GovernmentExecutive.com

Return to Article: Job simulations could help agencies make better hires, report says

• 91654
  

  I have a suggestion for improving hiring: remove any HR personnel from the process and let the hiring managers/programs select the candidates. Then maybe we can get people who are qualified.

  Andy Neilsen Posted November 10, 2009 7:30 AM
• 91617
  

  The limitations outweigh the positives in terms of making this method the method for Federal hiring practices. It is a method that could be used, but never as conclusive and never without utilization of other methods. The deal breaker is that simulations can never measure attitude and work ethic. It can measure skill competency to some degree, but this is a very limited piece of what makes for a good employee. Skills can be learned and taught, but there are some intangibles which can not be learned or taught, they must be brought (by the prospective employee to the table)! How do you simulate this, you can't; Than how do you measure this, and this you also can not. Than what can one do to access whether a candidate has these intangibles? This information can be determined through a series of interviews, and talks with credible references and than hopefully a good decision can be made.

  Ken Matthews Posted November 9, 2009 4:56 PM
• 91490
  

  Great Idea let me design the test > its not my job > i'm on break > when is my next raise or promotion > i have a job for life > as soon as I finish the video game > face book is down when will it come up?/

  dan m ketter Posted November 7, 2009 10:48 PM
• 91450
  

  MSPB can tinker all they want with process. But the real (not faux) problem that is with DoD's near 100% internal and insider hiring rate for positions that DOD purportedly recruits in the search for excellence. This inbred hiring rate represents the outcome of "external" (federal-wide and/or all sources area of consideration) hiring actions in the higher grades (e.g., GS 12-15) in the general administrative management series (e.g., GS-0300 and GS-0500 classifications).

  Internal hires are defined as current agency employees. Insider hires are defined as prior agency employees, including so-called 'conversions' of recently retired members of the agency's active duty admin support military into the very same desk and chair from which they retired, or contract employees of the hiring agency.

  Although this near 100% inbred hiring practice is by no means present in all federal organizations, it is rampant within DOD orgs - the largest of all federal agencies. At the end of the day, and despite much lip service about "searching for excellence," these outcomes speak volumes about the nature of these actions and the organizational culture that is present. Essentially every single one of these surmised external to DOD recruitments result in identical outcomes: More and more internal/insider "we take care of our own (at the US taxpayer's expense)" hires.

  Although I realize that the foregoing may sound as if I am a disgruntled federal employee, in reality I am not. In fact, I am far from it. I have enjoyed an extremely successful and uncommonly diverse federal career spanning several agencies across our Nation for the last 33 years, including a tenure as Presidential Management Fellow at one of the genuinely finest federal organizations - the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. And over that time I have seen the very good, good, bad, and the downright ugly.

  My motivation is that I simply care. And I care enough to at least attempt to change the wrongheaded culture for the betterment of the organizations and for those that support us - the United States taxpayers. And to that end, I suggest that GOVEXEC ought to specifically address this area of public import that is in so much need of cleansing sunlight.

  Michael J. Smith, MPA Posted November 6, 2009 3:34 PM
• 91449
  

  paid resumes. we had that done here. Mgmt bragged to me that they never check references. Job simulation sounds to me more like the agency's trying to see if they want the person. check references, really check them, and stick to the probation period.

  pjj Posted November 6, 2009 3:34 PM
• 91431
  

  I agree with Chief. This has been done in both the federal government and the private sector for a long time. This also screens out those who paid to have a resume prepared and have no knowledge of the actual work. Asking pointed questions about how a situation would be handled lets the interviewer determine if the candidate has actually done what he says and can think on his feet.

  No disrepect to those who flaunt credentials, but often these folks can't actually do the job. Those who have actual on-the-job experience and lessons learned under their belts work rings around many multi-degrees and credentialed employees.

  Anonymous Posted November 6, 2009 12:31 PM
• 91429
  

  Processes need to be set up which allow managers to use interviews as a rating criteria! Right now, we just get the top three candidates based on their application - these are the only ones we can interview. If someone does a terrible interview (including how they respond to the omnipresent questions about "how would you handle the following scenario" - duh), we can't scrap them and get another candidate to interview. Instead our top three just become our top two etc... It's infuriating. Sometimes, we just close the job and start all over again. There were probably good people on the list, but they're just out of reach because the interview isn't a rating factor!

  Jennifer Posted November 6, 2009 12:17 PM
• 91407
  

  Oh Great -- Can you imagine having to design one of these job simulations every time you want to hire someone?

  With all of the recent complaints about Federal hiring and how long the process takes, did anyone do any studies or calculations to determine how much additional time that developing and running such job simulations would add to the overall hiring timeframe?

  Can you imagine adding this step to your hiring process and STILL make the OPM-mandaged 80 (calendar) day hiring model?

  Sceptical Posted November 6, 2009 10:20 AM
• 91385
  

  I don't mean to sound cynical, it's standard practice hear to ask job candidates how they would deal with situations/events related to the job vacancy we are filling....not exactly a new concept, but still a good idea.

  Chief Posted November 6, 2009 8:16 AM
• 91359
  

  Perhaps we should demo this idea with simulations of MSPB jobs. Potential candidates could see how they do at writing meaningless studies with impractical conclusions that no agency will ever follow. The work isn't for everyone.

  MSPB Fan Club Posted November 5, 2009 7:45 PM