by Steven Lindner | Sep 2, 2024 | Candidate Assessment and Selection, Hiring and Retention, Recruitment Process Outsourcing, Research Publication, Talent Acquisition |
Steven Lindner, Ph.D., is a prominent figure in the field of talent acquisition and human resources. He is the Managing Partner of The WorkPlace Group, a company specializing in recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) and talent acquisition solutions. With a Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Dr. Lindner has dedicated his career to understanding and improving the hiring process.
Dr. Lindner is recognized as one of the creators of the RPO industry. He pioneered innovative approaches to streamlining and enhancing recruitment processes, and his contributions have significantly shaped the way organizations manage their talent acquisition strategies.
In addition to his groundbreaking work in RPO, Dr. Lindner has authored over 85 HR business and research articles in leading media outlets and academic journals. He also served as a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Talent Acquisition Expert Panel and is a contributing author to the American National Standard, “Cost-Per-Hire”. This standard provides a comprehensive framework for calculating the cost associated with hiring new employees, helping organizations better understand and manage their recruitment expenses.
Dr. Lindner’s work focuses on evidence-based recruitment strategies.” He has co-authored studies on resume characteristics that influence interview decisions, highlighting the importance of relevant work experience, educational background, and achievements in securing job interviews. He has published scientific studies on loneliness at work, work-from-home, sources of hire, job search strategies, hiring costs, candidate assessments and a range of related talent acquisition topics. His research emphasizes the need for a scientific approach to hiring, ensuring that candidates are selected based on objective criteria rather than subjective biases.
Through his innovative methodologies, Dr. Lindner has empowered employers with more effective hiring practices. By leveraging data-driven insights and advanced recruitment technologies, he has enabled organizations to identify and attract top talent more efficiently. His strategies enable employers to respond swiftly to their hiring needs, ensuring they can fill critical positions with qualified candidates in a timely manner.
When asked how he and his organization, The WorkPlace Group, do it better, Dr. Lindner said, “Anyone can recruit, but few know how to do it well. There is a science to selecting candidates who will perform well, add value to the business, and stay committed.” But apart from the science, isn’t it about knowing good job candidates and having a strong network of people? To this, Dr. Lindner remarked, “It’s no longer about the size of your candidate database, LinkedIn connections or the number of candidates in your network. It’s about knowing how to select the right talent with the competencies, work experiences, and work philosophies to succeed within your organization.”
“Succeed within your organization” is a key phrase. To further explain his view, Dr. Lindner uses the example of Employee Referrals. Employee Referral programs are a common recruitment strategy. They account for approximately one-third of most companies’ new hires. Furthermore, employees generally receive a financial incentive for recommending candidates who are hired. However, he quickly points out that employee referrals are not always the best hire. There is a difference between knowing someone and having objective knowledge and first-hand observations of how someone performed during critical decision-making or make-or-break moments of getting work done. Furthermore, we all know great people who did great work elsewhere but failed to do so in the same or similar job with the next employer.
But can’t Artificial Intelligence (AI) hire better? Do we still need Organizational Psychologists and Recruiters to make good hires? To this, Dr. Lindner responded, ‘While AI helps automate repetitive recruiting tasks, recruitment methodology and human decision-making are key to successful hiring.’ Jokingly, he said, “When recruitment AI fails, who do you call? Answer: A human.” For now, solutions to how to do it better and the creation of novel ideas and solutions remain strictly a human ability.
Recognizably, most employers don’t have the recruitment, selection and hiring capabilities or expertise Dr. Lindner speaks about. When companies need to hire job candidates, most handle it using job ads and internal staff to review resumes and interview candidates. Larger companies may have additional resources such as recruiters, HR professionals and talent acquisition managers to sort resumes and screen job candidates.
When the do-it-yourself (DIY) approach fails, employers turn to staffing firms, contingent search groups and recruiting agencies. These are all very expensive options that often come with simple, cursory or uninformed reviews of job candidates’ qualifications. Staffing firms, contingent search groups, and recruiting agencies are in the business of acting as agents for candidates. As agents, they promote their candidates to multiple employers.
In contrast, Dr. Lindner’s organization, The WorkPlace Group, flips the paradigm and strictly represents the employer. This means candidates are being recruited and carefully assessed specifically for job openings in your organization. Dr. Lindner explains that his teams use all the same recruiting tactics, and then some, employed by headhunters, agencies, and staffing firms in addition to The WorkPlace Group’s database and network of over 700,000 job candidates.
The RPO industry that Dr. Lindner helped create has produced many RPO providers offering a myriad of choices and industry specializations for employers to consider. The WorkPlace Group’s model provides recruiting solutions for both small and large employers. Small companies can now have the same scalability, recruiting technologies, assessment abilities, job market intelligence and hiring capabilities as larger employers. Large companies can customize support options for managing and filling thousands of job openings across various locations and departments.
Steven Lindner, Ph.D., has profoundly impacted the talent acquisition industry through his innovative methodologies and scientific approach to hiring. By leveraging data-driven insights and advanced recruitment technologies, he has empowered employers to identify and attract top talent more efficiently. His emphasis on objective criteria and evidence-based practices ensures that candidates are selected based on their competencies, work experiences, and alignment with organizational values.
Dr. Lindner’s organization, The WorkPlace Group, stands out by strictly representing the employer, providing tailored recruitment solutions for both small and large companies. This approach allows smaller companies to access the same advanced recruiting technologies and market intelligence as larger firms, while large companies benefit from scalable support to manage extensive hiring needs.
As the recruitment landscape continues to evolve, Dr. Lindner’s and The WorkPlace Group’s contributions will remain pivotal in shaping effective and efficient talent acquisition strategies. Their commitment to excellence in hiring practices underscores the importance of combining human decision-making with technological advancements to achieve successful outcomes in the ever-changing job market.
This article also appears on:
CBS Lake Charles: https://pr.cbslakecharles.tv/article/The-Science-of-Hiring?storyId=66d6e0054629fe00082af8b9
NBC Fort Wayne’s: https://fwnbc.marketminute.com/article/syndicationcloud-2024-9-3-the-science-of-hiring
Fox47: https://fox47.marketminute.com/article/syndicationcloud-2024-9-3-the-science-of-hiring
For more information, contact:
Steven Lindner, Ph.D., steven.lindner@workplacegroup.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindner.steven/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenlindner
by Steven Lindner | Oct 20, 2015 | Recruitment Process Outsourcing |
Why Use Recruitment Process Outsourcing?
Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) providers are service providers specializing in recruitment who represent employers. They serve as an extension of an employer’s recruiting function or in some instances as the employer’s recruiting department. RPO providers offer a range of services from Project Recruiting to end-to-end Recruitment Process Outsourcing. Recruitment Process Outsourcing providers also vary significantly in terms of their capabilities and areas of focus. In our article, What is Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), we provide an overview of Recruitment Outsourcing and Recruitment Process Outsourcing. In this article we will answer the question why use recruitment process outsourcing?
Why Partner with a Recruitment Process Outsourcing Provider?
Employers outsource recruiting to gain the expertise, resources, and/or scalability they need to effectively respond to the continual ebbs and flows of hiring. Many outsourced recruiting programs often begin as recruitment projects due to rapid growth, corporate expansion, or opening a new location.
Companies outsource recruiting because hiring needs are difficult to predict. There are peaks and valleys that leave in-house recruiting departments either understaffed or overstaffed. In addition, the various skill sets and talent that organizations need to hire require staffing and recruiting departments to have expertise, methodologies, and sourcing strategies to attract and acquire the full range of non-exempt, exempt, technical, and managerial talent across a variety of functional areas like Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, and Research and Development.
Most organizations can’t afford the luxury of having idle recruitment resources or employing all the recruiting expertise they need to effectively respond to their own hiring needs. For example, few companies have the capability to instantaneously add 10 recruiters to a hiring initiative and then remove them a few hours later when the candidate pipeline is full. Furthermore, few companies have recruiters and assessments capable of consistently evaluating candidates from a multitude of occupations.
Use a Project Recruiting RPO Strategy for Short Term Needs
Recruitment Process Outsourcing generally means a multi-year commitment. Most RPO agreements are 2 to 5 years in length with renewable terms. Here’s a link to an overview of Recruitment Process Outsourcing services and solutions.
However many Recruitment Process Outsourcing providers, such as The WorkPlace Group, offer project recruiting RPO programs for shorter-term recruitment needs. Project Recruiting RPO services are a great way to get the recruiting support needed as well as test out the RPO model before committing to a long-term strategic partnership.
Project Recruiting RPO partnerships have become a common strategy for Talent Acquisition and Recruitment departments to use to fulfill their companies’ need for talent. In fact, many recruitment process outsourcing programs start as recruiting projects. Project Recruiting RPO engagements often start as short-term projects and continue on for years. Project Recruiting RPO projects might focus on a particular division or job family, or support a corporate recruitment department across the entire company during peak hiring periods.
Project Recruiting RPO services provide employers with the scalability and recruiting and process expertise they need to get through high-volume or specialized recruiting needs. Project Recruiting RPO strategies can maximize the cost benefits of other recruitment options such as contract recruiters, staffing agencies and recruitment search firms. If your needs are short-term or narrow in scope, look for Recruitment Process Outsourcing providers who provide Project Recruiting RPO services.
Why Recruitment Process Outsourcing has strategic benefits beyond cost-savings?
Cost savings is often a big driver of why a company initially becomes interested in Recruitment Process Outsourcing services. However, Recruitment Outsourcing strategies that stop at costs savings are missing what is far more valuable.
Achieving meaningful recruitment results requires much more than a dedicated team with diverse expertise willing to work long hours. Achieving results important enough to be cited in a client company’s annual report, for example, requires a team that is coordinated, responsive, and overseen by managers with a strong appreciation and keen insight into the clients business environment and challenges.
To give you a specific example, The WorkPlace Group helped one the worlds largest and most comprehensive drug development services company double its volume of new hires, bringing in approximately 1,600 employees on board in a single year. While doubling hiring volume, they also helped the company decrease their overall cost-per-hire by approximately 15% and improved time-to-fill by 10%.
In this example, the most important benefit to the company’s business was not the 15% cost savings. It was the additional revenue they were able to generate by reducing the time-to-hire and having 1,600 individuals productive 10% sooner. That’s the kind of impact that gets the attention of C-level Executives.
To explore how recruitment process outsourcing can help you, please contact us here at The WorkPlace Group.
by Steven Lindner | Oct 13, 2015 | Recruitment Process Outsourcing |
What is Recruitment Process Outsourcing? It’s the act of transferring talent acquisition, selection and hiring activities to an entity that specializes in recruiting services. Recruiting involves a range of activities that begin with identifying, attracting and sourcing candidates and concludes with the actual act of hiring. Once a new hire is employed and on the job, the recruitment process ends.
Why has Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) become an industry standard?
Hiring needs are difficult to predict. There are peaks and valleys that leave in-house recruiting departments either understaffed or overstaffed. In addition, the various skill sets and talent that organizations need to hire require staffing and recruiting departments to have candidate sourcing, screening, assessing and on-boarding expertise across the full range of entry-level, technical, managerial and executive level job openings. Talent acquisition and recruiting leaders depend on RPOs to help ensure hiring needs are met. Why Partner with an Recruitment Process Outsourcing Provider shares several examples of why talent acquisition and recruiting leaders are using Recruitment Process Outsourcing and Project Recruiting RPO services.
How do I know if a recruitment provider is an RPO?
The RPO marketplace can be very confusing. Many companies refer to themselves as RPOs but don’t actually recruit. Some providers only offer recruitment technology, such as applicant tracking systems. Technology solution providers are not RPOs. Still other providers who engage in recruitment and refer to themselves as RPOs are not true outsourcers at all, but staffing agencies providing temporary or leased workers, or headhunters and search firms offering stripped down versions of their full-scale services.
Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) providers represent employers and specialize in recruitment services. They serve as an extension of an employers recruiting function or in some cases as the employers whole recruiting department. True RPOs, whether they refer to themselves as Recruitment Outsourcing or Recruitment Process Outsourcing companies, provide recruiting services that can support or carry out the entire end-to-end recruitment process. The setup of the relationship is no different than calling Microsoft for tech support, thinking you are speaking with Microsoft, when in fact you are speaking with a third party supplier who is representing Microsoft and authorized to do so by Microsoft. To job seekers, the perception is they are speaking with the employer itself.
In contrast, headhunters, search firms, and staffing agencies represent the candidates. They serve as an agent for candidates and represent candidates to many potential buyers; in this case the buyers are employers. Whereas headhunters, search firms, and staffing agencies negotiate with employers for the best possible employment opportunity for their client – the candidate – recruitment outsourcers protect the interests of employers, ensuring their client – the employer – hires the best person for the job in the most efficient and effective manner.
What is Recruitment Process Outsourcing versus Recruitment Outsourcing?
Recruitment Outsourcing and Recruitment Process Outsourcing are used interchangeably. The acronym RPO refers to both Recruitment Outsourcing and Recruitment Process Outsourcing.
Recruitment Outsourcing and Recruitment Process Outsourcing providers can be differentiated by the R , P and O capabilities.
CHARACTERISTICS OF RECRUITMENT PROCESS OUTSOURCING PROVIDERS
RPOs must have outsourcing capabilities and provide
recruiting and/or processing services |
|
R = Recruitment |
Do they find, attract and source candidates? |
|
P = Process |
Do they manage transactions that carry out the act of hiring? |
|
O = Outsourcing |
Do they have the ability to carry out the recruiting process from start to finish? |
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by Steven Lindner | Feb 19, 2015 | Candidate Assessment and Selection, Recruitment Process Outsourcing |
To add to our previous posts on the “Ban the Box” trend happening across states and municipalities we wanted to share this interesting article from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), “Perform Criminal Background Checks at Your Peril.” The WorkPlace Group has been following “Ban the Box” trends because these laws will continue to affect the hiring process of employers. In addition to States like New Jersey, Illinois, California, Minnesota and Colorado, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is also implementing “Ban the Box” policies at the national level. Should the EEOC continue in this direction, “Ban the Box” laws could come to affect all U.S. employers.
What is the EEOC Saying About Background Checks?
The EEOC has started to use Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act to sue businesses for a wide range of hiring practices that negatively impacted minorities. An example happened in 1989 when the EEOC sued Carolina Freight Carrier Corp. for refusing to hire an Hispanic man as a truck driver. This man had a history of multiple arrests and served 18 months in jail for larceny. The U.S. District Judge Jose Alejandro Gonzalez, Jr. ruled against the agency saying that the “EEOC’s position that minorities should be held to lower standards is an insult to millions of honest Hispanics.” As Judge Gonzalez stated, “a rule refusing honest employment to convicted applications is going to have a disparate impact upon thieves.”
In April 2014, the EEOC unveiled the “Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions.” These guidelines state that criminal record exclusions have a disparate impact based on race and national origin. If you have been following The WorkPlace Group’s blog posts, then this should sound familiar. This is the long version of “ban the box.”
Where is the Connection Between Minorities and Ban the Box
The WSJ cites statistics indicating that the crime rate of certain races is exponentially higher than that of other races. These statistics form the basis for EEOC’s concern and recommendation to employers to change their application process. A former EEOC General Counsel stated in testimony to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights that employers could be considered guilty “of race discrimination if they choose law abiding applicants over applicants with criminal convictions.” (According to the same WSJ article) A considerable challenge for employers will be complying with EEOC guidelines even if they are not in a state with a “ban the box” law.
How Will the EEOC’s New Guidelines Really Affect Minorities?
The WSJ describes several studies that show fewer minorities are hired when employers conduct background checks in comparison to employers who don’t. The WSJ is suggesting that EEOC’s guidelines and stance on this topic may actually hurt the employment of those minorities it is purposely trying to protect.
“Ban the Box” Advice for Employers
Even if your state does not have a “ban the box” law currently, given the EEOC’s position on this issue, we recommend all employers delay inquiring or collecting any information on applicants’ criminal histories or conducting a background check until after an offer of employment has been extended.
We invite examples of how employers are changing their employment applications and selection process to comply with EEOC’s and State trends on “Ban the Box” legislature. We also welcome your questions as to how to best comply with this national trend.
For more information on how to ready your employment process for “Ban the Box” trends, please feel free to contact a WorkPlace Group Associate for assistance.
by Steven Lindner | Jan 13, 2015 | Candidate Assessment and Selection, Recruitment Process Outsourcing |
This is a continuation of How Will ‘Ban the Box’ Trends Change Recruitment Traffic: Part I of II from Monday, January 12, 2015.
Will the Ban the Box Laws Help the Employer or Candidate?
While it is obvious that those candidates with a criminal history may benefit from the Ban the Box laws that are trending in the United States, the benefits to employers are less clear. Most States implementing a Ban the Box law do not require employers to forego the criminal background check. Instead, they require the background check to be pushed later in the hiring process. Typically after a conditional offer has been made. New Jersey’s Opportunity to Compete Act specifically states “that many individuals with prior criminal histories pose no greater risk of future criminality than do people with no criminal history and are equally qualified, reliable, and trustworthy candidates for employment.” If employers follow this advice, it would suggest that employers would have a larger pool of candidates from which to select from and hire.
For Employers that currently conduct criminal background checks prior to making a job offer, limiting criminal background checks to candidates who have received and accepted offers of employment will reduce spending on criminal background checks. However these savings will be more than offset by the increased number of interviews and job offers that will need to be rescinded as a result of applicants who become disqualified based on their criminal histories. Employers will also see increased costs in complying with these regulations since many states, like New Jersey, provide specific rules, procedures and forms that must be followed and completed in order to rescind an offer of employment based on a criminal background check. Although not required under the NJ Law, many employers may choose to delay filling an open position with another qualified candidate who has passed the background check until the initial candidate has had the requisite time provided under the law to respond and challenge the employer’s decision to rescind their employment offer.
Can An Employer Withdraw an Offer After the Criminal Background Check?
Yes. Employers are not required to hire someone who is no longer qualified as a result of their criminal history. It is important to note that if an employer wants to rescind an offer to an individual after the criminal background check has been completed, employers must follow the guidelines provided by the respective governing authority, whether Federal, State and/or Municipality. Each governing authority is going to have its own set of procedures and rules for an employer to follow. For instance, in New Jersey, a candidate must receive written notice of an offer withdrawal from the employer and be provided ten days to respond with any additional information or evidence. A specific form is provided for employers to use.
State and local legislation does not override any existing federal employment laws. State and local laws complement Federal laws. Thus, if you are an employer in a state or municipality that does not have a “Ban the Box” law, you still need to follow Federal laws regarding rescinding offers of employment.
What should Employers do to Comply with “Ban the Box” laws?
- Review your State and Local laws requiring the use of criminal historyinformation for the purpose of making a decision to hire or not hire.
- Eliminate language in your job ads that suggests aperson with one or more crimes, or who has been arrested, is not eligible for your job.
- Eliminate questions regarding convictions, arrests and crimes from your job application.
- Train hiring managers and recruiters to avoid asking about applicants’ criminal histories until an offer of employment is made.
- Review your policies regarding how offers of employment will be rescinded and ensure you have clear guidelines as to how felonies and misdemeanors will be evaluated in order to determine if they are permissible or disqualifiers for each unique job.
- When in doubt consult your labor attorney before acting.
For recruitment assistance and help in ensuring a positive candidate experience for the truly qualified please contact us at https://www.workplacegroup.com/contact/
