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Finance and Support Services Division
Office of Human Resources

Hiring Matrix User Guide

The hiring matrix is a tool designed to objectively and accurately assess applicants' qualifications based only on job-related criteria to ensure hiring decisions are fair and equitable. The hiring manager must complete a hiring matrix indicating which knowledge, skills, and abilities each applicant needs to be considered qualified for the position.

Hiring Matrix Template

The hiring matrix template can be found on the Recruiting and Hiring section of the Manager's Toolkit located on the Talent Acquisition website. This tool is a living document that may be updated or revised at any time. Hiring managers may use this template when screening applications to ensure all required data is included. It is highly encouraged that matrices be submitted in this Excel spreadsheet format as this tool was developed with the intent to arrange, organize, calculate, and display justification for selection or no selection of candidates as needed. The steps to complete the hiring matrix are as follows:

Step 1.

After downloading the template, begin filling out the hiring matrix by entering the job title and job number at the top of the matrix. 

Step 2.

Use the blank column headers to list the required qualifications and preferred qualifications. Only qualifications that are listed on the job posting can be used on the matrix. In the "Assigned Weight" row below the qualifications, indicate how much each qualification is worth. This weight will be multiplied by the raw qualification score to determine the total matrix scores. Weights, however, are not required. You may choose to simply use a scoring range (1-5, 1-10, etc.) or a pass/fail (0/1) scoring system with no weights.

If you have questions about weights or the scoring system possibilities, please contact talent@txstate.edu.

Step 3.

Enter the names of all applicants, even those who have withdrawn or submitted incomplete applications. You are not required to evaluate these applicants, though you need to indicate on the matrix why they were not scored, e.g. withdrawn or incomplete application. You can do this in the 'Notes' column on the far right of the matrix. 

Step 4.

Applicants must only be evaluated based on the information provided as part of the employment application, resume, cove letter, and additional documentation required in the job posting. 

Step 5.

If any applicants qualify for Veteran's Preference, mark this in the "Veteran's Preference Verified" column.

Step 6.

When scoring applicants on the matrix, each column should indicate whether the applicant meets the specified qualification. If qualified for the given criteria, score the candidate with a 1 or higher, depending on the scoring range. If not qualified for the given criteria, score the candidate with a 0 or an 'X'. 

  • Once you reach a required qualification that is not met, you do not have to continue scoring the applicant further
  • For applicants who are missing at least one required qualification, mark them with an 'X' in the "Does Not Meet Required Qualifications" column.

*Please note that having a low matrix score is not equivalent to not being minimally qualified. 

Step 7.

After screening each applicant, calculate the applicant's required, preferred, and total scores to determine the top candidates for an interview. Only applicants that meet the minimum requirements should be interviewed.

*Note that the university requires at least three candidates be interviewed. If you do not have three minimally qualified candidates in the pool to interview please email talent@txstate.edu to request permission to move forward interviewing fewer than three applicants for the position. Please attach the hiring matrix to your request.

Step 8.

If you have minimally qualified candidates who qualify for Veteran's Preference, at least one must be interviewed. If interviewing more than 6 candidates, at least 20% of your interviewees should be qualified veterans (if you have enough qualified veterans in the pool to meet this requirement). 

For more information on Veteran's Preference, click here. 

Step 9.

Once interviews conclude and the interview scores have been entered, the top-scoring candidate should be recommended for hire.

Step 10.

Upload the hiring matrix to the hiring proposal. For detailed instructions on creating and submitting a hiring proposal, click here or find the full user guide on our User Guide Page.

 

During the review, we will ensure that:

  • All applicants (even those who have withdrawn or submitted incomplete applications) are listed on the matrix.
  • All protected veterans are marked on the matrix and if there are any who are minimally qualified that at least one was given an interview
  • The required and preferred qualifications listed match the job posting (no qualifications are missing that were listed on the posting and no qualifications are listed that were not in the posting)
  • For those candidates who are marked on the matrix as "Does Not Meet Required Qualifications," at least one qualification is marked on the matrix as not met.
  • If candidates remove themselves (withdraw their application, decline an interview, decline the job offer, etc.), indicate in the 'Notes' column that they have withdrawn 
  • For copy pools: note on the matrix the job posting numbers for which each candidate is being recommended for hire 

Some Final Notes on How the Matrix Corresponds to Applicant Statuses

  1. Applicant statuses (Not Hired, Interviewed - Not Hired, Recommended for Hire, Alternate) should reflect the data on the matrix. These applicant statuses must be coded appropriately to reflect the hiring manager's decisions regarding each specific candidate to ensure that our applicant data is as correct and complete as possible for reporting purposes.
    *Note: for detailed instructions on screening and updating applicant statuses in PeopleAdmin, please refer to our Applicant Screening and Creating a Hiring Proposal User Guide
  2. If an applicant's status in PeopleAdmin is "Not Hired - Does Not Meet Required Qualifications," the hiring matrix should clearly document which qualification(s) they are missing. 
  3. For applicants that meet the minimum requirements but are not selected for an interview, their status should be updated to "Not Hired - Met Required Qualifications, but Low Matrix Score." 
  4. All applicants who were interviewed but not selected for hire or as an alternate should be moved to "Interviewed - Not Hired" status with a reason for non-selection chosen from the drop-down menu. 
  5. For candidates who are deemed as acceptable alternates, they should be moved to "Alternate" with the appropriate rank selected. For example, the candidate with the second highest matrix score would be the first alternate. 
  6. For the applicant recommended for hire, their PeopleAdmin status should be "Recommended for Hire" with a brief reason for their selection.
    *Note: you may only have one candidate recommended for hire from the applicant pool.