Search Process for RFHR Hires

As a general rule, it remains the policy of the University at Albany that a full, open and affirmative action search should be conducted prior to filling a professional staff vacancy.

This is consistent with the President's Reaffirmation Statement, as well as the governing SUNY policy first issued in 1977. It also is consonant with all applicable laws, both state and federal. As in all cases, however, a certain degree of flexibility remains necessary.

In some instances, a vacant position might be filled via internal promotion. In other cases, the appointment is of either short duration or part-time, suggesting that the effort involved in mounting a full search would be impractical at best, with little likelihood of an enthusiastic applicant response.

In these circumstances, the department or unit should submit a search waiver request. The web form will request the following information:

• A justification for the request, presented in an institutional context, demonstrating the imperative for departing from a full, affirmative search.
• The Research Foundation Account Number.
• A description of the position, including minimum (and, if appropriate, preferred) qualifications. (Access RFHR's Job Description template.)
• The vitae of candidates who may already have been identified, with a description of the process used to locate them.

A written determination will be rendered and transmitted to the requesting department.

In the past, search waivers were sought in situations that simply should not have required the effort to prepare the request and the administrative time spent in review. That said, nothing precludes a department from undertaking a search in these cases — it is simply not a requirement.

In the following cases, a full, open search is not required and a waiver from the search procedure need not be sought:

1. Appointments of six months or less.
2. Appointments of 50% obligation or less, regardless of duration.
3. Internal promotion.
4. Upward reclassification/retitling of a filled position, generally as a result of an increase in professional responsibilities, where no actual vacancy exists.
5. Post-doctoral appointments no longer than five years.
6. Transfer of filled positions.

Emergencies arise as well and, in certain instances, the illness or death of an incumbent may leave a department in a situation that simply does not allow for a full search.

Finally, a new president or vice president may wish to reorganize staff in a manner compatible with their administrative style in order to accomplish their mandate. Accordingly, certain exceptions to the full search requirement are necessary.

Department: The hiring authority initiates the search by first requesting authorization from the appropriate Director or Vice President. Once approved, the hiring authority will submit the request to search along with all supporting documentation (see Step 3) to RFHR.

RFHR: In consultation with RFHR, the hiring authority or designee will agree on the rank, title, salary, and programmatic responsibilities associated with the position. RFHR will conduct a class and compensation review and notify the hiring authority of approval. All supporting documentation will then be forwarded by RFHR to the Division of Inclusive Excellence.

Division of Inclusive Excellence: Inclusive Excellence will review all supporting documentation to ensure that recruitment and selection procedures are fair, inclusive, and transformative as well as in compliance with all federal and state regulations.

For additional information, please review RFHR’s Recruit & Hire Employees webpage.

The Search Committee is appointed by the supervisor, Department Chair and/or Dean, Director, or Vice President, as appropriate. Any active University faculty member, professional staff or support staff member can serve on a search committee.

Search committees must have a minimum of five members that reflect the diversity of the University community in relation to gender, race and ethnicity.

There must be gender and racial diversity present on the search committee and during all interviews.

Note: The supervisor, Department Chair, and/or final decision-maker should not serve on the committee or take part in the initial applicant review as this could potentially be seen as having an undue influence on the search process.

Read about the overall responsibilities of each Search Committee Member, the Inclusive Excellence Representative and the Search Committee Chair.

Recruitment Plan

Download and fill out the Affirmative Action Recruitment Plan (AARP) to include:

• the current composition of the Hiring Department /Office/Job Group;
• the gender and racial diversity of members of the Search Committee. Each search committee member should self-identify their race and gender where indicated on the AARP form.
• the recruitment sources that will be used in the search process, include targeted or specialized outreach efforts to recruit qualified women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans;
• the screening procedures are agreed upon by the Search Committee and the hiring authority.
   

Job Posting

The job posting should include a job description that includes an overview of the position and explains the tasks, duties, and responsibilities of the job advertisement to applicants.

The posting should also include specific measurable qualifications that are tied to a job task, duty or responsibility of the job description. Measurable qualifications are utilized on the Rubric & Applicant Flow Analysis (AFA). Other qualifications such as soft skills are assessed during interviews.  

Access RFHR's Job Description template and Announcement of Vacancy template.

Note:

• Candidates need to meet the listed required qualifications to warrant employment. If there are qualifications the candidate can be trained or mentored on, include those in the preferred qualifications.
• The closing date for accepting applications should be included (30 days minimum from the publication date of advertising for a national, regional or state search.) For searches that elect to remain “open until filled,” RFHR will include the following language, “Review of applications will begin (date) and continue until the position is filled.” This statement means that all applications will be reviewed and assessed until a recommendation to the hiring authority is made.

Once the AARP and the job posting have been finalized, submit these two documents along with the Rubric & AFA to RFHR (see Step 1).

Inclusive Search Workshop

All search committee members are required to attend an Inclusive Search Workshop in support of the University’s Strategic Plan.

This 75-minute workshop is mandatory for anyone who serves on a search committee and must be completed before evaluating applicant materials. 

Upon completion of this workshop, participants will be able to: 

• recognize biased thought patterns and/or behaviors that interfere with objective candidate evaluations;
• identify key points within the recruitment process where bias checkpoints should be intentionally applied;
• implement strategies that demonstrate a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion; and
• prepare objective screening tools that mitigate bias and consider inclusive search best practices.
   

Advertise & Promote the Job Posting

Attracting a broad and diverse pool of candidates to compete for the position is an important component of the search process. While paid advertisements are not the only way to search for possible candidates, they are an important element in the recruitment effort.

The advertisement must include responsibilities, qualifications, and experience. The required items for a completed application must be the same on both the Job Posting and the Announcement of the Vacancy. However, to minimize advertisement costs, notices may be shortened to refer candidates to RFHR's Career Opportunities page for the complete vacancy notice. 

In addition to paid advertisements, other affirmative action efforts and recruitment strategies include but are not limited to the following:

• Professional Associations, Listservs and conferences
• Social Media platforms, including LinkedIn and Twitter
• Posting of notices at local, regional, and national meetings and conferences
• Letters to graduate schools in the discipline for the type of position being advertised
• Contact qualified people who have written letters of application in the past year
• Outreach to other colleges and universities

Diversity Recruitment Resources are available to support attracting and recruiting candidates from underrepresented groups. The Division of Inclusive Excellence is also an important resource for best practices in creating diverse pools of applicants.

All search committees utilize a rubric as an applicant screening tool to evaluate the application materials objectively, negate bias, and select candidates for first-round interviews.

Note: The applicant rubric should be created by the hiring authority and/or a designee at the same time as the job posting is created and submitted to Workforce Planning. If it was not, then it must be created and submitted to the Division of Inclusive Excellence for review and approval before applicant review can begin.

The Rubric & AFA should list all the measurable qualifications of the job posting. Other qualifications such as soft skills are assessed during interviews. Applicants need to meet the listed required qualifications to warrant an interview.

Once created, the Inclusive Excellence Representative should submit the Rubric & AFA to the Division of Inclusive Excellence for review and approval prior to evaluating applicants.

As a condition of receiving federal contracts and to comply with federal laws and procedures, the University at Albany collects data and maintains an affirmative action plan. The University is required to collect and report non-identifying information on covered veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Midway through the posting period (i.e., day 15 of a 30-day posting) and prior to reviewing applications, the Inclusive Excellence Representative will email the Division of Inclusive Excellence at [email protected] requesting the applicant pool snapshot called the EEOC Data Report.

This snapshot contains a summary of the diversity of the applicant pool as a result of the advertising and recruitment efforts outlined in the AARP.  The Inclusive Excellence Representative will share this with the search committee.

It is important that this report is requested and reviewed by the Search Committee prior to reviewing applicants’ resumes to ensure that the recruitment plan strategy results in an inclusive and diverse applicant pool.

At this point in the search process, if the applicant pool is not deemed to be adequately diverse, the Division of Inclusive Excellence will work with each search to identify additional sources to advertise to target diverse populations.

The Search Committee Chair is responsible for communicating with applicants throughout the search process using Interview Exchange.

An acknowledgement of application letter could be sent to each applicant, and a follow-up letter should be sent to applicants with incomplete files. The follow-up letter should refer to the job posting application instructions section indicating the required application documents.

Templates for communicating with applicants are available in Interview Exchange.
 

Confidentiality

All searches must be conducted in a manner that best protects the privacy of the applicants. Access to files is limited to search committee members. 

Colleagues, hiring authorities and other interviewers participating in second-round interviews will have access to the files of finalists. 

Strict confidentiality must be maintained as candidates assume that their candidacy is held in confidence. Do not break this confidence. Likewise, do not break the confidence of your colleagues by discussing privileged remarks and interview outcome assessments.

Each search committee member is expected to review and evaluate all applicants utilizing their approved Rubric & AFA. Applicants need to meet the listed measurable qualifications of the job posting to warrant an interview.  Other qualifications such as soft skills can be assessed during an interview.

Applications must be treated as confidential and only search committee members should have access to applications at this stage.

For any applicant not selected for a first-round interview, an appropriate employment non-select code should be indicated on the Rubric & AFA.

The Division of Inclusive Excellence does not set a requirement on how many applicants need to be selected for an interview.

Once all applicants have been evaluated, a request for first-round interviews should be submitted by the Inclusive Excellence Representative to the Division of Inclusive Excellence along with:

• the completed Rubric_AFA,
• the names of the applicants selected for first-round interviews are in the body of the email, and
• the proposed first-round interview questions that include at least one diversity-related question, as outlined in Step 9.
   

Conflicts of Interest

Cases may occur in which a member of the search committee has a conflict of interest, either personally or professionally, with an applicant. 

These conflicts should be disclosed to the Search Committee Chair and the Division of Inclusive Excellence for the appropriate next steps which may include the search committee member recusing themselves from the search committee or recusing themselves from the evaluation of the applicant.

The Search Committee Chair should propose both sets of interview questions that are related closely to the Job Posting. Each set of questions should be different and include at least one diversity-related question in each set.

It is the responsibility of the Inclusive Excellence Representative to submit the interview questions to the Division of Inclusive Excellence along with the completed Rubric & AFA and the names of the applicants selected for first-round interviews in the body of the email.

Review sample interview questions.

First-round interviews

Once the request for first-round interviews and the proposed first-round interview questions have been approved by the Division of Inclusive Excellence, the Search Committee Chair can send a non-selection letter to all candidates who received employment non-select codes. The Search Committee Chair can then contact all selected candidates to schedule and arrange interviews. All search committee members are required to participate in first-round interviews.

In order to offer a consistent and equitable interview experience, the same interview format (Zoom/Teams, in-person, or phone) should be offered to all candidates. There must also be gender and racial diversity present on the part of the search committee during all interviews. If a search committee member cannot attend an interview, please contact the Division of Inclusive Excellence at [email protected] for direction.

After the candidate accepts the interview request, the Search Committee Chair can send a letter confirming interviews. If a candidate has special needs that necessitate accommodations during the interview process, the candidate should contact the Search Committee Chair and/or the Division of Inclusive Excellence.

After all first-round interviews, the Search Chair will update the First Interview Results tab on the Rubric & AFA with the outcomes of the interviews and any appropriate employment non-select code.

The Inclusive Excellence Representative will submit a request to conduct second-round interviews to the Division of Inclusive Excellence for review and approval along with the following:

• the names of the second-round interview candidates
• the updated Rubric & AFA
• the second-round interview questions from all interviewers listed in the Screening Procedures section of the AARP

Once the Division of Inclusive Excellence has approved the request, the Search Committee Chair can arrange second-round interviews with all interviewers listed in the AARP's Screening Procedures section. The Hiring Authority can decide whether to involve the Search Committee in the second-round interview, outlining this in the AARP.
 

Second-round Interviews

After all second-round interviews, the Search Committee should submit their hiring recommendation to the Hiring Authority, Department Chair, or Dean’s office for final selection.

The Search Committee Chair should update the Second Interview Results tab on the Rubric & AFA with the appropriate employment select code for finalists and employment non-select code for candidates not selected for the position.

A request to extend an offer should be sent to the Division of Inclusive Excellence at [email protected] for review and approval as outlined in Step 11.
 

Contacting References

Contacting candidates' references by telephone is encouraged. A record of all inquiries must be maintained within the candidate’s file. Under the Freedom of Information Act, information received by telephone is available to the applicant upon request.

After all the second-round interviews have been conducted, the Search Committee reconvenes to prepare and submit the final Rubric & AFA along with their candidate recommendations to the hiring authority.

The hiring authority or the Search Committee Chair will then submit a request to extend an offer to the Division of Inclusive Excellence for review and approval along with the following:

• The updated and final Rubric & AFA
• A summary of the strengths and weaknesses of all the second-round interview candidates
• The name of the selected candidate and any alternate

Only after the Division of Inclusive Excellence has reviewed and granted approval can the hiring authority extend an offer to the candidate.

Once an offer is accepted and the candidate has signed an appointment letter, the hiring authority should review the RFHR’s Recruit & Hire Employees webpage to finalize the appointment.

This transaction activates the personnel record for the new hire and is critical for initiating many campus services, such as Net ID and UAlbany ID card.

A post-interview regret letter should be sent through Interview Exchange to all other finalists who were not offered the position.

All search file information should remain in the hiring unit office for three years from the end of the search.

It is the responsibility of the hiring authority to give the committee a charge as to what type of qualifications and skills are needed to fill the open position.  The charge given by leadership is vital to the success of the search committee.

Hiring Authority's general responsibilities:

• Obtain authorization to begin the search
• Author the job posting
• Fund-paid job advertisements
• Establish a search committee of five employees, with one person as the Search Chair and a different person as the Inclusive Excellence Representative
• Give the search committee charge and detail the skills, qualifications, and job posting
• Interview finalists
• Contact finalists' references
• Extend an offer to the selected candidate and complete all hiring proposal instructions (For additional information, please review RFHR’s Recruit & Hire Employees webpage.)

It is the responsibility of each search committee member, with the support of the Division of Inclusive Excellence, to ensure equal access to opportunities without regard to an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, or criminal conviction.  

Member's general responsibilities:

• Complete self-demographic data on the Affirmative Action Recruitment Plan (AARP) form
• Contribute recruitment resources to the Search Chair
• Evaluate all applicant materials
• Interview all selected candidates
• Contribute to the interview outcome assessment of candidates

When a hiring authority appoints a search committee, they must designate one member of the committee as the Division of Inclusive Excellence Representative hereafter called the Inclusive Excellence Representative. 

The Inclusive Excellence Representative has the same duties as a member with additional responsibilities serving as a liaison to the Division of Inclusive Excellence. The purpose of this role is to have one person on each search committee ensure that the goals of an inclusive search are met, including ensuring the position is widely advertised and the search committee does not unconsciously engage in discriminatory practices. While this person should not be the Search Committee Chair, they do not need to identify as a female or a person of color.

Inclusive Excellence Representative's general responsibilities:

• Communicate with the Division of Inclusive Excellence throughout the search process, asking for advice and assistance as necessary to ensure a diversified pool of applicants and adherence to all related University policies and NYS laws
• Assist the Search Committee Chair with the compilation of screening tools, data, and materials
• Submit all supporting documentation for approval including:
  • Rubric & Applicant Flow Analysis (AFA)
  • Proposed interview questions, including at least one diversity-related question
  • First-round interview request
  • Second-round interview request
• Midway through the posting period (i.e., day 15 of a 30-day posting) and before reviewing applications, request from the Division of Inclusive Excellence the applicant pool snapshot to verify the search has yielded a diverse applicant pool or if some additional interventions are needed
• Ensure that all candidates selected for an interview are asked and receive the same questions from all interviewers
• Monitor the post-interview discussion and assessment of candidates by the search committee

One member of the Search Committee will serve as Search Committee Chair and assume ultimate responsibility for moving the search process forward. The Search Committee Chair will perform all member duties as well as some additional responsibilities.

Search Committee Chair's general responsibilities:

• Oversee the entire search process, committee, and meetings
• Ensure the Affirmative Action Recruitment Plan (AARP) form is complete, and update it as necessary
• Ensure the position is widely advertised and the search committee does not unconsciously engage in discriminatory practices
• Facilitate the creation of the search methodology tools including:
  • Rubric & Applicant Flow Analysis (AFA)
  • Proposed interview questions, including at least one diversity-related question
  • Communicate with all applicants using Interview Exchange throughout the process