1. Recruitment & Selection
The process of finding new staff for a company, from advertising jobs to signing
contracts, needs to be well run if it is not to waste valuable company time.
Choosing the right person for a hob depends, to a large degree, on getting the
right procedures and documents in place.
Recruitment is from the point when the organisation decides it needs to
employ somebody up to the point where a pile of completed
application forms has arrived in the post.
Selection begins when the HR department sort through that pile of
applications and it ends when the newly appointed employee
turns up on their first day at work.
The HR department must plan ahead, identify and fill job vacancies.
Why might a vacancy arise?
• Worker/s may be due for retirement
• Worker/s may leave for other reasons
• Worker/s may be promoted
• A business expansion may create new jobs
Stages in the Recruitment Process
Below are the typical stages in the recruitment process of a medium to large
company (they may differ slightly from business to business). A small company
may well not follow all the same procedures.
1. The manger if the department with the vacancy
Job description & person
consults the HR manager. They draw up 2 key
specification
documents – the job description and the person
specification.
2. The job advertisement is placed in the local paper.
After the application deadline had passed, application
forms and CVs are checked to remove obviously Job advertisement
unsuitable people. The rest of the applications are
compared to the person specification to arrive at a
shortlist for interview.
3. The candidates are interviewed and may be given a
test of some kind to do (aptitude, personality and

2. intelligence tests, presentations etc). The job is
Interview candidates
offered to the most suitable candidate. If no
candidate proves suitable the job will be re-
advertised). Unsuccessful candidates are notified.
4. The successful candidate’s references are checked.
If any problems arise the job may be offered to the
Check references
met most suitable person from the list. If all their
references are fine a time is set for the new person to
start.
5. A contract and some training time are arranged.
The performance of the new staff member will be
Contract & training
monitored through an appraisal system – manager
and worker will agree on targets for a set period and
then review the results.
Job Description lists all the duties an employee must carry out in that
particular job describes what the job involves.
Job title Basic details
Location of job
Brief outline of what the The organisation is selling itself to the job
employer does applicants. If it looks like a successful
place it will attract netter applicants
Main purpose of the job Are the essentials of the job description
Detailed list of main tasks
that all applicants need to know about
required in the job
Standards that the job holder
will be required to achieve
Pay & other benefits Needed as attractions to draw in good
Promotion prospects
quality applicants
The person to whom the job Give the applicant a clearer idea of how
holder reports this job fits into the organisation
The person/s who report/s to
the job holder
Person Specification
describes the kind of person who is needed to carry out a particular job.
Usually a seven point plan is used to write a person specification;
1 Physique, health & Includes personal smartness, dress sense, voice,
appearance hearing, eyesight as well as general health

3. 2 Attainments What educational qualifications such as GCSE’s,
NVQ’s, A-Level’s, degree, does the job require?
3 General intelligence How ‘bright’ do you need to be to do this job?
4 Special aptitudes What special skills does a person need to do this
job? It could be skills with words or numbers for
example.
5 Interests Firms will often look for people with lots of interests
& hobbies
6 Disposition What kind of personality is needed to do this job?
7 circumstances e.g. the job may require the person to live nearby or
be prepared to travel
Advertising the Job
The job advertisement contains details of the position to be filled and where to
apply. The job description and person specification are used to draw up the job
advertisement.
Adverts can be internal or external
o Internal – only circulated within the business in order to give existing
staff the chance to apply
o External – published in appropriate places (local, nation or specialist
newspapers. Also possibly sent to Job Centres and recruitment agencies)
Advertising internally can be quicker and less expensive than from outside. It
also improves morale as staff realise that promotion is possible. Another benefit
is that the internal candidate knows the organisation and so can learn the new job
very quickly. The drawback is however that no ‘new blood’ is introduced which
could lead to fewer new ideas. The benefits of external candidates mean that
there will be a much wider range of people from whom to choose, showing
everyone that the organisation is an Equal Opportunities employer.
Job advertisements should contain;
o Name of the employer & what the employer does
label manufacturer, computer programming etc
o Job title
should state what the job requires the person to do
o Type of person required
qualities, qualifications and experience
o Pay, hours & perks
o Place of work & indication of any travelling required
o How to apply
should state whether applicants should write in, phone or email for an
application or send a CV

4. SELECTION
Having received all the applications a shortlist must be drawn up, eliminating
those who don’t meet the person specifications – they may be regarded as too
inexperienced or overqualified.
The Interview
At an interview the interviewer can;
• Check whether the interviewees communication skills are up to the
required standard
• Assess the interviewees social skills
• Check their physical appearance (regarded as important for some jobs –
receptionist, sales force).
• See how confident the interviewee is
• Discuss information on the application form
• Judge whether the interviewee will work effectively with colleagues in the
department
The interviewee can;
• Discuss future prospects – promotions
• Check the working conditions
• Ask about training and other opportunities
• Judge the friendliness or otherwise of existing staff
• See the facilities available
Selection Tests
Some firms run a series of tests to help decide which of the short listed applicants
is most suitable for the post. These tests may be designed to assess a candidate’s
intelligence, personality or aptitude.

5. 1. Intelligence tests
Designed to check applicant’s mental abilities. May involve testing verbal
and numerical reasoning.
2. Personality tests (psychometric)
Try to discover an applicant’s personality, attitudes and beliefs in an
attempt to find out whether they will fit happily in to the company. A
common psychometric test is a DISC TEST – Dominance Influence
Steadiness Compliance. An example of a DISC question is below; the
candidate has to state which statement is most like him/her and which is
least like him/her
A I am very persuasive Most Least
B I see myself as a gentle person Most Least
C I am a very modest type Most Least
D I often come up with original ideas Most Least
3. Aptitude tests
Are set if the employer wants to see the applicant carrying out the sort of
tasks involved in doing the job. E.g. an applicant for a clerical post may be
required to carry out tests involving word processing or the use of the
telephone.
References
It is common practice for employers to ask applicants to provide 2 references,
usually from previous employers and reputable personal acquaintances.
Legal & ethical issues when recruiting
Employers should act fairly by never discriminating on sexual, racial or
disability grounds. The organisations recruitment advertising must not
discriminate against anyone.
The way in which people are selected for shortlist for interview and the manner of
the interview itself must be carried out ethically – interviewers must be fair and
not choose a candidate for personal reasons.

6. It is equally important that the applicant does not tell lies or mislead on the
application or CV. To do so could lead to dismissal.
APPOINTMENT
Once the applicant has been selected by the interview panel and has accepted the
position offered a contract of employment is drawn up. This contract contains
the following information;
CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT
Job title ..............................
Employers name .......................... Employees name .........................
Starting date ............................... Hours of work .............................
Pay and pay intervals ................... Holidays and holiday pay ..............
Sickness and sickness pay ............ Pension details ............................
Length of notice required ............. Disciplinary rules .........................
Ending the appointment
Employees may be made redundant. This occurs when their jobs are no longer
needed by the firm (possibly due to changes in work practice or production
methods or changes in demand for the firm’s goods and services. Staff may
receive some redundancy pay, the amount depending on factors such as their
length of service, age and rate of pay.
An employee can be dismissed where there is a good reason to do so. Typical
situations when this may occur include, stealing the firms goods, continued
employment would be illegal (lorry driver lost licence) or conduct at work
(drunkenness, violent behaviour). An employee will be given verbal warnings
followed by written warnings before being dismissed. All employees have
protection against unfair dismissal.
The recruitment and selection process can be a long and expensive one so HR
department staff need to be careful and thorough when employing people.