2. What this topic is about
• Need for workforce
planning
• The recruitment and
selection process
• Advantages and
disadvantages of
recruitment methods
3. Reasons to Recruit Staff
• Business expansion due to
– Increasing sales of existing products
– Developing new products
– Entering new markets
• Existing employees leave:
– To work with competitors or other local employers
– Due to factors such as retirement, sick leave, maternity
leave
• Business needs employees with new skills
• Business is relocating – and not all of existing
workforce want to move to new location
4. Changes in Employment Patterns
• The way we work is changing rapidly:
– Increase in part-time working
– Increases in numbers of single-parent families
– More women seeking work
– Ageing population
– Greater emphasis on flexible working hours
– Technology allows employees to communicate more
effectively whilst apart (“teleworking”)
– People rarely stay in the same job for life
• Businesses need to understand and respond
to these changes if they are to recruit staff of
the right standard – and keep them!
5. Part-time Staff + Flexible Working
• Increased numbers of people in the UK are
working part-time
• Advantages
– Cheaper to employ as entitled to less benefits
– More flexible workforce (easier to reduce labour hours
when sales fall or add hours when demand increases)
– Wide range of potential recruits (e.g. working mothers who
want to restrict the number of hours they work)
• Disadvantages
– Employees feel less loyal to business and therefore less
motivated
– Harder for managers to control and coordinate workforce
6. What is Workforce Planning?
Workforce planning is
about deciding how
many and what types
of workers are required
7. Steps in Workforce Planning
• The workforce plan establishes what vacancies exist
• Managers produce a job description and job
specification for each post
• Job description
– Detailed explanation of the roles and responsibilities of the post
advertised
– Most applicants will ask for this before applying for the job
– Refers to the post available rather than the person
• Job specification
– Sets out the kind of qualifications, skills, experience and personal
attributes a successful candidate should possess.
– A vital tool in assessing the suitability of job applicants
– Refers to the person rather than the post
8. Recruitment Methods
• Internal recruitment
– Jobs given to staff already employed by business
– Involves promotion and reorganisation
• External recruitment
– Job centres
– Job advertisements
– Recruitment agencies (offline and online)
– Headhunting
– Personal recommendation
9. Internal Recruitment
• Advantages
– Cheaper and quicker to recruit
– People already familiar with business and how it operates
– Provides opportunities for promotion with in business
• Disadvantages
– Business already knows strengths and weaknesses of
candidates
– Limits number of potential applicants
– No new ideas can be introduced from outside
– May cause resentment amongst candidates not appointed
– Creates another vacancy which needs to be filled
10. External Recruitment
• Advantages
– Outside people bring in new ideas
– Larger pool of workers from which to find best
candidate
– People have a wider range of experience
• Disadvantages
– Longer process
– More expensive process due to advertisements and
interviews required
– Selection process may not be effective enough to
reveal best candidate
12. Stages of Recruitment Process
• Preparation
– Identifying what jobs need filling and what role and
specification of job is
• Finding possible candidates
– Various methods (e.g. advertising) to encourage potential
candidates to apply for job
• Selection
– Interviews and other selection processes to choose best
person for job
– Completing contractual employment of that person
• Induction
– Introducing selected candidate to business
13. Job Description and Specification
• Job description
– Detailed explanation of roles and responsibilities of
post advertised
– Most applicants will ask for this before applying for job
– Refers to post available rather than person
• Job specification
– Drawn up by business
– Sets out qualifications, skills, experience and personal
attributes a successful candidate should possess
– Vital tool in assessing suitability of job applicants
– Refers to person rather than post
14. Contents of a Job Description
• Job Title: this indicates the role/function that the job
plays within an organisation, and the level of job
within that function
• Reporting responsibilities: who is the immediate boss
of the job holder?
• Subordinates: who reports directly TO the job holder?
• Main purpose: what is involved in the job overall
• Main tasks: description of the main activities to be
undertaken and what the job holder is expected to
achieve
• Employment conditions (e.g. basis of payment; fringe
benefits, holiday, period of notice, disciplinary)
15. Objectives of Recruitment Advertising
• Inform audience of potential candidates
about opportunity
• Provide enough information to both inform
and interest possible applicants
• Help “screen” or dissuade unsuitable
applicants
• Obtain most number of suitably qualified
applicants for post advertised
• Note – recruitment adverts can be published
internally and externally
16. Placing a Job Advertisement
• Internal recruitment
– Notice boards
– Staff magazines & newsletters
– Email
• External recruitment
– Newspapers and magazines
– Job centres
– Employment agencies and “Head-
hunters”
– Direct contacts (e.g. with employees
in a competitor business)
– Internet recruitment websites
17. Role of a Recruitment Agency
• A recruitment agency works to provide a link between
the employer and employee
– Potential employees register with the agency and provide
personal details
– Employers approach the agency for shortlists of potential
candidates
• Recruitment agencies charge a fee for the service
– Main fee is to the employer
– Usually a percentage of the employees wages and salary in the
first 6-12 months
– Often an expensive option
• Some agencies specialise in particular employment
areas
– E.g. nursing, financial services, teacher recruitment
18. What to Consider When Advertising
• Type of job
– Senior management jobs merit adverts in the national
newspapers and/or specialist management magazines
– Many semi-skilled jobs need only be advertised locally to attract
sufficient good quality candidates
• Cost of advertising
– National newspapers and television cost significantly more than
local newspapers etc
• Readership and circulation
– How many relevant people does the medium reach?
– How frequently is the publication published?
• Frequency
– How often does the business want to advertise the post?
19. A Good Job Advertisement
Accurate Describes the job and its requirements accurately
Not too long-winded; covers just the important
Short
ground
Does not make claims about the job or the business
Honest
that will later prove false to applicants
Gives the potential applicant a positive feel about
Positive
joining the business
Provides details that prospective applicants need to
Relevant know at the application stage (e.g. is shift-working
required; are there any qualifications required)
20. Contents of a Job Advertisement
• Details of the business (name,
brand, location, business activities)
• Outline details of the job (title,
main duties)
• Conditions (special factors affecting
the job)
• Experience / qualifications required
• Rewards (financial and non-
financial)
• Application process (how should
applicants apply, how to; deadlines)
21. Contents of a job application form
• Personal details (name, nationality
etc)
• Educational history & qualifications
• Previous employment history
(periods, positions, roles,
achievements…)
• Suitability and reasons for applying
for job
• A chance for applicants to ‘sell
themselves’
• Names of referees
22. Curriculum Vitae
• A written document
• Often on one or two
sides of A4
• Designed by the job
applicant
• Covers similar ground as
job application
23. Advantages of a job application versus a CV
• Business can tailor questions and format to exact
needs
• An application form forces candidates to answer same
questions and provide information in a consistent
format
• CV’s often come in many different formats, with key
information either missing or presented in different
ways
• Encourages the applicant to consider the specific
needs of the employer – e.g. respond to questions
relevant to the employer
• More likely to get up-to-date information from the
applicant
24. Reasons for Rejecting Candidates at
Application Form Stage
• May not meet standards set out in job
specification
– Wrong qualifications
– Insufficient experience
• May not have completed application form
to a satisfactory standard
• May be unlucky
– Employer has set a limit on number of candidates
who progress through to interview stage
25. The Shortlist
• Long list = total pool of applicants
• Shortlist = small number of suitable applicants that
meet the job criteria
• Should ideally be drawn up by two people, acting
independently
• Important not to only include “perfect” or “ideal
candidates”
26. Recruitment Interview
• Interview is a crucial part of the recruitment process
• Chance for an employer to meet applicant face to face
• Can obtain much more information on:
– What person is like
– Whether they are suitable for job
– Whether they will fit into the business
• Interview is also an important for the candidate
– Obtain information about job
– Assess the working culture of a possible new employer
• Recruitment interviewing is a hard skill – often it is
done very poorly!
27. Information to Obtain During a
Recruitment Interview
• By the employer:
– Information that cannot be obtained on paper from a CV or
application form
– Conversational ability- often known as people skills
– Natural enthusiasm or manner of applicant
– See how applicant reacts under pressure
– Queries or extra details missing from CV or application form
• By the employee
– Whether job or business is right for them
– What is culture of company like
– What are exact details of job that may be omitted from job
description
28. Selection Tests
• Formats
– Aptitude tests
– Intelligence tests
– Personality tests
• Why used
– Basic interview can be unreliable as applicants can
perform well at interview but not have qualities or
skills needed for job
– Selection tests increase chances of choosing best
applicant and so minimise high costs of recruiting
wrong people
29. References
• What are references?
– Written character statements from people who know the
applicant well
– An important “safety check”
– A chance to learn more about the strengths and
weaknesses of an applicant
• Final check that all information given by
candidate is correct
• Good honest reference from an independent
source can also reveal good or bad incidences
from candidate’s past or particular traits that
may have been missed
