Introduction

Recruitment and selection are the processes of selecting the best candidate from a group of candidates who can deliver the result defined in the job description (Armstrong and Taylor, 2020).

Further, he has divided the entire process into 10 subsections.

1. Defining Requirements	6.  Assessing candidates
2. Attracting candidates	7.  Obtaining references
3. Sifting applications	8.  Checking applications
4.  Interviewing/Assessment centers	9.  Offering employment
5. Testing	10. Following up

 Figure 1.0 shows the traditional approach to the recruitment and selection process and the relationship between sub-processors to workforce planning (John and Jerry, 2012)

Figure 1.0 – The stages of Recruitment & Selection Process

Recruitment

Recruitment is the process of selecting a pool of candidates to fill a vacancy in an organization. (Michael Armstrong with Stephen Taylor, 2020). Sometimes organizations take the necessary steps to create a pool of qualified candidates to fulfill organizations' future human resources needs. But often the recruitment process begins only when a need arises (Devi and Banu, 2014).

As the study done by Nikolaou and Oostrom (2015, p. 22) have stated:  

 

The job description very often constitutes the basis of the recruitment advertisement and establishes the ways by which the information will appear reflected. As such, it affects the degree of attraction of the recruitment advertisement that is perceived by the potential candidates and, consequently, has important implications for the success of the entire selection process and for the fulfillment of the job vacancy.

 

According to the research done by Ahmed Al-Harerat (2020), below are the most common steps in the recruitment process.

1.  Identify the need for a vacancy
2. Define the job description,
3. Decide skills & qualifications required
4. Refer recruitment policy and procedure of the organization
5. Decide on recruitment sources
6. Select a suitable method
7. Design the advertisement
8. Publish the vacancy through all communication channels
9. Select a pool of potential candidates
10. Screening of applications

  

Selection

The selection process is the most critical section of this hall exercise. It is the process of picking up the most suitable candidate for the vacancy from a pool of applicants. In the selection process, there are several important steps to follow, after receiving the applications (Leighton and Proctor, 2006)

1.     Perform basic inspection procedure
2. Combination of interviews such as face to face, skill tests, psychometric tests, etc, etc.

 Leighton and Proctor (2006, pp 63 -7) have further mentioned as ‘Selection procedures should be objective and should be seen to be objective’

 In this key human resource activity, organizations will focus on their internal applicants and external applicants to fulfill vacancies in hand as well as future vacancies while concentrating on serious implications that can make on company branding, performance productivity, and feasibility of the organization. (Nankervis, et el 2020)

 The new technology available in the current context is making a considerable impact on the employee selection process. Hence, the selection process is given extra attention.  To get the best effect of the employee selection process, it should align with the organization’s strategic direction and the HR plan.  It is the responsibility of the HR professionals to ensure that the above plans are properly integrated with the selection process and that any change in the strategic direction of the organization is addressed with immediate effect.  (Nankervis, et el 2020)

 

 

 

REFERENCES

 

Ahmed Al-Harerat 2020, ‘A Review of recruitment and selection process’, viewed 13^th April 2022, < www.researchgate.net/publication/341787517>

 

Armstrong, M with Taylor, S 2020, Armstrong’s Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice, 15^th edn, KoganPage, UK, ISBN 978 0 7494 6550 6.

 

Bratton, J and Gold, J 2012, Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice. 5^th edn; Palgrave MacMillan.

 

Devi, BR Mrs, Banu, PV Dr Mrs 2014, ‘SSRG International Journal of Economics and Management Studies (SSRG-IJEMS)’ – vol issue2 Sep 2014,  Viewed 2^nd April 2022, <http://www.internationaljournalssrg.org>

 

Leighton, P and Proctor, G 2006, Effective Recruitment – A Practical Guide to Staying within the Law. Thorogood Publishing Ltd, UK. pp. 63 -7

 

Nankervis et al. 2020, Human Resource Management: Strategy and Practice.  Cengage Learning Australia. ISBN: 9780170286077

 

Nikolaou, I and Oostrom, KJ 2015, Employee Requirement, Selection, and Assessment. Psychology Press, New York, p.22

Effective Methods of Recruitment Process

Mainly the recruitment process can be divided into two parts. That is INTERNAL and EXTERNAL.

While giving first preference to internal candidates, it is always worth trying to persuade former employees to return to the organization or get suggestions from existing employees (Referrals). (Armstrong 2012).  He has also mentioned the options of obtaining records from talent banks that record the information of the candidates electronically.

In addition to internal options, organizations also have the following external options to receive the information of candidates to meet the organization’s recruitment needs (Armstrong 2012). 

• Online Recruiting
• Advertising
• Recruitment Agencies
• Job Centres
• Recruitment consultants
• Executive search consultants
• Recruitment process outsourcing providers
• Direct approaches to educational establishments

 

Online Recruiting

Searching for information about job candidates and their private information by using Internet searchers, social networking websites and other social media channels have become more common with most employers in the modern world. ( David et al. 2016)

Editors believe that the aforementioned social media channels can provide additional information on prescreening and human resource selection practices rather than traditional human resource selection methods.

Publishing job vacancies on corporate web site also has become a popular method for the online recruitment process. (Armstrong 2012).  Armstrong has further mentioned that most companies have a dedicated section on their corporate website for the above purpose including the facility to submit an online application form and conduct tests for new candidates.

 

Advertising

While many organizations are gradually turning to online recruitment, agencies, or consultants, the traditional advertising recruitment approach is still important, especially at the local level  (Armstrong 2012). Armstrong has further stated that the below information is important to appear in an advertisement while having bold letters for job title, salary, and other key benefits such as company vehicle to gain more attention of candidates.

Information in a Recruitment Advertisement

• The Organization
• The Job
• The Person required - qualifications, experience, etc.
• The pay and benefits offered
• The location
• The action to be taken

 

Recruitment Agencies

Agencies such as government-sponsored networks, and private consultants executive search firms help to recruit qualified staff (Nankervis, 2020). He also has mentioned that private consultants charge a substantial fee and provide specific needs for their corporate clients by tailoring their services. Some agencies are serving only in specific occupational areas or in the specific professional field is something which was highlighted by Nankervis.

Executive search firms called ‘head-hunters’ role is to find candidates with suitable qualifications to fulfill the vacancies with their client organizations (Nankervis, 2020).

 

Job Centres

Mainly manual workers, clerical staff, sales staff, and call center assistants are making use of job centres operated by governments to meet their job requirements (Armstrong 2012).

 

Recruitment Consultants

By charging a percentage ( 15 to 20 ) from the basic salary of the job as the fee, recruitment consultants provide the service to reduce the workload of their customers by advertising, interviewing, and providing detail of shortlisted candidates (Armstrong 2012).

 

Executive search consultants

They are also known as 'Headhunters' who use their own contacts as the first approach and help organizations to fill any vacancies in higher positions and as the fee, they charge nearly 30 to 50 percent from the first year's salary of the candidate (Armstrong 2012).

 

Recruitment process outsourcing providers

Recruitment process outsourcing providers manage the entire recruitment process by involving defining the requirement, deciding the best way of attracting candidates, processing applications, and setting up interviews (Armstrong 2012).

 

Direct approaches to educational establishments

As per Armstrong (2012), this process refers to finding candidates from schools, universities, and other educational establishments. 

REFERENCES

Armstrong, M 2012, Armstrong’s Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice, 12^th edn, KoganPage, UK, ISBN 978 0 7494 6550 6.

 Davison, HK et al. 2016, ‘Social Media as a Personnel Selection and Hiring Resources: Reservations and Recommendations’ in Landers, RN et al. (eds), Social Media in Employee Selection and Recruitment, Springer, Switzerland, pp.41-63

 

Nankervis, A 2020, Human Resource Management : Strategy and Practice, 10^th edn, Cengage, Australia