Policy 230: Recruitment and Hiring

230.1 Policy

College of Eastern Idaho’s goal in recruitment and selection is to hire and retain the most qualified individuals. The college believes that hiring qualified individuals to fill positions contributes to its success.

It is the policy of CEI that staff and faculty positions are filled through an open competitive recruitment process. The human resources office assists departments by coordinating all aspects of the employment process. Human resources ensures compliance with any applicable state and federal laws and regulations pertaining to the recruitment and hiring processes.

Per policy, CEI is an equal opportunity employer. CEI policy prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, creed, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, physical or mental disability, medical condition, veteran status, or gender. In addition, preference may be given to veterans who qualify under state and federal laws and regulations. 

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment; including, but not limited to hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, leave of absence, compensation, and training. Notwithstanding the foregoing, this policy shall not apply to the position of the President of the College as that position reports directly to the Board of Trustees and the hiring of that position falls under their purview.

230.2 Recruitment and Hiring Procedures

Human resources personnel are available to provide consultation through each step of the recruitment and hiring process.  They will post vacancies, develop and implement recruiting strategies, identify candidates to refer to the search committee, serve as committee chair, assure all pre-employment requirements are met, and offer and confirm job offers.

Prior to Recruiting

Review the primary duties and responsibilities of the position and consider any necessary changes. Determine what duties and responsibilities are essential for the employee to perform and what abilities are reasonably required for these tasks. Eliminate unnecessary criteria that may narrow the applicant pool. Non-essential duties should not be included in the posting.

Recruiting

All non-exempt positions may be posted internally if requested. If the internal posting does not produce qualified applicants, the job will then be posted externally. Exempt positions may be posted internally with approval from the vice president of human resources.

1. Hiring Managers will create a Requisition (Position Request) in NeoEd OHC (replacement, re-hire, or new position).
2. Requisition will be routed through the proper approvals for the department/position.  HR will be the final approver and is required on all requisitions.
3. HR will post all open positions to the CEI job board in one of three portals: Job Opportunities (external postings), Internal Opportunities (non-supervisory, non-exempt positions only), or the Adjunct/Part-Time Continuous Portal.
4. Open positions may be advertised on Indeed.com, the Idaho Department of Labor website or other advertising sites according to position, economic conditions, etc. Advertising will be considered and implemented on a case-by-case basis.
5. Positions will be posted for a minimum of 10 calendar days for external postings and 5 business days for internal postings.  Specific posting length should be specified in the Posting Duration section of the requisition.
6. Once the position has been closed, applicants will be screened for minimum qualifications by HR. Candidates who possess the minimum qualifications will be referred to the search committee for review. In the case of extraordinarily large applicant pools, HR reserves the right to perform additional applicant screening. Applicants who are missing required materials (Curriculum Vitae (CV) or resume, cover letter, unofficial transcripts) will not be eligible for review.
7. Adjunct/Part-time pools will be readily available and can be accessed as positions become available, as requested. These pools are continuously open for applicants to apply; the closing date is at the end of the school year (June 30th). Applicants who are missing required materials (CV or resume, cover letter, unofficial transcripts) will not be eligible for review. All applications will remain active for one year. After one year, applications will be purged and candidates who are still interested will need to re-apply.
8. The search committee will work together to screen the qualified (referred) applicants and the Hiring Manager will notify HR of applicants to schedule interviews.
9. The committee will participate in the interview process, evaluate applicants, and recommend finalists for second interviews (all Executive Director positions or above) or final candidate for job offer (all other positions).
10. The hiring manager will supply HR with names of finalist(s).
11. HR will schedule second interviews and/or make job offer.
12. If a candidate is not hired from the process, the search will be considered failed, and the hiring manager may decide if/when it should be opened again.

Search Committee

As a best practice, a search committee will be used in the selection process of all permanent full-time and part-time positions. Adjunct and temporary searches do not require the use of a search committee.

The composition of the search committee will vary depending upon the position to be filled and the department in which the position resides.  HR recommends that a minimum of 3 people serve on search committees for full-time positions including the hiring manager, the HR representative (committee chair), and one other member. Full-time position searches should have a maximum number of 5 committee members. Part-time position searches should be made up of no more than 3 committee members including the hiring manager and HR representative. The search committee should be as diverse as possible, including both genders, and if possible, one member from an underrepresented group.

If an employee agrees to serve on the search committee, they agree to participate in all resume review, meetings, and interviews requested by the hiring manager.

Search committee members must not be related to any candidate for which they serve on a committee. Should a candidate come forward that is an immediate relative, the committee member will need to withdraw from participation. Individual relationships such as candidates using an employee as a reference will need to be disclosed to the human resources chair; how to proceed will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

Reviewing Applications

HR will screen applications for completeness and minimum qualifications before referring them to the search committee. Committee members will receive an email from NeoEd as candidates are referred for review. **Links in emails will not allow access to the system. You must sign in through CEI Apps.**

Interviewing Candidates

Hiring Manager

It is the role of the Hiring Manager to ensure HR has the names of candidates to be scheduled for interviews, as well as the names of candidates who are no longer being considered for a position so that a notice may be sent through NeoEd letting applicants know of their status change.

Search Committee

Your role as a committee member is to rate applicants based on their qualifications as they correspond to the ability to perform the duties outlined in the job posting, as well as to match candidates with the needs of the department and the college. Search committee members serve in an advisory capacity; members screen and evaluate candidates and recommend finalists for consideration. Search committees make recommendations, not hiring decisions.

Interview Procedures

• The search committee should choose their top candidates to attend a face-to-face or Zoom interview with the committee. Under normal circumstances, there should be no less than 2 candidates and no more than 5.
• Human resources will schedule the interviews.
• Interviews are to remain structured with all interviewees asked the same questions using the same process.
• Most faculty positions require a teaching presentation. This process needs to be consistent with each candidate given the same topic and time frame.
• Committee members will use materials provided by HR to evaluate/rate candidates through the NeoEd OHC system.
• Upon completing the rating forms, the search committee can discuss, amongst themselves, their choice of top candidate(s).
• All searches for Executive Director positions or above, require a second interview for the top candidate(s). Second interviews will be scheduled by HR and will include members of administration. Following the second interview, HR will extend an offer to the chosen candidate.

Confidentiality

Members of the search committee or employees involved in the search process should not provide information to any applicant, employee, or outside entity about candidates.

• The official spokesperson for the search is Human Resources.
• All candidate files are considered confidential and must be maintained and reviewed in a manner that ensures that candidates’ identities are not divulged.
• Information on whether or not an individual is a candidate, and candidates’ status at each stage of the search, is considered confidential.
• All information contained in a candidate’s reference report is considered confidential.
• In searches where there is an internal applicant or applicants, applicant files must not be made accessible to that person. The internal applicant(s) will not attend any activity, presentation, or interview for any other applicant.

Reference and Background Checks

Human resources will conduct reference checks on final candidates for exempt level positions at the director level and above.  Results of such checks will be supplied to the hiring manager. 

Background Checks will be performed on candidates extended a job offer. If concerns are reported on the background check, HR will contact the applicant to review the report. Should the concerns the employee’s ability to perform the functions of their position, based on the job description, the offer will be retracted by HR.

Final Steps

• Human resources will notify all candidates who were interviewed and not offered the position by NeoEd email that the position has been filled. All candidates not interviewed will be sent a form rejection email through NeoEd.
• HR will initiate the on-boarding process through NeoEd to complete all new hire paperwork before the start date.   Other arrangements will be made to accommodate as needed.
• Once the candidate has completed their new hire paperwork, he/she will be cleared to begin work.
• All candidates must complete the new hire paperwork process on or before the first day of employment. Per Federal regulations, documents must be received and approved for the I-9 immigration requirements within 3 business days of the date of hire or the employee will not be allowed to continue working.

Recordkeeping

Documenting and maintaining appropriate records supporting an employment decision is critical because this is what allows CEI to prove compliance with federal antidiscrimination laws. Those involved in a search process have an obligation to carry out their responsibilities in a way that will provide for this requirement to be met. All application and screening materials will be kept for no less than 1 year of the position’s closing date.

Hiring Interns

The hiring of interns is an exception to regular hiring practices. These positions will generally be advertised and hired through the Handshake system; please contact HR for further information.  Interns will be required to complete orientation with HR before employment can begin.

Hiring or Appointing Interims

An employee may be appointed to a position in an interim capacity. Interim appointments may not exceed six months for a staff position and nine months for a faculty position.

An employee serving in an interim position may apply for the position during the active recruiting process. The recruiting process may be waived, and the interim can be promoted into the position with PAC approval.

230.3 Promotion, Title Change, Position Reclassification, and New Position Requisitions

An approved budget request form is required before requesting a promotion, title change, position reclassification, or new position that includes a wage adjustment. The budget request form must be completed and approved by Presidents Advisory Council (PAC) before submitting a requisition for the change to human resources. Please see Procedure 906: Personnel Budget Request for detailed information about completing the budget request form. Any requisitions submitted to human resources that indicate a wage adjustment must have an approved budget request form attached. Requisitions submitted without the approved form attached will be rejected and returned to the originator.

Title change requests that do not include a request for a wage adjustment are initiated by human resources and do not require budgetary oversight. Title change only requests will be submitted through the NeoEd requisition system.

Recruitment Lifecycle Flowchart