read the article and answer questions 1-3.

HR IN SMALL BUSINESS Kinaxis Chooses Sales Reps with Personality Kinaxis, a software company headquartered in Ottawa He started by reviewing the resumes against job require Ontario, sells to clients around the world. Its specialty is soft- ments and selected 20 candidates for a first round of ware for supply chain management all the processes and rela intervicws. The interview process helped Dolan cut the list tionships through which companies obtain supplies as needed of candidates in half, so he needed another way to narrow and get their products to customers on time and at minimal his options. cost. This is a sophisticated type of product, tailored to a com- Dolan decided his next step would be personality testing. pany's specific needs. Therefore, Kinaxis depends on sales He hired a firm called Opus Productivity Solutions to admin- people who understand how businesses work, who listen ister a test called PDP ProScan to the remaining 10 candi- carefully to identify needs, and who provide excellent cus- dates. In addition, Dolan himself took the test and had his tomer service to maintain long-term business relationships. current sales rep do the same. The existing salesperson was Recently, Bob Dolan, vice president for sales at Kinaxis, doing an excellent job, so the results of his test could help needed to hire a sales team to serve clients in North Dolan and Opus pinpoint the characteristics of someone America. The company had just one salesperson serving the likely to succeed in sales at Kinaxis. Based on analysis of all continent, and Dolan wanted to add four more. He received the results, Opus created a benchmark of traits associated about 100 rsumes and wanted to select from those. with success in the job. 272 CHAPTER 6 Selection and Placement Representatives from Opus also discussed the test results enough coaching, but in fuct, the sales rep sometimes behaved with each candidate, giving each one a chance to disagree impatiently, annoying prospects. After three years of trying to with the scores. No one did. Dolan observed that all the can help him grow into the job, Dolan laid him ofr. didates scored high in assertiveness and extroversion-not The company's commitment to careful selection is surprising for people in sales. In addition, two of them scored expressed on its website: "As a growing and determined com above the benchmark in conformity and below the bench pany, we're always looking for people eager to push the limits mark in dominance. Those results suggested to Dolan that of each day of what's possible." Kinaxis was recently named these candidates might be so eager to please that they would one of Canada's top employers for young people, be quick to give in to whatever customers requested-a pal- tern that could become costly for the company, Dolan elimi- QUESTIONS nated those two candidates, 1. What selection methods did Bob Dolan use for hiring That meant Dolan still had eight candidates to fill four salespeople? Did he go about using these methods in the positions. He asked each one to give him the names of major best order? What, if anything. would you change about the accounts he or she had signed up in the previous two years. order of the methods used? Four candidates were able to come up with three or four large 2. What were the advantages to Kinaxis of using personality clients. Those were the candidates Dolan hired, tests to help select sales representatives? What were the Since then, Dolan says his experience with personality disadvantages? testing has only reinforced his belief that this selection 3. Given the information gathered from the selection meth. method helps Kinaxis identify the best candidates. For exam. ods, what process did Dolan use to make his selection ple, one sales rep had scored low on "puce," indicating that decision? What improvements can you recommend to this the individual might lack the patience needed for the slow process for decisions to hire sales reps in the future? cycles required to close a sale of a complex software system. SOURCES: Susan Greco. "Personality Testing for Sales Recruits, Inc., Marchi Dolan hoped the issue could be overcome if he provided 2009, Kinas website, Corporate Overview and Careers pages, www.kinds.com NOTES