Prudent Safety Screening

As screening and background checks are done, there is probably a thought going through the hiring manager's mind about the candidate if they are of color. Some may wonder about elements of responsible hires cf. negligent hires.

Background checks should be conducted but those who could be classified as a threat to the workplace may or may not have a criminal background. Immigration status is one screening concern. We have statutes and agencies that address work eligibility for non-citizens.

Recent events have called into question how one's citizenship status colors classification as a "terrorist suspect" compared with some other designation. Is it proper to decline to hire a person because someone feels they may prove to be a jihad terrorist? What about concern regarding instigation of workplace violence? In fact, how are these terms defined?

PolitiFact addresses some of these issues in an updated article that questions how a person's citizenship status affects classifying them as a "terrorist suspect." In the seven scenarios they examine that are U.S.-based incidents, we discover only three involved individuals who did not enjoy U.S. citizenship in some form. The article then segues into considering the different types of conditions that call attention to the need for care.

Terms that come into scrutiny in the PolitiFact article are:

• racially motivated violence
  
• domestic terrorism
  
• naturalized citizen
  
• U.S.-born citizen
  
• immigrant
  
• legal immigrant
  
• workplace violence
  
• terrorism
  

Do you need a policy regarding these considerations or should you be making hiring decisions based on the candidates qualifications, skills, and work status (when it comes to immigrants)? Have a conversation with your managers about diversity and inclusion while allowing these buzz words to be addressed as they surface. Another prudent step is to have your in-house or retained employment law lawyer in attendance in order to address the legal ramifications of some moves compared to others while also discussing best practices. During that session, definitions of the terms that people are using can be discussed. An agreement can be reached about how those terms are used in your culture once the definitions are nailed down. Better to have every person talking about the same thing and with knowledge and awareness of what they're talking about.

Be certain these terms are included in a glossary of your work policies or employee handbook (or both). We are now focused on matters related to terrorism and active shooter incidents. Now that the incidents are becoming overwhelmingly frequent, thoughts about preparation are finally percolating into management consciousness. However, there is the more (literally) home grown danger that demands attention and protocols developed for the sake of safety protocols. Domestic violence and workplace abuse are also related to these types of situations. It is highly likely that the disgruntled spouse, the recently terminated employee, the over stressed worker or customer will reach their breaking point in the workplace and resort to violence in order to make their previous demands for respect and requests for cessation of abuse heard.

There are many facets to the safety picture, especially for the workplace. Violence and terrorism are merely two aspects of it. Domestic violence is the one that is routinely overlooked or considered not important. Prudent screening and background checks before hiring is important. Putting safety protocols and practices for non-routine situations should be included in them.

References:

• What's the definition of 'terrorism'?
  
• Homegrown Extremism 2001-2015
  
• Six Years Later: Obama Finally Calls Fort Hood a Terrorist Attack
  
• Dealing with Disruptives
  
• What Doesn't Meet the Eye
  

Sponsored Links:

• Corporate Security Management: Challenges, Risks, and Strategies
  
• Managing Risk and Information Security: Protect to Enable (Expert's Voice in Information Technology)
  

How Far We've Come

The calamities of our times and existence. It's good that the old falls away in deference to the new, in order to make space for Progress and state of the art practices. If that were not so, we would be buried in our own innovations, past as well as present in addition to evolving. Let's look at how this progress has impacted the world of work, recruiting, and job search.

How far we've come since the days of registering with a temp agency and waiting by the silent phone for the agency call us with a job we can do. But the phone only rang on sporadic occasions - or after we left the house because we'd grown weary of putting Life on hold while waiting for The Call. Full time, permanent work was the tried and true path with the security of a livable minimum wage, knowing you'd qualified to hold the job you landed, and happy because that also meant you'd gotten your foot in the door. It was possible to rise from the entry-level position by proving yourself worthy with good work and other advancement strategies such as applying for open positions.

After a time, progress gave us a tool to overcome being bound to the house during the business day. We did not have to balance going out on interviews and missing temp agency calls or the call offering The job. The introduction of the answering machine gave us freedom. We could access messages after we got home - after 6 PM!

How far we've come since the days of newspaper classified ads: "Situations for Men" and "Situations for Women." Only men were eligible for the engineering opportunities. There were no typist or secretarial ads in the "Men" section. And since the opportunities were not identical, there was no comparing salaries and speculating about why the wages offered for men doing the work was higher than the wages offered to women doing the same tasks and same positions.

The Oakland Fire brought mobility of phones - by necessity. But the cell phone was a coming thing and with it came tele-everything, chips, semiconductors, trans-sumthinnorothers. We could receive notice of those temp situations as they arose. And then the days of banning devices came but quickly went out the back door.

Just look at what the world of online job boards did to the recruiting industry. It led to the advent of online resumes that were searchable! Now LinkedIn profiles can be converted to .PDF files from templates available on the site. It's finally possible to create a profile that reads in a much more cogent manner. Well, depending on how good you are at creating your own resume or profile and how disciplined you can be in whittling in just the right way to craft a notable document you can create a much more cogent document.

Even before we were mature enough to get past discriminatory screening for whatever opportunity was sought, we entered the brave new world of online and televised (Skype) resumes and interviewing. Even photos attached to applications became acceptable for some situations outside of entertainment.

Moving into the world of LinkedIn and Facebook networking was a slap yourself in the face experience because it was such an obvious progression from listservs. Overcome the limiting boundaries of space by developing business relationships via online conversations and exchanges. We should have seen that coming back in the early days of the Internet.

Webinars are not only marketing and educational enrichment tools. They are opportunities for employers to strut their strong points and gain exposure to the types of people they want to attract. Have employers (or even recruiters) become aware of the recruiting and hiring potential of these instruments in their toolboxes?

So what's the next step in sourcing, recruiting, and job search? Is it about to explode because it can given the liberal avenues now available because of technology? Or will opportunities shrink for minority populations because of the xenophobia associated with the newer influxes of immigrants and the stereotypical myths that still constrain our Black and Brown populations to marginalization, low pay, and criminal records for minor offenses?

How liberal are we willing to become as we press deeper into the 21st Century in order to find the skilled and qualified talent?

Sponsored Links:

• Simplify Social Media for Recruiting: A Step-by-Step Handbook for Implementing Social Media
  
• Proactive Recruiting In A War For Talent Economy
  
• Military Recruiting: Trends, Outlook, and Implications
  

Rise of New Recruitment Luminaries in 2003

Acknowledging those who are exceptional is usually reserved for those who have been in the forefront and gathered their own share of publicity. Martin de'Campo took a different path in recognizing recruiting industry personalities by starting an annual series to give recognition to the luminaries, visionaries, and unsung leaders. His first article appeared in the ER Daily in December 2002. The series has disappeared and some who are new to the industry aren't aware of some who were profiled in Martin's series. So it would be helpful for us to look at the observations he shared with us and consider the traits he sees that make champions and thought leaders.

If you'd like to see the other articles in his series so you can refresh your recollection of these notables, post a comment to this article (republished with permission) or contact me with your thoughts.

The Rise of New Recruitment Luminaries in 2003

by H. Martin de'Campo
I highly recommend the new movie "Frida" as a must-see this holiday season. The movie gives wonderful insight into the mind and heart of the famed artist and wife of Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo.

For the longest time, Frida Kahlo lived in the shadow of her louder, more opinionated husband. This was the case with many of the most avant-garde artists in the last century. Too often, great artists were quiet, sublime, and often overlooked until much later in their careers. Many were simply unsung visionaries who were simply focused on their creative work, too busy actually practicing their art to worry about telling others what they were creating. As such, many went unnoticed and unappreciated.

Well, I believe that recruitment is also an art form, except that our "canvas" is the organizations we serve. Like many of the unsung artists of yore, there are many notable and even avant-garde recruiters and human capitalists who, although they don't say or write very much, are truly worthy of our attention. It is these individuals whom I want to focus on in this article.

Some of these people you may recognize, others you may not. But in either case, these individuals represent the "under sung" luminaries who are achieving incredible feats in our industry. Every one of these people are recruiters and true practitioners of the art of human capitalism, day in and day out, and often lack the time to teach or write about what they're doing. Each, I believe, will be making a continued and notable impact in 2003, and as such merit your attention.

I thank each of them for their time, it was a great honor to speak to them during my research. I know you'll agree they're people we all need to watch in 2003!

RUSSELL "RUSTY" RUEFF (ELECTRONIC ARTS)

Being the global vice president of human resources at the largest, most highly regarded game developer in the world is not easy. One would think that frustration and stress would be common to anyone wearing the badge of VP at Electronic Arts. To better understand the magnitude of his job, consider the fact that last year Electronic Arts received over 40,000 applications from interested candidates!

Yet when I spoke to Rusty, I sensed no stress at all. On the contrary, I encountered a man refreshingly involved, excited, and even passionate about his role at Electronic Arts. He embodied the emotions of an "artist," excited with his past and present works.

To get to know Rusty is to also learn about his convictions of being responsive to all that gravitates in and around HR, both internal and external clients. He told me, "It's important to practice what you preach. People can tell if you're the 'real deal' or not. I was interviewed recently in an article that came out in Fast Company, and I received thousands of emails. I made a commitment to myself that I would respond to each and every one of those reader's inquiries, and that's just what I did!" As you might expect, only a man whose "walk" matches his passionate "talk" can succeed in such a position.

But despite Rusty's high profile successes, he's still not heard from much, obviously keeping himself busy. In fact, under Rusty's management, EA's recruitment strategies have been effectively aligned to reflect many of the same innovative qualities that encompass their game products. "We figure that since our games are dynamic and creative, our recruitment initiatives should also possess similar qualities," he says.

EA has in fact managed to tap into the hundreds of millions of young passionate consumers as possible future passionate EA employees! Rusty explains, "In every game we sell, you'll find an invitation to that consumer to join EA's Academy of future talent." And "join" is exactly what many do! His recruitment success at EA has provided them with an internal talent database (known as EA Recruiter) of over 200,000 candidates.

I was quite impressed to see that EA is a virtual laboratory of staffing innovations, and that Rusty has even more "artistic" recruitment plans for 2003. He expects to publish a book along with Hank Stringer next year called "The Talent Manifesto for the New Age." All this makes EA a definite "must watch" next year!

HOWARD ADAMSKY (HRINNOVATORS.COM)

Anyone who speaks with Howard Adamsky will immediately notice his natural and creative ability of analysis and communication. Howard is the author of Hiring & Retaining Top IT Professionals, published through McGraw Hill-Osborne and he will be publishing another work that is due out in 2003.

He and his wife and business partner Corinne Adamsky lead HR Innovators. Howard is constantly seeking new and innovative ways to attract and retain talent for both his clients and his own firm. Although Howard has just begun writing for the ERE, he possesses the experience and skill of an entire recruitment department! After having spoken with him, I walked away with a refreshing sense of our industry's future.

For 2003, Howard indicates that four very important issues will reveal themselves in the staffing world:

1. The "candidate experience" in the area of technology development and recruitment process will begin to dominate the attention of technology developers and recruitment industry
   
2. Corporate retention initiatives will be tied into the recruitment imperative.
   
3. Tracking and improving the "cultural experience" of employees through internal employee surveys will become more critical than ever.
   
4. Staffing agencies will need to change their business models so that they directly add value to their clients. Selling candidates for a sales commission will be widely seen as a "zero value" business model.
   

If Howard's next book is anything like his current book, I'm sure our entire industry will take notice AGAIN next year!

MARK DANE (BRASSRING.COM)

Mark is the founder of BrassRing, and he currently serves as chief scientist there now. Most people don't know that Mark is one of the original technology innovators in the area of talent management systems (TMS). Despite the fact that recruitment technologies have experienced a revolution of sorts in the last couple of years, Mark's ideas have continued to set the pace, challenging other "competitors" to raise the bar in job and resume database capabilities.

Anyone who speaks to Mark quickly becomes impressed with his balanced knowledge and capability. On the one hand, he's clearly the technology guru at BrassRing. Yet he speaks very much like a recruitment professional at heart. He clearly "gets" our business.

Mark's grasp of both technology and talent acquisition are what helped him to successfully develop BrassRing's E-Link tool, which replaces the vast majority of paperwork involved in staffing and enables end-users in the recruitment process to interact in every fashion imaginable without paper. The beauty of E-Link is that where once only paper enacted shifts in the process, E-Link now takes over. Another paradigm shift in BrassRing's technology is its ability to tie communications with everyone in the recruiting loop, without everyone needing to be subscribed to BrassRing. As long as the initial recruiter is subscribed into the BrassRing E-Link system, the other "players" in the recruitment process need NOT be subscribed with passwords into the system to read and assist in the recruitment process.

The implications of Mark's system are tremendous! E-Link has helped countless HR and staffing teams nationwide benefit from the best of both worlds: retaining control of the process, yet enabling the secure inclusion of others in the recruitment process.

For 2003, Mark believes that "the future of TMS, sourcing, and similar technologies will be the integration of professional recruitment consulting services." Knowing that Mark has positively impacted an entire industry with both his creations and perspectives, he and BrassRing are a team to watch in 2003.

DR. CHARLES HANDLER (ROCKET-HIRE.COM)

Charles Handler is the founder and principal of Rocket-Hire.com. His firm specializes in various screening and assessment tools and resources. He's also the author of various articles and works in the area of psychological candidate screenings. He is currently working on a new resource book where he'll profile online screening vendors, that'll be published in 2003.

Charles clearly qualifies for this list, because he's one of those individuals whose walk is louder than his talk. A rare attribute nowadays! Anyone who speaks with Charles will quickly know that he's an expert screening and assessment practitioner, and not simply a professional "speaker." His opinions and creative knowledge are all based on his daily work with his clients. So when Charles says, "in 2003, screening and assessment strategies will be a rising critical focus," you'd better listen and take note!

According to Charles, the continued glut of talent in a majority of the markets will mean the shift of sourcing as a focus to screening and assessment services as a major concern in the recruiting world. Charles' precepts, services and "loud-professional-walk" in the field of screening and assessments positions him as a man to watch in 2003.

YVONNE LAROSE, CAC (ENTRANCE-S.COM)

Yvonne is perhaps one of the most unique professionals in the field of recruitment I've ever had the pleasure to speak with. Her perspectives are unique and advanced. Her ability to relate to and validate the people she speaks with should be a REQUIRED skill expected of all HR and recruitment professionals.

It's this skill that places Yvonne on the constant forefront of staffing. Her daily consulting work with her clients take priority over any article or speaking engagement she may be working on, and this is likely what keeps her in the avant-garde of our field. Since she's constantly in the "recruitment trenches," she's a fine "barometer" of what's going on in the staffing world at any given time.

Some things are better said by the actual author, so in her own words, here are some of Yvonne's perspectives for our industry in 2003:

1. "Leadership, management and entrepreneurial skills will be even more important next year. Corporations will place great value on employees capable of thinking outside the box, who can push the innovative envelope on behalf of the company."
   
   
2. "The glut of talent in many markets has compelled many people to go back to school to improve their skills and knowledge. As such, we're going to have a renaissance in education, professionalism, and accuracy in 2003."
   
   
3. "True diversity strategy will no longer remain only a 'desirable' initiative, but a necessity! Strategies will be implemented to derive the benefits from the many perspectives available from multiple diverse workforce facets of the market's talent pool."
   

Yvonne's perspectives and accomplishments make her one of the people to watch in 2003.

DAVE LEFKOW (TMP.COM)

Dave is an interactive solutions consultant for TMP. He focuses on providing TMP's clients with strategic "big picture" solutions for their recruitment initiatives. As a consultant, Dave travels in the service of clients, not only making him the consummate practitioner of our profession, but also giving him the 10,000-foot view of what's going on in the recruitment world.

You may have already seen some of his articles here on the ERE, but in my opinion, we just don't hear enough from Dave. Speaking to him, one quickly realizes that he loves technology and how it integrates into the recruiter's daily functions. He reminds me that the evolutionary state of technology in our industry is very much in its infancy. "Technologies and what they can actually do for the talent acquisitions and retention function still have a long way to go," he says.

He believes not all the industries in our economy have embraced technology's contributions in staffing, and that not all candidates, such as hourly candidates, are exposed to effective interactive employment technologies. "The medical and healthcare industries are about five years behind in their adoption of recruitment technologies," he tells me. "Too many of our clients realize too late that spending millions of dollars on newspaper advertising is simply wasteful!"

"It's important that, for 2003, recruitment technologies continue to evolve, increasing their sensitivity to the candidate experience," he says. He makes the point that although many recruitment technologies have resolved recruitment communication and administration problems, they're still not geared towards making the candidate's experience positive or less burdensome. For 2003, Dave sees technologies becoming more candidate supportive, faster, and pervasive in all industries, especially in healthcare and in the recruitment of hourly candidates.

Based on his knowledge and "big picture" view, I hope the TMS and ATS industry is listening. His perspectives and quality of consultation to his clients, easily qualifies Dave as one player we should all watch next year.

SCOTT WESTON (FALCONSTRATEGIC.COM)

Another, person to watch this coming year is Scott Weston, principal of Falcon Strategic Group. His consulting, speaking, and forward-thinking ideas are fueled by his obvious passion about the strategic recruiting industry.

"This is an exciting time in staffing," Weston says. "The talent economy continues to unfold, and I believe internal staffing professionals have a prime opportunity to take their place at the executive table by better demonstrating their strategic value. There can be no more throwing a candidate over the wall to HR and the hiring manager after an offer is accepted. Recruiters need to start tracking and tying themselves to more qualitative measures, including a candidate's success and longevity in the organization."

"As a result," he adds, "recruiting vendors and third-party staffing firms are also going to need to follow suit and partner even closer to be in line with this expanded focus on value and retention."

Scott believes that in order to achieve this, recruiters will need to be aligned and held accountable with employee evaluations, exit interviews and even training. Although he's not written very much lately, you can expect to hear more about Scott, Falcon Strategic Consulting, and his visions for our industry's future.

CONCLUSION

Remember, anyone can be a member of the unnoticed recruiting avant-garde, and perhaps in one way or another, most recruiters are. So consider this a dedication to all of the unsung, practicing luminaries, you innovative leaders who are busy practicing the art of human capital to bother seeking recognition or rewards. This is a holiday dedication for those in the frontlines, working daily, managing, and driving the growth of our stagnant business community...those of you that go unnoticed, but deserve the greatest rewards nonetheless.

May your work, passions, and victories be revealed to all of us in 2003 and may the new year bring greater rewards for us all in the practice of our "craft"!

Until next year, let me know your thoughts, be safe, and as always, I'm here to serve.

Sponsored Links:

• Talent Force A New Manifesto for the Human Side of Business by Rueff, Rusty, Stringer, Hank [FT Press,2006] [Hardcover]
  
• Hiring and Retaining Top IT Professionals: The Guide for Savvy Hiring Managers and Job Hunters Alike
  
• Employment Rage: What You've Lost and How to Get it Back
  

Screening: The Art of Listening

I had a wonderful 30-minute morning bus ride and conversation around mid-January 2006 that started in a part of the city that is now considered a ghetto.

The rapid bus pulled in front of me and a man who looked like he's several years older than me tried to board first. Women's rights enthusiast that I am, I asserted myself to boarding first as he complained about not being able to drive his Bentley due to his poor vision. "Then that means you need to have someone driving you wherever you need to go in that Bentley," was the reply over my shoulder. His ears perked up.

He made some comment about no longer suffering from the weaknesses of lust. I responded with a quote from Socrates that echoed the sentiment. He sat up straighter and asked which university I attended. The conversation, emanating from the Socratic quote, took off.

He said he was the first black player on the Pittsburgh Steelers (1957). He spoke of his birthplace outside of the United States, as was all of his siblings (and where they now live). He spoke of his fabulous homes. He first said he has four children.

He spoke of something that was dear to my heart, quality of education, what it takes to imbue our youth with the right motivation to succeed, and where the responsibility for all of this lies. He bragged about the success that all four of his children have attained. As the conversation continued, he suddenly had six.

He spoke of being a Korean War veteran and suffering from post war trauma. I painfully remembered my ex-husband's tales of Viet Nam and asked for a time out. He continued by explaining that due to those flashbacks, he's now being treated at the VA for psychological disorders. He acknowledged that the Manchurians pulled him out of his plane wreckage and sewed up his massive wounds without question. He attributed this to the color of his skin. I attributed it to the fact that he was an American fighting, in part, for their rights and freedom.

He spoke of being a Big Ten golfer who relinquished his position to someone else so that person may succeed. He spoke of the several foundations he founded.

The conversation was wonderful. But I kept wondering why, if he had that much money and success, he was starting that day's journey from a low-income neighborhood. He was well groomed. His clothing was of good and not flashy quality. He was well spoken. He admitted to being 80 years old. That one glitch in the image kept nagging at me but I decided to enjoy the information and conversation.

We parted company. He said his name during part of the conversation and I tried to hear it correctly but did not. I asked whether I could stay in touch because he had touched on several issues that were worth further development, especially for my readers. He refused. Later, I asked again, explaining that I write on career development and recruiting issues and his words and viewpoints would be of value to my readers. He again refused to provide his contact information. He protested that he's on the move a lot and only in town for a short time. I repeated the name I thought I heard and he finally told me his first and last name, and spelled the last for me.

The bus driver protested as he rose to leave. The driver wanted to hear more of the conversation. But it was time for it to end.

When I finally reached a computer, my first activity was to do a search on the Steelers site and look up the rosters for the years 1956, 1957, and 1958. There was no member of the team with the name I was given by the gentleman and no one from a university that he may have attended. By the time I began my research, I thought I remembered that it was a non-U.S. university. As I write these words, I now recall which one it was -- it was U.S.

Perhaps it was a false name he gave. Perhaps the whole conversation and all of the stories were manufactured. The inconsistencies indicated that was the case. Had I been interviewing and screening a candidate, those two red flags should have been reason for me to press the conversation a little further on those two issues. Indeed, I wanted to ask him why he was starting his journey in that neighborhood but didn't have a proper opening to do so. Maybe his puffery was merely his way of impressing me.

Had this been an interview of a candidate, the gentleman would have screened himself out of the running. He had no rational explanations for the inconsistencies in his information.

The important issues, however, are that:

1. I listened very carefully.
   
2. I used my critical thinking skills.
   
3. I paid attention to those two or three flags.
   
4. Most importantly, I enjoyed the experience and
   
5. It was a conversation, not an interrogation.

Remember that it's a conversation and just enjoy the experience as you make your screening decisions.

More About Women Leaders

Women and the Leadership Q (2001)
Shoya Zichy
ISBN 0071352163 - Hardcopy
McGraw-Hill


Having read another book on women business leaders, it was a little disappointing to find The Leadership Q did nothing innovative in profiling and discussing the 38 women in this book.

What is good is that author Shoya Zichy was able to get interviews of 38 women leaders compared with the five who were profiled in the other book I read. Another thing that is good about it is that the women who are presented are about as diverse as you could imagine in terms of background, ethnicity, focuses and professions. Another commendable part of the book is the leadership test presented at the beginning of the book. Since the copy I used was from the library, I didn't dare take the test by marking the book. There was a thought about copying the pages in order to have my own, personal inventory. Maybe I'll do that another day.

The resources appendix is exquisite. I'd love to keep those pages as well and then develop some program to update the information.

But as I leafed through the profiles of each of the women, what I found was a flattering look at her individual style and a bit of her history. There was no unifying study of which personalities were very similar or alike, which demonstrate this type of trait described in the personality test compared with another, which style predominates among the 38 women studied.

Perhaps that was because the author realized that each personality is unique and cannot be easily compared with any other. Women leaders cannot be catalogued and categorized, just as men leaders cannot. Each has their own style and that style adapts with the audience and setting and circumstances that are present at any moment in time in addition to the action that demands to be taken (or withheld) in that instance. It just depends on what's going on at the moment that you encounter the person.

While this would have been a wonderful resource for my article about finding women management and executive candidates, it didn't supply the meat needed. While I wanted it to be useful for my webinar on finding women board members and senior management candidates, it proved to not be so. Why? Because there simply is nothing in it that tells you what to expect of a woman leader. Why? Because that depends on what the woman brings to the table in terms of past development and experience as well as the dominant parts of her personality.

So when you're looking for the model woman leader, first ask yourself what you need. Then start looking for candidates who display those attributes. You'll have developed a slate of winners.

Would I put this book on my bookshelf? No. But, as I said earlier, there are two sections I'd definitely like to have in PDF form for quick and easy reference.

book review, women leaders, assessment, screening, personality,

Books on Career and Executive Recruiting Advice

How to Ace a Personality Test

Ace the Corporate Personality Test (2001)
by Edward Hoffman, Ph.D.
ISBN 0071359125 - Hardcopy
McGraw-Hill

While the premise of the book's title sounds too good to be true, this book is more for the business side of the hiring desk instead of the applicant/candidate side. What is useful to both is the history and science of assessment tests, the philosophies of psychological experts through the ages, and the analysis of these things. After that, you may as well close the book and say you learned some things that were useful.

It's well written and engaging. But the passage on page 10 (of a 95-page book) was the one that stopped me in my tracks and stopped any further reading of the book. The passage says, "In short, psychologists strongly agree that our personality remains stable throughout life and resists major change." In other words, there is nothing we can do to change our personality.

We can consciously decide to work at being a better, more attentive, higher evolved individual. But our personality is the product of many internal and external impacts from the womb to the present. While we may be able to create the most desirable person ever on paper, as day-to-day interactions evolve, the true person will be revealed.

The natural propensity to lie, steal, cheat, subvert, feel inadequate will always be there, no matter how many personality tests say we are otherwise. Conversely, the propensity to seek harmony, more meaningful answers, a more complete fulfillment of a project will push forth through a determination to be hard-nosed. If these are part of the natural personality, they will always be there.

Dr. Hoffman goes through the remainder of his book by showing us various aspects of the personality test in order to explain what some answers indicate and why. Here, his presentation is most beneficial to hiring managers and interviewers because he talks about, for example, conscientiousness and integrity and what aspects of answers to certain strategically phrased questions will reveal those traits.

The end of the book provides a sample personality test. If you're into taking tests in order to know what to expect, then this section is for you.

Would I put this book on my bookshelf? If there were some way that the first 20 to 25 pages could be condensed and put into nugget form, I'd do it in order to have the explanations available at my finger tips. It's very useful. Otherwise, I'll let someone else try to ace the personality test that presents the false image.

book review, personality test, assessment, screening, psychology,

Books on Career and Executive Recruiting Advice