Good Practice Processes

People involved in developing the process

    ·        A clear understanding of the expertise of the board members is needed to identify whether educational or 
     process advice is needed from any advisors  

·        NZSTA Industrial Advisors are available to all boards

·        The outgoing principal should not be involved in any decisions

·        The full board should make and record decisions on the size, composition and delegated authority of any
      appointment committee.

·         As far as possible the people who wrote the job description and person specification should be on the interview 
      panel to ensure consistency of interpretation of the selection criteria

·        Professional or process advisors should be selected on the basis of their previous experience and performance  

Table 1:          This table shows who should be involved in decisions
                        Key: Y =involved N =not involved * =depends on context

	People involved
Stage	Current Principal	Staff trustee	All other board members	Sub-committee	Staff	Parent community	Advisors
Deciding the details of the process, including steps, delegations and spending	N	Y	Y	N	N	N	N
Deciding what will be in the job description	N	Y	Y	Y	*	*	Y
Defining the person specification?	N	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Conducting interviews	N	*	*	Y	N	N	Y
Seeing presentations from applicants	N	Y	Y	Y	N	N	Y
Decision on the preferred candidate	N	[1] N	Y	Y	N	N	N

Steps in pre-advertising data-gathering and preparation

·        The State Sector Act 1988 requires boards to have a merit-appointment policy

·        Written advice on appointments, including from the Employment Relations Service should be gathered and used
      to review the boards appointment policy

·        The new principal will be leading the school to achieve the goals of the strategic plan, so the job description and 
     person specification need to clearly describe the best person to do that

·        Identify all the skill and knowledge requirements for the job

·        Describe what ‘fit with the school’ means for this school, and check this definition for any invalid or illegal criteria 
      such as gender, age or marital status

·        Assign all the requirements to either the job description or the person specification

·        Check that the person specification does not have any unlawful discrimination criteria

·        Identify the preferred balance between the particular competencies, leadership style and management ability

·        Consult parents, staff and advisors on the person specification

·        Ensure that the documents are clear and understandable so that the applicants know what criteria they are being
      measured against

·        Discuss and formalise the roles and authority of advisors, the incumbent principal, and any selection
      group/subcommittee

·        Devise a timeline and nominate a contact person to send application packs and receive applications

Budgeting

·        The actual cost will vary greatly depending on the circumstances. Identifying the likely costs of fees, travel and 
     materials would assist in setting a general figure, but it is best to be flexible. NZSTA suggests a benchmark of 
     5% of salary.

·       If a teacher or principal relocates to fill a Priority Staffing Status position and gains a National Relocation Grant,
     then the appointing school can apply for a National Recruitment Allowance payment of $2,500 to be used in any
     manner, including covering the costs of making the appointment.

Developing the application pack

·        Once the job description and person specification are settled, advertising can begin

·        An application pack is a useful investment in the process if the result is informative and attractive.

·         Applicants are looking for evidence that the process is being taken seriously, and that their privacy will be
      preserved. Any opportunity should be taken to gain feedback on whether the pack sends these messages

·        Request contact details of referees, rather than written reports

·        An application pack should include:

Key process information:

·        a covering letter including the appointment timeline;

·        job description;

·        person specification;

·        a statement that contact with individuals or statutory organisations who can comment on the applicant’s 
      professional work will not be made without notifying the applicant;

·        whether unsuccessful applicant information will be returned or destroyed;

·        a summary of critical selection criteria;

·        communication on bringing support people to the interview

·        the school contact person’s details and preferred times for being contacted;

Forms:

·        an application form;

·        a self-assessment form;

·        a tear-off application receipt;

Supporting information:

·        school information, including any useful school performance data;

·        recent school publications;

·        a statement of the schools EEO policy, and what EEO support is available;

·        a description of the school community.

Advertising

·        The State Sector Act 1988 requires that positions in schools be advertised wherever practicable.

·        The Primary Principals’ Collective Agreement 2003-2004 requires that principals’ positions of more than a year’s
      duration be advertised nationally.

·        Placing advertisements in the Education Gazette meets both of the above requirements, and is free.

·        Include an EEO statement in the advertisement, and any specific measures to meet EEO goals, such as the 
     availability of childcare

·        If advertising overseas, consider getting the advice and support of a recruitment agency. TeachNZ, in the Ministry
     of Education, can advise on recruitment agencies.

Managing the receipt of applications

·        Store information securely and prepare to destroy or return the material to unsuccessful applicants at the end of
      the process

·        Log applications and check what information has been included

·        Send an immediate confidential acknowledgement

·        Remind the contact person not to give any additional information to individual candidates that would unfairly 
      advantage them

·        If an applicant visits the school it should not be considered evidence that they are more serious than those who
     do not visit, therefore do not record information about visits

·        Instead of photocopying and distributing CVs, they can be considered by the selection group at a designated 
     time and place. This is a very effective way to protect privacy.

Short-listing

·        Use application forms and CVs to make shortlisting decisions.

·        Review the selection criteria and the weightings given to different parts of the criteria

·        Check the Teachers Council online register for current practising certificates of the applicants

·        The shortlist should only include applicants suitable for appointment, but should not be so long that the
      interviews become cumbersome to schedule. In general, a shortlist of five to six should be ample

·        Consider the recentness and nature of any declared convictions

·        Record shortlisting determinations in writing and against the selection criteria, possibly using a shortened ‘critical
      factors’ form

·        Contact the shortlist by phone and letter

·        The shortlist is confidential to the selection group

·        Consider readvertising if there any concerns about the quality of applicants. If there is only one applicant suitable
     for appointment then they should still be interviewed, but there is no compulsion to appoint them.

Interviewing

·        Semi-structured interviews are the most effective at finding information to meet the criteria

·        All applicants should be asked the same questions

·        Questions need to be based on the job description and person specification

·        Consider an interview dry-run to test the process and the panel’s understanding of the selection criteria

·        The interview panel should comprise exactly the same people for each interview for the position

·        Pre-briefing on the critical requirements, to test the person specification and consider any cultural issues

·        Consider if the school site is suitable for uninterrupted interviews, and interview off-site if necessary

·        Configure interview space to be non-threatening so that the applicant can relax

·        Consider designating a host person to meet the applicants

·        Don’t make spontaneous job offers during the interview

·        Avoid applicants meeting each other

·        Interviews should be between 45 minutes and 1.5 hours

·        Leave time for discussion between applicants

·        Let the applicant know when they can expect to hear from the board

·        Provide and use standardised assessment forms and score-sheets for panel members to fill in immediately after 
      the interview

·        Score-sheets should be kept and reviewed to check for inappropriate comments.

Additional information

·        Identify areas of specific concern about each applicant and explore these during verbal contact with the referees
      to verify past performance

·        Contact referees for a verbal response to questions about these concerns

·        Seek the agreement of referees to raise any areas of concern with the applicant

·        Additional assessments, such as psychometric tests, should be standardised across all the shortlist and
     administered by specialists

·        Additional assessments should be designed to produce information relevant to the selection criteria, have a
     definite purpose and be used to supplement and confirm interview information

·        Advance warning of the nature and duration of additional assessments should be given to applicants

·        It is not necessary to visit an applicant’s school. Consider instead their school’s most recent ERO report as this 
     will provide more useful information.

Appointing

·        Review the delineation of roles between advisors and decision-makers

·        Be prepared to take time after the interviews before deciding to make an employment offer

·        Rank applicants by aiming for as close a match to the selection criteria as possible

·        Be prepared to stick with the selection criteria even if they generate surprise rankings

·        Consider using consensus decision-making, rather than voting

·        Verify the qualifications of the preferred candidate

·        The top ranked applicant should receive a phone call and a formal letter of offer

·        The other interviewees should be notified immediately that an offer has been accepted

·        Once an offer has been accepted, then they should all be notified of this.

Finishing up

·        Retain the successful applicant’s CV and application form and return or destroy the others in-line with the
     statement on the application form

·        Give feedback to unsuccessful applicants who ask for it. It is best to give information on the selection criteria on 
     which the applicant was not as strong as the preferred candidate. Do not give information on the other candidates

·        Evaluate the process and make any amendments to the appointment policy

·        Plan for induction and draft performance management agreements