher ratios for certain other job vacancies. Despite receiving countless resumes, Biopharm Pharmaceuticals Ltd. had a tough time searching for and screening potential fits. To their dismay, only 15 per cent of the applicants possessed the minimal qualifications required, which means, 85 per cent of their efforts and resources were mercilessly drained out. And pity not just Xbiosceuticals, but all those companies who are on the talent hunt.
At another company, the VP-Human Resources was frantically trying her best to match a `perfect' resume to replace a 10-year old valuable employee. But a resume can hardly talk all about the contextual knowledge, applied learning, values and the ability to maintain collaborative relationships an individual would have gained over a span of a decade.
So far, companies have used resumes as the basis for screening, considering the experience listed in those sheets of paper. Rarely did they realise that resumes are inconsistent and most of them have the word magic cast profusely. Think of this: To what extent would you think a candidate `correctly displays' his attitude, skills and competencies on his resume when compared to results of his work style profile or behavioural interview or even other psychological assessment? There, you are. You hit the right point.
So, our question is: whatever happened to the help that a good old resume gave the HR people? Most often it becomes burdensome and increases the cost per hire, shoots the expense for data storage and loads the search engine
What is being done?
HR practitioners have therefore designed sophisticated and complex methods of resume screening for predicting on the job performance instead of changing their approach. Technological developments like the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) and the Candidate Relationship Management System (CRM) are widely in use. Nonetheless, technology is left unsupported by the `rigid' human mind.
As a consequence HR people are still undone with paper work.
What should be done?
Companies need a multi-pronged approach to allow candidate flow. Resumes are not the perfect carriers for effective candidate screening. A blend of screening and assessment is essential to maintain proper candidate flow. To help effective screening, important information may be elicited through standardised questionnaires on work experience, minimum qualifications, and specialist knowledge.
Simulated work samples and virtual job try-outs may be employed. These techniques help assess a candidate's judgment reasoning skills, and career preferences provide a quantitative job fit score. Candidates do know that their resumes do not disappear into the black hole and that their assessment is job relevant. Assessment results show the near perfect matches for the jobs in question and take them on to the interview stage.
How can this help? The hire quality rises, lead time reduces and so does the interview to hire ratio. This apart, there's an underlying advantage recruiters can savour. They upgrade themselves from mere administrators who search and sort candidates into developers of an employment brand for their company.
So is the resume redundant? No. In fact, it is at this point that the resume becomes valuable as a guide to the interview. The recruiters are dealing with fewer, but more qualified candidates who would fit into any job role aptly.
Ready to take on the change?
Companies and candidates are slow to adapt the multi-dimensional approach. A few success stories and good awareness about the new screening techniques would definitely help HR professionals learn to improve the objectivity of talent screening.
Make use of the opportunities!
In essence a mutual exchange of information between the prospective employer and the applicants through work simulations and virtual job tryouts will help further the process. Thereafter the resume will no longer be the tool of choice for talent screening but a guide to make the interview process successful.
BINDU MADHAVI
faqs@cnkonline.com
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