REC 375—Leadership and

Management of Parks and

Recreation Services
Jim Herstine, Ph.D., CPRP
Assistant Professor
Parks and Recreation Management
UNC-Wilmington
 Human Resources
Management
REC 375—Leadership and Management of
Parks and Recreation Services
Human Resources Management
 Planning, attracting, developing, and
retaining employees
Human Resources Management
 People are the most important resource in
any service organization!!!!!!
 The finest equipment, supplies, areas, and
facilities will mean little if competent,
dedicated and skilled personnel in
sufficient numbers are not available
 Effective Human Resources
Management is a Blend of 2
Distinct Competencies

1. Ability to lead and inspire—motivation

techniques and leadership styles
2. Knowledge of the mechanics of
administration
 Knowledge of the Mechanics of
Administration
 Job analysis
 Job description/Job specifications
 Recruitment, selection and hiring
 Training and development
 Retaining Employees
 Performance appraisal/employee
evaluation
 Job Analysis
 The process of determining what the position
entails and the qualifications needed to staff the
position
 The systematic, ongoing process of describing
the work tasks that comprise a job and the
knowledge, skills, abilities, and other
characteristics that enable an individual to
perform those tasks
 Job Analysis is the basis for the Job
Description and the Job Specifications
Steps in the Job Analysis Process
1. Select jobs for analysis
2. Prepare for job analysis
3. Determine what information to collect
4. Collect information
5. Process information
6. Write or revise job descriptions and
specifications
 Collect Information
 Observation
 Interviews
 Questionnaires
 Job incumbent diary/log
 Job Description
 Identifies the tasks and responsibilities
of a position/job
 Focuses on describing the position/job as
it is currently being performed
 Job Description, continued
 Job title (department and pay grade)
 Supervision (lines of authority)
 Location
 Tasks, duties, activities, etc.
 Performance standards
 Working conditions
 Tools, equipment, materials, etc.
 Job Specifications
 Identify the qualifications needed to staff a
position—identify the types of people needed
 Focuses on the employee characteristics
necessary to perform a job—referred to as
KSAOs (Knowledge, Skill, Ability, Other)
 Education
 Certifications
 Experience
 Competencies and special skills
 Job Specifications, continued
 Skills and ability
 Credentials
 Training
 Experience
 Personal qualities
 Physical effort
 Sensory demands
Job Description Examples
 Job Description Assignment
 Obtain a recent Job Description from a
leisure service organization
 Evaluate the Job Description to see if it is
acceptable—covers what it should cover
and covers it well
 Point Value—10 points
 Due Date—Tuesday, April 8th
 Recruitment
 Most employee relations problems are
caused by hiring wrong people for the job
 Most poor employees are not bad people,
they are just in the wrong job!
 Recruitment, continued
 “People don’t quit companies, they quit people”
 A whopping 67% of us are unhappy in our work
 Why? Employers keep putting the wrong people
in the wrong jobs!
 Many organizations hire staff based on an
outdated notion that all employees must fit a
catch-all ideal
*Jim Sirbasku—Chief Executive of Profiles International
 Recruitment, continued
 For years, organizations have tried to hire
the “best and the brightest”, but very few
jobs actually require the talents of the
“best and the brightest”

*Jim Sirbasku, Chief Executive of Profiles International

 Recruitment, continued
 The process of attracting qualified candidates to
apply for job openings
 Process used to locate the most qualified and
best suited candidates for the position and to
interest them in applying for the position
 Goal is to obtain a sufficient pool of job
applicants who meet or exceed the advertised
job qualifications
 Recruitment, continued
 Internal recruiting  External recruiting
 Promote within  Walk-ins
 Employee referrals  Educational
 Previous applicants institutions
 Advertising
 Agencies
 Referrals from
colleagues
 Competitors
 Recruitment, continued
 Advertising
 National
 Regional
 State
 Local
 What determines the extent of the search?
 Type of position
 Candidate pool available
 Available time
 Available money
 Advertising—Small Group
Exercise
 Prepare a newspaper advertisement for a
position with a leisure service organization
 The advertisement should tell the potential
candidate what the position is all about;
duties and responsibilities of the position;
specifications for the position; how to
apply; and, when to apply
 It should make me want to apply!!!!!
 Advertising Example
 Activities Director—The Royal Princess Cruise line is currently
recruiting for a full-time Activities Director aboard our newest
Caribbean cruise ship. Applicants must possess a bachelors
degree in Parks and Recreation or a related field and have a
minimum of 2 years experience in recreation programming.
Responsibilities include developing and coordinating all recreational
activities and supervision of 10 employees. This is a great
opportunity to use creative skills, work for a progressive company,
and, earn a respectable income while traveling the Caribbean. If
you enjoy working with the public, organizing and directing a
spectacular vacation retreat, this is the position for you. Please
send your resume and three letters of reference to “The Royal
Princess Cruise Line, P.O. Box 1234, Miami, Florida 28488.
Application deadline is August 1, 2002
 Advertising Example
 JOIN THE TEAM—Wilmington Rehabilitation is looking for
an enthusiastic CTRS to work in our state of the art facility.
A BA or BS degree from an accredited curriculum is required
in therapeutic recreation or a related field. The applicant
must possess state and national certifications. A minimum of
2 years of experience in TR work is required. GREAT
BENEFITS! GREAT LOCATION!!! Mail your letter of
interest to Wilmington Rehabilitation, Human Resources
Department, P.O. Box 28697, Wilmington, NC 28403.
Application deadline is August 1, 2002
 Advertising Example
RECREATION PROGRAM SUPERVISOR
The Town of Wrightsville Beach is seeking a progressive individual to
serve as its Recreation Program Supervisor. Located on the beautiful
coast of the Atlantic Ocean, this growing community operates under a
municipal form of government. The successful candidate will possess
public relations and organizational skills, knowledge of recreational
activities and programming, employee management, and the ability to
work effectively with a diverse organization and community. Any
combination of education and experience equivalent to a degree to a
4year degree in Recreation Administration or closely related field and
considerable professional and supervisory experience is required.
Send resume to John Doe, Human Resource Division, P.O. Box 123,
Wrightsville Beach, NC, 28487. All resumes must be received by
August 1, 2002.
 Advertising Example

Handout—
Recreation Program
Supervisor
 Selection
 The process of choosing the most
qualified and best suited applicant
recruited for a job
 Selection is a comparison process and
criteria must be in place that allow for a
fair and complete comparison of
applicants
 The Selection Process
1. Application Form
2. Screening Interview (telephone)
3. Testing
4. Background and Reference Checks
5. Interviewing
6. Hiring
 Testing
 Achievement tests
 Aptitude tests
 Personality tests
 Interest tests
 Physical exams
 Assessment Center
 Assessment Tests
 Assessment Centers
 Places where job applicants undergo a
series of tests, interviews, and simulated
experiences to determine their potential
 Assessment Tests
 Developed by Psychologists and measure
areas such as:
 Occupational interest
 Cognitive ability
 Personality
 Ambition and determination
 Measure a combination of ability, interest
and personality
 Assessment Tests, continued
 Results from assessment tests do not
choose candidates for jobs, that decision
remains with the organization in question
 However, the information gleaned helps
build a more accurate picture of each
person being considered
 Assessment Tests, continued
 Bud Haney, President of Profiles International
states, “Unlike the interview process, candidates
can’t cheat in assessment tests for one simple
reason. They don’t know what answers the test
is looking for. Apart from assessing the
candidate, the assessment test could be making
sure that the candidate fits in with the corporate
culture. The candidate could be a destructive
influence to the organization even though they
have the requisite skills to get the job done.”
 Background and Reference
Checks
 Organizations should prevent poor hiring
decisions and negligent hiring liability by
instituting a reference checking system to
verify the information on a candidate’s
application form and/or resume
 It has been estimated that up to one-half
of all applications contain false or
erroneous material
 Interviews
 CAUTION!!!! In an interview, someone can be
anything they want to be at any time!!!
 They know the job they are applying for, so they
probably know what the interviewer wants to
hear!!!
 Typically, most decisions about a candidate
have been made within 4.3 minutes of an
interview starting!!!
 Interviews, continued
 Studies have shown that only 14% of
candidates chosen purely by interview
perform well on the job!!!
 This number increases to 26% if the
candidate can pass a background check
 The success rate rises to 38% when
personality assessments are also used
 Interviews, continued
 Adding an abilities test to the mix brings
the chance of hiring the right person to
54%
 Measuring a candidate’s overall interests
as part of the selection process increased
the score to 66%
*Profiles International
 Interviewing
 Structured interview—a list of prepared
questions to ask all applicants
 Unstructured interview—no pre-planned
questions or sequence of topics
 Semi-structured interview—a list of
prepared questions to ask, but the
interviewer also asks unplanned questions
 Interviewing, continued
 Review the Job Description and Job
Specifications
 Plan your realistic Job Preview
 Prepare for the interview
 Conduct the interview
 Conducting the Interview
 NEVER INTERVIEW ALONE!!!!!
 Open the interview
 Give your realistic job preview
 Ask your questions
 Close the interview
 Interview Questions
 BFOQ—all questions must be based upon
a bona fide occupational qualification
 A bona fide occupational qualification
allows discrimination where it is
reasonably necessary to normal operation
of a particular organization
 www.eeoc.gov/facts/age.html
 www.eeoc.gov/facts/qanda.html
 Allowable Questions
 Are you authorized to work for any
employer without restriction?
 Will you now or in the near future require
visa sponsorship?
 Illegal Questions
 Are you a U.S. citizen?
 Do you have a “green card”?
 What country are you from?
 Do you intend to stay in the U.S.?
 Discrimination
 For people with unrestricted work authorization,
employer cannot refuse to hire based on:
 Race
 National origin
 Sex
 Age
 Religion
 Disability
 Ways to Improve Your
Interviewing Effectiveness
 Keep in mind the objectives of the
selection interview is to find the right
job/person fit
 Let the candidate do most of the talking
 Listen actively
 Allow silence
 Treat each candidate as an individual
 Don’t let feelings interfere with judgment
 Problems to Avoid in Selecting
 Rushing
 Stereotyping
 “Like Me” Syndrome
 Halo and Horn Effect
 Premature Selection
 Hiring
 HIRE THE “BEST SUITED” INDIVIDUAL
 Make the individual an offer they can’t refuse
 Best Suited may not be the most qualified
applicant
 Training and Development
 Is a means to an end
 Includes Orientation Training and In-Service
Training
 Training and development of new employees
begins with the orientation process
 Orientation is the process of introducing new
employees to the organization and their jobs
 Benefits of Orientation Training
 Reduced time to get the employee to
perform to standard levels
 Reduced anxiety about doing a good job
and getting along with peers
 Accurate perceptions of what is expected
of the employee
 Orientation Training, continued
 Employees tend to stay on the job longer
(reduced turnover) and have improved
attitudes and performance when they go
through orientation
 Training and Development
 Training—the process of acquiring the
skills necessary to perform a job
 Development—the ongoing education to
improve skills for present and future jobs
 Benefits of Training &
Development
 Reduced costs  Improved delivery of
 Reduced losses services
 Increased  Minimizes wasted
performance human energy,
 Increased efficiency materials and
supplies
 Increased
effectiveness
 A positive force!
 In-Service Training
 New Technology
 Reinforcement
 Expansion
 Development
 Retaining Employees
 Compensation
 Salary and Wages
 Benefits Package
 Health and Safety
 Employee/Employer Relations
 Discipline Today—A Positive
Approach
 Myths
 Discipline is a form of punishment
 If you’re nice to your employees, you won’t
have to discipline
 Being the boss means people have to listen
to you
 Every discipline situation must be handled in
the same way
 Discipline Today—A Positive
Approach, continued
 Discipline is a way to help people change
themselves
 Close the “Gap” between your
expectations and the employees behavior
 Help employees correct undesirable
behavior
 Discipline Today—A Positive
Approach, continued

VIDEO: “Discipline Today—

A Positive Approach”
Performance Appraisal/Employee
Evaluation
 Performance appraisal is the ongoing
process of evaluating employee
performance—how well is the employee
doing the job?
 Managers should use performance
appraisals to develop employee job
performance
Performance Appraisal/Employee
Evaluation
 Supervisors hate to give them and workers hate
to get them
 One of the manager’s most important, yet most
difficult functions and is becoming even more
demanding
 Handled properly, it can increase productivity,
motivation, and morale and decrease
absenteeism and turnover
 Handled poorly, it can decrease performance
Performance Appraisal/Employee
Evaluation
 Most employees want their supervisor to
give them constructive feedback about
their performance
 Feedback allows employees to determine
their progress, helps them correct
deficiencies, and helps them find ways to
improve their job performance
 Types of Performance Appraisal
 Developmental Performance Appraisal
 Used to make decisions and plans for
performance improvements
 Evaluative Performance Appraisal
 Used to make administrative decisions
including pay raises, transfers and
promotions, and demotions and terminations
 Key Principles
 Maintain or Enhance Self-Esteem
 Listen and Respond with Empathy
 Ask for Help in Solving any Problems or
Concerns
 Improving Employee
Performance
 Describe the problem in a friendly manner
 Ask for the employee’s help in solving the
problem
 Discuss the causes of the problem
 Identify and write down possible solutions
 Decide on a specific action to be taken by
each of you
 Agree on a follow-up date
 Improving Work Habits
 Describe in detail the poor work habit
 Indicate why it concerns you
 Ask for reasons and listen openly to the
explanation
 Indicate that the situation must be changed and
ask for ideas for solving the problem
 Discuss each idea and offer your help
 Agree on a specific action to be taken and set a
specific follow-up date
 Utilizing Effective Follow-up
Action
 Review the previous discussions
 Indicate insufficient improvement and ask the
employee for reasons
 Discuss possible solutions to the problem
 Indicate the consequences of continued lack of
improvement
 Agree on action to be taken and a follow-up date
 Indicate your confidence in the employee
 Utilizing Effective Disciplinary
Action
 Describe the situation and review previous
discussions
 Ask for reasons for the situation
 Listen and respond with empathy
 Indicate what action you must take and why
 Agree on a specific action and follow-up date
 Indicate your confidence in the employee
 Performance Appraisal
and Coaching

VIDEO—”Performance Appraisal
and Coaching”
 Human Resources
Management
Jim Herstine, Ph.D., CPRP
UNCW
herstinej@uncw.edu
910.962.3283