HR Assignment

WRITING ASSIGNMENT 4: RESEARCH-BASED PERSUASIVE REPORT

People in business and government write formal reports for many different purposes: proposing, problem solving, recommending, informing, explaining, describing, selling, analyzing, defending, protecting, reviewing. For this class, write a 12-15 page (longer is OK), double-spaced, persuasive report for decision and implementation. That is, show that a problem exists and propose a solution to the problem, oppose someone else’s proposal, suggest a change in policy, or support a position on a debatable issue. Assume the audience to be a decision maker who is your immediate supervisor or one level higher. The workplace can be a fictional one, not your actual employer. Choose a topic that requires research: printed books and articles or articles from databases and websites, or possibly in-house documents (consult with me if you plan to use in-house documents). When counting 12-15 pages, don’t count the prefatory material (memo/letter of transmittal, table of contents, list of illustrations, executive summary) nor the bibliography, nor any appendixes.

The assignment gives you practice in gathering information, taking notes, planning and focusing a large report for an intended audience, writing and revising, and documenting sources. This assignment also meets the objectives of several UMUC Core Learning Areas as well as all the objectives of WRTG 394.

The assignment schedule guides your progress from the beginning of the semester and sets deadlines.

Your report should contain the following parts (chapter 11, p. 288):

Memo or letter of transmittal (one page; can be single-spaced or double-spaced) Title page Table of contents Executive Summary (one page; can be single-spaced or double-spaced) Recommendations Body (with separate introduction and discussion) Bibliography in APA style Addenda (appendixes if appropriate)

Minimum Requirements

Use at least five published or Internet sources. Or get my approval for unique reports not based primarily on published sources.

Quote sparingly; paraphrase and summarize frequently.

Do not plagiarize–Cite in-text sources precisely and do not half-copy.

Complete the Audience Profile (below) and include it with your finished report.

In addition, on a separate page, complete the Audience Profile (below).

   

AUDIENCE PROFILE

INSTRUCTIONS: For the imagined audience of your researched persuasive report, write full explanations/commentary for each item. In addition to supplying the information for each item, consider the implications of your perceptions of your readers. Include as part of your commentary how you plan to use your perceptions of your readers in planning and writing the report. Your textbook authors continually remind you of the need to tailor the content and tone of a document to the intended audience; two such discussions of audience are on pages 53-54 and page 268.

Turn in this completed form as part of Writing Assignment 4.

Your audience profile will be graded according to how thoroughly you respond to the items.

 

Assessment Centers

HRMN 400

Jerome Ross

To: Randy Weiss, President

From: Jerome Ross, Director, Compliance & Training

Subject: Assessment Centers

The Need

Over the years we’ve grown tremendously as an organization and have had some difficulty finding individuals who are a good match for our industry. Our selection process has not been as thorough as needed to ensure we find the right people for the right positions in our organization. With that being said, I’m proposing we implement the assessment center approach when hiring employees and interviewing for managerial positions in our organization. I recently attended a training luncheon presentation on the benefits of organizations using assessment centers in their hiring and promotion processes. The information given during this luncheon made it clear to me we need look into this method on-boarding employees. The implementation of this process requires us to commit to several things that will be outlined in this proposal. I’m requesting to take the lead on researching assessment centers and the benefits they provide. I will conduct the research and provide the necessary information for our senior management team to make an informed decision on how we can use the assessment center process to more successfully hire and retain employees. My report will include what assessment centers are, how they function, the cost of utilizing them and the overall benefits to an organization.

Why Now

In our last senior management meeting the HR director reported we currently have the highest turnover rate we’ve ever had in our company’s history. We’ve also recently lost several employees who held management positions. During the exit interviews I conducted with them, it was clear to me most of these employees and managers were not good fits for our company. Based on the current turnover rate and the exit interviews findings, I believe that there is clear and convincing evidence that it’s time for a change in the way we on board employees. Even in an economy that has taken a turn for the worse over the last few years, companies are having a difficult time selecting and maintaining employees. My research confirms that assessment centers will drastically change the way our employees view us and how we view our employees and result in more successful hiring and retention.

Initial Research Summary

Assessment centers provide a standardized evaluation of behavior of job candidates based on multiple inputs (HR Guide to the Internet). Trained observers and proven techniques are used to evaluate talent. Judgments about behaviors are made, in major part, from customized assessment simulations. These judgments are integrated in a meeting among the assessors or by a statistical integration process. Assessment centers have proven useful when required skills are complex and cannot easily be assessed with interviews or simple tests, including skills that require significant interpersonal elements, and/or multiple candidates are available (Thornton & Byham). My research also indicates a growing number of organizations are choosing assessment centers over, or in addition to, traditional hiring procedures for managers and supervisors. I will now shift my research focus toward understanding the cost of implementation the expected employment longevity of those hired using through the assessment center approach as compared to those hired through the standard human resources process.

Benefits to the organization

Our turnover rate of managers over the last year demands that we take meaningful action. Implementing the assessment center process will provide some immediate benefits to our company. My initial research suggests that assessment centers are far more accurate than a standard recruitment process and allow a broader range of selection methods to be used during the hiring process. The process provides HR with tools designed to assess existing performance as well as predict success in future job performance. These tools also facilitate the development of an employer brand. Candidates who are hired through the assessment center process usually genuinely reflect the job requirements and the organization and are often impressed by the company, even if they are rejected for hire (Thornton). The research clearly suggests this hiring process could completely transform our hiring process as well as our company. I look forward to you granting me this opportunity to provide greater detail on implementation requirements of assessment center process and the resultant benefits to our organization.

Hiring new employees has become a great task during the 21st century. Even in an economy that has taken a turn for the worse over the last few years, companies are having a difficult time selecting and maintaining employees. I recently attended a luncheon presentation on the benefits of organizations using Assessment Centers in their hiring and promotion processes. An assessment center consists of a standardized evaluation of behavior based on multiple inputs. Multiple trained observers and techniques are used. Judgments about behaviors are made, in major part, from customized assessment simulations. These judgments are integrated in a meeting among the assessors or by a statistical integration process. Assessment Centers have proven useful when required skills are complex and cannot easily be assessed with interview or simple test, skills require significant interpersonal elements, and/or multiple candidates are available.

Over the years we have grown tremendously as an organization and have had some difficulty finding individuals who are a good match for our industry. Our selection process has not been as thorough as needed to ensure we find the right people for the right positions in our organization. With that being said, I’m proposing we implement the Assessment Center approach when hiring managers and upper management positions in our organization. The implementation of this process requires us to commit to several things that will be outlined in this proposal.

To implement an effective Assessment Center we will have to develop competencies based on the results of a job analysis. We’ll have to design exercises to allow multiple opportunities for candidates to display (and assessors to observe) behavior related to each relevant competency. Multiple exercises that measure as many of the relevant competencies as possible and provide a systematic and standard procedure for assessors to record their observations of candidates’ behavior and/or responses will also need to be developed. Based on the culture of our organization, I’m recommending we use the following testing techniques to evaluate candidates: individual exercises, one-to-one exercises, role play exercises and group exercises. Individual exercises will provide us information an applicant’s ability to work independently. One-to-one exercises allow candidates to interact in many ways with another person while being observed by the assessors. These exercises are effective for accessing listening, communication and interpersonal skills. Role-play exercises allow a candidate to take on a role of a particular position (possibly the job being applied for) and interact with someone who is acting in a defined scenario while being evaluated by an assessor. Group exercises test how people interact in a group. They provide information on how a candidate interacts with others and if the individual is a leader or a follower.

After the selection of the dimensions that will evaluated, the effectiveness of the implementation of the Assessment Center will depend on the selection and subsequent professional development of individuals that will act as assessors. There are many approaches to selecting assessors, but I’m recommending we select those who are very aware of the values and norms of our organization. The primary tasks of the assessor will be to observe, record, classify, rate and share ratings for candidates. Gender of the assessor is not a factor in the selection but position within the company is. Selectees will have to hold a position above the positions for which we are hiring. Their selection should be based on their ability to make effective judgments. After the selection of these assessors, it will be important to provide training designed to increase the reliability and validity of the assessors in implementing the processes and rating procedures.

Ultimately, the process will allow an overall assessment score to be derived for each candidate competing for hire. After we’ve established the criteria and selected and trained the assessors, the process flow of the Assessment Center will look like this:

Following one full implementation cycle, an important final component of the process is for us to validate the Assessment Center annually to measure its effectiveness. We will use simple metrics to analyze if our process is indeed working to improve the selection of successful candidates and identify what areas need improvement. Since we are primarily using the Assessment Center for hiring, we will compare the average ratings of performance of those hired through the Assessment Center against those with tenure.

For example:

We will compare longevity of those hired through the Assessment Center versus those hired through the normal human resources (HR) process.

For example:

Finally we will measure the advancement/progression of those hired through the Assessment Center versus those hired through our previous human resources (HR) processes.
Example:

The cost of starting up the center will be minimal. The initial training of three assessors at $2000.00 each will be the largest part of the investment. Because the center because it will only be utilized on a part time basis, it will cost about $500.00 a month to maintain. This cost is deemed minimal in light of the $2000.00 we expect to save monthly in turnover resultant new hire training. As the cost benefit analysis chart demonstrates, as an organization after we meet our breakeven point the savings will begin to outweigh the cost.

The previously described implementation and validation process set the context for considering the advantages and disadvantages of implementing an Assessment Center. A major disadvantage of using assessment centers to select the most qualified candidate involves cost. The cost is considerably more than our traditional selection techniques due to the need for multiple assessors and role players, the limited number of candidates that can be assessed, and the time required to run a typical assessment center. It is important to note that considering expense as the sole factor in selecting the methodology for our hiring practices overlooks potential long-term savings in performance and tenure within the organization. If properly designed and administered, assessment centers are more reliable than traditional testing methods in evaluating supervisory and managerial potential. All research indicates a growing number of organizations are choosing assessment centers over, or in addition to, traditional hiring procedures for managers and supervisors. Based on the proven success and our need for a more stable hiring process I’m recommending we proceed with the implementation of our Assessment Center.
References:
HR Guide to the Internet:

Personnel Selection
: Methods: Assessment Centers (n.d.). Retrieved June 16, 2012 from http://www.hr-guide.com/data/G318.htm

Simple Cost Benefit Analysis (n.d.).Retrieved June 16, 2012 from http://www.ostdatabasegroup.com.au/downloads/OSTDG_SimpleCostBenefitAnalysis
Thornton, G. C. (1992). Assessment centers in human resource management. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Thornton, G. C., & Byham, W. C. (1982). Assessment centers and managerial performance. New York: Academic Press.
_1402079108.xls
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Month 1 $6,000.00 $0.00

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Month 6 $500.00 $2,000.00

Month 7 $500.00 $2,000.00

Month 8 $500.00 $2,000.00

Month 9 $500.00 $2,000.00

Month 10 $500.00 $2,000.00

Month 11 $500.00 $2,000.00

Month 12 $500.00 $2,000.00