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HR Portfolio Assignment: Deliverable #1 Report

Mohammad Shaharyaar
CMHR523 DL0: Human Resources Management
Dr. Anne Hardacre
February 11th, 2024
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Discussion Questions

1. What potential problems do you foresee with Ryder's approach to hiring?

Chapter 5, “Recruitment” of the course text states that recruitment activity must be evaluated for
its degree of effectiveness and efficiency” (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 149). According to this,
Ryder’s approach to recruitment is not effective nor efficient because it is based solely on
appearance rather than finding capable applicants (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 149).

There are many problems with Ryder’s approach to hiring and this question will answer the most
significant concern. Ryder’s approach to hiring new staff is primarily based on the physical
appearance of the individual rather than their skills, ability, prior experience in the workplace,
etc. Hiring someone based on their appearance with the intents of that individual ‘bringing in
more business’ views the individual as an object rather than an employee, is invasive and biased.
This is problematic because it does not promote fairness in the hiring process when selecting
candidates and an individual's appearance does not contribute to their performance in the
workplace. Having this method or approach to hiring may cause work-related complications,
which could include, a lack of fulfilling job responsibilities, business related incident
expenditures, consequences to business performance, etc. In addition, Ryder’s approach to hiring
is also a breach of ethical standards and prevents diversity and inclusion within the work
environment (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 128). This also creates room for potential problems
because it would negatively impact Ryder’s compliance as an employer.

2. Is it reasonable to use information from previous personal interactions during

It can be argued that it is reasonable to use information from previous personal interactions
during screening to a certain extent or to a limited capacity. However, this method during
screening must be used with caution as bias can be included subconsciously.
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In the case study it mentions that Ryder had met three of the female candidates previously and
stated that Jessica should trust him that two of those individuals are not people they would want
to work with, but the other would be terrific (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 151). In this case, Ryder
used his previous bias to inform candidate selection during screening, which were based on his
personal interactions. This is an example where it is not reasonable to utilize information from
personal interactions in the screening process. However, if Ryder had instead invited all three (3)
candidates in a fair interview and then chose the appropriate individual with appropriate grounds
(i.e., teamwork and interpersonal skill set), that would qualify as reasonable.

The course text states that it can be reasonable to use information from previous personal
interactions during screen through “personal networking” (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 135), which
can be based on information from previous personal interactions. Having candidates referred
through friends, colleagues, or other employers is seen as reasonable and can disregard personal
bias during screening.
3. Should male candidates automatically be rejected from the server positions? Why or
why not?

In the case study, Ryder had automatically rejected all male candidates that had submitted an
application and instead only accepted “hot female candidates” (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 151).
His rationale was to have “hot females” serve as waitresses and the male workers could be
behind the bar (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 151). This method of hiring new staff is inequitable,
perpetuates acts of discrimination and reproduces and reinforces gender based norms. If Ryder’s
selection criteria was equitable, perhaps he could have found an excellent female bartender and
male waiter.

The course text states that there are numerous benefits that a business could receive due to
diversity and inclusion within the workplace (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 127). Diversity in the
workplace offers vitality and competitive advantage (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 127), and to echo
the current literature on the notion of “hiring for diversity”, including aspects of DEI principles
lays the foundation for the workplace and goal setting for the overall company (Woods &
Tharankan, 2021). However, in this case study, Ryder lacks these principles as he rejected all
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male candidates from the selection pool. As mentioned previously, hiring strategies should not
be on the basis of “which gender can perform duties the best”. This notion is unlawful and limits
employers from finding the ideal candidate solely based on the candidate(s) “gender
performance”. All potential applicants have significant skill sets to contribute to a workplace and
should be assessed upon their abilities and not their genders.

4. Are assessments of candidate attractiveness relevant? Discuss.

Assessments of candidate attractiveness are not relevant. As the course text states, “before
recruiters can solicit applicants, they should be aware of organizational policies, human resource
plans, employment equity plans, recruiter habits, environmental conditions, and the requirements
of the job” (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 149). In this description of candidate assessment,
appearance or attractiveness of the individual is not mentioned and thus, not relevant. As
mentioned throughout this discussion, an individual's level of attractiveness does not correlate to
their ability to perform well in the workplace. Furthermore, an individual’s level of attractiveness
can be seen as an unfair advantage to the other candidates in the selection pool and is biased.

Bias is perpetuated through the employers or recruiters definition of “attractive”, which could be
different across the spectrum. There should be a common scale that ranks all candidates equally
based on their qualifications, experience, etc., so that the employer has an opportunity to assess
all individuals and make the appropriate selection. However, in the contemporary business
sphere, we still witness employers hiring based on the level of a candidate's attractive
appearance. This notion is visible to the ‘naked eye’ as when consumers walk into the workplace
and by glancing at the employees, the employers workforce selection can be evident.

5. What would you do if you were in Jessica's place? How would you approach the
conversation with Ryder about the screening process? How might you bring the
scoring criteria into the conversation?
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If I were in Jessica’s position, I would confront Ryder about his inequitable and biased
recruitment approach and the implications it can have on the business overall. I would approach
the conversation with Ryder by first recognizing his assistance in the hiring and selection process
and then voice out my concerns with his approach. I would make Ryder aware of how
uncomfortable I felt as a woman, and a female in the workforce, about his stereotypical
representation of women working as waitresses. I would make him aware to avoid using this
selection method and criteria as it perpetuates inequality and is not fair to all candidates. In
addition, if the public is aware of the biased and discriminatory recruiting method, then it can
impact the business, and the company would have to pay the reputable damages. It would also
harm future recruitment strategies and negatively impact the quality and quantity of recruits
(Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 149).

I would introduce the scoring criteria into my conversation with Ryder as an unbiased, equitable
and fair recruitment strategy that the business should be incorporating. The scoring guide
strategy is based on the qualities and experience required for the position and equitable “filters”
out candidates who are not qualified (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 151). Using this method of hiring
new staff would avoid any legal issues the company may face, and be able to hire capable
applicants (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 135).

6. Would you use the information that Ryder has found on social media to supplement
the applications, or ignore it? Justify your decision.

Using social media has become a popular tool that recruiters use to supplement their candidates
profiles. As the current literature states, social media assessments (SMAs) are a common, new
practice in employee selection (Hartwell et al., 2022). There are two ways in which employers
should use social media as a selection method, which include, posting their opportunities and
seeking applicants through various platforms (i.e., LinkedIn) and finding information about their
candidates through social networking sites (i.e., Facebook, Twitter) (Schwind et al., 2022, pg.
135). However, employers should be aware that in using social media for the latter reason, they
may find information that is unrelated to the job posting or responsibilities (Schwind et al., 2022,
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pg. 135). As such, it is advised that when employers find such information, they only include it
into their assessment if it is crucial and relevant to the job.

The way in which Ryder had used social media to supplement the applications should be ignored
because he had used social media platforms (i.e., Facebook) to search for the candidates, with
whom he was not familiar with, physical appearances (Schwind et al., 2022, pg. 151). Using
social media for such a reason is an invasion of the candidates privacy and an ethical violation of
Ryder’s employer conduct. If Ryder had used Facebook as a supplement to inform his decision
about an applicant’s professional experience or to identify “cyber” behaviors of an individual
online, which may impact the quality of work, then it would be appropriate. However, since he
had used it to inform and justify his bias of selecting “hot”, “pretty” or “super hot '' female
candidates and rejected any candidates that fell short of this criteria (Schwind et al., 2022, pg.
151) should be ignored, as it is discriminatory. Furthermore, the current literature in social media
implementation offers a “framework of SMA structural components”, which include job-
relatedness, informed consent, etc., which can increase reliability and validity in the selection
process (Hartwell et al., 2022). If the Crown and Bull Public House did want to incorporate
social media usage in the candidate selection criteria, then it would have benefited by using a
structured guide, which is equitable, as explained in the literature.

Reflection

Strengths:

Throughout the completion of this assignment, I believe I have made a knowledgeable

Weaknesses:
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One of the challenges that I faced was finding relevant and appropriate peer-reviewed articles to
support my analysis of the case study. Finding peer-reviewed articles had taken a lot of my time
when doing the assignment which was demotivating and was causing me to procrastinate.
However, I hope that the two peer-reviewed sources I found are efficient to support the analysis
of the case study and the overall assignment.

Improvements:

An area of improvement for myself would be to manage my time efficiently along with
completing the required coursework for my other classes. I usually complete my work in a slow,
comprehensive and methodological method, however, this approach can be time consuming. I
am currently exploring alternative methods to manage my time and accomplish my tasks
efficiently.

1) What do I know?

While completing this assignment and reading the literature, I already had prior knowledge on
employer bias and compliance issues that the current labor market faces. In addition, I was aware
of the challenges that employers face when it comes to the candidate selection process.

2) What am I able to do?

I am able to draw connections from the assignment chapter for this case study and apply my
understanding to the current social and cultural context to provide a reasonable analysis of my
findings.

3) What do I still need to learn?

References

Christopher J. Hartwell, Jake T. Harrison, Rahul S. Chauhan, Julia Levashina, Michael A. Campion

(2022). Structuring social media assessments in employee selection. International Journal of

Selection and Assessment.

Schwind, H. F. (2022). Canadian human resource management: A Strategic Approach.

Woods, A., & Tharakan, S. (2021). Hiring for diversity: The guide to building an inclusive and

equitable organization. Standards Information Network.