Competency-based professional development : a case study of how recruiters perceive undergraduate business students

Abstract

D. McClelland claimed that employment recruiters should hire professionals based upon characteristics and skills and that these competencies could predict how employees would perform on the job. This approach to assessing employees led to the creation of company-specific competency models. My dissertation is a case study of how recruiters perceive undergraduate business students who complete educational requirements at a university college of business that has included a competency model in its curriculum. Based upon the literature review, I learned that few studies have been conducted on the use of competency models in undergraduate business programs. On this basis, it is recommended that additional studies be conducted. Using fifteen professional competencies identified by the college as a conceptual framework, I interviewed recruiters who evaluate these business students. My primary focus was determining how the recruiters perceive the students, and my secondary focus was identifying what competencies are valued by the recruiters. Analysis of the responses indicated that the majority of the recruiters perceived the students as behaving professionally and demonstrating many of the competencies embedded in the college's professional development curriculum. The recruiters value competencies that are not included in the curriculum, and I recommend the college review these additional competencies.