Human Resource Management

MSc in Management

METHODS OF RECRUITING AND

SELECTING THE BEST AVAILABLE
STAFF

Lecturer: David Shaw

Student: Rebecca Natalie Siclitaru
Submission date: 17th of March 2010
INTRODUCTION
As the topic of this assignment says, it is vital for the efficient and successful
organization to recruit and select only the best available staff. This assessment has been
seen as a critical issue for Human Resource Management (HRM) in all kinds of
businesses, no matter their structure, dimension or sector (Marchington and Wilkinson,
2008). Recruiting and selecting staff is a difficult task, and it should be dealt by a
professional Human Resource manager, who has the proper skills and knowledge for this
matter. A new job offer may become available from different reasons, and the
requirements of the post depend on whether it is a permanent or temporary, open-ended
contract or through a specialized agency (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2008).
This essay will point out why HR planning is important in the recruiting and selecting
process. It will also describe different types of jobs, a person’s specification, and also a
few competency frameworks. Afterwards, the study will provide the main recruitment
methods, how to use them, how to choose a selection method and which are the most
popular ones. Furthermore, it will describe some of the types of interviews and selection
tests. The essay will end with a conclusion on several perspectives regarding recruitment
and selection of staff.

Human Resource Planning

As Taylor (2005) states in one of his writings, planning is one of the most important
criteria during recruitment, in order for the employer to select the best available and
qualitative staff at the right time. Although HR planning might have been argued whether
it is still useful for positive recruiting results, the attention that is has received is poor,
HRM texts focusing more on general discussions of control systems or strategies. But as
Marchington and Wilson (2008) argue, HR planning is imperative for the following
reasons:
1. It has specific links between organizations and HR plans, being perceived as a
great promoter of competitive advantage;
 2. It manages better the number employed and the staffing costs, making it easier to
take recruiting decisions, and corresponding the supply with the requirement;
3. It creates the right mix of skills and attitudes within the organization; and
4. Profiles are needed for reporting purposes, as in type of gender, ethnic origin, and
age.
There have been identified several techniques on HR planning that have been applied to
three categories: the forecast of future demand for labour; and forecast of internal and
external supply (Marchington and Wilson, 2008).
Forecasting future demand is based on two methods: an objective and a subjective one.
The objective method focuses on precedent trends, and for it to work proper, it must look
towards the changes that occur in technology and organizational objectives. The
subjective methods, however, seem to be more suitable, and can be divided into ‘top-
bottom’ or ‘bottom-up’ approaches, or a combination between them (Marchington and
Wilson, 2008).
Forecasting internal supply is about making decisions regarding external recruitment,
workforce cut or internal staff development. The main techniques that are used in this
case include: wastage rate; stability index; and induction crisis (Beardwell and Clayton,
2007). As for external labour supply, it can be influenced on two levels: local – as in
housing and transport, reputation of employer, opening and closure of other workplaces;
or national – which includes levels of unemployment, training schemes and graduates, or
UK and EU frameworks (Marchington and Wilson, 2008).

Job analysis and competency frameworks

Another important criterion for recruiting and selecting is the job analysis. This enquires
knowing the tasks and duties that form a job and also focusing on the qualities and
attributes of who is taking the job. Therefore, the job analysis along with job descriptions,
person specifications and these competency frameworks have become one of the main
steps on which recruitment and selection is based on (Evans, 2001). Research has shown
that a job analysis may be performed by a specialized human resource consultant, but it
can also bring benefit to a company if the line managers, employees or supervisors
involve in the process. Nevertheless, these implications need to be biased against the
costs implied (Evans, 2001). Corbridge and Pillbeam (1998) framework has identified
some of the information that is required regarding the analysis of a job, and it is formed
of: (a) information regarding the position of a job in a company;
(b) objectives and performances of the job;
(c) tasks and managerial relations;
(d) duties and contents of role;
(e) working environment and conditions of employment;
(f) knowledge, skills and person specifications
(g) other relevant information regarding the job characteristics.
The most widely used method of job analysis is interviewing. The questions asked in the
interview are focused on the data that has been selected further up. There are two precise
methods, known as ‘critical incident’ and ‘repertory grid’ that are useful for the
interviews. The critical incident technique relies on demanding the job holder to name the
main objectives of a job and how to handle them. The repertory grid focuses more on the
skills and abilities that make the interviewee appropriate or inappropriate for the job
(Evans, 2001). There are also other techniques in addition to interviewing, such as:
standardized questionnaires, work diaries, observation of job holders, or the usage of
focus groups (Roberts, 1997).
The job description should include the following: a clear description of the job title;
geographic location and department; reporting relationships – as in the job position that
the new employee will respond to; overall purpose; key task and responsibilities – it is
suggested that no more than ten key aspects should be identified (Evans, 2001)
A person’s specification is also an important part of the recruitment and selection of the
job. If it is used properly, it may help to underline the most productive selection methods
and can guarantee that the selection decisions are derived from justifiable criteria
(Beardwell and Clayton, 2007). A variety of frameworks have been offered for person
specification, two of the most important ones being Rodger’s ‘Seven-Point Plan’ and
Munro Fraser’s ‘Five-Fold Grading’. Also, by using competencies, a combination
between a job-orientated and a person-orientated strategy can be adopted in order to
employ people than can bring benefits to the organization’s business aims. The definition
of competency has been a debate, since the Americans refer to it as ‘competency’ - which
focuses on a job’s input. In the UK however, ‘competence’ is seen as being more
concerned wit the outputs (Evans, 2001).

Methods of recruitment
Recruiting people is a procedure of generating internal or external candidates from which
too choose, taking into account application forms, CVs and interviews (Evans, 2001).
There are different recruiting methods from which organizations can choose from:
1. informal personal contacts, as in word of mouth or speculative applications;
2. formal personal contacts, as in career fairs or opened days;
3. notice boards, which can be used by current staff or the public;
4. advertising, together with local and national press, radio, specialist publications,
or TV;
5. the internet;
6. external assistance, as in ‘head-hunters’, job centers, or employment agencies
(Beardwell and Clayton, 2007).
Many organizations use one or more of these recruiting methods. The most suitable one
is influenced by the requirements and importance of the job. For instance, the CIPD
survey (2005) has noticed that the most rated recruitment methods for senior management
or director jobs are the special agencies, while the local press is used for manual
vacancies. Nevertheless, the most popular recruitment technique remains the press
advertising. Organizations tend to use the recruiting agencies services for their
recommendation on the most efficient media (Beardwell and Clayton, 2007)
The internet recruiting system has been growing during the past ten years. It has been
identified that over two-thirds of organizations make available their vacancies online
(CIPD, 2005). The online systems are being used to take over the traditional approaches.
Some of the advantages of recruiting via internet are: the cost reductions, it can reach a
large number of applicants, it can provide an up-to-date image of an organization, and it
covers the whole globe. For sure there are going to be also some disadvantages, which
include: overloading application forms, a specific limit regarding online applications, it
can be discriminating – especially in the use of words for CVs (Beardwell and Clayton,
2007).

Techniques of selection
‘Selection deals with sifting, short listing and appointing applicants from the field
generated by the recruitment activity’ (Evans, 2001). There are different choices that
detail the desired criteria to assess the value of each selection method: practicability –
seen as the most important criteria, sensitivity – has the ability to discriminate between
the candidate’s skills, reliability – being consistent on a certain selection method, and
validity – correctness and predictive method (Marchington and Wilson, 2008).
Although there are different selection methods available, the most popular ones are
interviews, telephone interviews, tests, assessment centers, or job simulations
(Marchington and Wilson, 2008).
Interviews are the most widely used method of selection, but they are criticized as being
unreliable, with a low rate of validity and sensitivity. This can lead to choosing the wrong
candidate if the interviewers are not trained or adequate prepared. Interviews may be
individual – encourages the rapport and it is relative informal; in a small group – the
interview is conducted by two or three people; panel – the interview may seem as a trial,
as the candidate has to see between three or five interviewers from different parts of the
company, depending on the complexity of the job; and structured – focuses more on job-
related questions and competency profiles (Marchington and Wilson, 2008).
Selection tests are also quite popular, as they have shown a higher level of validity while
choosing between candidates. There are two broad categories of test: cognitive test which
include measuring aptitudes and abilities; and personality test which focus on ‘trait’ or
‘type’ theories (Marchington and Wilson, 2008).
CONCLUSION
It has come to the conclusion that if the recruitment and selection of staff goes wrong, not
only that the employer will not have a person to fit in the new job, it would also lead to a
serious loss of time, money, strategic focusing, and also the reputation of the business
will suffer (Jago, 1996).
It has also been argued that because of the use of the ‘new’ and ‘sophisticated’ methods
of recruitment, the job vacancies are filled in without taking into consideration other
alternatives, such as the requirement of a specific job being needed or a methodical
analysis. Therefore, not having an appropriate understanding regarding the demands of
the job, of HR preparation or of the best ways of attracting future candidates, it will lead
to a useless selecting decision (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2008). By applying the
appropriate techniques can therefore increase the number of potentially qualified staff,
being able to fulfill the meeting targets.
References:

Beardwell, J. and Clayton, T. (2007) Human Resource Management: A Contemporary

Approach. 5th Edition, pp.200-220

CIPD (2005) Recruitment, Retention and Labour Turnover Survey, London: CIPD

Corbridge, M. and Pillbeam, S. (1998) Employment Resourcing. London: FT Pitman.

Evans, A. (2001) Staff Recruitment and Retention: Strategies for Effective Action,
Chandos Publishing, Oxford, England

Jago, A. (1996). “Selecting your team: how to find the right people”. Librarian Career
Development, Vol. 4, No 3, pp. 27-31

Marchington, M. and Wilkinson, A. (2008). “Human Resource Management at Work”.

People Management and Development, 4th Edition, pp. 223-260

Roberts, G. (1997) Recruitment and Selection: A Competency Approach. London: IPD

Taylor, S. (2005) People Resourcing. London, CIPD