Job Compatibility @ One of the largest theater exhibition companies in the US 4,959 screens across the United States approximately 200 million guests each year employs approximately 20,000 full- and part-time associates Jobs among theater staff we studied included ushers Clean and maintain the auditoriums, restrooms and lobbies while controlling access to the theatre and the auditoriums. concessionists Prepare and serve concession items to guests, clean the concession area and assist with other theatre functions box office cashiers Sell movie tickets and AMC Gift Cards and inform guests about currently featured films, policies, and programs. Employees in these jobs were hired and cross-trained to perform each job. Average employee age was 20 years. Average starting pay is minimum wage. Annual turnover rate was 168%.

Objectives Develop and validate a selection battery for motion picture theater personnel that is valid for predicting job performance that is valid for predicting and mitigating turnover that provides utility to the firm Towards this end, we found it useful to distinguish between skills that spoke to qualifications for job performance and personal preferences that addressed issues of person-job compatibility. Applicant Qualifications abilities skills competencies credentials Applicant Compatibility needs goals preferences

The Turnover Problem Job Performance Tenure The jobs are part-time and minimum wage, no benefits, have discomforting features The applicants are often desperate job-seekers meeting immediate needs Ordering applicants based on skills provides little information about likely tenure Applicant Qualifications abilities skills competencies credentials Job Performance Applicant Compatibility needs goals preferences Tenure Desperate job seekers also may distort their responses to promote their chances of being hired and after a short while, quit the job.

Job Analyses & Test Development Review of existing archives and job descriptions Interviews with current employees & supervisors Developed a Job Characteristics Questionnaire 200+ job features included on the JCQ Comforting and discomforting features Valid and invalid features Valid Job Characteristics Invalid Job Characteristics Comforting Characteristics Meeting different people. Having a secure job. Free admission to events. Experiencing quick promotions. Having privacy in my work setting. Not working weekends. Discomforting Having to clean restrooms. Having to work weekends. Being courteous to people who are not courteous to me. Having to be around teenagers all day. Working a job that physically drains me. Having to sit in front of a computer all day.

Forced-Choice Job Compatibility Questionnaire We created tetrads with 2 valid and 2 invalid job characteristics of equal comfort or discomfort Example discomfort tetrad item with instructions: Choose two of the following statements that you would find most discomforting in a job: A. Having to work weekends. B. Working a job that physically drains me. C. Having to sit in front of a computer all day. D. Having to clean restrooms. Each item was scored from 0 to +2, based on the number of valid job characteristics chosen by the applicant Thus, higher scores indicated higher compatibility profiles for theater staff jobs. That is, lower discomfort and higher comfort scores Based on the job analyses, we also devised a verbal and math test to assess verbal and math fluency (skills) that should be predictive of job performance

Study Details & Results Predictive validation study involving job applicants 208 job applicants; 152 hired using original procedure Table 1. Correlation matrix of study variables. Variables Mean SD 1 2 3 4 5 1. JCQ scores 43.28 7.58 -- .44 .29 .22 -.33 2. Math skill scores 12.80 2.28 -- .24 .26 -.28 3. Verbal skill scores 10.80 2.55 -- .33 -.10 4. Job Performance 89.05 7.53 -- -.15 5. Voluntary Termination .39 .49 p < .05 where r > |.15|, one-tailed test; voluntary termination at 6 months Math & Verbal scores better predict job performance JCQ scores better predict Turnover

Test Fairness Test score differences for ethnic group membership All predictors had significant mean differences for ethnic groups Differences for the JCQ scores were smallest Mean differences for performance and tenure criteria duplicated those found on the predictor scores Because differences on criterion scores (performance & turnover) mirrored those on the predictors, there is no evidence of differential validity Suggest some care needs to be exercised in aggressive use of the predictors for selection as there remains the potential for adverse impact Because the mean score differences were smaller for JCQ scores, their use in selection decisions with the ability test scores would mitigate the potential for disparate impact

Practicality Composite Management-based ultimate criterion composite Combining both tenure and job performance Ranged from 1 to 5 1 = < 6 months employment & < .50 z-score of performance The lowest level of practical return on investment 2 = < 6 months employment & between + or -.50 z-score 3 = < 6 months employment & > .50 z-score 3 = > 6 months employment & < .50 z-score 4 = > 6 months employment & between + or -.50 z-score 5 = > 6 months employment & > .50 z-score Verbal ability, numerical ability, and job compatibility scores correlated .26, .38, and .43 with PC scores, respectively In tandem, the three predictors accounted for 25% of PC score variance; JCQ scores added 50% to the accuracy of prediction

Dollar Estimation of Utility All terms in utility equation were pro-rated to reflect the 6-month period of incumbency used in this study # annual employee hires = 10,000 of approximately 33,000 applicants Yields a selection ratio of .30 and a mean z-score of 1.17 Number of new hires in 6-months is adjusted to 5,000 SDy was estimated to be approximately 40% of a 6-month starting salary working 20 hours per week ($1,500.00) Very conservative estimate as many customer service jobs have SDy often ranging between 75-100% of salary Currently, unstructured interview is used and meta-analyses report typical validity to be approximately r=.14 Cost was estimated at $10 per test Yielding an estimate of utility of $1.75 million Underestimates utility because: Doesn’t account for lower replacement cost [$1000 x .39 x 5000] x .50 = $975,000 JCQ adds 30% to utility of the selection composite

Summary of Features High Turnover circumstance with minimum wage jobs Turnover cost was deemed significant to business success Predictive validation study Qualifications and Fit measures combined Qualifications better predicted performance Fit better predicted voluntary turnover Potential for adverse impact if aggressively applied But job relatedness defense is available No evidence for differential validity Demonstrable utility using both estimation procedures Managers’ estimation based on a practicality composite Dollar estimate based on operational cost and benefit