Most people associate recruitment with advertisements, interviews and choosing a candidate. These are the visible activities. Yet major mistakes often begin weeks earlier, when an organisation defines what it needs. A weak foundation leaves the rest of the process relying on assumptions rather than knowledge.
This is the first article in a ten-part series on ASASO™, TEAM NORSO’s complete recruitment and selection method. The series follows the process from analysis to onboarding, providing a practical introduction and reference for leaders and HR professionals. It also introduces the thinking developed in greater depth through ASASO™ certification.
We start with the foundation: analysis.
Understand tomorrow’s role
A poor hire is often attributed to a weak interview, an incomplete reference or a misleading impression. In my experience, the cause often lies in insufficient understanding of the role itself.
When someone leaves, retrieving an old job description, updating a few phrases and publishing it seems efficient. It assumes today’s needs are the same as when the document was written. Organisations, technology, customer expectations and teams all change.
A project manager role, for example, may previously have centred on internal coordination while now requiring closer customer contact, commercial understanding and cross-functional leadership. Reusing the old description can attract someone suited to yesterday’s requirements.
Good job analysis is about understanding the future.
Begin with the outcome
Recruitment often begins with education, qualifications and previous responsibilities. ASASO™ starts elsewhere: what must this person achieve to succeed?
Knowing the desired outcome allows us to define results, challenges and working methods before deciding which capabilities are necessary. Competence becomes a means of delivering results, rather than a goal in itself.
Instead of asking for a particular qualification automatically, ask what knowledge and skills the actual work requires. Some can be developed through onboarding; others must exist on day one. Does the organisation have the time, resources and capacity to provide that development?
A long wish list rarely answers this. A demand for ten years’ experience may prove less important than relationship-building if technical knowledge can be learned through a focused introduction. Relevant capability matters more than an arbitrary experience threshold.
Job analysis therefore examines the organisation as well as the candidate. Recruitment is an interaction between the person joining and the organisation receiving them.
Use a 360-degree perspective
No manager understands a role completely alone. The manager knows priorities and expectations. Colleagues understand collaboration. Other departments understand dependencies. Customers understand the delivery they receive.
ASASO™ gathers information from several relevant perspectives. Managers explain outcomes and constraints. Colleagues describe everyday work. Other functions identify expectations and interdependencies. Employee representatives may contribute insight into working conditions, organisation and culture. Where useful, customers or service users contribute a different view of value. The person leaving may also have valuable insight.
A manager might emphasise structure while colleagues reveal that initiative and decision-making are the missing capabilities. Both perspectives matter. Their combination gives a more realistic picture than a single person’s assumptions.
Analysis is more than a job description
A job description usually lists tasks and responsibilities. Analysis explains why those tasks exist, what results they should produce and what conditions support success.
Two project manager advertisements may describe similar tasks. One role may involve small projects with few stakeholders; another may involve complex security projects, strict requirements, high pace and coordination across disciplines. The same title can conceal very different demands.
A foundation for every later stage
Thorough analysis makes advertisements more precise and active search more targeted. Interviews can examine concrete working situations. References can address what actually matters. Everyone assesses candidates against shared criteria rather than personal preference.
Even an excellent interview cannot compensate for an organisation not knowing what it needs.
Analysis is also a strategic conversation. It clarifies future challenges, desired results and emerging capability needs. It may reveal that the role should change, responsibilities should move or an entirely different profile is needed.
A good recruitment process starts with analysis. The better you understand the value to be created, the easier it becomes to identify relevant capability, attract candidates and make a sound decision.
Develop the skill in practice
ASASO™ certification explores how to:
- Carry out a complete 360-degree job analysis.
- Define the desired outcome before setting capability requirements.
- Distinguish day-one requirements from skills that can be developed.
- Document criteria for consistent assessment across the recruitment team.
- Use analysis to guide advertising, active search, interviews, references and selection.
The next article considers advertising: how to reach and attract relevant candidates who are actively looking for work.
English editorial adaptation of the Norwegian original.
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