There’s clear distinction between required and preferred qualifications

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Any qualified and experienced Human Resource Management professional will know that it is not unusual to classify job qualifications under separate headings of “required qualifications” and “preferred qualifications”. This distinction is often stated in the job description/specification and the information that is disseminated as part of the recruitment process.

Required qualifications typically focus on the minimum level of job knowledge, including education, experience, skills, and abilities that are essential to be successful in the job.

Preferred qualifications are those that are desirable (nice to have) but are not considered essential for the execution of the day-to-day functions of the job.

Apropos of the above, and considering the continuing arguments over the appointment of Dennis Chung as chief technical director in the Financial Investigations Division (FID), it might be helpful to know the answers to the following questions:

In which of the two categories of qualifications stated above do the missing components of Mr Chung’s qualifications properly belong?

Were there any critical deficiencies observed in the performance of Mr Chung’s predecessors that could be attributed to the absence of forensic knowledge/experience on the part of the incumbents who lacked these credentials, that would demand making them compulsory requirements?

The best measure of any idea is always in its application.

DERVAL GRAHAM