Running head: MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 1

CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY

MONTEREY BAY

Recruitment Training for Monterey County Hiring Managers:

Performing a Job Analysis

CAPSTONE PROPOSAL

Submitted in partial satisfaction of requirements of the degree of

MASTER OF SCIENCE in

Instructional Science and Technology

Richie Cobb

December 17, 2018

Capstone Approvals: (At least one advisor and capstone instructor should approve)

_________________________ _______________________ _____________

Advisor Name Signature Date

_________________________ _______________________ _____________

Capstone Instructor Name Signature Date
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 2

Table of Contents

Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ 4

Recruitment Training for Monterey County Hiring Managers ....................................................... 6

Problem Description ....................................................................................................................... 6

Target Audience .............................................................................................................................. 7

Environmental Scan ........................................................................................................................ 8

Project Goals ................................................................................................................................... 9

Objectives ....................................................................................................................................... 9

Solution ......................................................................................................................................... 10

Learning Theory and Instructional Principles............................................................................... 10

Media Components ....................................................................................................................... 11

Challenges and Breakthroughs ..................................................................................................... 11

Methods and Procedures ............................................................................................................... 12

Training Agenda and Course Breakdown ................................................................................. 12

Timeline ........................................................................................................................................ 14

January 10, 2018 ....................................................................................................................... 14

January 19, 2018 ....................................................................................................................... 14

February 8, 2018 ....................................................................................................................... 14

February 9 – May 1, 2018. ........................................................................................................ 14

MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 3

June 29, 2018 ............................................................................................................................ 15

August 10, 2018 ........................................................................................................................ 15

September 28, 2018 .................................................................................................................. 15

October 15, 2018 ....................................................................................................................... 15

October 22, 2018 ....................................................................................................................... 15

November 1, 2018 ..................................................................................................................... 15

November 11, 2018 – December 9, 2018 ................................................................................. 15

December 10, 2018 ................................................................................................................... 15

December 17, 2018 ................................................................................................................... 16

Deliverables .................................................................................................................................. 16

Formative Evaluation .................................................................................................................... 16

Summative Evaluation .................................................................................................................. 17

Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 17

References ..................................................................................................................................... 19
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 4

Executive Summary

The human resources department in the County of Monterey is undergoing a transition

period. Outdated policies are being updated, procedures are being re-examined, and an effort is

underway to train hiring managers and human resources personnel to “attract, develop, and

retain” the next generation workforce. Monterey County human resources is on a mission to

establish the county as the employer of choice in the region.

As part of this broader mission, the county has identified a need to provide training to

hiring managers on the current recruitment process. This capstone project addresses one

component of the proposed training. To train hiring managers on performing a job analysis. This

is a critical part of the recruitment process and is necessary to ensure that legal requirements,

such as ADA compliance, are met. In fact, all job classifications within Monterey County must

be based on a job analysis. The hiring manager also plays an important role in the job analysis by

serving as a subject matter expert (SME) and assists in determining the duties, responsibilities,

and qualifications required for the job.

To meet this training need, an instructor-led classroom training on performing a job

analysis was developed. The training course is approximately one-hour in length. A facilitator’s

guide was also designed and accompanies the training. After completing this course, hiring

managers will possess the skills necessary to identify the duties, responsibilities, knowledge,

skills, abilities, and physical and sensory requirements associated with a job classification.

The evaluation method for this project is a pre and post-test that is administered by the

course facilitator. This evaluation establishes a pre-knowledge dataset that can be compared to

the post-test data to determine effectiveness of the course in meeting course objectives as well as

noting any improvement or other differences between the two scores. The post-test questions and
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 5

topics are tied into the course objectives and course material. Additional levels of evaluation are

beyond the scope of this project.

MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 6

Recruitment Training for Monterey County Hiring Managers

I have a passion for the public-sector, as evident in my work experience and educational
history, and wanted to design something that I could use to contribute to the local community. I
reached out to Monterey County through Dr. Jeanne Farrington, my instructor and capstone
advisor in this graduate program. Luckily, the County was interested to work with me on a
project. While the project has been in discussion since January 2018, it only recently picked up
speed this summer. After a few project changes and modifications of scope and delivery method,
I was able to deliver a project that has potential to make an impact in Monterey County – a place
that my family has chosen to be our home.
Problem Description
The human resources department of Monterey County is currently going through a
transition period. As large numbers of county employees are nearing retirement, the county
human resources department is steering the county toward its goal of being the employer of
choice in the Monterey Bay region. In an effort to meet this goal, county leadership has decided
that old and outdated policies, webpages, and processes should be re-examined and updated to
give the county a refreshed look and feel and make it a more attractive option to millennials
seeking employment in the area. Under the leadership of Irma Ramirez-Bough, the human
resources department strives to “attract, develop, and retain” a diverse workforce to serve the
needs of county residents (Monterey County, 2018). The goal for the county is to hire and retain
workers throughout their career from graduating college to retirement, making the initial
recruitment process a top priority.
Benefit packages such as the California Public Employees Retirement System
(CalPERS), encouraging internal movement of employees rather than forcing them to seek
advancement or other employment with outside agencies, and professional development
opportunities help the county in achieving this goal. Monterey County is the largest employer in
the Salinas Valley employing more than 5,000 workers in 24 departments and agencies
(Monterey County, 2018). For an employer of this size, with many county agencies and
departments spread out geographically throughout the City of Salinas and around the county,
keeping so many employees up-to-date on policy and procedure changes can be a challenge.
In meetings with the Director of Monterey County Human Resources, Irma Ramirez-
Bough, it was determined that not all county hiring managers are following county procedure on
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 7

recruiting for open positions. While the county policy and procedure for recruitment is
thoroughly documented, the documentation is out-of-date. Hiring managers may not all be aware
of every aspect of recruitment. For example, common policies such as reinstating an employee
who recently separated the county are not known by managers posting and hiring for positions.
With a large number of current employees eligible for retirement and open positions not all being
filled, the county has a need to ensure all hiring managers follow current recruitment procedures
to maximize success of recruiting and retaining the best talent (I. Ramirez-Bough, personal
communication, August 10, 2018).
The county is undergoing the process of updating the documentation and this project will
address the training need – getting hiring managers trained on the current recruitment
procedures. The recruitment process being addressed in this training is the job analysis, a
foundational step in the recruitment process that must be taken prior to posting an open position
or establishing a new job classification. Federal and State laws as well as Monterey County
policy dictate that every open position be based on a job analysis (K. Moore, personal
communication, October 10, 2018). It is a critical component of the recruitment process.
This capstone project serves as a starting point in which additional training can be added
as part of a more robust and complete training program on the recruitment process. Classroom
training was chosen for this project as it can be implemented in a short time-frame while
discussions of developing a full e-learning program on recruitment continue within the county.
However, it is developed in a way that will allow for the instructor led training to be converted
into an e-module, should the county choose to deliver this training as part of the larger e-learning
project that is currently being discussed that would include training modules for each step of the
recruitment process.
Target Audience
The target audience for this training are Monterey County hiring managers. Monterey
County has over 5,000 employees spread out across 24 different departments and agencies.
Among those, there are over 200 employees in management with more than 80 managers
involved in the recruitment and hiring process (Monterey County, 2018). Additionally, human
resources personnel who will be leading the training course will also learn the training course
and use the facilitator guide to teach the course in the classroom.
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 8

Environmental Scan

A job analysis is common in the government sector, as state and federal policies dictate
that job classifications must be based on one. Simply put, a job analysis is “a detailed statement
of work behaviors and other information relative to a job” (Monterey County, 2000, p. 5-4).
Additionally, the Office of Personnel Management, United States Department of Justice, and
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission all state that a job analysis must be performed to
ensure that job tasks associated with a position have been evaluated and that provisions of the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) are met (OPM, n.d.; OPM, 2007). The Uniform
Guidelines on Employment Selection Procedures (1978) provides guidance on employee
selection and the job analysis procedure to assist government agencies and organizations in
complying with these regulations.
One of the first steps in establishing a position for recruitment is to determine the
minimum qualifications for the position. The job analysis form assists in gathering all of the
information necessary to establish a job classification and prepare for recruitment by asking
subject matter experts (SME) familiar with the job to provide information on basic job duties,
knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with the position. This information is reviewed by
professionals in the human resources department and is used not only in the recruitment process,
but in planning, budget preparation, training and development, and to facilitate changes within
the job classification (Monterey County, 2000, p. 5-4).
The United States Office of Personnel Management states that a job analysis should be
performed not only to establish tasks and competencies for a position, but to ensure that the tasks
and competencies associated with the job are sufficiently related, to determine how applicants
will be assessed for the position, and to establish documentation for legal purposes (OPM,
2007.). A job analysis does not necessarily need to be performed frequently in positions in which
the tasks do not change very often but should be evaluated periodically. In cases where the
position is new or unique or are subject to frequent changes, the job analysis should be
performed prior to the initial establishment of the job classification and annually thereafter
(OPM, 2018).
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 9

Project Goals

The goal of this project is to train hiring managers on performing a job analysis, a critical
component of the recruitment process for Monterey County. This process is developed and
documented by the Human Resources department and follows Federal and State guidelines. The
County has a need to ensure that all hiring managers are trained on the recruitment process and
are following it. This project focuses on training managers on county policy regarding reviewing
the basic duties and responsibilities of a job classification, identifying the knowledge, skills, and
abilities required to perform the duties and responsibilities, and determine the physical and
sensory working conditions for the job (ADA compliance). Upon completion of this training
module, hiring managers will adhere to County policy and procedure regarding job analysis as
well as any State and Federal laws regulating recruitment. This training addresses the training
gap that currently exists, allowing hiring managers to receive the training they need to accurately
complete the job analysis, ensuring compliance with County, State, and Federal regulations.
Objectives
The terminal objective of this training module is as follows: Given Monterey County’s
guidelines on performing a job analysis, hiring managers will choose to incorporate them into
practice 100% of the time. This objective guides all components of the training.
The following are the enabling objectives which guide each individual section of the
training:
1. From memory, hiring managers will be able to identify the best-practices in
performing a job analysis with 100% accuracy.
2. From memory, hiring managers will be able to identify the qualifications of the
subject matter expert (SME) as related to a job analysis with 100% accuracy.
3. With the use of the job analysis form, hiring managers will be able to identify the
basic duties and responsibilities of a job classification with 100% accuracy.
4. With the use of the job analysis form, hiring managers will be able to evaluate the
frequency and criticality basic duties and responsibilities of a job classification
with 100% accuracy.
5. With the use of the job analysis form, hiring managers will be able to determine
the knowledge, skills, and abilities of a job classification with 100% accuracy.
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 10

6. With the use of the job analysis form, hiring managers will be able to identify
physical and sensory working conditions of a job classification with 100%
accuracy.
Solution
The solution is an instructor led training course to train hiring managers on the current
county process for performing a job analysis. The training course was designed in Microsoft
PowerPoint and incorporates active learning in practice scenarios. The training course is
approximately one hour in length, with the possibility of extending an additional half-hour
depending on the time taken to complete group practice activities. Upon successful completion
of the course, managers will be signed off by the Human Resources department to certify
readiness to engage in the job analysis process. A facilitator’s guide accompanies the training
course and provides the facilitator with the information necessary to teach the course as well as
instructions on facilitating practice sessions and completing pre and post testing.
Learning Theory and Instructional Principles
I have built this training program using components of both the cognitive and
constructivist learning theories to guide the design of this training project. Active learning and a
hands-on approach (learning-by-doing) are principles of constructivism. The recall of prior
knowledge and motivating the learner are principles of cognitivism. Specifically, Gagne’s
approach, which falls under cognitivism, will be followed as closely as practical (Harasim,
2017). The ADDIE model guided the design, development, and organization of this training
module. The field experience instructional strategy guided the development of the role play skills
check assessment.
For the development of the training course, Gagne’s nine steps of instruction were
followed. The attention of the learner is gained by clearly stating the importance of adhering to
the County’s policy and legal guidelines on performing a job analysis. By highlighting the
negative effects of not following the established procedure and adhering to legal guidelines, the
learners are shown the relevance of the training and see it as a practical solution. Since all hiring
managers have had exposure to and are aware of Human Resources’ policy and procedures, a
recall of this prior knowledge was incorporated into the pre-test administered by the facilitator as
learners arrive to the training course.
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 11

The training incorporates practice scenarios by having hiring managers complete, in

small groups, components of the job analysis form. After each major section of the course,
learners have an opportunity to get hands-on experience completing components of the job
analysis process as well as benefit from group discussion and collaboration. Feedback is given
by the course facilitator as well as peers during group discussions following each practice
session. These components of the training course fall within both cognitive and constructivist
theory.
Media Components
The training course was created using Microsoft PowerPoint and the facilitator guide
using Microsoft Word. The facilitator guide was later converted to a PDF document. The training
is synchronous and designed for delivery in a classroom setting using a computer and a projector.
The facilitator guide will be printed and distributed to the facilitator in advance of training
delivery. A classroom format was chosen to allow for the rapid deployment of the training course
but may be used as a storyboard for later development into an e-learning module.
Challenges and Breakthroughs

There were many challenges faced during the design and development of this project.
While it was not required for capstone to work with a client, I chose to do so in an effort to
increase the likelihood that my project would have an actual impact on my local community.
Coordinating with and facilitating communication with the county while not being an employee
of the agency significantly slowed the process of the project. I was limited to email and phone
communication with county representatives and due to the fact that all parties involved were
working full-time (including myself) response times on both ends experienced delays.
Additionally, several internal factors within the county slowed the project. The initial
project idea was to develop an e-learning training program with multiple modules – one for each
step if the recruitment process. However, this was not possible because the documentation that
the training needed to be based on – internal policies and procedures regarding recruitment –
have not been updated since the late 1990s. The Director of the Human Resources Department is
working with a team to update the policies, but the timeline did not align with the timeline I had
to meet for graduation.
After many delays and setbacks during the first part of the year, things started to pick up
in the summer. I was able to re-establish weekly meetings, determine what the scope would be
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 12

for the new project, and establish a timeline for project completion. By the start of the fall term
in August, I was well on my way to getting the project back on track. Eventually it was
determined that an instructor-led course would better suit the needs of the county while ensuring
that I was able to meet the December deadline for graduation and project completion.
Methods and Procedures
This instructor-led training is designed to be completed in about one hour to one hour and
a half. The facilitator will review the facilitator’s guide in advance, reviewing the job analysis
form, additional resources and reference materials listed, and confer with the human resources
department to ensure that the facilitator is ready to lead the training course.
Three times during the training course, learners will be divided into small groups of three
to five and engage in practice sessions. These practice sessions are included after each lesson on
major sections of the job analysis form. This allows for a natural break in the training and will
keep learners engaged. A different team captain will be appointed during each practice session
allowing for greater participation of the learners and encourage those who may not naturally
come forward and participate in group discussion to be involved in the training session.
A pre-test will be administered as learners arrive for the training course and a post-test
will be administered along with a quick survey at the conclusion of the training.
Training Agenda and Course Breakdown
I. Pre-test
a. Facilitator will hand out a pre-test to learners as they arrive.
b. Pre-test will be collected prior to start of course.
II. Introduction
a. An overview of course objectives.
b. What is a job analysis?
c. Relevance to County of Monterey and hiring managers.
III. The Job Analysis Form and the Subject Matter Expert
a. Overview of job analysis form.
b. Role and qualifications of subject matter expert (SME).
c. SME certification.
IV. Part I: Duty Statements
a. Definition of a duty statement.
 MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 13

b. Who completes the duty statements?

i. Existing classifications vs new.
c. Determining duty statements.
d. Identify frequency of duties.
e. Task importance of duties.
i. Critical, Important, Moderately Important
f. Criticality of functions.
V. Group Practice I
a. Learners break into small groups and practice completing duty statements and
assigning frequency, task importance, and criticality of functions.
VI. Part II: Knowledge and Skill Assessment
a. Knowledge statements.
b. Linkage to duty statements.
c. Minimum or desirable qualifications.
d. Conditions of Employment.
VII. Group Practice II
a. Learners break into small groups and practice completing knowledge and skill
statements and conditions of employment
VIII. Part III: Physical and Sensory Requirements
a. ADA compliance.
b. Completing physical and sensory requirements.
i. Identify common physical and sensory requirements.
ii. Link to duty statements.
c. Additional evaluation to identify if further evaluation is needed.
IX. Group Practice III
a. Learners will break into small groups and practice completing physical and
sensory requirements, discussing the importance and relevance to ADA
compliance.
X. Wrap Up
a. Facilitator will use the group discussion to facilitate Q & A.
b. Summarize key points.
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 14

XI. Post-Test
a. Facilitator will administer the post-test to learners.
Timeline

January 10, 2018

The project began in January 2018 with initial discussions between me and Dr. Yvonne
Walker of the Training and Development division of Monterey County Human Resources. After
an initial discussion about my desire to design a capstone project that would benefit the county,
Dr. Walker had a few ideas of where the county could use my help.
January 19, 2018
A conference call was held between me, Dr. Walker, Wendell Sells, and Vanessa Kor of
Monterey County Human Resources. We further discussed capstone project ideas and developed
them. I presented the county with capstone project course requirements and discussed the
completion timeline of the project.
February 8, 2018
A capstone project kickoff meeting was held at the Monterey County Human Resources

Department offices in Salinas, CA. Wendell Sells, Dr. Yvonne Walker, and Vanessa Kor were

present. I was presented with information on the current recruitment process and briefed on

proposed changes and need for training.

February 9 – May 1, 2018.

Periodic phone conferences were held on Friday afternoons to discuss the project and

brainstorm ideas for development of a training course on recruitment. There were four phone

discussions during this timeframe. Sometimes we only checked in but did not have any

additional material relating to defining the project. Email communication with Vanessa Kor and

Wendell Sells to clarify the project scope and target audience.

MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 15

June 29, 2018

Phone discussion to clarify project goals and scope. The county proposes changing the

project to something targeting applicants rather than hiring managers due to delays in updating

documentation and availability of subject matter experts.

August 10, 2018

In person meeting at Monterey County Human Resources to discuss project changes and

define scope and goals of project. HR Director Irma Ramire-Bough and Dr. Yvonne Walker

present.

September 28, 2018

In person meeting at CSUMB to finalize project goals and scope. In this meeting it was

determined that the project would be an instructor-led training course with a facilitator guide

rather than e-learning. As a result of project delays, there is not sufficient time to develop a full

e-learning module. Michalel Rosales is made available to me to assist with clarifying the project

and providing me with the information I need to complete the training.

October 15, 2018

Project proposal completed.

October 22, 2018

Storyboard completed and shared with Michael Rosales and Dr. Walker.

November 1, 2018
Feedback received from Michael regarding storyboard. Incorporated changes.

November 11, 2018 – December 9, 2018

Training course and facilitator guide created and shared with Michael Rosales and Dr.

Walker using a shared folder in Google Drive. Feedback received via email.

December 10, 2018

Course and facilitator guide completed. Final deliverables shared with Michal Rosales.
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 16

December 17, 2018

Completion of final capstone report.

Deliverables

Deliverable Completion Date Description

Course PowerPoint December 10, 2018 Complete course delivered

electronically in PPT format.

Includes instructor notes to

assist facilitator when

presenting in presenter’s

view.

Facilitator’s Guide December 10, 2018 Instructions for delivering

course. Includes pre and post

tests.

Formative Evaluation
Formative evaluation of this project was performed by sharing the training course
PowerPoint file and the Word document containing the facilitator guide to the subject matter
expert (SME) with Monterey County. Files were shared by creating a shared folder on Google
Drive. When updates to the training course and facilitator guide were posted, I notified the SME
in an email and received feedback within a few days. This process was performed continually
throughout the design process, ensuring that project deliverables contained accurate information
and was designed in accordance to the client’s wishes.
Additionally, the project was shared with other members of the Monterey County Human
Resources department, including Dr. Yvonne Walker for feedback. This feedback was also
incorporated into project design changes. Additional examples of components of the job analysis
form were added to the training and group practice sessions were redesigned to occur at the end
of each major section rather than all together at the end of the course.
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 17

Other formative evaluation was performed by sharing the training course and facilitator
guide with close friends and co-workers for feedback since I was not able to facilitate a formal
developmental test at the county with members of the actual target audience. I presented the
course to a small group of five participants and solicited verbal feedback. This feedback was
incorporated into design changes that did not affect the course content, such as layout of slides,
font-size, and clarification of topics that were unclear based on the feedback received.
Summative Evaluation
To evaluate hiring mangers’ prior knowledge on the job analysis process, a pre-test was
designed and will be administered prior to the learner beginning the course. This pre-test will be
compared to the post-test to evaluate the effectiveness of the training program and allow for the
identification of areas that may need to be revised after the course is fully implemented.
To evaluate participants knowledge retained from the training course, a final
examination, developed from the learning objectives, will be administered at the end of course
by the facilitator. Successful completion of training will be met when the participant scores 80%
or higher on the exam. Human resources personnel will document successful passage of the job
analysis training course and will establish eligibility allowing hiring managers to proceed with
recruitment and conducting a job analysis.
To measure learner reaction to this training module, a short survey will be combined with
the post-test. The survey will consist of questions related to the perception of the training and
will be answered on a Likert scale.
Levels three through five evaluations are not within the scope of this capstone project and
will be up to county agency to track, should they choose to do so. Also, since this course will be
implemented by Monterey County at a later date and no live presentation of this course has
occurred as of the date of this report, no statistical data is available for analysis. However, the pre
and post-tests are designed to deliver the results necessary to perform such an evaluation should
the county choose to do so in-house at a later time.
Conclusion

I hope that in the coming weeks or months the County of Monterey will use this training

course and begin its implementation. It is my understanding that this course will be delivered as

designed until the county has the resources to design a complete training program on
MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 18

recruitment. I expect that this course will be expanded upon to include other components of

recruitment, become part of a training series, or converted into an e-learning module.

This project was a great learning experience. The value of being able to work with a

client in my local community and design a project that has potential to improve a hiring

managers ability to recruit talent to this area was truly a rewarding experience. Although I was

not able to stick with my initial idea of creating a robust e-learning training program on

recruitment, I learned how to take setbacks and turn them into something positive.

This project allowed me to collaborate with other instructional design professionals and

learn how the process works in a real-world setting. I was able to practice project management

skills that I learned during my graduate program and use them to get my project back on course.

This was perhaps the most valuable tool used during this project as it has allowed me to

complete the project on time for graduation as well as allowing me to deliver a product to my

client that they are satisfied with.

MONTEREY COUNTY RECRUITMENT TRAINING 19

References

Biddle Consulting Group. (2018). Uniform guidelines on employee selection procedures.

Retrieved from http://www.uniformguidelines.com/

Harasim, L. (2017). Learning theory and online technologies (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge.

Monterey County Human Resources. (2018). Job analysis form. Retrieved from

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7MMLKwnNu3dcUhHcDB4aXY3aW4xc01OZ2p

wM2xpWjB0clNJ&authuser=rcobb@csumb.edu

Office of Personnel Management. (n.d.). Six steps to conducting a job analysis for multiple

grades. Retrieved from https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/assessment-and-

selection/job-analysis/six-steps-to-conducting-a-job-analysis-for-multiple-grades.pdf

Office of Personnel Management (2007). Delegated operations examining handbook: A guide for

federal agency examining offices. Retrieved from https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-

oversight/hiring-information/competitive-hiring/deo_handbook.pdf

Office of Personnel Management (2018). Job analysis presentation. Retrieved from

https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/assessment-and-selection/job-

analysis/job_analysis_presentation.pdf