SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, SOCIAL SCIENCES AND

TECHNOLOGY OPEN AND DISTANCE LEARNING.

NAME

STUDENT #

COURSE
:
Development
COURSE CODE:
LECTURER

ASSIGNMENT:

CHILUFYA WEBBY.
BPA 1410029.
Human Resource Management and
HRM 220
Mrs Sylvia Atoko
Two (2)

DUE DATE

CONTACT

18th APRIL, 2016

chilufyawebby@yahoo.co.uk.

QUESTION: Carefully describe the employee selection procedure in an

organization

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of your choice. How can its

validity and reliability be established?

1.0 INTRODUCTION
Today greater attention is being given to the selection process than ever before.
With the increasing emphasis being placed on the human side of
competitiveness, making correct hiring decisions is of crucial importance to any
organization. According to Arnold, J. et al (2005) Individuals hired after thorough
screening against carefully developed job specifications learn their job tasks
readily, are productive, and generally adjust to their jobs with a minimum of
difficulty. As a result, both the individual and the organization benefit from a
careful selection process.
2.0 CONTENT
According to R.D. Gatewood and H.S. Field (2001), employee selection is the
"process of collecting and evaluating information about an individual in order to
extend an offer of employment Selection is the process of choosing individuals
who have the relevant qualifications to fill existing or projected job openings. It is
the process of interviewing and evaluating candidates for a specific job and
selecting an individual for employment based on certain criteria.The Employee
selection can range from a very simple process to a very complicated process
depending on the firm hiring and the position. Selecting from among applicants
inside or outside the organization is a major HR function with far-reaching effects
certain employment laws such as anti-discrimination laws must be obeyed during
employee selection. Selection is a process whereby out of the many job
applicants the best are taken to fill the vacancy.
2.1 Selection Process
In most organizations, selection is a continuous process. There is a choice
between the main selection methods. What Cook (1993) refers to as the classic
trio consists of application forms, interviews and references? These can be
supplemented or replaced by biodata, assessment Centres and psychological
tests. The number of steps in the selection process and their sequence will vary,
not only with the organization but also with the type and level of jobs to be filled.
Each step should be evaluated in terms of its contribution. The steps that
typically make up the selection process are shown below.
2.1.1 Notification: The employee selection process usually starts with a
manager or boss commissioning human resources to fill a new or vacant
position. The manager must first decide what qualifications she desires in a job
candidate. For example, should the person have a college degree, or how many
years of relevant experience is necessary? Once the manager establishes the job
requirements, the human resources department places ads in the local
newspaper or online media.
2.1.2 Reviewing: Review resumes and match each candidate's background to
the job requirements. Companies sometimes receive hundreds of resumes for an
ad. However, human resources may only consider a half dozen. During bad
economic periods, a number of candidates may have an education and
experience that exceed the qualifications for the job. Contrarily, it may be
tougher to find qualified candidates during good economic times. Nevertheless,
human resources and the hiring manager must determine how many candidates
they can realistically bring in for an interview.
2.1.3 Screening /Preliminary Interviews - It is used to eliminate those
candidates who do not meet the minimum eligibility criteria laid down by the
organization. The skills, academic and family background, competencies and
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interests of the candidate are examined during preliminary interview. Preliminary

interviews are less formalized and planned than the final interviews. The
candidates are given a brief up about the company and the job profile; and it is
also examined how much the candidate knows about the company. Preliminary
interviews are also called screening interviews.
2.1.4 Interviewing: It is a one to one interaction between the interviewer and
the potential candidate. It is used to find whether the candidate is best suited for
the required job or not. But such interviews consume time and money both.
Moreover the competencies of the candidate cannot be judged. Such interviews
may be biased at times. Such interviews should be conducted properly. No
distractions should be there in room. There should be an honest communication
between candidate and interviewer.
2.1.5 Selection: The hiring manager will usually ask for feedback from human
resources and other employees who interview the job candidates. The hiring
manager may also review her notes, or decide which candidate would fit best in
the open position. Qualifications are only one consideration. The hiring manager
will usually select someone with whom she can work, whether it is the
candidate's personality or work ethic.
2.1.6 Testing: The employee selection process can also include testing before a
candidate is actually hired. Tests have been used in an effort to find more
objective means of measuring the qualifications and liabilities of potential
employees. An employment test is an instrument that is used to obtain
information about personal characteristics. The main benefit of tests is that they
may uncover qualifications and abilities that would not be discovered by the
interview and application form. Tests will also eliminate the prejudices and biases
of the interviewer and selection panels.
2.1.7 Reference checks: These are conducted after the employment interview
to find out more about an applicants employment record, education and
training, and behavioural patterns. It is strongly recommended that one chooses
referees who know him/her very well and who can give accurate information. The
referees may also be educators who had the opportunity to interact with the
person in a classroom setting. A reference check is made about the candidate
selected and then finally he is appointed by giving a formal appointment letter
2.2 Validity and Reliability of selection methods
It may appear self-evident that organisational decision-makers will wish to ensure
that their selection methods are effective. Making judgements on an individuals
personal characteristics and suitability for future employment is inherently
problematic and that many normal selection methods contain significant flaws.
There is also the question of what is meant by the terms reliability and validity
when applied to recruitment and selection. Reliability refers to the consistency of
test scores over time and across measures. Validity refers to the accuracy of
measurement. Validity can be assessed in terms of whether the measurement is
based on a job specification ,whether test scores correlate with performance
criteria , and whether the test accurately measures what it purports to measure
Reliability in the context of workforce selection can refer to the following issues:

Temporal orre-test stability where the effectiveness of a selection tool is

assessed by consistency of results obtained over time. An individual could
for example complete a personality inventory or intelligence test at
different times over a period of several years, although in the latter case it
would be important to isolate the impact of repeated practice on results.

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Consistency that is, does the test measure what it sets out to? Some
elements of IQ tests have for example been criticised for emphasising a
persons vocabulary which might in turn be influenced by their education
and general background rather than by their innate intelligence. Validity in
this area is typically subdivided into the following aspects:

Face validity has an emphasis on the acceptability of the selection

measure, including to the candidate himself or herself. For example, it is
possible that there is a correlation between a persons hat size and his/her
job competence. However, you would be reluctant to measure candidates
heads as part of their selection due to their probable scepticism at the use
of this measure.

Content validity refers to the nature of the measure and in particular its
adequacy as a tool.

Predictive validity centres on linkages between results or scores on a

selection measure and subsequent outcome most commonly, job
performance at a future point. Here it is important to identify when the
comparison will be made i.e. immediately in the case of a simple job
requiring little training, or more commonly, at an intermediate point,
possibly after a suitable probationary period.

We argue here that validity, along with fairness, should be the overriding
indicator of a selection method for high performance organisations and that it is
important to obtain sophisticated data on validity in all its forms. Validity studies
such as those quoted by Taylor (1998) indicate that assessment centres,
psychometric tests, biodata and structured interviews are more accurate
methods of selection. For good and not so good reasons, organizationswill retain
interviews as the main method of selection where assessment centres are
inappropriate. But there is a very powerful case for structuring the interview and
a strong case for supplementing it with tests. The more evidence that can be
produced to help in making crucial selection decisions, the better.

3.0 CONCLUSION
The selection process should provide as much reliable and valid information as
possible about applicants so that their qualifications can be carefully matched
with job specifications. The information that is obtained should be clearly jobrelated or predictive of success on the job and free from potential discrimination.
In the process of making decisions, all "can-do" and "will-do" factors should be
assembled and weighted systematically so that the final decision can be based
on a composite of the most reliable and valid information Thompson and McHugh
(2009) go further, taking a critical view on the general use and, in particular, the
validity of employee selection methods. In commenting on the use of personality
tests in selection, these authors state that in utilising such tests employers are
essentially clutching at straws and on this basis will probably use anything that
will help them make some kind of systematic decision. These authors identify
now discredited selection methods, such as the use of polygraphs to detect lying
and other methods such as astrology, which are deemed more appropriate in
some cultures than in others. It is indeed important to keep in mind that todays
received wisdom in the area of recruitment and selection, just as in the
management canon more generally, may be criticised and even widely rejected
in the future. The process of recruitment and selection continues nonetheless to
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be viewed as best carried out via sequential but linked stages of first gathering a
pool of applicants, a screening-out process, followed by the positive step of
actual selection. This apparently logical ordering of the activities is largely
viewed as essential to achieve minimum thresholds of effectiveness

4.0 REFERENCES
1. Arnold, J. et al (2005) Work Psychology: Understanding human behaviour
in the workplace 4th ed. Harlow: FT Prentice Hall.
2. Cook, M (1993) Personnel Selection and Productivity, Wiley, Chichester
3. Gatewood, R.D., and H.S. Field. Human Resource Selection. 5th ed. Fort
Worth, TX: Dryden Press, 2001.
4. Gilmore, S. and Williams, S. (2009) Human Resource Management. Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
5. Armstrong, Michael, 1928Ahandbook of human resource management
practice/Michael Armstrong.10th ed.
6. Taylor, S (1998) Employee Resourcing, Institute of Personnel and
Development, London
7. Thompson, P. and McHugh, D. (2009) Work Organisations: A critical
approach, 4th ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
8. http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/employeeselection.html#ixzz459OnqhOM
9. http://humanresources.about.com/od/selectemployees/
10.http://www.managementstudyguide.com/employee-selection-process.htm

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