Question

discuss the role of task performance, contextual performance, adaptive behaviour, and counterproductive behaviour in developing a recruitment and selection system.

Answer 1

Task performance is actual performance that linked with a specific task or duty related to the production of goods and service or to the efficient function of a job (Catano et al, 2018) Task performance is needed to create the job description, which is used in the recruitment process to select candidates with KSAs that meet the job task requirements.

Contextual performance can be considered as Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), which consists of activities and behaviors that are important to organizational effectiveness. While task performance reflects employee’s knowledge and skills, contextual performance indicates employee’s personality and characteristic that affect the organizational climate and culture. Hence, it is important to choose the candidate whose contextual performance has a positive influence on the organizational culture.

Adaptive behavior indicates the ability of employees to adapt to new change. Identifying candidates with adaptive behavior can help the organization better respond to external changes such as globalization, technology advancement and labor diversification.

Counterproductive behaviors can violate significant organizational norms such as theft, workplace bullying or sexual harassment. Unethical and illegal behaviors are not considered as counterproductive behaviors. Perception of fairness is said to be a strong driver of these behaviors, and since organizations are required to comply to legislations related about fairness such as Employment Equity and Human Rights Act, recruiters should avoid hiring people with such behavior for their organizations (HRZone).