1

INDEX

SR No.
1.
2.
3.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12
13.
14.

Particulars
Executive Summary
Introduction
Company Profile Thomas Cook India Ltd.
Human Resource Management at TCIL
Recruitment
Methods of Recruitment and Selection
Importance of Recruitment in Travel & Tourism
Steps (process) of Recruitment
Recruitment Advertising
Frequency of Recruitment
Recommendations and suggestions
Conclusion
Bibliography

Page no.
2
3
4
10
12
14
18
19
25
31
32
34
35

Executive Summary
In todays rapidly changing business environment, organizations have to respond quickly to
requirements for people. The Travel and tourism market has been witnessing growth which is
manifold for last few years. Many private players have entered the economy thereby increasing
the level of competition. In the competitive scenario it has become a challenge for each company
to adopt practices that would help the organization stand out in the market. The competitiveness
of a company of an organization is measured through the quality of products and services offered
to customers that are unique from others. Thus the best services offered to the consumers are
result of the genius brains working behind them. Human Resource in this regard has become an
important function in any organization. It is important to have a well-defined recruitment policy
in place, which can be executed effectively to get the best fits for the vacant positions. Selecting
the wrong candidate or rejecting the right candidate could turn out to be costly mistakes for the
organization. Therefore a recruitment practice & appraisal in an organization must be effective
and efficient in attracting the best manpower.

Objectives of the Project

The main objectives for undertaking this project are:

To understand the recruitment & appraisal process of Thomas Cook India Ltd.
To identify areas where there can be scope for improvement.

Data Used:
Primary: Discussion with Vice President of Learning and Development Aspan Patel
Secondary data: Study of recruitment policy, Websites

INTRODUCTION
Human Resource Management can easily be one of the most important factors for the growth of
the company, as famously said Your people are your corporation. Without the HRM, it is
almost impossible for any corporate to be what it is; be it a small scale industry or a business
conglomerate.
Under the broad head of Human Resource Management we come across one of the most
important aspects; Recruitment. How can you even manage people unless they are recruited in
the company? Recruitment, Selection and on-boarding of people onto an organization is a very
big challenge faced by almost all companies in the world.
Hiring talented individuals is critical to the success of organization. A poorly designed
recruitment process can result into increasing unnecessary cost to the companys overheads,
hence recruitment is a significant business decision and a challenging task for any organization.
Before engaging in the recruitment process it becomes imperative for the management to clearly
understand the companys operational requirements, projected revenues and business goals, and
then determine the types of skills and competencies required to meet those needs.
Hence, to understand and review the recruitment strategies followed by companies, I have
chosen Thomas Cook India Ltd. as the organization.
The project will focus on key points like the methods of recruitment adopted by the company,
the process of recruitment followed by the company, modes of recruitment advertising used by
the company and few other important aspects with respect to recruitment and Human Resource
Management as a whole.

COMPANY PROFILE
About Thomas Cook Group:

The Thomas Cook Group is the oldest and best known name in leisure travel with a history of
innovation that started in 1841. We are very proud to serve the 23 million customers who chose

to travel with us each year and, are focused on transforming our business so that we can serve
even more customers in ways that deliver better their holiday dreams.
As a trusted travel advisor, our core purpose is to inspire our customers to see the world and to
explore it. We aspire to delight our customers with the delivery of trusted, personalised holiday
experiences through a high-tech, high-touch approach. Our goal is to consistently meet and
exceed the expectations of our customers and to be accessible for them however, whenever and,
wherever they want.
Thomas Cook Group plc is one of the worlds leading leisure travel groups with sales of 9.5
billion and 23 million customers in the year ended 30 September 2012. Thomas Cook is
supported by 29,000 full time equivalent employees and operates from 19 countries; it is number
one or two in all its core markets. Thomas Cook Group plcs shares are listed on the London
Stock Exchange (TCG).

About Thomas Cook India Ltd:

Thomas Cook (India) Ltd. is the largest integrated travel and travel related financial services
company in the country offering a broad spectrum of services that include Foreign Exchange,
Corporate Travel, Leisure Travel, and Insurance. The Company launched its Indian operations in
1881 and is celebrating its 131 years of world-class service in India. Thomas Cook (India)
operates in the following areas of business, namely:

Leisure Travel

MICE

Corporate Travel Management

Foreign Exchange

Insurance

E-Business
Post March 31st 2008, Thomas Cook (India) Limited (TCIL) is a part of Thomas Cook Group
plc UK (TCG). On March 7th 2008, TCG announced its decision to acquire TCIL from Dubai
Investment Group. Thomas Cook Group plc is one of the largest travel groups in the world with
a market capitalization of approximately US$6 Billion.
In June 2006, Thomas Cook (India) acquired LKP Forex Limited and Travel Corporation (India)
Pvt. Ltd. (TCI).
TCIL presently operates in over 78 cities across over 206 locations (including 25 airport
counters). The company has overseas operations in Sri Lanka which is a branch of TCIL and
Mauritius which is a subsidiary of Thomas Cook (India). TCIL is supported by a strong partner
network of 117 Gold Circle Partners and 166 Preferred Sales Agents in over 100 cities pan India.
The Company employs over 2,827 resources and is listed on both the Bombay Stock Exchange
as well as the National Stock Exchange.
Recently, Travel Corporation (India) Ltd (TCI), a 100% subsidiary of Thomas Cook (India) Ltd
was awarded the third position for Outstanding Performance as an Inbound Tour Operator
Category-I by Smt. Pratibha Patil, Honorable President of India at the National Tourism Awards
2010-1011.

CRISIL has reaffirmed Thomas Cook (India) Limited with the CRISIL A1+ and AA- rating for
the highest degree of safety regarding timely payment of financial obligations. Also, the Brand
Trust Report, India study 2012, has ranked Thomas Cook (India) Ltd as The most Trusted
Brand in Services.
Thomas Cook has been awarded with the prestigious Favourite Specialist Tour Operator" award
at the Cond Nast Traveller Readers' Travel Awards 2011 and was also conferred with the CNBC
AWAAZ - Best company providing foreign exchange in India for the third year in a row. In
addition, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd has been awarded the Most Trusted Tour Operator Brand by
the Times Travel Honours 2011 and also recognized as a Superbrand 2011-2012 by the
consumers for excellence in travel services.
.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Human Resources in a Company strive to enable the organization to achieve its objectives by
constantly aligning the people factor with the business needs. This creates a need for
constantly evolving and stimulating the systems and processes in the context of organizational
culture. As part of the HR Action plan, the Company has initiated steps to work on each of key
variables that affect human resources, both at a strategic level and at an operational level.
The world stands at important crossroads. These are challenging times, and to retain a
competitive edge, a company must direct individual accomplishment toward organisational
objectives. The only sustainable differentiator of organisational success lies in the Vision and
Values of a company. We must be the force that inuences industry standards. In our kind of
business, people come to us with dreams, with plans, with trust, hoping we will make those
dreams come true.
The Company has always prided itself on core values that act as a foundation to the organisation
and it is now re-aligning its values to reect that of the Promoter Group. The Values are called
the PRIDE Values.
P Pioneering our Future
R Respect for Individuals and United as a team
I Integrity
D Delighting the Customer
E Excellence

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AT TCIL

The Human Resources Department at Thomas Cook strives to promote an open culture and
provide a vibrant work environment to its employees. It prides itself in caring for employees

through various staff welfare measures. The Department has provided exemplary support to the
organization and ensured smooth and seamless transition during ownership change.
The Human Resources Department has rolled out various training initiatives in its quest that each
member of your Company will be a torch bearer for the Vision and Values of our organisation
and uphold them with pride. PRIDE in Thomas Cook.
The organization continues to focus on Training & Development initiatives at all the levels
Business and skill specic trainings were conducted with the objective of developing work skills
and soft skills (behaviour patterns) of employees. We are in the process of launching a
technology based Learning platform, viz. Learning Management System (LMS).
The Company continues to nurture talent through TCMLP (Thomas Cook Middle Leadership
Program), TCMTP (Thomas Cook Management Trainee Program) and TCETP (Thomas Cook
Executive Trainee Program) so as to create talent pipeline at various levels in junior and middle
management.
The Human Resources Department is focussed on Technology to improve processes for
providing seamless HR services to employees. The PRIDE Club which was launched to provide
an energetic work environment, continued to provide non work opportunities related to fun and
learning this included having the PRIDE cricket tournament in various cities, celebrating
various festivals in ofce as also having evening sessions on matters of interest.
Employee Strength:
The employee strength at Thomas Cook India is 3000 including those employed at Sri Lanka and
your Companys subsidiaries in India and Mauritius.
Employee Relations:
Peaceful and cordial relations continue with the employees. The Management wishes to place on
record its acknowledgement and appreciation for the support extended by all the employees of
the Company.

The Company is undergoing a transformation in its business models while at the same time
experiencing rapid growth in all aspects. This provides both, opportunities for the Company to
gain the major market share and grow rapidly, as well as a challenge to maintain protability and
make itself more cost efcient. They are certain that they will continue to invest in our biggest
Asset The People.

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RECRUITMENT
Definition: The process of finding and hiring the best-qualified candidate (from within or
outside of an organization) for a job opening, in a timely and cost effective manner. The
recruitment process includes analyzing the requirements of a job, attracting employees to that
job, screening and selecting applicants, hiring, and integrating the new employee to the
organization.
According to Edwin B. Flippo, Recruitment is the process of searching the candidates for
employment and stimulating them to apply for jobs in the organisation.
The stages of the recruitment process include: job analysis and developing a person
specification; the sourcing of candidates by networking, advertising, or other search methods;
matching candidates to job requirements and screening individuals using testing (skills or
personality assessment); assessment of candidates' motivations and their fit with organisational
requirements by interviewing and other assessment techniques. The recruitment process also
includes the making and finalising of job offers and the induction and onboarding of new
employees.
Depending on the size and culture of the organisation recruitment may be undertaken in-house
by managers, human resource generalists and / or recruitment specialists. Alternatively parts of
all of the process might be undertaken by either public sector employment agencies, or
commercial recruitment agencies, or specialist search consultancies.

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IMPORTANCE OF RECRUITING IN THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM

INDUSTRY:
In the travel and hospitality industries, competent, well-qualified employees are essential.
Capable employees deliver exceptional customer experience, enhancing a company's reputation
and securing vital repeat business. Some hotels and travel companies struggle to recruit skilled
staff. Resignations or retirements often come at inconvenient moments, making it difficult to
invest the time and resources needed to undertake a successful recruitment campaign. At the
other end of the spectrum are the hotels and travel companies who seem to have candidates
clamouring to join them. The difference often lies in the recruitment strategy adopted by the
hotel or travel company.
All too often, companies approach recruitment as a reactive, ad hoc exercise. However, in the
same way that you would not approach your bank for financial advice without first preparing a
detailed business plan with financial projections, you should not undertake recruitment activity
without a well thought out recruitment strategy and succession plan. Without a clear recruitment
strategy, you could spend a fortune on advertising without attracting a single appropriate
candidate or you could find yourself losing a number of key employees at the same time, leaving
you short of valuable skills.

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METHODS OF RECRUITMENT & SELECTION

Thomas Cook India Ltd. follows both Internal and External methods of recruitment for the
people in their organization.
The different sources of recruitment are classified into two categories, viz.,
1. Internal : sources of recruitment are from within the organisation.
2. External : sources of recruitment are from outside the organisation.
Internal Sourcing
Internal sourcing is the practice of advertising a new or recently vacated position within a
business to existing employees. TCIL uses internal sourcing as a method to recruit employees
upward or laterally within the company because little or no training is needed, and expenses that
include advertising for a new employee and running background checks are spared. It also
fosters loyalty and parity among team members.
Internal Sources of Recruitment
The internal sources of recruitment adopted by TCIL are:1. Promotions: Promotion means to give a higher position, status, salary and responsibility
to the employee. So, the vacancy can be filled by promoting a suitable candidate from
TCIL itself.
2. Transfers : Transfer means a change in the place of employment without any change in
the position, status, salary and responsibility of the employee. Since Thomas Cook group
is present across a 100 countries, they do have national and international transfers.
3. Retired Managers : Sometimes, TCIL indulges in recalling retired managers for a short
period. This process is seldom used by them.
4. Internal Job postings: TCIL also indulges in the internal job postings method to recruit
people from within the organization. This helps since they dont have to spend money or

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get a new person from outside, this person internally understands and knows the company
and is comfortable with the job.
Merits of Internal Sources
The benefits / advantages / merits of using internal sources of recruitment:1. It is time saving, economical, simple and reliable.
2. There is no need of induction training because the candidate already knows everything
about the organisation, the work, the employee, the rules and regulations, etc.
3. It motivates the employees of work hard in order to get higher jobs in the same
organisation.
4. It increases the morale of the employees and it improves the relations in the organisation.
5. It reduce executive turnover.
6. It develops loyalty and a sense of responsibility.

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Demerits of Internal Sources

The limitations / demerits of using internal sources of recruitment:1. It prevents new blood from entering the organisation. New blood brings innovative ideas,
fresh thinking and dynamism into the organisation.
2. It has limited scope because it is not possible to fill up all types of vacancies from within
the organisation.
3. The position of the person who is promoted or transferred will be vacant.
4. There may be bias or partiality in promoting or transferring persons from within the
organisation.
5. Those who are not promoted will be unhappy.
6. The right person may be promoted or transferred only if proper confidential reports of all
employees are maintained. This involves a lot of time, money and energy.

External Sourcing
External sourcing is another method of recruitment that conducts an employee candidate search
for TCIL through external recruitment tools, such as job boards, newspaper advertisements and
trade publication announcements. This method favors bringing in job candidates that may or may
not have direct experience in travel and tourism maybe; but a candidate within a satellite field
may offer a fresh, out-of-the-box perspective to the organization.

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External Sources of Recruitment

The external sources of recruitment used by TCIL are:1. Management Consultants : TCIL appoints management consultants who are used for
selecting higher-level staff. They make all the necessary arrangements for recruitment
and selection. In return for their services, they take a service charge or commission.
2. Public Advertisements : The HR department of TCIL advertises the vacancy in
newspapers, the internet, etc. This advertisement gives information about the company,
the job and the required qualities of the candidate. It invites applications from suitable
candidates. This source is the most popular source of recruitment. This is because it gives
a very wide choice.
3. Campus Recruitments: Thomas Cook India Ltd. conducts interviews in the campuses of
Management institutes. Final year students, who're soon to get graduate, are interviewed.
Suitable candidates are selected by the organisation based on their academic record,
communication skills, intelligence, etc. This source is used for recruiting qualified,
trained but inexperienced candidates.
4. Internal Employee Recommendations: Thomas Cook India Ltd. also recruit candidates
based on the recommendations received from existing managers or from Thomas Cook
group
5. Walk ins: Thomas Cook also encourages walk ins, as per requirement.

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Advantages of External Sources

The benefits / merits / advantages of using external sources of recruitment:1. It encourages young blood with new ideas to enter the organisation.
2. It offers wide scope for selection. This is because a large number of suitable candidates
will come for the selection process.
3. There are less chances of bias or partiality.
4. Here there is no need to maintain confidential records.
Limitations of External Sources
The demerits / limitations of using external sources of recruitment:1. It is very costly. This is because advertisements, test, medical examination etc., has to be
conducted.
2. It is very time consuming. This is because the selection process is very lengthy.
3. It may not develop loyalty among the existing managers.
4. The existing managers may leave the organisation if outsiders are given higher post.
Third-Party Sourcing
Third-party sourcing involves using a placement agency or headhunter to find qualified job
candidates. These third-party sources use various techniques and tools to find appropriate job
applicants, such as extending offers of improved salary compensation and more flexible benefits
packages.

STEPS TO RECRUITMENT (PROCESS OF RECRUITMENT):

The following are the steps followed by TCIL while recruiting. They may/may not adhere to
these depending on the urgency and type of recruitment strategy followed by them.

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Step 1
Determining the ideal recruiting target the goal of this step is to determine precisely who
recruiting efforts should target, including performance level, experience level, and whether or not
they are actively looking for a job. If theyre targeting top performers or poaching from
competitors, the remaining steps of the recruiting process must be designed to fit the needs in
the job search process of the targeted candidate if they expect to even gain their attention. At this
step TCIL prioritizes the job roles, so that they focus resources on jobs with the highest business
impact.
Step 2
Understanding the targets decision criteria a significant part of any recruiting process is
attracting desired talent, which they cannot do effectively without understanding what the targets
consider important. This step focuses on identifying the key factors, known as job acceptance
criteria, that are necessary in order to convince a qualified prospect to apply for and eventually
accept a job at TCIL.
Step 3
Employment branding driving a pipeline of talent is the role of employment branding, a
science-driven discipline that produces a consistent flow of qualified talent interested in some
day working. The goal of this step is proactively developing and deploying content about what
makes TCIL a desirable place to work in the minds of your target talent populations. Obviously,
Since Thomas Cook is such a big name in the market, they get a lot of direct applicants.
Step 4
Posting jobs for active candidates During this step, what they do is write position postings
and place them where active candidates can easily find them. Obviously the descriptions are
written so that they are appealing or they are placed where your active candidates would be
likely see them.
Step 5

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Providing prospects with additional information This is the step where probably the
potential person has shown interest in the organization. The goal of this step is to make it easy
for potential candidates to find positive information about TCILs travel and tourism related jobs.
Step 6
Sorting applications by job once applications are received by TCIL, they ensure that the
highest quality applications are sorted relevant to the most appropriate jobs (manually or via
software).
Step 7
The initial screening of applications and resumes at this step, applications are screened to
see if they meet minimum qualifications for the job. Here they see if they can successfully
qualify the applicants so that qualified applicants are not sorted out and that only a small
percentage of unqualified candidates make it to the next step.
Step 8
Interviewing and selling qualified applicants in this step the most qualified candidates
advance to formal interviews and other assessment activities. Here they rank order the candidates
by level of desirability, with a secondary goal of providing a positive candidate experience that
effectively sells the best candidates on this job.
Step 9
The final interview Here, they confirm the initial desirability ranking and set expectations
among those most likely to receive an offer.
Step 10
The reference checking process with the short list vetted and expectations for an offer set,
the next step validates the perception of your assessment team using references. Here, they
gather additional information on the finalist(s) and ensure information provided is not erroneous.

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Step 11
The offer process At this step, they put together an offer that is within the companys
boundaries and that meets as many of the candidates job acceptance criteria as possible. The
process has the sales and influence component that work to improve the likelihood of top
candidates accepting.
Step 12
The post-offer acceptance process Here, they ensure those that accept our offers dont back
out (as a result of a counteroffer or second thoughts). That often means continuous
communications with the new hire and providing more ties that closely link the individual to the
firm prior to their start date.
Step 13
The onboarding process contrary to popular belief, the primary goal of onboarding is not to
get employees enrolled in benefits, but rather to provide resources and information that enable
new hires to become productive as fast as possible.
Step 14
Feedback and new hire monitoring Since the ultimate goal is continuous improvement of
the recruiting process, this step is the most important of them all. Here, they assess the
performance of new hires and to use that performance information to validate or prove that the
overall recruiting process is producing quality hires. If a high percentage new hires fail, quit, or
are poor performers, they know that the hiring process needs significant improvement. A
secondary goal is using new hires to determine what elements of the recruiting process were and
were not effective.

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Things to keep in mind while recruiting:

Who Are You Targeting?
Recruitment often begins with an advertising campaign. You can ensure that you advertise in the
right place by considering who it is that you are trying to attract. If you are searching for young,
dynamic employees then you are unlikely to reach them through printed media. Consider
whether you should be using social media and the internet to reach potential employees. An
unsuccessful advertisement campaign can cost more than cash. If competitors or prospective
employees see that you are running repeat advertisements, your company's reputation can also be
affected.
Brand Awareness:
Job applicants are more likely to respond to your vacancy if they have already built up a positive
impression of your hotel or travel company. Even when you are not actively recruiting, it is
worth investing time and effort to build awareness of your brand among potential employees. In
this way, when you do place a job advertisement, you are more likely to catch the eye of top
talent.
Nurture Potential Employees:
For key skills that are in short supply, it is worthwhile building a longer term recruitment
strategy that may include working in partnership with colleges and universities to attract top
graduates. Alternatively, you could review the previous work histories of employees who have
arrived at your hotel or travel company with these vital skills. By cultivating links with the
people who currently work in similar posts, you can encourage applications from these
individuals when a suitable vacancy arises. In order to preserve a level of detachment, it may be
worthwhile using a headhunter for this type of activity.
Understand the Labour Market:

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Fluctuations in the labour market can have a significant impact on the availability of certain
skills and the pay and reward packages that are required to attract top talent. By keeping up to
date with the ebb and flow of demand and supply within the hospitality and travel labour
markets, you can ensure that you offer a pay and reward package that attracts top talent.
Identify Future Business Needs:
Your recruitment strategy should take in to account the future needs of your hotel or travel
company. For example, do you anticipate that your business will expand and require more staff?
Do you intend to run marketing campaigns targeting customers from particular countries,
increasing the need for language skills? Unless you build in these future developments, you
could find yourself with a workforce that lacks the skills or flexibility to respond to your future
business needs.
One of the quickest and cheapest ways to identify potential failure points is to make a simple list
of the steps in the hiring process. For each step, list the primary goals, how you measure
performance of the activities in the step, and who is accountable. If you find missing steps,
unclear goals, missing metrics or lack of accountability, you know what weaknesses may be
leading to poor performance.

RECRUITMENT ADVERTISING
Recruitment advertising, also known as Recruitment communications and Recruitment
agency, includes all communications used by an organization to attract talent to work within it.
Recruitment advertisements may be the first impression of a company for many people, and the
first impression the firm makes goes a long way to determining interest in the job opening being
advertised. Recruitment advertisements typically have a uniform layout and contain the
following elements:

the job title heading and location

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an explanatory paragraph describing the company, including the Employer Brand

a description of the position

entry qualifications

the remuneration package (not always provided by the employer)

further details and from where application forms may be sought

The use of a specialist recruitment advertising agency enables organisations to receive

professional advice on media, design and copywriting specifically related to the recruitment
process. This enables their advertisement to stand out in the relevant publication and build an
employment brand. Advertisers are now able to use micro-sites to put most of the job content and
allowing the advert to be more creative with minimal copy. Recruitment advertising has now
developed into a speciality service where most leading organisations use the services of a
specialist agency.
The way companies hunt for talent is changing and this had led to sites that freelancers can sign
up to and get to bid on jobs advertised; they are normally free to join but the agency will take
between 10% and 25% of what applicants earn.
Recruitment advertising
1. Purpose of recruitment advertising
To attract as wide a pool of suitable candidates in a cost-efficient manner.
2. Methods of recruitment advertising
Radio/TV: national, local
Job centres etc.
Professional/specialist journals/newspapers
Newspapers: national, local, free
The Internet: registers, own website

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Head-hunters
Use of agencies
Careers offices: school, universities
In-house notice-board, journal, intranet, word-of-mouth
3. How to chose suitable method of recruitment advertising?
Choice of recruitment advertising must be based on some factors as follows:
Type of job
Type/number of users
Frequency of advertisement required
Circulation required
Geographical coverage required
Organizational image
Cost of the right mix above
4. Design of recruitment advertising
a. AIDA principle
When design recruitment ads, you should base on advertising principles of AIDA as follows:
Attention catch the attention of the target audience
Interest hold the interest until the whole message is read
Desire Arouse desire for the opportunity offered
Action Stimulate action in the form of applications
b. Content of a recruitment advertising
Job title/location/salary
Brief description of job
Brief description of organization
Brief description of the ideal person
Benefits etc.

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Special provisions (e.g. mobility, accommodation etc.)

Application procedure and closing date
Equal opportunities statement

The Four As of Recruitment Advertising

There are four steps in making the most of your recruitment advertising budget:
Assign:
Make someone in your company responsible and accountable for tracking and measuring the
effectiveness of your recruitment efforts.
Automate:
Implement automated candidate source tracking with your applicant tracking system (ATS), job
distributor or career site vendor.
Analyze:
Review your cost-per-applicant and cost-per-hire data to determine which sources perform the
best, and which are not performing well.
Adjust:
Optimize your recruitment advertising investments by shifting budget to sites and sources that
deliver the best ROI.

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Modes of recruitment Advertising

1. Twitter - If you have a following for your company or personal brand on Twitter, it
makes sense to reach out to these contacts in order to help find potential candidates.
Twitter can be an incredible marketing tool if you have the right audience.
2. Blogging Similarly to Twitter, make sure you reach out to your subscribers and let them
know youre recruiting. Did I mention were recruiting? ;)
3. Industry leading websites This is probably the most expensive recommendation, but
rather than paying a recruitment agency commission, it may be more beneficial to reach
out to industry leading websites to advertise directly via a one-off fee. Econsultancy is
one of the top digital websites out there so the quality of responses for listings on their
job board is likely to be very high. Also there are normally many industry-specific job
boards which are either free or charge one-off listing fees which are worth checking out.
4. LinkedIn Of course LinkedIn is a huge social media site for professionals, so its an
obvious choice for advertising jobs. LinkedIn charge $199 for a job listing fee, but as a
first (free) step, try sending out a LinkedIn status update to tell your contacts youre
recruiting. Make sure you optimise your LinkedIn profile too, helping to improve its
reach.
5. Local job boards Outside of the big cities it can be more difficult to find people with
the relevant experience. Make sure you find the best people in your region by targeting
them via local advertising or job boards.
6. SEO try targeting industry specific career/job terms, for example if you can rank for
search engine marketing jobs, then youre likely to start receiving a steady stream of
applications.
7. Business parks, Universities & Colleges if your company is located on a business
park, this can be a great way of drumming up some local interest via direct advertising
plus in some cases its a nice way of building some quality links too. Perhaps your local

26

University or College has a job board too, hopefully externally available online and
containing those little things called hyperlinks
8. Facebook Marketplace If you have professional contacts on Facebook, this can be a
great way of making people aware that you are recruiting. Plus its very easy to create a
quick job listing which can be found via the marketplace by users outside of your
network.
9. Facebook advertising this is where you can stalk, I mean target individuals based upon
profile criteria. Those options include interests and employer so if youre selective you
can stalk target the right people very cheaply!

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FREQUENCY OF RECRUITMENT
Thomas Cook India hires at an ongoing frequency.
Hiring occurs for
o

New Positions

To fill in empty positions due to promotions

To fill in empty positions due to transfers/terminations

To account for increased workflow

Planned hiring for workflow needs

To increase diversity at the workplace

To account for new position needs arising out of projects

Job openings are always planned for original employees first and then only if the position cant
be filled by employees are outside employees considered.
Hiring Frequency Planning:

Focus is maintained on quality over quantity

Headcount Planning

Training and Cost implications

Ramp-up Time

Market Growth

Business Goals

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Preference of Campus over Stray Hires

Employee Referral Policy

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RECOMMENDATIONS & SUGGESTIONS

Looking at the Recruitment processes at Thomas Cook India, there are a few recommendations
and suggestions that come to my head. These are as follows:
Lowering the TAT during recruitment:
Currently, the selection process as a whole takes a tad bit longer, than its supposed to. Often the
longest delays occur between critical selection events. For example, a recruiter may need several
weeks to screen a few hundred resumes from the Web job boards, or candidates who make it
through screening may wait weeks to interview with a hiring manager.
At TCIL, , the delays occur when the outstation candidates are called for interviews at Regional
branches like Delhi and Mumbai. Sometimes, because of busy schedule of senior managers and
sometimes because of tight schedule of candidate, the interview has to be postponed. This delay
could be minimized by scheduling interviews in the regional locations. It is recommended to
reduce the turnaround time for the recruitment and selection process. It must be made mandatory
for the candidates to take the test, filling up forms etc within the stipulated time, this will make
sure that the candidates do not hold casual attitude and take the recruitment process more
seriously. Additionally it can send across a positive image about the company.
Reduce the pre offer formalities:
Pre-offer documentation includes filling of a lengthy form which includes all personal,
educational and professional details of candidate. This is very time consuming and even after
taking these details from candidate its not sure that offer will be made or not. This also becomes
frustrating for the candidate sometimes. So, it is recommended that unnecessary details should
not be asked before we make the final offer to the candidate.
Using technology while recruiting:
Web-based technology lets you increase hiring speed and quality while reducing costs.
Currently, job boards constitute the biggest use of the Web, offering access to thousands of

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resumes within hours. But the Web can also be a powerful tool for screening and qualifying that
flood of resumes. Companies have begun to use the Web to collect and instantly match data on
candidate skills, motivations, and experiences against job criteria.
It is recommended that apart from the person-job fit, method must be devised to check for
person-organization fit. A person-organization helps to assess how well a candidate is suited the
organization. Whether the attitude he/she carries will promote both organizational as well
personal goals. This takes a great importance especially when attrition is high. It will help the
organization to retain its employees for a longer period of time and less burden on recruitment
staff.
Tying up with more consultants:
Since the limited placement agencies are sourcing candidates to all travel and tourism
companies, there often comes the problem of duplication of data. Therefore it is recommended
that more and more consultants should be tied up from multiple segments to attract large pool of
new and fresh talent.

CONCLUSION
Going through the project, we see how Thomas Cook India ltd. follows their recruitment
procedure, and the strategies they follow while recruiting for the company. I feel that the
recruitment process followed by them currently fits perfectly fine for the company and works
perfectly for them.
After having an intense discussion with the Vice President for Learning and Development, Mr.
Aspan Patel, there is an understanding that Thomas cook has a very sorted recruitment
procedure, which fulfils all their criterias and looking at their recent growth and expansion, they
have been recruiting perfectly, the way they are supposed to.
Although, I think the organization is not standing out of the crowd for being one of the best
places to work. The first step in this direction is to ensure competitive people come in the

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organization. Therefore recruitment in this regard becomes an important function. The

organization must constantly improvise in its recruitment process so that it is able to attract best
in the industry in order to serve the best. Thus the organization must look out for methods that
can enable it to adopt best recruitment practices.

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TOTAL REWARD MANAGEMENT:

All high-performing companies understand that their proprietary total rewards programs allow
them to excel in new ways. IIFL have designed programs that support their business strategy,
organizational culture and HR strategy.
Objective:
Our Total Reward Strategy leverages elements of compensation, variable pay, performance and
recognition, career development and opportunities that attracts, motivates and retains talent.
FEATURES:
The Total Reward Framework constitutes the following components:

The Policy covers the following

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Compensation and Benefits

Performance Management
Recognition Program
COMPENSATION POLICY:
Compensation and the approach to rewards in the organization plays a very important part in
attracting and retaining talent and in building our culture.
FEATURES:
The Compensation Policy covers the following :
Compensation Philosophy
Approach to Compensation Package
Compensation Administration
Deductions for Income Tax
Filing Tax Returns
Payment of Salary
Components of Compensation
Salary Advance
COMPENSATION STRUCTURE:

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FLEXIBLE BENEFITS PLAN (FBP):

The Flexible Benefit Plan allows employees to select components of salary that best suit them as
per their requirements. This is the balance amount after calculating Basic and Retirals from the
Total Fixed Pay of an employee. The employee can allocate this amount under various
components as explained below.

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BONUS:
1. Performance Bonus has been introduced to ensure IIFLs market competitiveness and also as a
retention tool for the high performers in the Company.
2. Performance Bonus will be triggered on achievement of the IIFL target set by the management
for the year.
3. Performance Bonus pool will be decided by the Management on an annual basis. It will be
dependent on the following factors:
a. IIFLs performance
b. Prevailing market conditions
c. Competitive performance of IIFL vis--vis the market
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT:
IIFL is committed to promoting and nurturing a high performance work culture to sustain its
competitive advantage. The Performance Management System in IIFL achieves this by way of
differentiating and linking performance to the rewards, providing feedback to employees for
future development and by ensuring a transparent Performance Management Process.
FEATURES:
The Performance Management Policy includes the following aspects:
Applicability
Process
Managing Performance at IIFL
Phase 1: Goals or Objective Setting and Development Planning
Phase 2: Mid-Year Review
Phase 3: Annual Review
Performance Review

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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT PROCESS:

Performance Management flow

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MANAGING PERFORMANCE AT IIFL:

1. The Performance Management Process at IIFL answers four very important questions:
a. What do you need to do and how?
- Goal setting and performance measures
b. How are you performing and how can you improve?
- Mid-Year Performance Review and Feedback
c. Have you met your performance expectations and how can you improve?
- (Annual Performance Review and Feedback, Individual Development Plan)
d. How will you be rewarded for your performance?
- (Linkage to Rewards)
PHASE 1: GOALS OR KRA SETTING AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING
1. Goal or KRA setting for employees is derived from the organization scorecard. Organization
scorecard consists of four strategic objectives; Financial, Customer Engagement, Internal and
External Standards and Employee Development

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2. Employees are required to set their objectives and identify their goals for the assessment year
through discussion with their reporting manager. This should be completed by the end of April
every year. For all new employees, goal setting should be completed within a month joining.
3. Goal and KRA setting clarifies performance expectations from the employee and aligns his or
her objectives with organizational priorities. It also helps in articulating desired behaviors and
outcomes. The employee should also discuss some of the development opportunities that he or
she would like to focus in the coming year.
PHASE 2: MID-YEAR REVIEW:
1. The Mid-year Review is held in September. Along with the employees reporting manager, he
or she is required to review his or her performance, achievement of goals, demonstration of core
competencies and progress on development objectives.
2. Based on the outcome of the discussion, the employees goals and development plan are to be
updated which would be then used for the Annual Review discussions.
3. All permanent employees are eligible for a Mid-Year Review. New employees who have
joined IIFL on or before July 1 of that assessment year will also be eligible.
4. The details of the Mid-Year Review will be communicated to all the eligible employees in the
month of August every year.
PHASE 3: ANNUAL REVIEW:
1. Annual Reviews will be held in March to assess employees achievements during the year.
2. Employees are required to complete their self-assessment and send it to their reporting
manager. Employees are then required to have a discussion with their reporting manager on goal
accomplishments during the year and if there have been any unforeseen circumstances due to
which the objectives were altered or not met.
3. New employees will be eligible for an Annual Review if he or she has joined the organization
on or before September 30 of the previous calendar year.
4. The details of the Annual Review will be communicated to all the eligible employees in the
month of February every year.

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RATING SCALE:
At IIFL, we follow the five point rating scale to rate the employee's performance. The Rating
Description is as follows:

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PERFORMANCE REVIEW:
1. The Performance Review will be completed by the employees reporting manager and will be
reviewed by the employees skip level manager.
2. If an employee has been working with two or three different managers in a year, it is the
responsibility of the reporting manager to collate feedback from the other managers and
complete the performance review. Alternatively, the employee also may reach out to his or her
managers to obtain feedback on performance.
ROLE OF EMPLOYEE AND MANAGER:
A. Employee Responsibilities
1. Provide a thorough, thoughtful and candid self-assessment on goal accomplishments:
a. What have you accomplished in relation to goals set in April?
2. What are your strengths and development opportunities?
a. What required competencies have you demonstrated? Or learnt?
b. Where do you need to develop?
c. How can your manager help you grow and develop?
3. Together the employee and the manager should create a plan for sustaining success and
realizing improvement.
B. Manager Responsibilities:
1. Provide a thorough, thoughtful and candid assessment of employees goal accomplishments:
a. What has the employee accomplished in relation to goals set in April?
2. Determine employees strengths and development opportunities:
a. What competencies has the employee demonstrated? Or learnt?
b. What competencies need to be developed?
c. How can you help the employee grow and develop?
3. Together the employee and the manager should create a plan for sustaining success
and realizing improvement.
4. Participate in alignment meetings.

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RECOGNITION PROGRAM:
An effective Recognition Program is part of a compelling total rewards offering that engages
employees and drives business outcomes. IIFL takes pride in recognizing high performance of its
employees and teams. The purpose of these awards is to create positive work environment,
improve employee morale, motivate high performance and encourage delivery of extraordinary
results.
Aspects of Recognition:
Recognize actions or behaviors that link to the organizations vision, strategy and values
Recognize contributions that support the transformational growth plan of IIFL
FEATURES:
The compensation policy covers the following aspects:
Type of Recognition
Nomination Criteria
Process
RECOGNITION FRAMEWORK:
IIFL recognizes value-driven achievements. Our Recognition Framework is a testimony of the
importance of values in our culture. The recognition program is designed to assess and give
special attention to employee actions, efforts, behavior and performance outcomes that drive a
one firm culture and a strong value system.

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PROCESS:
The policy has laid down a comprehensive process to select the reward recipients to ensure
selection, rigor and fairness.

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Bibliography

Personnel Management by KV Mishra, Adiya Publishing House,1992

CHHABRA T.N, Principles and practices of management, Dhanpat Rai and company
Ltd, Delhi, 2000

http://www.progressive-personnel.com/travel-jobs-blog/entry/2012/december/the-

importance-of-a-solid-recruitment-strategy/
http://www.thomascook.in/tcportal/downloads/TCILSuperbrandDec182012.pdf
http://www.recruiter.com/i/recruitment/

http://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/73307-unit-06-human-resources-for-travel-and-tourism.pdf

Boella, M (2000) Human Resource Management in the Hospitality Industry 7th Ed.

Nelson Thornes
Carfield, R. (2002) Preparing your own CV Kogan Page
Dale, G. (2006) GCE A2 Level Travel and Tourism Heinemann Educational Publishers
McAlphine, M. (2004) So you want to work in travel and tourism? Hodder and Stoughton
Outhart, T. et al (2000) Travel and Tourism for Advanced GNVQ HarperCollins