Recruitment And Selection Process

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION 1. INTRODUCTION: Recruiting is the process by which organizations locate and attract individuals to fill job vacancies. Except in times of economic retrenchment most organizations have a continuing need to recruit new employees to replace those who leave or are promoted, and to permit organizational growth. recruitment is the biggest single challenge facing personnel managers in the 1990s. A survey carried out by Personnel Management Association showed that very few employers, apart from those in specialized areas, report significant problems. The general level of employment is falling steadily and recruitment will always be a major feature of the personnel function. Recruitment follows HR planning and goes hand in hand with the selection process by which organizations evaluate the suitability of candidates for various jobs. without accurate planning, organizations may recruit the wrong number or type of employees. 2. RECRUITMENT: Recruitment is the of attracting a number of suitable applicants. 2.1 SELECTION: choosing the best candidate for the vacancy 2.2 MAIN PURPOSE: is to secure the number and quality of employees at minimum cost required by the organization to fulfill its human resource needs. 2.3 • • •

THREE STAGES OF R&S PROCESS Defining requirements-preparing job descriptions and specifications, deciding terms and conditions of employment. Attracting candidates- reviewing and evaluating alternative sources of applicants, inside and outside the company, advertising, using agencies and consultants. Selecting candidates- sifting applications, interviewing, testing, assessing candidates, assessment centers, offering employment, obtaining references, preparing contracts of employment.

In the recruitment and selection process the organization and individual goals may conflict. The organizations is trying to evaluate the candidates strengths and weaknesses but the candidate is trying to present only strengths. 3.0

DEFINING REQUIREMENTS

the number and categories of people required should be specified in the recruitment program, which is derived from the human resource plan ( Demand and supply forecast). In addition, there will be demand for replacements or for new jobs to be filled, and these demands should be checked to ensure that they are justified. It may be

particularly necessary to check on the need for a replacement or the level or type of employee this is specified. a) JOB AND COMPETENCE ANALYSIS JOB ANALYSIS: produces information about a job which include • overall purpose of the job • Job content • accountabilities • Performance criteria • Responsibilities • Motivational factors. • Organizational factors (reporting, relationship) • development factors ( promotion and career factors) • Environmental factors (working condition) These information content to the job analysis provide the basis of recruitment and selection. COMPETENCE ANALYSIS: competence analysis is concerned with functional analysis to determine work based competencies and behavioral analysis to establish the behavioral dimensions that affect job performance. Such as, personal drive, analytical power, strategic thinking, commercial judgment, ability to communicate, interpersonal skills, ability to innovate, team management and leadership. Competence analysis identifies: • • •

Inputs: what the job holder need to know and able to do. This identifies job based competence. Process: How the job holder applies knowledge and skill to do the job. this identifies they behavioral requirements. Outputs: job holders are expected to achieve as a basis for objective setting.

b) JOB DESCRIPTIONS AND PERSONS SPECIFICATIONS

Job descriptions: typical contents of a job description: • • • • • • •

Title of job salary/grade purpose of job principal task and responsibilities performance targets and methods of performance assessments. location of job special conditions relating to job

Job description of the job are clearly necessary for recruitment and selection but they are also useful after appointment. They provide and help to form a fair basis for permanent and merit awards and to identify where training is required.

PERSON SPECIFICATIONS: it includes: • • •

Qualifications Experiences competence required by the job holder and any other necessary information that are demanded by the job. It also refers to terms and conditions of employment. Such as, pay, employee benefits etc. When the requirements on the basis of employee qualifications and work based as well as behavioral based competencies that are required and has been agreed. The way of doing this were traditionally the seven point plan developed by Rodger (1952) and the five-fold grading system produced by Munro-Fraser ( 1954). b1) RODGER SEVEN-POINT PLAN: The seven point covers: 1. Physical attributes- appearance, health, physique, speech etc. 2. attainments- education, qualification and experience. 3. General intelligence- fundamental intellectual capacity. 4. Special aptitudes- mechanical and numerical skills. 5. interests- intellectual, practical, constructional, social, artistic etc. 6. Manner- helpful, friendly, dependability etc. 7. Background circumstances- domestic circumstances, occupations of family. b2) THE FIVE-FOLD GRADING SYSTEM: The five-fold grading system covers: 1. Impact on others- physical attributes, appearance, speech and manner. 2. Acquired qualifications- education, vocational training, work experience 3. Innate abilities- natural quickness of comprehension and aptitude for learning. 4. Motivation- the kinds of goals set by the individual, his or her consistency and determination in following them up, and success in achieving them. 5. Adjustment- emotional stability, ability to stand up to stress and ability to get on with people. 3.1 ATTRACTING CANDIDATES Attracting candidates is primarily a matter of identifying, evaluating and using the most appropriate sources of applicants. Sources include: • Advertising, Advertising agency • Recruitment consultants. • Executive search • Educational and training establishments • internal ad using in house magazines, notice boards and meeting.

3.2 SELECTING CANDIDATES If done properly the recruitment process, should attract a number of possible candidates. It is now necessary to select the most suitable candidates. selection process involves: a) compare the applications with the key criteria in the job persons specifications. Now sorting the applications in three categories: 1. Possible 2. Marginal 3. Unsuitable b) Scrutinizing the possibles again to draw up a short list for interview. c) draw up an interviewing program. Invite the candidates to interview Review the remaining possibles and marginals and decides if any are to be hold in reserve. 4. INTERVIEW

AIM OF INTERVIEW: The purpose of interview is to obtain and assess information about a candidate. It provide answer three fundamental question: • • •

can the individual do the job? Is he/she competence? will the individual do the job? Is candidate motivated? How is the individual likely to fit into the organization?

4.1 INTERVIEWING TECHNIQUES a) Types of question: Questions plays a vital role in a selection interview, as it is the primary means by which information is obtained from the candidate at the time. Questions have been categorized in a number of different ways. • Closed questions: these are questions which require a specific answer or a yes/no response. • Open questions; These are questions that require a person to reflect on, or elaborate upon, a particular point in his own way. Ex, What is it that attracts you about this job? • probing questions: which ask for more detailed and specific explanations of a candidates work experience, knowledge, skills and competencies. • play-back questions- testing the interviewers understanding of what a candidate has said by playing back. • hypothetical questions- which involve putting a situation to candidates and asking how they would response. b) Psychological tests: Psychological tests are standardized tests designed to provide a relatively objective measure of certain human characteristics by sampling human behavior. Such tests tend to fall into four categories as follows: 1. Intelligence tests: these tests are designed to measure thinking abilities.

2. Aptitude tests: aptitude tests are designed to predict the potential an individual has to perform a job. They can cover as such areas, clerical aptitude, numerical, mechanical aptitude. 3. attainment tests: these tests measure the depth of knowledge or grasp of skills which has been learned in the past- usually at school or college. Typical attainment tests are those which measure typing abilities, spelling ability, and mental arithmetic. 4. personality tests: 4.3 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF INTERVIEWS

ADVANTAGES: • • • • •

enable a face-to-face encounter to take place so that the interviewer can make an assessment of how the candidate might fit in the organization and what they would be like to work with. allow the interviewer to describe the job and the organization in more detail provide opportunities for interviewers to ask probing questions about the candidates experience. provide opportunities to candidates to ask questions about the job and clarify issues. enable a number of interviewers to assess candidates, where appropriate.

DISADVANTAGES • • • •

generally lack validity as a means of predicting performance and reliability. rely on the skills of the interviewer, but many people are in fact very poor at interviewing. do not necessarily assess directly competence in carrying out the various tasks which the job involves. can lead to biased and subjective judgments by interviewers.

5.0 INDUCTION AND FOLLOW-UP induction is the process of receiving and welcoming employees when they first join a company and giving them the basic information they need to settle down quickly and happily and start work. induction has three aims: • to smooth the preliminary stages when everything is likely to be strange and unfamiliar to the starter. • to establish quickly a favoiurable attitude to the company in the mind of the new employee so that he/she is more likely to stay. • to obtain effective output from the new employee in the shortest possible time. An employee handbook is useful for this purpose. It should convey clearly and simply what new staff need to know under the following headings;

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a brief description of the company-its history, products, organisation and management. • basic conditions of employment- hours of works, holidays, pension schemes and insurance. • pay-pay scales, when paid and how. • sickness- notification of absence, certificates • leave of absence • company rules • disciplinary procedures • grievance procedures • promotion procedures • union and joint consultation arrangements • education and training facilities. • health and safety arrangements • medical and first aid facilities • social and welfare arrangements When the initial briefing has been completed, new employees should be taken to their place of work and introduced to their manager or team leader for the departmental induction program.

FOLLOW-UP It is essential to follow up newly engaged employees to ensure that they have settled in and to check on how well they are doing. if there are any problems it is much better to identify them at an early stage rather than allowing them to fester. Following-up also important