Resumes or Application Forms: Which is Better?
When hiring, do you rely on resumes alone or do you also require job candidates to fill out a comprehensive ?Application for Employment? form? Relying on resumes alone is definitely a big mistake. Here?s why:
1. Studies show that up to 60% of resumes contain significant misrepresentations concerning qualifications, skills, education, and work history.
2. A well-written resume is a sales device. It seeks to sell you on the idea that you should grant a particular candidate an interview. Interviewing is time consuming and you want to interview only the best candidates. Because some candidates have professional resume writers prepare their resumes, using resumes alone might unduly influence your decision about which candidates to interview.
3. Requiring that each job candidate fill out a well-designed ?Application for Employment? form creates a level playing field and helps you collect valuable screening information. Following are some examples of ?employment form? information that often does not appear in a resume.
a. You learn the actual month and year that employment commenced and ended at former jobs rather than just the year alone. Without this information, you simply do not have a clear picture of a candidate?s work history including the gaps.
b. You learn the beginning and ending salaries at former jobs. Did your candidate receive the kind of raises that indicate satisfactory performance? If your candidate made a much higher salary than you are prepared to pay, why is he/she willing to take a cut in pay to work for you? And how long do you think this person will stay if the chance to regain the previous higher salary comes along?
c. You learn, in the candidate?s own words, the reason for leaving former jobs. Did he or she leave voluntarily? What does the candidate consider to be a good reason to leave a job?
d. You learn the supervisor?s name and phone number at former jobs. This information can save you a lot of time when you are conducting your prospective employee investigation.
e. You obtain a signed statement authorizing you to contact former employers and authorizing former employers to answer your questions. In some jurisdictions, prior to an investigation, the law requires this.
f. You get a complete list of educational achievements with a timeline. This tells you about a candidate?s interests, accomplishments, and gives you a means to estimate the candidate?s age.
g. You learn about the candidate?s hobbies. These are usually good indicators of interests and abilities.
4. In many jurisdictions the law states that you cannot discriminate against any candidate based on specific factors including (among other things) gender, race, age, ethnic origin, and religion. However, as you seek to build your superstar team, you might want to fill certain positions with individuals who are of a certain gender, age or some other factor you are not allowed to overtly consider. If you require that candidates fill out your application form in person, you will see them and your observations will give you answers to many of the questions you are not allowed to ask.
5. Another benefit of requiring that job seekers fill out your ?Application for Employment? form in person is that you can screen the candidates based on:
a. Appearance and grooming
b. Personality
c. Verbal and written communication skills
d. Cooperation and attention to detail when completing the application form
e. Handwriting legibility (sometimes it is important)
f. Other observable factors that would affect an candidate?s ability to perform well in the position.
It is important to give each candidate the same verbal instructions about filling out your company application form. Say to the candidate, ?The first step in obtaining a position with us is to fill out one of our corporate application forms. Please fill in the application completely. It is unacceptable to write ?see resume? anywhere on our application form. Do you have any questions??
You have a right to the information you are requesting. If a candidate is unwilling to comply with your request to fill out an application properly, will they be willing to comply with your future requests if they obtain the position? Probably not!
When the candidate hands the completed application form back to you, check to ensure that they have filled in the ?expected salary? blank, the salaries that they earned at previous jobs, the education information (including high school), and job history back 3 full years.
If any of this information is missing, highlight the empty blanks and ask the candidate to supply this information. Also highlight time gaps in their employment history. If they weren?t working, what were they doing? Were they ill, injured, in school, in a dry out center, in prison, or on a long vacation?
Make a note on the back of the application form about your initial impression of the candidate including whether you think there is enough potential to justify an interview.
Pay attention to practical considerations. Does the candidate live too far away? Has he or she earned significantly more in the past than you are willing to pay? If so, what will happen when that person has an opportunity to work closer to home or at a higher rate of pay?
Look at job stability. If you want a long-term employee why would you interview someone who changes jobs frequently?
The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Use common sense when analyzing the information on your application form. This will help you avoid interviewing candidates who obviously do not qualify for, or fit, the position.
Resumes do have value and ideally you will get resumes to go along with your corporate application form.
If nothing else, a resume tells you how professional a candidate is in his or her search for employment. It is also instructive to see what information is included in the resume and what is left out. Therefore, you will always want to compare the information from the application form with the resume.
In summary, a well-designed application form is not merely desirable?it is an essential tool of those who are serious about hiring great employees for their winning team.
Stephen Steckly, creator of the Profitable Team Building System, has helped many business owners, executives, and managers recruit, screen, interview, select, train, motivate, discipline, and inspire super star teams. For more information on these topics click on http://www.profitableteambuilding.com
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