Human Resource Recruitment and Selection

Human Resource Recruitment and Selection

Generally, human resource management mainly deals with efficient management of an organization’s employees in achieving organizational goals. As a fact, human resource management is more popular than the previous versions of personnel management due to its integration with other human resource functions such as job design, recruitment and selection, and human resource development (Wilton, 2010).  Human resource management operates under the perception that employees are different from other resources in an organization such as technology and finance. In connection to this, all other resources must be managed by human beings in order to achieve productivity or profitability and hence the need for the recruitment and selection process.

Recruitment within an organization is an integral part of the overall human resource management and planning process. As such, recruitment and selection process is closely related to other human resource management processes such as job design, human resource development, employee appraisal, reward systems, promotions and transfers, and succession planning.

Assuredly, recruitment and selection requires broader staffing strategies since they represent the first stage of the human resources management in an organization. They are also the most difficult and the most involving of all the human resource management strategies (Byars & Rue, 2004).  Besides, getting the best applicants is beneficial to an organization but hiring of low quality employees can lead to decreased productivity in an organization. In addition, hiring of less than the best can also mess up with the concept of teamwork, poor customer service, and disruptions of long term objectives in an organization.

Unquestionably, recruitment and selection are interconnected with human resource planning. In this regard, human resource planning is a critical and continuous process in an organization since it formulates strategies for the human resource department. Moreover, it ensures that organizational objectives are attained through the selection of enough qualified personnel who have the right qualifications (Cascio, 2003). Subsequently, these employees must be recruited and selected at the right time. Human resource planning is concerned with conducting analysis for all the staffing needs in an organization and their impact to organizational growth.

Undoubtedly, many organizations are aware of the complicated process for the recruitment and selection of employees and opt to outsource service suppliers to conduct this human resource process. This gives an organization a better opportunity to continue with the assessment of the ongoing employees without any interruptions.

Human resource planning fits various explanations. For instance, it can be expressed as a systematic process used to analyze organization’s human resource requirements under various circumstances to ensure the right number of employees with the right skills are viable (Dessler & Lloyd, 2004). On broader perspective, it can be interpreted as a process that matches labor demand with labor supply. From these definitions, it is clear that human resource planning ought to be consistent with both the short-term and the long-term objectives of an organization. Additionally, the information acquired from human resource planning is used in other human resource functions such as job design, recruitment and selection, human resource development, and performance management.

Admittedly, staff recruitment techniques may vary from time to time depending on the prevailing situations. For example, during the times of positive growth, an organization may seek to recruit long-term staff. Likewise, during the period of decline, retrenchments or early retirement programs may be an option. Selection strategies used by various organizations may also differ depending on the urgency of the employment needs. Furthermore, when the human resource planning focuses on the strategic (long-term) and operational (short-term) perspectives, the implication is that the process affects both the current and future operations. Therefore, the recruitment and selection process should also focus on filling current vacancies as well as the preparation for future staffing needs.

The first stage of the recruitment process is the identification of the job vacancies that require to be filled. In the recruitment process, one is supposed to identify all the technical skills and attributes required in the new employee.  In particular, the identification of the vacancy should include a thorough reviewing of all the necessary contents of the role including the specific qualifications one should have to perform effectively in the given position (Compton, Morrissey, & Nankervis, 2009).  Thereafter, this information forms the basis for the job description and person’s specifications. In a different perspective, the role can be reviewed on the basis of whether it fits the current or any future organizational or departmental changes.

This should then be followed by the designing of a job description or a job analysis for the new role. Ideally, a job description should state the duties and responsibilities associated with the given role as well as the reporting lines for the position (DeCieri & Kramar, 2005). Most importantly, the definition of the role as contained in the job description should not be too tight but relatively flexible to allow any future adjustments. In addition, designing of an accurate job description and job analysis is significant in determining the success of the recruitment process as it enables the applicants to make informed decision when applying for the position. In this regard, the job description should not overstate or understate the responsibilities or the expectations associated with the role.

At this level, a task list or a role profile should also be designed where all the duties to be performed by the post holder are clearly stated. This should be straightforward and applicable only when the role profiles are known or agreed. Like in the job description, some element of flexibility should be allowed to avoid defining the duties to tightly.

Once the role has been clearly defined, it is necessary to state the person’s specification. At this stage of recruitment, all the main skills and qualifications required to perform the role successfully are identified (Price, 2011). The specification should be objective, fair, and measurable to minimize the risk of subjective judgment or discrimination. Undoubtedly, person specification ensures that the final selection is objective and justifiable if challenged.

After defining the type of person to be recruited, the method to be used in attracting the suitable candidate is determined. Although there is no recruitment process that can be said to be the best for organizations, the decision to use the internal or the external recruitment process to attract applicants may be based on several factors. Some of these include organizational strategies, human resource policies, and financial or cost implications (Kumar, 2010). Most importantly, what needs to be understood is that the organization’s overall strategies should be integrated with the human resource management policies. This results in the achievement of desirable outcomes in the recruitment process. Therefore, if an organization plans to have a more productive culture, the external recruitment process may be a better option. On the contrary, an organization that focuses on commitment and high quality may decide to use the internal recruitment method. However, the choices for the recruitment methods may vary from time to time depending on organizational needs.

If an organization decides to use internal recruitment, the process can be conducted in several ways. Firstly, the management can decide to use direct appointment or promotion. The advantage with this approach is that it is a quick method that can be used by the management to exercise their reward system (Leggae, 1995). Unfortunately, this approach may result to nepotism or a situation where managers reward their cronies with promotions. Therefore, this method is not advisable unless it results from a careful succession planning or an appropriate selection method is used.

Secondly, the management may decide to use lateral transfer where an employee is transferred from one job or department to another. The internal transfer of employees to the existing job vacancies within an organization may be done as a part of a job rotational program. In addition, it can be as a result of job redundancy in other departments in an organization (Nankervis et al., 2011). For successful internal transfers, supervisors should assess the capacity of their team members for such transfers.

Thirdly, internal recruitment may involve internal adverting where a vacancy is advertised within an organization either through employees’ emails or by placing it on the organization’s notice boards. The advantage with this method is that it can be used to identify fresh talents within the organization that were not known to the management.

For the wider pool of job applicants, an organization may decide to use the external recruitment. This method is considered better than the internal method due to the many options that are available. Advertising is one method of attracting a candidate in external recruitment and can be done through various medium (Martin, 2008). One type of advertising is the online advertising where the job advert can be placed within the shortest time. Besides, online advertising has no limit for content and is accessible to the applicants for 24 hours. In addition, an organization gets a branding opportunity through advertising.

For managerial and professional positions, the most effective places for placing the advertisement would be the internet, professional bodies, consultants, business colleges, professional journals, and in national papers. However, if a company requires an employee with highly specialized skills, arrangements can be done to contact such candidates directly without necessarily placing an advertisement.

To avoid vagueness, an advertisement should be drawn with close reference to job description and person specification. Advertising is done with an intention of attracting sufficient number of candidates who possess the necessary skills and qualifications required for the position being advertised (Kumar, 2010). Certainly, an advertisement that contains inaccurate information may attract unsuitable applicants leading to time wastage in the recruitment process.

Other methods of attracting suitable candidates include recruitment agencies, and employee referrals. For the employee referrals, an organization informs its employee of the availability of a given position and the job description and specifications (Price, 2011).  Following this, the employees are supposed to refer to the organization any suitable candidates they might be aware of and hence saving the advertising cost for the organization.

After placing the advertisement, short listing is done based on merit once all the applications have been reviewed. Under such circumstances, short listing should be done as soon as the application period has expired. Due to this, the short listed candidate can be informed in good time (Nankervis et al., 2011). In addition, delays in the selection process may lead to some of the strong candidates securing employment elsewhere.

Once the short listing has been concluded, the recruitment team should determine the selection methods to be used in getting the best candidate for the job position. For the best practice in HRM, interviewing is the most commonly used method to assess the potential employees (Sims, 2007).  Other methods for selection may include aptitude tests and work based presentations.

To make the selection process successful, the recruitment team must form an interview panel that invites candidates for the interviews. It is the responsibility of the interviewing panel to structure the content of the interview and to decide the role of various panelists. Furthermore, the panel should also determine if there are any types of selection tests to be used and which area in person specification will such tests be assessing.

Once a suitable candidate has been selected, the panel must endeavor to contact the referees with permission from the candidate. At times, the referees may be contacted during the selection process to assist the interview panel to make informed decisions. No doubt, the appointment process follows after the selection of a candidate where the offer for the employment can either be verbal or in writing (Price, 2011). To put this in a clear perspective, the recruitment team is responsible for sending the formal letter of employment to the successful candidate on behalf of the organization. However, the head of human resource management has the overall responsibility of formally welcoming the new employee to the organization.

Furthermore, the human resource department is responsible for designing an effective induction programme for the new employee. In this case, the employee should be informed of the organization’s policies, culture, and procedure. If the induction process is not done well, the new employee may be unaware of the organization’s policies which are necessary for the execution of the assigned responsibilities.

The link between the recruitment and selection process and the human resource development is realized after the induction process.  In the first place, the human resource development (HRD) provides the employees with the relevant expertise to help them meet organizational goals. Similarly, this department arranges for any form of employees’ trainings with an intention of harnessing their skills (Wilson, 2009). Again, the trainings can be done for progressive career development that enables employees to get promotions within an organization.

Admittedly, the human resource department plays a critical role in the recruitment and the selection process.  The process is concerned with the recruitment of employees to fill any vacancies in an organization. In regard to this, the recruitment and selection process must be conducted by a qualified and reliable recruitment team that is appointed by the human resource manager.  At times, an organization may opt to outsource the services for the recruitment and selection process from qualified firms. Nevertheless, the HRM still bears the overall responsibility for the recruitment and selection, human resource planning, induction, and human resource development.

 

 

List of References

Byars, L., & Rue, L. (2004). Human Resource Management. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Cascio, W. (2003). Managing Human Resources: Productivity, Quality of Work Life, Profits.         Boston: McGraw Hill.

Compton, R., Morrissey, W., & Nankervis, A. (2009). Effective Recruitment and Selection             Practices. Melbourne: CCH Australia.

DeCieri, H., & Kramar, H. (2005). Human Resource Management in Australia: Strategy, People   and Performance. Sydney: McGraw-Hill.

Kumar, R. (2010). Human Resource Management: Strategic Analysis Text and Cases. London:     IK International.

Leggae, K. (1995). Human Resource Management: Rhetorics & Realities. London: MacMillan.

Martin, J. (2008). Human Resource Management.  New Jersey: SAGE.

Nankervis, A., Compton, R., Baird, M., and Coffey, J. (2011). Human Resource Management      Strategy and             Practice. Melbourne: Cengage.

Price, A. (2011) Human Resource Management. Michigan: Cengage Learning.

Sims, R. (2007). Human Resource Management: Contemporary Issues, Challenges, and    Opportunities. New York: IAP.

Wilson, J. (2009). Human resource development: learning and training for individuals. New          York: Kogan             Page.

Wilton, N. (2010). An Introduction to Human Resource Management. New York: SAGE.

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