Recruitment Selction and Training

8/2/2019 Recruitment Selction and Training

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The Recruitment Process

For most businesses, large or small, the task of identifying what work needs doing and who should do it isa continuous challenge!

It is rare that a business of any size operates for long without having to recruit or remove employees. Forexample, consider why a business might need to recruit staff:

Business expansion due too Increasing sales of existing products

o Developing new products

o Entering new markets

Existing employees leave:o To work with competitors or other local employers

o Due to factors such as retirement, sick leave, maternity leave

Business needs employees with new skills

Business is relocating and not all of existing workforce want to move to new location

The world of work is also changing rapidly:

Increase in part-time working

Increased number of single-parent families

More women seeking work

Ageing population

Greater emphasis on flexible working hours

Technology allows employees to communicate more effectively whilst apart

People rarely stay in the same job for life


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Businesses need to understand and respond to these changes if they are to recruit staff of the rightstandard and keep them!

So what is workforce planning?

Workforce planning is about deciding how many and what types of workers are required

There are several steps involved in workforce planning:

The workforce plan establishes what vacancies exist

Managers produce a job description and job specification for each post

Job description

Detailed explanation of the roles and responsibilities of the post advertised

Most applicants will ask for this before applying for the job

Refers to the post available rather than the person

Job specification

Sets out the kind of qualifications, skills, experience and personal attributes a successfulcandidate should possess.

A vital tool in assessing the suitability of job applicants

Refers to the person rather than the post

Internal and external recruitment

A manager can recruit in two different ways:

Internal recruitment is when the business looks to fill the vacancy from within its existing

workforce External recruitment is when the business looks to fill the vacancy from any suitable applicant

outside the business


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Of course, the option to use BOTH internal and external recruitment can be used. This is often the casefor senior management appointments.

Advantages Disadvantages

Internal

Recruitment

Cheaper and quicker to recruit Limits the number of potential

applicantsPeople already familiar with thebusiness and how it operates

No new ideas can be introducedfrom outside

Provides opportunities for promotionwith in the business can be motivating

May cause resentment amongstcandidates not appointed

Business already knows the strengthsand weaknesses of candidates

Creates another vacancy whichneeds to be filled

ExternalRecruitment

Outside people bring in new ideas Longer process

Larger pool of workers from which tofind the best candidate

More expensive process due toadvertising and interviews required

People have a wider range of

experience

Selection process may not be

effective enough to reveal the bestcandidate

The four most popular ways of recruiting externally are:

Job centres Government agencies to help the unemployed find jobs or get training

Job advertisements - the most common form of external recruitment. Where a business choosesto advertise will depend on the cost of advertising and the coverage needed (i.e. how far awaypeople will consider applying for the job)

Recruitment agency - Provides employers with details of suitable candidates for a vacancy andcan sometimes be referred to as head-hunters. They work for a fee and often specialise inparticular employment areas e.g. nursing, financial services, teacher recruitment

Personal recommendation - Often referred to as word of mouth and can be a recommendation

from a colleague at work. A full assessment of the candidate is still needed however butpotentially it saves on advertising cost

When recruiting externally, the business will almost certainly have to produce a job advertisement. Theobjectives of the advertisement are to:

Inform audience of potential candidates about opportunity

Provide enough information to both inform and interest possible applicants

Help screen or dissuade unsuitable applicants

Obtain most number of suitably qualified applicants for post advertised

Job description

What is a job description?

A job description sets out the purpose of a job, where the job fits into the organisation structure,the main accountabilities and responsibilities of the job and the key tasks to be performed.

Why is a job description important?

A job description has four main uses:

Organisation - it defines where the job is positioned in the organisation structure. Who reportsto who.

Recruitment - it provides essential information to potential recruits (and the recruiting team) sothat they can determine the right kind of person to do the job (see person specification)


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Legal - the job description forms an important part of the legally-binding contract ofemployment

Appraisal of performance - individual objectives can be set based on the job description

Contents of a Job Description

The main contents of a job description are:

- Job Title: this indicates the role/function that the job plays within an organisation, and the

level of job within that function (e.g. Finance Director would be a more senior position thanFinancial Accountant - although both jobs are in the "finance department")

- Reporting responsibilities: who is the immediate boss of the job holder?

- Subordinates; who reports directly TO the job holder?

- Main purpose - who is involved in the job overall

- Main tasks and accountabilities: description of the main activities to be undertaken and whatthe job holder is expected to achieve (e.g. in the case of the Management Accountant, this mightinclude "Complete monthly management accounts by 10th working day of each month andprepare report on all key performance variances")

- Employment conditions

Recruitment interviews - selecting the candidates

An interview is the most common form of selection and it serves a very useful purpose for both employerand job candidate:

For the Employer:

Information that cannot be obtained on paper from a CV or application form

Conversational ability- often known as people skills

Natural enthusiasm or manner of applicant

See how applicant reacts under pressure

Queries or extra details missing from CV or application form

For the Candidate

Whether job or business is right for them

What the culture of company is like

Exact details of job

There are though other forms of selection tests that can be used in addition to an interview to helpselect the best applicant. The basic interview can be unreliable as applicants can perform well atinterview but not have the qualities or skills needed for the job.

Other selection tests can increase the chances of choosing the best applicant and so minimise the highcosts of recruiting the wrong people. Examples of these tests are aptitude tests, intelligence tests andpsychometric tests (to reveal the personality of a candidate).

Managers selecting candidates for a high level post in an organisation may even send applicants to anassessment centre. In such centres candidates undergo a variety of tests, role-plays and simulations for anumber of days.

Once the best candidate has been selected and agreed to take up the post, the new employee must begiven an employment contract. This is an important legal document that describes the obligations of theemployee and employer to each other (terms and conditions) as well as the initial remuneration packageand a number of other important details.


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Documents

Recruitment Selction and Training