Isabel's Employee Recruitment Blog

I found the section on employee referrals to be the most informative and important to me. I always knew that having a large network is important and vital to your job career, however I never knew the details behind it. Like the fact that about half of the companies that are hiring tend to have formal referral programs and over 66% use referrals in general. That’s a huge amount and much more than I ever thought would. It’s almost like you need to know someone to get in somewhere. I also never knew that it was one of the more efficient recruitment methods, I always figured it would take away time, but I never thought about how using this method increases the likelihood of a successful candidate. However, this does limit some diversity if your office is not already diverse, which is also something I never thought about. There are some dangers to having this type of recruitment, so I think it is vital to establish a formal recruitment process, but always take a serious look into hiring outside of this. This is the most important thing to me because it pushes me to get out of my comfort zone and develop relationships with people that I would normally be intimidated by.

Step 2: After rewatching the minilecture, create a blog post where you write out brief answers (3-4 sentences each) to the four questions in the introspection exercise I recommended that you ask yourself on a monthly basis. If you don’t know the answers to these questions right away, that’s okay. I just want you to do your best and respond as honestly as you can. The value of this exercise is almost more in the asking than it is in the answering:

1. What am I good at?

I’m good at organization. I take charge and work hard, and control/hide my emotions well. I am good at being a leader, and also good at standing up for myself and others. I can be both a follower and leader, although I am more comfortable being in charge.

2. What do I value?

I value honesty, determination, and loyalty. If you work hard and keep me in the loop I have a great amount of respect for you. I value leaders who understand the importance of teamwork. I also value people who have goals and aspirations and who hold themselves accountable.

3. How did I get here?

Both my parents have worked incredibly hard to get where they are, so I believe I get my drive from them. I also have a great amount of organization because of my mom, and have learned to communicate well from my dad. I am the oldest sibling in my family, so I believe that is why I have a take charge attitude, and am an effective leader. I also have always had friends who have pushed me to think critically, and not just follow blindly.

4. Where am I going?

Somewhere. I’d like to think I will have many opportunities throughout my life, however I understand that I only really need one or two. So, I don’t really care what the destination is and more lean towards what I get to do and learn in the process. I’ve always wanted to be a project manager, however I have also thought about other management positions recently, so I’m excited to see where I go.

After taking the test I received two high scores, three averages, and one low. Extroversion was one of my high scores, which means I’m outgoing, excitable, and prefer to be around people. Agreeableness is low, meaning I am critical and uncompromising to peoples feelings in comparison with my own. Conscientiousness is high, which means I have clear and specific goals and I am seen as determined, reliable, and hard-working. Neuroticism is average, implying my level of emotion reactivity is normal, and I can get upset during stressful times, but am able to cope with them. My openness to experience is average which says I am good with tradition, but also with trying new things.

If a potential employer were to look at these results, I imagine they would say my strengths are my leadership abilities, goal-setting abilities, and drive. I have high extroversion and conscientiousness, so I love life and work to do the most and be the best in most things I do. This points to me being a hard-worker with usually great results, because I care. Neuroticism and openness to experience are average which means I tend to handle my emotions well, and am ready to do the job the normal way if that is how it needs to be done, but I am also open to new ideas or even creating new ways to do something if needed. However, my weaknesses tend to show themselves when I am stressed, upset, and most often arise when things go wrong. I have low agreeableness, which would concern a potential employer because I tend to not take into consideration how I am affecting others, which can cause problems in group projects and when I take on leadership roles. I will also be critical because I believe that people need to put in 100% all the time because that’s what I believe I do, so when I don’t see it I can get upset. My neuroticism and openness to experience are average, which I discussed above can be a good thing, but they can also have some bad affects as well. The average neuroticism points to disliking stressful situations, like I discussed above. The average openness to experience means that I don’t prefer new experiences per say, but instead have to decide whether I want to try something new. Depending on the business/company all of these things could be viewed differently, which makes this interesting and, to me, fun to discover and discuss.

You are a business owner interested in hiring a new employee to fill an essential opening in your company. After an extensive search, you narrow your choice of candidates down to two people.

The first person, Avery, has a high-performance ceiling. By this, I mean that when they are at their best, few people are better than Avery at what they do. However, in most situations, Avery can be considered somewhat of a slacker. Day in and day out, the level of performance they give you could be described at best, a little below average.

The second person, Jaime, is known for consistency. Jamie is the type of person that will give you pretty good results every time they show up for work. However, in clutch situations, Jaime struggles to provide you with any more than what they already give you daily. That is, when pushed to their limit, we find that Jaime’s upper potential is nowhere near what Avery is capable of producing.

With this scenario in mind, create a blog post (250-300 words) where you answer the following questions.

1. If you were in the shoes of the business owner and had to choose which person would you hire (Avery or Jaime) and why?
2. Describe a type of job where it would be better to hire someone like Avery (i.e., high potential, poor consistency) than Jaime? What is it about that job that makes someone like Avery more valuable than Jaime?
3. Describe a type of job where it would be better to hire someone like Jaime (i.e., low potential, high consistency) than Avery? What is it about that job that makes someone like Jaime more valuable?

If I were the business owner in this situation, I believe I would go with Avery. I want talent slightly more than I want consistency, and by giving that person set goals and new things to work on I think they will work well. Now of course which one you choose depends on what you need at the time so this is a tough question. However, I value people that think outside the box and can work “miracles” within my business.

In Avery’s case I’m picturing an entrepreneurship type business that needs new ideas and exceptional people. They are perfect for positions that require creativity and do not have set timelines. If its your average business that is hiring a normal position, Jamie is a smart and capable choice. I would say Avery could possibly work in a new company, but I think they would thrive in a business that wants to change, also, in any arts related business. I would even hesitantly say that Avery could be a CEO, although I think they would need a lot of Jamies’ to pull that off. This allows them to work in a flexible work environment, and keeps their interest secure.

In Jamies case, I imagine a supply chain management type of job. The Jamies’ of the world are needed just as much as the Averys’ but there tends to be more need of Jamies’ because they work so well no matter the environment. They can enter any job and will work hard and produce good results. Plus they are consistent, reliable, and trustworthy to both clients and fellow employees. Jamie could work well as an employee or a manager equally. They could possibly be a CEO, but need to be able to have an Avery working along side them in order to push their business to become a leader in industry. Jamies’ tend to succeed under someone’s management or with a direct schedule and to do list.

Step 2: Create a blog entry in which you (a) summarize what is your brand as a potential employee (100-150 words) and (b) describe how you would present yourself in a novel and creative situation wanted ad if necessary (200-250 words)?

I believe that I present as someone who is youthful and probably inexperienced. However, I think that if the employers have seen my resume before seeing me, they are almost surprised by my past experiences and skills. I would also like to believe that employers see me as positive and energetic. My strengths include optimism, determination, honesty, responsibility, and I’m quite logical. Some things that I’m currently working on are my confidence and patience. I would say that my most unique ability is my ambition. However something that makes me different is that I am incredibly interested in the preservation of the environment, but I am majoring in business management, which typically don’t go hand in hand.

Junior at Oregon State University looking for a job in project management within a company that is sustainably focused or environmentally driven. Majored in business management with a minor in sustainability with a graduation date of June 2021. Interned through the MECOP program with ODOT Summer to Fall of 2020, and planning on doing another internship Summer to Fall of 2021. Previous experience includes Administrative Assistant for UC Davis Center for Immunology and Infectious Disease; Operations Assistant, Special Event Manager and Setup Coordinator for the Memorial Union at Oregon State University. Open to job/internship experience from companies in Oregon, California, and Washington. Available for phone, facetime, or in person interviews (of course, after the pandemic). My strengths include optimism, determination, honesty, responsibility, and I’m quite logical. Some things that I’m currently working on are my confidence and patience. I would say that my most unique ability is my ambition. Some fun facts include that I am Scuba Certified and that I have a Black Belt in Kuk Sool Won. In my free time I enjoy being with my friends and family, cooking, reading, hiking, and Netflix watching. I look forward to talking with any interested companies, and am excited to learn.

Think of the last job you had. How much did the job description influence your decision to apply for the position? How closely did your experience on the job match the job description? In what ways was it similar and in what ways was it different? If you have it available, please share a copy of the job description in your post.

When I was looking into various jobs, I wasn’t being picky. I wanted something that gave me some experience, allowed me to lean about project management, and ultimately I wanted to work somewhere that could work with my schedule. I found this job on the OSU cite so I knew it would give me experience and work with my schedule. Than I looked into the job further and discovered I could also lead events, or work with teams, and even possibly work with the pro-staff within the MU. I wasn’t sold, but I decided to apply and eventually got the job. I would say that I didn’t expect to thrive in the environment, but I did. I learned everything that the job cite said I would, and more.

I would say that the job posting named all of the typical skills that someone would learn within a job like this, and showed that there were opportunity to move upward and learn more skills as you advanced. However, the later skills it did not discuss in detail. Once I move up, I learned things that were not expressively stated in the job posting. Things like phone etiquette, customer service when something goes wrong, how to be decisive when you are unsure, and a ton of computer programs. However, the biggest thing I learned that wouldn’t be stated on the cite, was confidence in myself when it comes to doing new things.

Would the outstanding claims of discrimination change the way you felt about the company? Would it influence your decisions to support that company? Would it change whether or not you applied to work for that company in the future? Why or why not?

If a company I do business with were to have a discrimination lawsuit it would of course affect the way I felt about the company. I work hard to only support companies that align with my values, so when I buy clothes, electronics, and do general business with people I tend to look into their company. I believe an easy way to describe this would be “vote with your money” and that is my view on consumer purchases and how I believe society should view companies as well. It would influence my support of the company completely; if a company I regularly bought from didn’t hire women, than I would stop buying from them. Considering I’m a women, I think it would be hypocritical to do business with that company, but more than that, if they we discriminating against other races than my own, even bigger problems come into play. We would be going backwards from the steps we have taken forward in discrimination.

I would not apply for a company that discriminates in any way. Its an interesting question, because there are many companies that do it and get away with it, simply because they hire various genders and races when it is necessary. But, I’d like to believe you would be able to pick up on it when you are interviewing, or even within the first few weeks. Of course, depending on your financial position you may not have a choice in the matter, but there is always opportunity to change things, so I would then say to do your best and be your best. The short answer is I would quit if I discovered discrimination within the workplace and honestly I think most people would, because if a company discriminates they probably do a number of other things that you don’t agree with either.

1. Why might organizations decide to allocate more resources toward marketing or product design rather than using those same resources to do a really good job in employee recruitment and selection?

Organizations tend to believe that when you put money and resources into marketing and/or product design you are better able to make money and therefore succeed. They think that by investing in the product, they can make the perfect product and it will for sure sell because that’s what they advertise to their companies. Or even if they market to the right people than it will have to sell because they advertised it well and then had the right audience. It makes sense, since that is what your business is made up of, however many people forget that you can have the perfect product, or you can have the right marketing, but if your employees don’t work hard, or don’t have vision or creativity than your business will begin to fall apart.

1. What are the potential strengths and weaknesses of an organization’s decision to not prioritize recruitment and selection in favor of a focus on other aspects of the business?

The strengths of an organization not prioritizing recruitment are things like we discussed above. Being able to focus and create the perfect product for the perfect client. Focusing on production and efficiency in order to create a great business strategy and structure. However the weaknesses are significant. Not prioritizing on recruitment of the right people create a business where employees are not working to the best of their ability for whatever reason. It could be because they were hired for the wrong job, don’t have enough experience, maybe they don’t have goals within the company, or don’t care about the companies morals. For whatever reason, you must have the right people working in your company, and its so important to invest in these people so that they can invest in your company.

• Describe your experiences from the perspective of an applicant for the last job you for which you applied.

My current job was the most recent application process I experienced, and within the process I wanted something that would provide me with a wide variety of experience, but was hopeful for something within the project management realm. I actually didn’t originally think I would like it from the description, however it contained event work within its opportunities for growth, so I took a chance. I applied online, submitted a resume and cover letter, and answered the optional questions. I was called in for an interview a week later and within a couple of another job interview that had gone well, so I was confident.

When walking into the interview, I was surprised to discover that it was a group interview. I connected with one of my fellow interviewees and we ended up doing the interview activity together and completed it before anyone else did. As I was answering the interview questions, I realized some of the interviewers were people who already worked there. When question time came around, I asked them about their average day and which advancements within the job they chose to work towards. I left feeling more confident then from my past interviews and was excited when they offered me the job.

• Explain how your experiences during the job application process shaped your impression of the job you were applying for and your desire to work there (or in some cases to not work there).

The actual interview shaped my impression of the job the most. I was able to see how people my age interacted with each other, and our boss. I was able to ask questions and get to imagine how I would fit into the atmosphere. Lastly, I got to see what type of person my boss would be, and experience how we interacted. It all made me want to work there more, I enjoyed the experience and felt comfortable even though it was my first group interview, and first interview being in front of a panel of interviewers.

I think the thing that made me most comfortable was getting to talk and get to know one of the other interviewers before the interview. We ended up having a ton in common, and it made me less nervous going in. In addition, if she could interview and wanted to work there, than I certainly could. Fun fact: we both got hired and are super good friends now!