Assessment Center based Recruitment & Selection

Increasingly organizations worldwide are resorting to assessment center based type of recruitment practices. It helps better selection, better fitment and certainly brings in a very professional approach to understand the likely behaviour and attitude of candidates.

Behavior Interviews

One-to-one or panel interview at assessment centers is very common and is generally the last phase. These probe any weaker areas that may have emerged at a first interview or during the assessment center. Interviews at this stage are likely to be more in-depth than those conducted during the first stages of selection and could be with someone from the department/division to which one has applied or even with a potential future colleague. Questions may refer back to first interview, to assessment center activities or to aptitude test results. One should be prepared to be challenged on his answers but keep calm, and avoid being defensive. Some questions are bound to get repeated.

Psychometric/ aptitude tests

Aptitude tests

These are timed tests, taken under exam conditions, designed to measure candidate’s intellectual capacity for thinking and reasoning, particularly logical/analytical ability. Increasingly, organizations are using these tests at a much earlier stage in the selection process and candidate may not be tested at the assessment center itself. The tests are designed for specific roles and are meant to be challenging but the candidate may or may not have prior knowledge or experience of the role for which he has applied. Accuracy is more important than speed. Most tests are of multiple-choice type and designed so that very few candidates both finish and get the correct answers.

 

Hints: -

1. Pay careful attention to the instructions;
2. Ask for clarification if you don’t understand something;
3. Work as quickly and as accurately as you can;
4. Skip over any questions you get stuck on;
5. Make sure that you record your answers in the correct boxes;
6. Get used to working without a calculator (you may not be allowed one) and revise basic mathematical operations if you haven’t done numerical work for a long time.

 

Personality inventories

These assess candidate’s personality and how one might react in different situations. They are not usually timed, have no right or wrong answers and are often used to see whether the candidate would fit into the company culture and can identify a working situation that would suit the candidate. One cannot practice for these tests but should answer honestly and avoid trying to second-guess ‘correct’ answers.

Case studies

In these exercises, the candidates are given a set of papers relating to a particular situation and asked to make recommendations in a brief report. The subject matter itself may not be important; but you are being tested on your ability to analyze information, to think clearly and logically, to exercise your judgment and to express yourself on paper.

In-tray exercises

These are business simulation exercises in which candidates are given a heaped in-tray or electronic in-box, full of e-mails, company memos, telephone and fax messages, reports and correspondence, together with information about the structure of the organization and candidate’s place within it. The candidate is expected to take decisions: priorities workload; draft replies; delegate tasks; recommend action to superiors; and so on. Designed to test how person handle complex information within a limited time, the exercise allows the candidate to demonstrate his organizational and planning skills. Some employers also want to know why the candidate has made certain decisions and may ask him/her to annotate items in the tray or discuss the decisions later.

Giving presentations

Some employers will ask the candidate to prepare a short talk for presentation to other candidates and/or the selectors. One may be asked to bring a prepared presentation to the assessment center but usually it must be produced on the day. The candidates could be given a topic for discussion or have completely free choice; it can be worthwhile to have a brief presentation on a familiar subject already prepared. Either way, avoid talking about anything too commonplace or technical and remember that you could be asked supplementary questions so it needs to be a subject on which you have further information to hand. The subject matter is not necessarily important – the organization wants to know whether the candidate can structure and communicate information effectively.

 

Please note the following:

• Plan presentation: highlight what you’re going to tell them; tell them; and then summaries what you’ve told them.
• Limit yourself to no more than six main messages.
• Pitch the level of your talk at an appropriate level for your audience.
• No too much details please.
• Support ideas/themes with anecdotes, examples, statistics and facts.
• Use humor appropriately.
• Aim for a conversational delivery and talk from notes, rather than memorizing or reading from a script.
• Make eye-to-eye contact at some point with all the members of the group and talk to them, not at them.
• Keep to time. 
• Speak clearly, don’t gabble or mumble and talk louder than you think necessary.
• Be aware of your body language and don’t fidget as you talk.
• Try to get someone to listen to your presentation beforehand so that you know if you have any annoying habits or if you repeat certain words (‘OK’, ‘er…’, ‘um’, etc) too often.
• If you are using a laptop or data projector, avoid walking in front of the screen or reading the transparencies to your audience – refer to them by all means but let them illustrate/back up/summaries what you are actually saying (images are generally more effective than words).
• Handle any questions using the mnemonic, TRACT: Thank the questioner; Rephrase the question for the rest of the audience; Answer the question; Check with the questioner that they are satisfied; and Thank them again.

If you have been asked to prepare a presentation beforehand, make sure that you do – even confident presenters come unstuck if they have not prepared sufficiently.

Group activities

Most jobs involve working with other people and most assessment centers involve a substantial element of group work. Whether the candidates have to complete a practical task or take part in a discussion, the selectors are looking for his/her ability to interact with other people. Remember that good team working is not always about getting one’s ideas taken forward but also listening to, and using, the ideas of others too.

Here are a few tips:

• Get a good grasp of any information you are given but don’t waste time on minute details.
• In light of the information given, decide objectives and priorities, make a plan and follow it.
• Be assertive and persuasive, yet diplomatic.
• Remember that the quality of what you have to say is more important than the quantity.
• Actively listen to what everyone has to say, through nodding, smiling and eye contact – try to get the best contribution from everyone (don’t assume that quiet members have nothing to contribute).
• Find a balance between advancing your own ideas and helping the group to complete the task set.
• Keep your cool and use your sense of humor, where appropriate.
• Make sure the group keeps to time.

Don’t be distracted if a member of the group dominates the conversation, not allowing anyone else to have a say. The worst way to deal with this is to try and compete by shouting over them. A good way of dealing with the situation is to listen to their views and then suggest that other members may have input too. Even if this doesn’t stop them, the selectors will have picked up on your efforts to try and include all members of the team, which will reflect well on you, much more so than trying to make your voice heard for the sake of it.

Practical tasks

The candidates may be asked as a group to use equipment or materials to make something. The selectors are more interested in how the group interacts than in the quality of the finished product. They will also be assessing planning and problem-solving skills and the creativity of your individual ideas. As with any group activity, get involved (however silly you consider the task to be).

Discussions and role plays

The candidates may be asked to take part in a leaderless group discussion or in a role-playing exercise where they are given a briefing pack and asked to play a particular part. The assessors are looking for everyone’s individual contribution to the team, as well as verbal communication and planning skills.

 

                                                                                 

 

 

 

 

 

DRAFT POLICY

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

AT WORKPLACE IS AGAINST THE LAW

 

Unwelcome acts or behavior (whether direct or by implication) as defined by the Sexual Harassment of Women at the workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013, namely physical contact and advances, a demand or request for sexual favors, making sexually colored remarks, showing pornography, any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature will not be tolerated in this premises. Sexual Harassment is misconduct under the service rules and may lead to appropriate actions including termination of services.

 

Sd/

Chairman/Managing Director                                                                 Date:

 

To report incidents or occurrences, please contact:

Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) constituted under the Sub-section [1] of Section 4, Sexual Harassment of Women at the workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013.

 

INTERNAL COMPLAINTS COMMITTEE

POSITION	NAME	CONTACT DETAILS (Phone No. & Mail id)
Presiding Officer /Chairperson
Member
Member
Member
Member
Member from outside

 

Plant Address:

 

 

National Code of Conduct

FOR THE CITIZENS OF INDIA

1.            Our India: should be our first and highest consideration. Welfare of the country is our                own. Therefore, let us willingly be ready to offer up even our own life for our country                  INDIA.

2.          Duty: Our first and foremost duty is to God, to Righteousness. Leading a righteous                   life is the most valuable service to our Nation.

3.         Character: Character is the greatest wealth. A pure, incorruptible citizen is the                          greatest asset of our Nation- INDIA. This is vital and indispensable.

4.         Health: Health is the basis of success. Health is wealth. Next to character, it is the                    greatest national asset. As citizens, building up character and safeguarding health,                   should be our primary duty to the Nation. 

5.         Virtue: Let’s eradicate the evils of gambling, liquor-drinking, drug-taking, tobacco-                    smoking and betel-chewing. Let’s eradicate the evils of bribery, corruption,                                selfishness, immortality, dishonesty and misconduct. Disloyalty to our nation is crime                and sin.

6.         Public Property: O Citizen! We are the custodian of public property. Let’s not spoil,                  misuse, steal or destroy National property. Let’s preserve it with love and care. Let’s                  keep our country neat and clean.

7.         One Family: All our citizens are brethren. Let’s feel this brotherhood. Let’s all love                    each other and be united.

8.         Religion: Let’s have equal reverence for all creeds and religions. Let’s love as                         brothers, the followers of other faiths. Let’s treat others as we wish to be treated by                  them.

9.         No-violence: Let’s avoid all types of violence and hatred for, this is a blot on the fair                name of the Nation.

10.       Economy: Let’s adopt simple living and high thinking. Let’s not be extravagant. Let’s                avoid waste. Let’s practice frugality. Let’s share What we have with our less fortunate                fellow citizens.

11.       Law: Let’s respect the rule of Law and uphold social justice.

12.       Ahimsa: Non-injury is our highest virtue (Ahimsa Paramo Dharma).                                          Compassion is a divine quality. Kind protection of animals is our sacred duty. This is                  India’s special teaching. Let’s be compassionate towards all creatures. Thus be a true              Indian.

13.       Ecology: Man and Nature are inseparable. Man and his natural environment are inter-            related and mutually interdependent. Everything in nature contributes to our                              nourishment and protection. Let’s therefore protect our natural environment. Helping                in maintaining the ecological balance is our duty. It is indispensable for our safe living              and highest welfare. Polluting of the air and water of the country is a national crime.                  We must make amends for our past lapses.

14.       Unity: The more united the people of a country, the greater is their ability to                               withstand all obstacles and dangers. United we stand, divided we fall. This is                             particularly true about today’s India. Therefore, let’s live in close harmony and                           loving goodwill with all our countrymen. Love of our country means love of our                           countrymen. This is the most invaluable service, a citizen of India, can offer to his                    motherland-INDIA.

15.       Education: Let’s inculcate in our children and members of our family love for our                     country, the spirit of patriotism and service.

 

Thus shine as a true citizen and serve your country best, by the very manner of your life and conduct.

 

Jai Hind                                                                                                         Compiled by:

                                                                                                    Lovers of the Country

 

Originally Printed on the occasion of 50^th Golden Jubilee Year of Independence of our India by The Divine Life Society, Rishikesh. Please reprint more copies and distribute widely.

 

Reprinted for free distribution by DLS, Pune Branch on the occasion of 75^th Diamond Jubilee Year of Independence of our India.

                                                                                   

The Divine Life Society, P. O. Shivanandnagar- 249192 Dist. Tehri-Garhwal India

“NO COPYRIGHT”. All Lovers of country can reprint and distribute widely. But no Single Word should be changed. Print just as it is.

 

 

PROMOTION POLICY

 

Job vacancies occur in an Organization when there is :

a)        a substantial expansion in its existing activities

ii)       diversification of its activities and / or

iii)           separation

Separation of employees can take place because of :

a)       Resignation

b)       Retirement

c)        Discharge/Dismissal

d)       Unfortunate event of death of an employee and/ or

e)       One employee getting promotion

In any of the aforementioned cases, the vacancy has to be filled in which can be

either by:

a)    Appointment of an outsider or

b)    Promoting an employee amongst existing employees of the company.

It will therefore be noticed that promotion essentially is a placement and

not a reward as it is normally misunderstood. An additional increment

could be a reward. Once promotion is accepted as placement, all the steps involved in the selection of a person for the job should be followed. The employee identified and proposed for promotion should be at least as good as an outsider if not better. It should never happen that an employee is promoted, without any change in his job. His responsibility for men, machine and/or material should increase warranting higher technical and human relations skills. Since promotion leads an employee up the organization ladder, it should be ensured that the promotee designate possesses all the required skills.

 

As such, it should be ensured that the employee proposed to be promoted should possess all the potential skills. It is therefore necessary that a person should not be promoted just because “he is performing well” in his present job. Besides that he should possess other skills required for the senior position. Otherwise organization will lose a good

                                                                                                        supervisor and get a poor                                                                                                         manager. In view of the                                                                                                            foregoing, following                                                                                                                 steps are suggested while                                                                                                         promoting an employee-

·         Develop job specifications in terms of detailed job descriptions, the number of persons whose work the incumbent has to supervise and  responsible to, the level of persons both internal and external the incumbent has to interact with etc.

·         Develop hiring specifications in terms of educational / technical qualifications and experience,  preferred age group etc. Having identified a job and developed the hiring specifications, the next step is to see if there in an employee within the Organization who meets the hiring specifications and who could be considered for promotion.

·         Since at senior levels an employee should possess very high human relation skills and decision making abilities and such other traits, the Head of the Department in which the candidate is employed should do his Trait Appraisal in the format attached. The HOD should then forward the recommendations for promotions to the Reviewer indicating the following :

·         Approved Organization chart showing the vacancy to be filled.

·         Personal details of the candidate recommended for promotion.

Recommendations of promotions from all the HODs should be received by the Management duly reviewed by respective Reviewers by 31^st March of the year. Then management  can take decision on the entire list of cases recommended for promotion and announce the same.                                                              

     In conclusion, it may be added here that an employee otherwise considered suitable for promotion, if found to be lacking in any areas by the interview panel, he should be trained in those areas and then only promoted. As far as possible, an employee on promotion should be shifted from the group in which he his worked to another group. It would make acceptance of his leadership easier.

    Managing Director

 

 

 

EMPLOYMENT OR EMPLOYABILITY?

-          DR N. H. DESHPANDE

Lead Consultant

Dnyanapeeth Academy, Pune

June every year is admission season, even for post graduate courses. Due to increase in no. of Institutions that offer these courses, marketing of these Institutes has become most essential to reach the prospective students. In the process of attracting students for admission, a no. of tall claims is made, which hardly can be verified. Besides infrastructure, buildings, and facilities like transport, canteen etc invariably mention of placements is made. The lucrative word was “100% Placements” which is now getting replaced by “100% Placement assistance”. As if, the main role and purpose of teaching institutes has now shifted to offer merely placements from hardcore teaching and preparing the students for life. Education is for life but in the journey, most of the Institutes tend to be placement agencies.  Unfortunately many students, parents also get attracted to such Institutes.  A friend of mine in Pune, who runs a group of management institutes, proudly (?) says- “I run coaching classes. I charge heavy fees from MBA aspirants, coach them for two years and get companies (at any cost) in my campus, to give them offer letters.”

What happens to these students, after say six months, he never bothers. He then is worried about next year’s admissions.

The trend visible in such newly passed out and recruited MBAs, is that they get placement from the Institute, they may or may not join that organization. Keep trying elsewhere for better offer, keeping this in hand. Or else join, and within couple of months, leave the job. Many of my students have changed jobs like they change shirts. Every time a new mail id and a new cell no. I have given up the job of remembering, who is where. In stead, whenever I meet some one, I ask him/her, “Where are you currently?”

Why this is happening?

Educational Institutions are increasingly making attempts to attract industries to their campus and offer placement opportunities to their “end product”.  But the reality is that the students are hardly employable. Given below are some facts that emphasize this point;

The National Association of Software and Services Companies, NASSCOM’-McKinsey Report predicts India will confront a huge shortage of ‘skilled workers’ in the next decade. 

According to a McKinsey study, only 25 per cent of our engineering graduates, 15 per cent of our finance and accounting professionals and 10 per cent of professionals with any kind of degrees, in India, are suitable for working in multinational companies. 

A recent study conducted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has revealed that Human Resource (HR) is the biggest challenge faced by India especially at the managerial, production and marketing levels due to the widening of demand-supply gap.

Here comes the question- What are we offering to our students- employment or employability?

The focus today unfortunately is on the former. I can understand, if students naturally aim for immediate employment. But at least Institutions should focus on larger goal- employability to prepare students for life.

There is need to realize-

1.         Being employed is totally different than being employable.

2.         Employment is temporary while employability is permanent.

3.         Employability is combination of Skills (What you know) + Knowledge (What you do with   what you know) + Attitude (How you do it facing life)      

4.         Employability cannot be job specific. These are skills which cut horizontally across all      industries and vertically across all jobs. These skills are no more merely desired by the        employers today but are required by them.

The Changing World

                The employment market is changing fast and is characterized by-

â         Deregulation

â         Communications

â         Growth in disposable income

â         Global Trading

â         Demographic Changes

â         Environmental and Social equations

This has led to shifts in business strategies. The business is changing from international  to global, from competition to collaboration, from functions to processes, from component thinking to system thinking, from creating stability to managing frequent changes, from clarity to ambiguity, from standard products/services to customization, from command and control to empowerment and trust, and from complacent to enlightened workforce.

Is this being taught in Indian B-Schools?

Generally, MBA curriculum both universities affiliated or autonomous aims at achieving the integration of diverse academic disciplines for creating managers capable of making ethical and commercially viable decisions for running the show. Hence, the curriculum of a B-school focuses on diverse functional areas, keeping in mind the fact that students often join MBA programs from diverse background with little or without any prior knowledge of those areas. Over and above core courses (mandatory for all) such as Economics, Quantitative Techniques, Behavioral Sciences etc. to build the foundation,  there are standard specializations available such as Marketing, Finance, Human Resources etc. as per  individual choice.   We talk and dream of building quality Institutes. What our B-schools are known for now? Have they depicted any strategic focus or are most of them, if not all, are run-of-the-mill B-schools? By teaching everything to everyone we are not able to develop a high level of expertise in any single area.

To remain relevant in a fast changing world, our B-schools are teaching more so that their students can get quick job offers. The total no. of courses in a typical two year program goes up to 40-45. Can we then come closer to our international counterparts in terms of teaching, research and creativity? To add to this, there are assignments and class tests which develop expertise in cut-copy-pest.  I am told, readymade printed project/seminar reports are available in market these days.

One solution can be, for providing more time for absorption and creative thinking and maximizing the freedom of choice, can we consider offering electives? In a way, the number of electives defines the level of academic competition. These electives need not be compulsory and universal in nature but can be state/area specific.  For ensuring quality, our B-schools should reduce the teaching of main courses, in stead more electives may be offered to give a wider variety of choices to students. This is critical in today's environment since the knowledge revolution is making courses obsolete very fast and, at the same time, creating scope for many more offerings.

For example, in a state like Chhattisgarh, such electives can in power and mining sector, steel and cement sector, Industrial safety and so on. This will certainly enhance employability of students passing out from the state and also industry needs can be locally satisfied.

The employability skills need to be taught in B-schools. The pass outs should clearly know what the Industries are expecting from them? They should also be crystal clear about their expectations from the job, they are looking for. Match between the two can lead to employability. 

Once the Foreign University Bill is passed, many global brands will enter Indian market with reputed international MBA degree. In this scenario probably the leaders may not face more heat at least for some years. Some B-schools with good infrastructure can rent their facilities to foreign institutions and survive.  What about others?

 

 

 

 

                      

  

 

 स्वतःची टिमकी !

स्वतःच्या कर्तृत्वाचा,रोज करीत असलेल्या (भलेही ते किरकोळ का असेना) कामाचा सार्थ अभिमान बाळगणारे सदैव नमस्काराचे धनी असतात.जी मंडळी स्वतःच्या कौशल्याला ( ते कोणत्याही क्षेत्रातील असो) सतत धार लावून ते तीक्ष्ण करीत असतात त्यांनाही सलाम करण्यात काही गैर नसते.

मात्र काही मंडळी त्यांच्याबरोबरच्या संभाषणात या कौतुकाच्या आधारे येन केन प्रकारेण स्वतःची टिमकी वाजवण्यात धन्यता मानत असतात. आणि काहीजणांना बोलताना ते बोलण्यात सूक्ष्मपणे समाविष्ट करण्याची, व्यक्त करण्याची सवयही असते. याआधारे मग आपण सर्वच क्षेत्रांमध्ये आघाडीवर असल्याचा भास होतो आणि इतरांना उपदेश करण्याचा, सल्ला देण्याचा, मार्गदर्शन करण्याचा जन्मसिद्ध की कर्तृत्वसिद्ध अधिकार आपोआप प्राप्त होतो.बरेचदा हे अनाहूत असते.ही बढाई अतिशय नम्र शब्दांमध्ये कधीकधी सादर होते-विशेषतः समाजमाध्यमांवर !

ही बढाई कधीतरी संदर्भहीन असते,कधी अकारण स्वतःवर उगाच केलेली टीका असते, किंवा अगदीच वरवरचे विधान असू शकते पण त्यामधून सदर व्यक्तीच्या कर्तृत्वावर प्रकाश पडत असतो, ते लक्ष वेधून घेण्याचे कारस्थान(?)ही असू शकते.ही बढाई सकृतदर्शनी निरुपद्रवी दिसू शकते पण तीच वारंवार, त्याच व्यक्तीकडून कानी पडत असेल तर कर्कश्य वाटू शकते आणि अशा व्यक्तींना टाळण्याकडे सर्वसामान्यांचा कल असतो. स्वतःची टिमकी वाजविण्यात धन्यता मानणारी मंडळी स्वतःच्या प्रेमात पडलेली असतात आणि त्यांच्याबद्दल समोरच्या व्यक्तीच्या मनात नकारात्मकता पसरू शकते.

मोठ्या खुबीने आणि हुशारीने अशी मंडळी स्वतःचा गवगवा करीत असतात. उदाहरणार्थ समाजमाध्यमांवर एखादी व्यक्ती लिहिते- " मी एकाच दिवसात तीन देशांमध्ये हिंडलो, तेथील अन्नपदार्थांची चव बघितली. अजूनही विश्वास बसत नाहीए. धन्य रे ते तंत्रज्ञान आणि वेग !" असे हे छुपे स्व-प्रमोशन असते.

किंवा " ५ लाखांची वस्तू विकत घ्यायला मी बरोबर फक्त ५०,००० रू आणले.सगळ्यांना कल्पना आहे- किमतींबाबत मी किती अनभिज्ञ असतो ते !"

" जर्नल ऑफ पर्सनॅलिटी आणि सोशल सायकॉलॉजि" अशा टिमकीबहाद्दरांपासून दूर राहण्याचा सल्ला देते कारण त्यांचा बडेजाव बरेचदा फुसका, पोकळ असू शकतो.

तसेही नम्रपणा आणि स्वतःचा उदोउदो या गोष्टींचे हाडवैर असते. त्यामुळे समाजमाध्यमांवर तरी (तेथे खातरजमा होईलच असे दुरान्वयाने शक्य नसते) व्यक्त होताना या दोहोंमध्ये एक फट ठेवण्याचा जरूर प्रयत्न करावा. स्वतःचे कर्तृत्व अधोरेखित करावयाचे तर ते उघड उघड करावे, नम्रतेच्या बुरख्याआडून नव्हे ! नाहीतर ती नम्रता खोटी,भ्रामक वाटायला लागते.

सांगण्यापेक्षा आपले कर्तृत्व "दिसले"तर ते अधिक स्वीकारार्ह ठरते. नंतरच्या खातरजमेचा पर्याय/अधिकार आपण राखून ठेवलेला असतोच की ! नम्र बढाई बरेचदा हाजी हाजी करण्यासारखी असते किंवा 'अहो रूपं, अहो ध्वनी "टाईप !

All reactio