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Recruitment and Selection

Recruitment and selection is basically about finding the right person (in terms of skills, disposition and motivation) for the job. Choosing incorrect staff can result in:
Poor quality work Poor morale High staff turnover Wasted time and money in recruiting more staff

Getting it wrong
Productivity shortfall Reduced the quality of product or services High staff turnover Low morale Loss of revenues and customers High costs (cost of getting it right, costs of dismissal) Loss of strategic direction and market credibility

Getting it right
Sustained teamwork Stable workforce and management Seamless progression Better morale Increased performance Customer satisfaction Strategic goals achieved

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Definitions
Recruitment:
Process of establishing that vacancies exist and communicating these vacancies to an appropriate pool of candidates.

Responsibility for recruitment and selection

The recruitment process involves personnel specialists and line managers, sometimes with the help of recruitment consultants.
Senior managers The human resources department Line managers Recruitment consultants

Selection:
Process of filtering candidates in order to select the individual best suited to a particular vacancy.

Senior managers
Recruiting people for senior positions For other positions, recruitment is delegated to HRD Responsible for HRP, by identifying overall skills required for the organization and the types of candidates they wish to be part of the workforce Usually have the final say in the recruitment process

The Human Resources Department

Assessing needs for human resources (HR planning) Maintaining records of people employed Keeping in touch with trends in the labor market Advertising for new employees Ensuring the organisation complies with equal opportunities and other legislation Designing application forms Liaising with recruitment consultants Preliminary interviews and selection testing

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Line managers
In small businesses line managers will recruit the staffs they require In big organizations:
Asking for more human resources: notifying vacancies or issuing a job requisition Advising on skill requirements and attributes required Selection interviewing (perhaps collaborating with HR specialists) Having a final say in the selection decision

Recruitment consultants
Helping to draw up, or offering advice on, job descriptions, person specifications and other recruitment and selection aids Designing job advertisements Screening applications Helping with short-listing for interview Advising on, or conducting, first-round interviews Offering a list of suitable candidates with notes and recommendations

Factors in the outsourcing decision

Cost Specialist knowledge and contacts Expertise available within the organisation Impartiality Time, Views of staffs regarding in-house or outsource, Organization culture, and Supply of labor

Steps in Recruitment and Selection Process

The recruitment and selection process is a series of hurdles aimed at selecting the best candidate for the job.

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If the job already exists then it will be important to start with a job analysis If the job requires getting specific tasks done then again a job analysis would be a sensible place to start If the role of the job is likely to change then a person specification may be more appropriate

Key stages (Recruitment)

Detailed human resource planning (Gap analysis, if the job does not already exist) Identify vacancies Make decision to recruit Job analysis: Job description or person specification Advertise

Job analysis
The process of collecting and analyzing information about the content of the existing job and will be relevant when the organization is looking for someone with particular skills and experience and/or when the job involves the completion of specific tasks. From the job analysis, the organization can prepare a job description.

Stages in job analysis

Stage 1: Obtain all the relevant documentation. Stage 2: Ask managers about the purpose and more general aspects of the job, its main activities and the responsibilities involved. Stage 3: Ask the jobholders the same questions Stage 4: Observe the jobholders at work. Stage 5: Correlate information and cross check Stage 6: Prepare job description

Person specification
Describes the sort of person suitable for the job. It specifies the education, qualifications, training, experience and personal attributes required to perform the job to the required standard.

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Writing Job Descriptions

Job
Generally defined as a set of closely related activities carried out for pay.

A job description
A written statement of what the worker actually does, how he or she does it, and what the jobs working conditions are.

Sections of a typical job description

Job title To whom the job holder reports Primary objective or overview main purpose of the job Key tasks How the responsibilities are carried out Employment terms and conditions Working conditions Extent of responsibility

Person Specification
Job title Sections of job description Wages / Salaries

Rogers gives a list of 7 qualities that might be important:

Physical make-up: Strength, appearance, health Attainments: Qualifications, career achievements General intelligence: Average, above average Special aptitudes: Skills, mental sharpness Interests: Outside the work, people-related Disposition (attitude): Calm, independent Circumstances: Location, car owner, family

Purpose of job

Principal duties

Position of the job in relation to others in company

Key difficulties in job

Working conditions Physical environment

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Frasers Five Point Grading

Impact on others appearance, demeanor (conduct), speech Acquired knowledge/qualifications Innate abilities (e.g. mental agility) Motivation Flexibility and adjustment emotional stability, tolerance.

Matching

Ineffective recruitment
Main reasons include:
Poor human resource planning, inadequate job analysis, job description, personnel specification Inappropriate job advertising Failure to obtain all necessary documentation Poor short listing of candidates Inadequate selection procedures and poor interview technique Failure to follow up from interview Failure to meet the promises made in interview Failure to ensure a correct culture fit

Recruitment Methods
1. 2. 3. 4. Internal Using existing contacts External contacts Advertising/media

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Recruit or Promote?
There are several alternatives to external recruitment:
Promotion of existing staffs Secondment of existing staffs Closing the job down, by sharing out duties and responsibilities among existing staffs Rotating jobs among staffs

Factors to be considered
Availability in the current staff of the skills and attributes required to fill the vacancy Availability in the external labor pool of the skills and attributes required Accuracy of selection decisions Time for induction Staff development (succession planning) Fresh blood

Finding Internal Candidates

Job posting
Publicizing an open job to employees (often by literally posting it on bulletin boards) and listing its attributes.

Succession planning
The process of ensuring a suitable supply of successors for current and future senior or key jobs.

Rehiring former employees

Advantages:
They are known quantities. They know the firm and its culture.

Succession planning steps:

Identifying and analyzing key jobs. Creating and assessing candidates. Selecting those who will fill the key positions.

Disadvantages:
They may have less-than positive attitudes. Rehiring may sent the wrong message to current employees about how to get ahead.

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Internal Sources of Candidates: Hiring from Within

Advantages
Foreknowledge of candidates strengths and weaknesses More accurate view of candidates skills Candidates have a stronger commitment to the company Increases employee morale Less training and orientation required

Outside Sources of Candidates

Advertising
The Media: selection of the best medium depends on the positions for which the firm is recruiting.
Press (local and National) Trade and professional journals: ACCA student news letter Internet job sites - large pool of candidates Marketing programs

Disadvantages
Failed applicants become discontented and get jealous Time wasted interviewing inside candidates who will not be considered Must fill the position vacated by the promoted employee Lack of new ideas and creativity that may come from a new person

Constructing an effective ad
Wording related to job interest factors should evoke the applicants attention, interest, desire, and action (AIDA) and create a positive impression of the firm.

Choosing an advertising media

Type of organization Type of job Geographic coverage of the medium Readership and circulation Cost of medium Frequency and duration

Job advertisements normally contain the following:

Job description Brief overview of the organisation Rewards Person specification Contact information Application process

The selection of a media depend on the type of organisation, the type of job, the cost of advertising, readership and circulation and frequency.

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Executive recruiters (headhunters)

Special employment agencies retained by employers to seek out top-management talent for their clients.
Contingent-based recruiters collect a fee for their services when a successful hire is completed. Retained executive searchers are paid regardless of the outcome of the recruitment process.

Advantages of using a recruitment consultant

Less time consuming and distracting for management Faster as screens applicants and provides organisation with a shortlist Access to all people on recruitment agencys books Expertise Objective (outside) perspective

Internet technology and specialization trends are changing how candidates are attracted and how searches are conducted.

Disadvantages of using a recruitment consultant

Less knowledge about the organisation than internal staff May recommend unsuitable people just to try and achieve own targets Expensive Outside decision making may be resented

College recruiting
Recruiting goals
To determine if the candidate is worthy of further consideration To attract good candidates

On-site visits
Invitation letters Assigned hosts Information package Planned interviews Timely employment offer Follow-up

Internships

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Employee referrals
Applicants who are referred to the organization by current employees
Referring employees become stakeholders. Referral is a cost-effective recruitment program. Referral can speed up diversifying the workforce

Sourcing External Applicants

Advantages New blood Insights from competitors Cheaper than training Disadvantages Orientation time Morale of internals May not fit-in

Walk-ins
Direct applicants who seek employment with or without encouragement from other sources. Courteous treatment of any applicant is a good business practice.

Key stages (Selection)

CVs reviewed Interviews / Assessment centers carried out Selection of candidate Offer letter to candidate (Notifying applicants) Induction.

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Key Questions
Is there a need for this job? What does the job involve? What kind of person do we need? How do we get that person? How do we make them welcome?

Employee Testing and Selection

SYSTEMATIC APPROACH

Employee Testing and Selection

Employee testing and selection is the use of various tools and techniques to select the best candidates for the job. These tools cover the selection process, basic testing techniques, background and reference checks, ethical and legal questions in testing, types of tests, and work samples and simulations.

Why Careful Selection Is Important

HR managers performance depends on the performance of subordinates The cost to recruit and hire is high Legal implications of incompetent hiring are costly and can result in negligent hiring litigation

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Selection Approach
Assess each application against key criteria in the job advertisement. Categories applicants (based on their CVs or application forms) according to their suitability. Consider:
availability (e.g. now or 6 months) reasons for gaps in employment record education (e.g. subject/class of degree, school examination record)

Selection Tools
Application forms/CVs Interviews: individual, panel Selection tests : Intelligence, aptitude, personality, proficiency, medical etc Assessment centres Reference checking: job or character references Work sampling: Trial periods, exercises

Short list the candidates for interview Invite candidates for interview

Application forms
Usual contents include:
Personal information Education Trade/Professional qualifications Employment history Interests Other information Referees Confirmation

Interviews
Still the principle way of selection an interview is a conversation with purpose The objectives are:
Find out whether candidate is suitable for the task Find out whether task is suitable for the candidate Make the candidate feel that they have been given fair treatment in the interview

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Interview should be focused on:

Evidence on the applicants ability to do the job Evidence on the applicants motivation in applying the job Provision of information about the organization, the job and the terms and conditions of employment on which the applicant might be engaged

Before the interview

Candidates should be given detailed time, location and the date of the interview The setting of the interview should be comfortable Review the CV, Job description and person specification before hand

Examples of Questions That Provide Structure

How to Conduct an Effective Interview

Structure your interview:
1. Base questions on actual job duties. 2. Use job knowledge, situational, or behaviorally oriented questions and objective criteria to evaluate the interviewees responses. 3. Train interviewers. 4. Use the same questions with all candidates. 5. Use descriptive rating scales (excellent, fair, poor) to rate answers. 6. Use multiple interviewers or panel interviews. 7. If possible, use a standardized interview form. 8. Control the interview. 9. Take brief, unobtrusive notes during the interview.

Open Questions: Which give the candidate the opportunity to express his or her opinion. ('Who? What? Where? When? Why.?) 1. Why do you want to be an accountant?, Why are you interested in a Business Studies degree, Jo? Probing Questions: These aim to discover the deeper significance of the candidate's answers (to give further and more specific details) 2. Why particularly Business Studies, Jo?, But what was it about accountancy that particularly appealed to you? Closed Questions: Invite only 'yes' or 'no' answers: ('Did you?, 'Have you?') 3. Did you pass your exam?, So, you're interested in a Business Studies degree, are you, Jo? Problem solving Questions: Present the candidate with a situation and ask him/her to explain how s(he) would deal with it 4. How would you motivate your staff to do a task that they did not want to do? Leading Questions: Encourage the candidate to give a certain reply 5. We are looking for somebody who likes detailed figure work. How much do you enjoy dealing with numbers?, Don't you agree that?, Surely you're interested in Business Studies, Jo?

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Advantages

Disadvantages The candidate may be able to disguise lack of knowledge in a specialist area of which the interviewer knows little. The interviewer's perception may be selective or distorted, and this lack of objectivity may go unnoticed and unchecked. The greater opportunity for personal rapport with the candidate may cause a weakening of the interviewer's objective judgment.

One-to-one interviews
Candidates are interviewed by single interviewer More likely to be thorough and rigorous questioning and should encourage candidates to relax and talk freely

Direct face-to-face communication, with opportunities for the interviewer to use both verbal and non-verbal cues to assess the candidate Rapport between the candidate and the interviewer Flexibility in the direction and follow-up of questions

Panel interviews
Team of interviewers meeting the candidate together It is less time consuming and more convenient administratively than one to one interview Each interviewer may have different areas to be interviewed

Selection Board
Large formal panels, or selection boards, may also be convened where there are a number of individuals or groups with an interest in the selection.

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Advantages of interview
Places candidate at ease Highly interactive, allowing flexible questions and answers Opportunities to use non-verbal communication Opportunities to assess appearance, interpersonal and communication skills Opportunities to evaluate rapport between the candidate and his or her potential colleagues/bosses

Disadvantages of interview
They are artificial Too brief to get to know candidates They require the interviewer to be skilled and well-prepared They can lead to the halo effect, contrast effect, cloning and stereotyping They are time consuming First impression are not always right Some qualitative factors such as motivation, honestly and integrity are difficult to assess

Selection Testing
Selection tests must be sensitive, standardized, reliable and valid Two basis types of tests are:
Proficiency and attainment tests: competency Psychometric tests: aptitude, intelligence and personality

Proficiency tests
These determine the competency of an individual to perform a specified task These are common where an easily tested skill is required Secretarial skills or ability to speak a foreign language Can give a typing test to check speed (words per minute) Candidates could be notified of such tests in advance

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Psychological tests
To assess aspects of candidates such as motivation, personality, and attitudes. Those involved with the application and interpretation of such tests should be well trained Results must be handled with caution

Intelligence Test Measuring general intellectual ability

Proficiency Tests Measuring the ability to perform simulated job tasks and situations

Aptitude Test Testing specific abilities such as verbal, numerical etc..

Selection Tests

Psychometric Test Assessing the thinking process of the person

Medical Test Tests to eliminate candidates with health issues

Physiological and personality Test measure a variety of characteristics such ability to deal with others

Limitations
Job situation and test situation will be different Candidates can practice and be coached in performing tests The interpretation of test results is a skilled task, for which training and experience is essential. It is also highly subjective. Biased It is possible to fake a test Costly

Assessment centres
A small group of participants who undertake a series of test and exercises under observation with a view to the assessment of their skills and competencies, suitability for particular roles and potential for development. Trained assessors observe and evaluate individuals through a selection of preprogrammed exercise or trials.

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What are we checking?

Group Discussions Presentations Games Simulations

Written Tests

Assessment centre
Self Appraisal Peer Rating

Speeches

Role play exercises

Questionnaires

Planning and leadership Analytical skills and problem solving Decision making ability Sensitivity and creativity Social skills Communication Assertiveness Energy Initiative Stress tolerance

Advantages
They can be used to see how candidates deal with others The candidates can be observed over a longer period of time The candidates can be given practical tasks that reflect the job Avoidance of single assessor bias Reliability in predicting potential success Benefits to assessed individuals

Disadvantages
Candidates will do well in some areas and not others It is possible to coach candidates to perform well at practical tests May be expensive

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References
The purpose is to confirm facts about the employee and increase the degree of confidence felt about information given during interviews and from application forms and CVs References could be in two forms:
Straightforward factual information Opinions about the applicant's personality and other attributes

What could be included in reference form?

Job title Pay/salary Main duties and responsibilities Attendance record Period of employment

References
This is very common once a primary selection is done To confirm choice or final check on candidates Must be treated with caution. A reference can be:
Biased in favor of candidates due to personal friendship Biased against the candidate due personal dislike Biased in favor of candidates as referee wants to get rid of them Biased against the candidates as referee wants to keep them Impartial and accurate

Improving recruitment and selection procedures

Improvement of policies and guidelines for selectors Establishment of systematic procedures for all stages of the process Improved education and training of selectors Auditing of job advertising content and media The possible use of external recruitment and selection agencies and consultants

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