INTERVIEW EDGE • APRIL 1991

Responding to Declining Productivity

A recent Labor Department report showed a 0.8 percent decline in the productivity of workers in 1990, the worst decline since 1982. This trend keeps the heat on employers to maintain or improve staff quality when hiring.

An effective way to improve your productivity is to staff your organization with more productive people. Every time you fill an open job you have this opportunity.

The fastest road to compromising on hiring quality is to compare your lead candidate only to the others you have seen. If the field is weak, your selection is mediocre. Always compare candidates to the behavorial-based job description you develop ahead of the interview. If you aren't improving staff quality or at least holding even, interview more candidates.