Overqualified or underqualified? Here’s who gets hired and why
Q: We have been looking to hire a professional with experience in certain areas. So far, we have received resumes from candidates who are either overqualified or underqualified, but nobody has the exact experience needed that does not require training. We are a busy firm that needs employees who are able to step into the job and function independently once instructions are given.
A: Job candidates are always hopeful that, although they lack the exact experience, something in their resumes will catch some attention among those hiring. What they do not realize is that the hiring manager may not be the person directly receiving the resumes, and that resumes are being sifted through by a human resources professional who has been given the exact job requirements. Once resumes are weeded out, qualifying candidates’ resumes are forwarded to those hiring managers. Company owners and department heads who ask to receive resumes have the time-consuming task of reviewing them regardless of how appropriate they are for the job advertised. HR professionals are trained to find exact or close matches to the job.
Dr. Valeria Stokes, CEO and human resources consultant of her firm Stokes Consulting, says, “Looking at whether or not someone has too much experience is a backdoor way to discriminate against a certain generation of potential employees. The hiring manager expects talent and HR should align the hire process with the attributes of the job to present candidates who have the right skill sets and are right for the role. The HR person does not manage the operations of the hiring manager; only the hiring manager knows what specific attributes are needed based on the competency-driven job description. It is not the HR recruiter’s responsibility to determine whether an individual is a serious choice, as long as they have depth of experience regarding that type of job.
“The vetting should be based on factors as to why the person is interested in the opportunity, what the person can bring to the role and what the candidate’s expectations are in the role. If the individual has the qualifications and any other assessments that have been done, (they) should be moved forward to the hiring manager for further vetting and determination for hire.”
According to Dr. Travis Bradberry, author of Emotional Intelligence 2.0 ,a company should not hire an overqualified candidate because these types of employees cannot be retained. They are pursuing the position due to a lack of options at that time, and the company will lose them once their options change. When choosing between overqualified and underqualified candidates, hiring someone overqualified may seem like the obvious choice. However, those who are overqualified will likely move on eventually, which strengthens the argument for finding someone with talent who has just the right level of experience for the position.
Jean Juchnowicz, owner and president of Human Resources Simplified, says, “Every job has its position in the organization, so it’s important to hire for fit. Someone with a richer level of experience will gravitate to the parts of the job (they deem) more worthy of his or her knowledge
Ultimately, those with experience that matches the job requirements are the ones who will be hired. Those without experience should search for entry-level job ads, and those with extensive experience should be confident in their abilities and apply to jobs at their levels.
and skill set, and potentially not attend to the other job tasks. Eventually, co-workers will complain, morale will be affected and the supervisor will take notice.”
Further disharmony could occur if the overqualified employee tries to give advice on processes upward. The co-worker chatter will be that the new employee is a know-it-all and does not belong there (even if the person does know more due to greater experience). The staff will then limit their communication with the person and the manager will be perplexed as to what to do with the overqualified employee.
In the interviewing process, all candidates say they like being busy and have no problem doing the menial tasks, as well as the challenging ones, until they are in the job and realize they had passed through that level earlier in their career. The new hire will realize they have made a mistake in so quickly accepting the job and start to regret it.
Ultimately, those with experience that matches the job requirements are the ones who will be hired. Those without experience should search for entry-level job ads, and those with extensive experience should be confident in their abilities and apply to jobs at their levels.