Hiring Decisions Being Questioned by Most Employers, Employees

A Development Dimensions International survey has determined that about half of employees regret accepting their job offers this year and many employers are second guessing their hiring decision. Additionally, about one in eight hires did not work out successfully in 2012.

“There is a great paradox in that both unemployment and the number of open positions hover at uncomfortably high levels — and simultaneously, organizations and candidates are shaky about the decisions they made in staffing and accepting roles this year,” Dr. Scott Erker, senior vice president for DDI’s Selection Solutions and the study’s co-author, said.

About one-third of employer respondents to the survey reported an over-reliance on evaluations submitted by hiring managers when making a poor hiring decision, while 21 percent said skill exaggeration by candidates is the primary culprit in unsuccessful hires. Just 48 percent of employers thought their hiring processes were highly effective and correctly-conducted interviews were considered the best way to ensure hiring best-fit employees. Only one-third of employer respondents reported that their hiring managers are properly skilled at interviewing.

“An unpleasant surprise after a candidate becomes an employee is that the new hire just is not cut out for the job,” Erker said. “The shame of it all is that information about candidates goes undiscovered in the selection process. Hiring managers need to go farther below the surface to really get to the truth about an employee’s fit for the job.”

“One way to avoid quick quits is to be real in describing what it will be like on day five, 50 and 150 for that candidate during the interviewing process,” Erker continued. “Painting a rosy picture or pulling a bait-and-switch once they’re on the job will just mean you’ll fill that position again in 6 to 12 months.”