Employee Hiring

Most managers would like to think they base their hiring decisions on candidates’ skill. But new research suggests that once a candidate passes through an initial HR screening, a bigger factor comes into play: how similar the interviewee is to the person doing the hiring.

Kellogg School of Business assistant professor Lauren Rivera spent nine months embedded in a professional service organization and noted three key reasons why this takes place: the “Will this person fit in?” question; the fact that people define merit on the basis of their own experiences; and that managers get excited by candidates who have similar passions and interests.

Hiring managers forget that “there are other ways people can a) be likeable and b) be socially skilled other than being a mirror image,” Rivera says.

Even in elite hiring pools, there is still important variation in qualities that are directly related to the job, such as prior work experience and coursework. Grades in particular have been shown to be a decent predictor of job performance, though employers often discount them. In addition, instead of relying on interviewers’ snap judgments to ascertain critical interpersonal skills, such as the ability to interact with teammates or clients successfully, interviewers could more systematically assess these qualities through role plays or group interviews.

More here: Hirable Like Me (Kellogg Insight)