Recruitment and Selection

MBA Exe
 The Objectives of the Lecture

• To view the recent trends in the labour markets and

their influence on HRM.
• To discuss the recruitment process and alternative
ways of recruiting employees.
• To examine the selection process as a two-way-
process.
• To evaluate a range of selection methods and
criteria.
• To review approaches to selection decision-making.
 The Changing Context

• Knowledge intensification of work

• Demographic developments and diversity at the workplace
• Increased customer importance and power
• Increased and changed competition as a result of globalisation
and internationalisation of goods, services, finance, information,
workers...
• Constant change: ’Here today, gone tomorrow’

WORKERS AND WHOM YOU EMPLOY MAKE A

DIFFERENCE !!!
 Contingency Perspective to HRM
• The ownership, sector, size, tradition and the stage
of development of the organization;
• The approach of the senior executives and staff to
HRM;
• The approach to employment relationship; and
• The competence, skills, capacity, reputation and
track-record of HR staff.

Implications for recruitment and

selection?
 Recruitment and Selection

Recruitment Selection
• A process which involves
• The process of attracting the application of
appropriate methods with
qualified candidates from
the aim of selecting and
whom it is possible to
appointing competent
select and appoint
persons.
competent workers.
• A two-way process of
• Similarities to marketing, communication and
communicates about the establishing a positive
firm. psychological contract.
Recruitment & Selection as a System
Host
Company

Candidates Recruitment Selection

Labour market Rejection Effective

characteristics Exit employees

Validation,
review and
organisational
constraints
 Job Analysis & Person-Job Fit

Job Analysis:
• Determine the tasks and the attributes required from the
employee to perform the tasks successfully.
Person-Job Fit:
1) There are intrinsic individual differences.
2) There are different types of jobs.
3) Satisfaction is highest and turnover lowest when
personality and occupation are in an agreement.

Recently, more emphasis on finding employees

who match organizational cultures/organizations
rather than particular jobs.
Person-Job Fit ???
 Recruitment: Internal or External?
Internal recruitment has certain advantages:

 Cultural control
 Motivating & rewarding effect as people know they have career
possibilities
 Development of people through transfers
 Lower recruitment & selection costs, a faster process
 The person is known
 The person is likely to have realistic expectations

...And certain disadvantages:

- Is new blood needed? A limited pool of candidates...

- Are suitable persons available, and will they be ’released’…
- How to make the job and the person connect…
- What follows if the internal candidate who applies is not selected…
 About Recruitment

• How do companies recruit?

1. Advertisement in local press
2. Specialist journals
3. Corporate web-sites
4. Recruitment agencies
5. National news paper
6. Internal intranet
7. Word of mouth
8. Job service
9. Education liaison
• ......
 Recruitment- Internal Sources
• Present Permanent Employees
• Present temporary/Part-time
• Retrenched/Retired employees
• Dependents of present/diseased/disabled
• Employee Referrals
 Recruitment- External Sources
• Campus Recruitment
• Private employment agencies/consultants
• Public employment agencies
• Professional associations
• Data banks
• Casual Applications
• Trade Unions
• Walk-in
• Consult-in
• Head Hunting
• Body Shopping
• M&A
• E-recruitment
 About Selection
• Usually more than one method is used depending on:
– The type of job;
– The competence of the staff involved in the selection;
– Administrative aspects;
– Costs; and
– Time factors.
• Methods include: selection forms, CVs, tests
(aptitude, intelligence, trainability, personality), group
tests, thematic apperception Test, GD, In Basket,
interviews and assessment centres, work samples.
 Issues in Selection:
• Validity:
– Does the method assess all relevant aspects of the job?
– Does the method predict current and/or future performance?
– Validity is absolutely critical!

• Reliability:
– Consistency of the method.
– Is it free from random error?

• Use and interpretation of selection methods!!!

– Is the decision criteria clear and systematically applied?
 Selection: Interviews

• A social encounter: more than a selection device.

• Preferably structured than un-structured, experience-
based than future-orientated.
• Improve validity and reliability by being aware of:
– The halo effects;
– The bias towards preferring similar personality
characteristics to your own; and
– Positive and negative expectancy through access to
candidate information (e.g. CV).
Selection: Interview Tips by Jack Welch, GE

• Always look for integrity, intelligence and maturity.

• 4-E and 1-P framework:

– Energy: ability to ’go go go’, enthusiasm and optimism.

– Energize others: ability to inspire other team members,
good knowledge of business and strong persuasion
skills
– Edge: the knowledge to know when to stop assessing
and courage to make tough yes-or-no -decisions.
– Execute: the ability to get the job done.
– Passion: authentic excitement about work, love to learn
and grow, juice for life in the veins!
 Selection: Assessment Centres
• Multiple raters evaluate applicants’/employees’
performance on a number of exercises, e.g.
– solving a particular task in a team, interviews, individual tests
• High level of predictive validity
• Often somewhat limited construct validity
• Viewed as fair and thorough by candidates
• Recommendations:
– Ensure that assessors are trained
– Use situational exercises, i.e. closely related with real job
situations
– Use systematic observation by both experts on assessments
(often consultants/psychologists) and the focal jobs
 Selection: Cognitive Ability Tests
• Include those measuring general intelligence / ability and
those measuring specific abilities / aptitudes

• Three dominant facets:

– Verbal comprehension: ability to understand and use
written and spoken language.
– Numerical ability: speed and accuracy with which one can
solve artithmetic problems of all kinds.
– Reasoning ability: inventing solutions to diverse problems.

• Moderate to high validity in particular for complex jobs.

 Selection: The Big Five Personality Test

+ Plus
High extraversion Happier, fun, better
performance
High agreeableness Slightly happier, do
generally better
- Minus
Impulsive, risky
behaviours
Too trusting, perceived
passive, compliant

High Reliable, take less risks, Less creative and

conscientiousness performance- orientated innovative
High Happier, more satisfied, Nervousness
emotional stability less stressed sometimes beneficial
High openness to Creative, adaptable, In some occupations,
experience easy-going conservatisms
beneficial?
 Selection: Biographical Data

• Captures past behavior and performance as a

predictor of future behavior;
• “More of the same” is a rather stable predictor;….
• But be aware of:

– References: Are past/current superiors, etc. really

providing ’objective’ information about the applicant?
Lack of variance?
– Data provided by the applicants: Is the person
lying/distorting facts?
– Written documents: How do you know that they are
real?
Remember to Submit Your Application!
 Selection as a Social Process

• Sharing realistic information;

• Creating commitment and involvement through
mutual exploration and joint decision-making;
• Focus also on cultural match; and
• Increases the likelihood of self-selection…

Creation of a positive and mutual

psychological contract between the
employee and the employer!
 Conclusions:

• Recruitment and selection involve increasingly employer branding;

• Recruitment and selection are two-way processes;
• Recruitment and selection are both scientific and social processes;
• Select carefully the best method for selection and selection decision-
making!
 ’
THANK YOU!

Photo: Andreas
Diehl