Management 535 Weekly Theme: Diversity Kimberly Wiethoff Texas A&M-Commerce

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for MGT 535 Professor Lloyd M. Basham January 13, 2012

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Abstract Diversity Question Candidates The Hiring Decision Ramification of the Decision References

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Abstract ABC Company, a global company, whose last years revenue was almost $30 billion, is looking to hire a senior manager to fill a vacancy in the Marketing department. As the Director of Marketing, I have been given the task of choosing between four very qualified candidates. I directly report to the General Manager who is a Senior Vice President of the Company. I also indirectly report to the Senior Vice President of Marketing, who is a staff executive for the Headquarters office. The senior manager position in the Marketing department is responsible for generation of major customer revenue growth and customer satisfaction for the global market. Travel is required approximately 50% of the time to global markets which include the old Russia, the Far East (Vietnam and Singapore), India, and the Orient (Japan and Korea). The salary level is in the six digit range with benefits and two levels for bonuses and incentives. The operational General Manager prefers that the individual who is hired has at least 10 years experience in the industry. The candidate must also be mature, have a professional demeanor, and be able to undergo psychological testing. The General Manager also would like for the candidate to be an external hire so that new ideas and creative solutions may be brought in front of the existing and potential customers. Because of a diversity initiative set out by corporate headquarters, the new hire must be a female.

Diversity Question Why do organizations incorporate diversity initiatives? In a study performed by Rose Mary Wentling, an associate professor of Human Resource Development in the Department of Human Resource Education at the University of Illinois, the main reasons are to improve productivity and remain competitive in the global market (Wentling, nd). While it may appear that the need for incorporating diversity is for social, economic fairness, and morality, for organizations it is really to maintain and increase profitability in the national and global competitive markets. As an employee of an organization it is really not our place to question the initiatives that are handed down by the overall organization. It is more an issue of following the overall objectives of the corporation goals and doing what is best for the organization. Why is diversity good for the organization? People of all genders and races need to agree that when diversity is well-managed, it will benefit everyone involved. The issue of diversity needs to become a gender-neutral, race-neutral problem (Harrin, 2010). Men and women of all races need to see how the benefits of gender and race diversity will affect them. Research has shown that innovation and creativity is created when diversity is well-managed and financial performance is triggered by increased innovation (Harrin, 2010). Many people feel that if there is an initiative to hire women, that men will lose jobs. Others feel that they would not want to be hired simply because they were a woman or not hired because they were a man. It is those individuals who do not see the bigger picture of diversity. An example would be a company who is trying to do a marketing campaign to a company who is primarily female or primarily minority. If this 5

companys sales staff is made up only of white men, the client company may not feel like their interests are being best served. A company whose sales staff is made up of different individuals of race and gender can appeal to all kinds of clients based on different characteristics within the group. Candidates There are three final external candidates who are all potentially equally qualified and have a very successful track record of accomplishments. Two are female and one is male. The three have undergone the psychological testing and no major behavior issues were uncovered. The Senior Vice President in the corporate headquarters has recommended a fourth person for the position. This person was passed over for promotion last year by a younger male, but also has a record of being productive and performing well for the company. The final candidate must be approved by the General Manager. The first candidate is a female, who is married and has two young children. One is four years old and the other is eight years old. She has indicated that she would like assistance from the company with help in finding employment for her husband, who is an engineer, as they are in a situation of needing two incomes. The second candidate is a female who is recently divorced with no children. The third candidate is a male. All three candidates are external applicants and have over 10 years experience with a proven record of accomplishments. The fourth candidate is a male who is highly recommended by the Senior Vice President in corporate headquarters. He is middle-aged with a family

that includes three children in school. This candidate was passed over for promotion last year by a younger male, but has a record of being a performer for the corporation. Who will be the best person for the job? Todays job market is very tough and competitive and while all the candidates seem equally qualified, no two candidates are exactly equal. Each candidate will bring certain strengths and weaknesses to the position. Some will be known and others will be unknown until the person is actually doing the job. Even the internal candidates performance will be unknown until he is given the opportunity to excel in the position. Companies who are in the position of hiring individuals have to make decisions based on gut feeling and instincts. Some candidates dont even get an in person interview and are weeded out before they are actually able to speak with the individual who is doing the hiring. These four candidates are considerably lucky to be in the position of being in the final four. For each of these four candidates there are probably four or five additional candidates who did not make it through the interview process and hundreds more who didnt even get contacted regarding the position. It is important for companies to choose the right candidate so that the risk of attrition is reduced. The cost of interviewing, hiring, and training a new employee is very expensive. If the person that is selected is not right for the position and resigns, the hiring process has to start all over again which has a negative impact on the profitability of the company. The calculations can easily reach 150% of the employees annual compensation figure to replace them and can go as high as 200% for managerial and sales positions (Bliss, 2011). 7

The Hiring Decision I would like to think that something in one of the resumes would stand out as something that is a good indicator of a person that would be able to generate existing and new customer revenue and satisfaction. However, we are informed that all candidates are equally qualified. I would choose the second candidate who is a recently divorced female with no children. This candidate would fulfill the General Managers requirements that the new hire be someone who is external to the company and the diversity initiative requirement. This candidate would bring in new ideas and creative solutions to the existing clients and help generate new clients. This candidate has already been approved by the General Manager and with all of my peers who also directly report to the General Manager. In any hiring situation, it is important to have a backup plan. Just because you offer someone the position does not mean they will accept it. The candidates may very well be talking with several potential employers and have another offer in their hand when they are offered this position. In todays economy, this situation is very rare, but it could happen. So, the question then is who would be the next person in line if candidate number two does not accept the position. Of the remaining 3 candidates, my decision would then be narrowed down to either the married female or the internal applicant. The married females request that she would appreciate if the organization could assist her husband in finding employment is a request that seems absurd. It is my responsibility to fill the senior manager position in the Marketing department, not find a job for a spouse who is an engineer. A male executive would be highly criticized for 8

asking the organization where he works to help his wife find a job. If the position were offered to her, there could be no favoritism displayed to her in helping her husband find a job without setting a precedence where others might feel like it is the organizations place to help their out of work spouse find a job as well. With the unemployment rate as high as it is I am sure there are some employees who have spouses that are unemployed or underemployed currently. The internal male candidate has been passed over for promotion in favor of a younger male last year. I am not sure if age is the only reason that he was passed over for promotion. I would want to find out more information about the position for which he was passed over and if the circumstances were similar to the current position requirements. The Senior Vice President hinted that he may be considered as a replacement for my position should I get a promotion which is slotted for me soon. So there is a conflict of interest here. If I select the male for the senior manager of the Marketing department, he will be unavailable to replace me if or when my promotion comes through. The 50% travel will also be an issue for this candidate as he is dealing with teenagers and kids who will be entering college soon. Of these two candidates, I would choose the external female candidate as the backup for the position should candidate number two fail to accept the position. There would be no agreement or promise to help the applicants husband find employment. Again, this would fulfill the external requirement and the diversity initiative. Even though the male candidate would have to wait for my promotion to get promoted, he is in the running for another promotion soon. 9

Ramifications of The Decision The decision to choose candidate number two could potentially upset the Senior Vice President in the headquarters office. However, even though he recommended this internal person as a candidate, he also hinted that there might be another opportunity for him to be my replacement. The Senior Vice President can be assured that his candidate will definitely be considered for this future opportunity. Hiring the external female who has no children makes sense for a traveling position without discriminating against the female who does have children. It is very important not to use the fact that she has young children as the determining factor in her hiring decision. The biggest factor in determining not to hire her in the first place was the fact that her request for assistance in finding employment for her husband was unprofessional and absurd. Making her the alternate in case the first candidate did not accept the position will cover the issue of discrimination based on her having young children (Olsen, 2009). The stipulation that the organization cannot help her husband find employment covers the potential problems that could arise with other employees who may have unemployed spouses.

10 References Bliss, W. (2011). The Advisor. Cost of employee turnover. Retrieved from: http://www.isquare.com/turnover.cfm Harrin, E. (2010). Global Diversity & Inclusion. 5 ways to engage men in gender diversity initiatives. Retrieved from: http://www.theglasshammer.com/news/2010/09/29/5-ways-to-engage-men-ingender-diversity-initiatives/ Olsen, T (2009). Sherman & Howard. Family responsibilities discrimination case may proceed under mixed sexual stereotyping sex plus theory. Retrieved from: http://www.sah.com/NewsAndEvents/View/B0F4C71A-5056-912563F88CF0DD5A45AD/ Wentling, R (nd). Diversity initiatives in the workplace, work in progress at the University of Illinois. Retrieved from: http://ncrve.berkeley.edu/CW82/Diversity.html