"Choose the best person for the job" is a mantra that so many people espouse, but we never have a repeatable, logical method for determining who the best person is, in any industry."

It is not that black and white, excuse my pun. When your company comes under hiring quotas, then this becomes a little tougher to do. I have always tried to choose the best and most qualified person for the job in the past, but when we must have a certain amount of minorities and women represented in the department and that is being dictated by HR, then this becomes a lot more difficult to do. I am not saying that the most qualified or best person can't fit into that category, all I am saying is the primary emphasis for many companies is not always on the best qualified person. It is on other criteria for many other reasons that have nothing to do with that managers specific needs. 😀