Function 2: Recruitment and selection of employees

Recruitment of staff should be preceded by:

An analysis of the job to be done (i.e. an analytical study of the tasks to be performed to
determine their essential factors) written into a job description so that the selectors know what
physical and mental characteristics applicants must possess, what qualities and attitudes are
desirable and what characteristics are a decided disadvantage;
• In the case of replacement staff a critical questioning of the need to recruit at all
(replacement should rarely be an automatic process).
• Effectively, selection is 'buying' an employee (the price being the wage or salary
multiplied by probable years of service) hence bad buys can be very expensive. For that
reason some firms (and some firms for particular jobs) use external expert consultants for
recruitment and selection.
• Equally some small organizations exist to 'head hunt', i.e. to attract staff with high
reputations from existing employers to the recruiting employer. However, the 'cost' of
poor selection is such that, even for the mundane day-to-day jobs, those who recruit and
select should be well trained to judge the suitability of applicants.
The main sources of recruitment are:
• Internal promotion and internal introductions (at times desirable for morale purposes)
• Careers officers (and careers masters at schools)
• University appointment boards
• Agencies for the unemployed
• Advertising (often via agents for specialist posts) or the use of other local media (e.g.
commercial radio)
Where the organization does its own printed advertising it is useful if it has some identifying
logo as its trade mark for rapid attraction and it must take care not to offend the sex, race, etc.
antidiscrimination legislation either directly or indirectly. The form on which the applicant is to
apply (personal appearance, letter of application, completion of a form) will vary according to
the posts vacant and numbers to be recruited.
It is very desirable in many jobs that claim about experience and statements about qualifications
are thoroughly checked and that applicants unfailingly complete a health questionnaire (the latter
is not necessarily injurious to the applicants chance of being appointed as firms are required to
employ a percentage of disabled people).
Before letters of appointment are sent any doubts about medical fitness or capacity (in
employments where hygiene considerations are dominant) should be resolved by requiring
applicants to attend a medical examination. This is especially so where, as for example in the
case of apprentices, the recruitment is for a contractual period or involves the firm in training
costs.
Interviewing can be carried out by individuals (e.g. supervisor or departmental manager), by
panels of interviewers or in the form of sequential interviews by different experts and can vary
from a five minute 'chat' to a process of several days. Ultimately personal skills in judgment are
probably the most important, but techniques to aid judgment include selection testing for:
• Aptitudes (particularly useful for school leavers)
• Attainments
• General intelligence
(All of these need skilled testing and assessment.) In more senior posts other techniques are:
• Leaderless groups
• Command exercises
• Group problem solving
(These are some common techniques - professional selection organizations often use other
techniques to aid in selection.)
Training in interviewing and in appraising candidates is clearly essential to good recruitment.
Largely the former consists of teaching interviewers how to draw out the interviewee and the
latter how to xratex the candidates. For consistency (and as an aid to checking that) rating often
consists of scoring candidates for experience, knowledge, physical/mental capabilities,
intellectual levels, motivation, prospective potential, leadership abilities etc. (according to the
needs of the post). Application of the normal curve of distribution to scoring eliminates freak
judgments.

INDUCTION

Induction Process
Induction Training is vital for new hires. A well conducted induction ensures new hires are retained, and
then settled in speedily and comfortably in a constructive role. Induction training is about the basics that
seasoned employees take for granted: shift timings; holiday routine; casual/sick leave policy; location of the
cafeteria; dress code; etc. etc. New employees also need to understand the organization’s goals, values and
philosophy; personnel practices, and of course the job they're required to do. This is also a time to establish
clear foundations and expectations in terms of ethics, integrity, corporate social responsibility, and all the
other converging theories in this area that are the bedrock of all responsible modern enterprises.
Professionally organized and delivered induction training is your new employees' first proper impression of
you and your enterprise; this makes it an ideal occasion to reinforce their decision to come and work for
you.

Now imagine conducting induction training every time you hire someone; and if current employee turnover
rates are anything to go by, then you will be inducting some new hires every week, if not every day! If
induction is carried out in the traditional manner then you end up investing considerable time and human
capital; draining your resources unnecessarily.

BlueApple offers a software that automates the entire induction training process; the interface is user-
friendly and intuitive, putting the user at ease immediately. With this software in place, induction training
can be conducted for individuals or groups on demand and online; eliminating the need for managers to
disrupt their daily routine and conduct induction personally. Conversely it adds to the comfort of the new
employee, by providing information on demand and as often as required. By necessity induction training
involves rather dry subjects, but with online delivery it can be made more palatable, since the matter can be
presented creatively in various forms using web based delivery modes such as; flash, animation, power
point etc.

Our induction software is all about making the job more meaningful for people and reinforcing their
commitment to your organization – making them feel like they belong – from the very first day itself!

Recruitment & Selection

Step 12: Induction
Induction is the first step in building a two-way relationship between the organisation and the
employee.
Commencing a new position with a new organisation can be a daunting process. There are
colleagues, supervisors and managers to meet, new processes to become familiar with, new
offices and buildings to navigate, new software to master, employment conditions to understand
and a job to learn.
The transition to the new workplace is made easier and more effective for both the new
employee and the employer if there is an effective induction process.
The Four Components to an Effective Induction at the University

1. Human Resources
Client Services staff will ensure information and documentation facilitating payment of salary is
completed. Relevant University policy documentation and useful University information will
also be provided.

PLACEMENT AND INDUCTION

Q1). What is placement?

Ans. Placement is a process of assigning a specific job to each of

the selected candidates. It involves assigning a specific rank and
responsibility to an individual. It implies matching the
requirements of a job with the qualifications of the candidate.

Q2). Give the significance of placement?

Ans. The significances of placement are as follows: -

* It improves employee morale.

* It helps in reducing employee turnover.

* It helps in reducing absenteeism.

* It helps in reducing accident rates.

* It avoids misfit between the candidate and the job.

* It helps the candidate to work as per the predetermined

objectives of the organization.

Q3). What is induction?

Ans. Once an employee is selected and placed on an appropriate

job, the process of familiarizing him with the job and the
organization is known as induction.

Induction is the process of receiving and welcoming an employee

when he first joins the company and giving him basic information
he needs to settle down quickly and happily and stars work.

4). What are the objectives of induction?

Ans. Induction is designed to achieve following objectives: -

* To help the new comer to overcome his shyness and overcome
his shyness nervousness in meeting new people in a new
environment.

* To give new comer necessary information such as location of a

café, rest period etc.

* To build new employee confidence in the organization.

* It helps in reducing labor turnover and absenteeism.

* It reduces confusion and develops healthy relations in the

organization.

* To ensure that the new comer do not form false impression and
negative attitude towards the organization.

* To develop among the new comer a sense of belonging and

loyalty to the organization.

Q5). What are the advantages of formal induction?

Ans. The advantages of formal induction are: -

* Induction helps to build up a two-way channel of

communication between management and workers.
* Proper induction facilitates informal relation and team work
among employee.

* Effective induction helps to integrate the new employee into the

organization and to develop a sense of belonging.

* Induction helps to develop good relation.

* A formal induction programme proves that the company is

taking interest in getting him off to good start.

* Proper induction reduces employee grievances, absenteeism

and labor turnover.

* Induction is helpful in supplying information concerning the

organization, the job and employee welfare facilities.

6). What are the contents of induction programme?

Ans. A formal induction programme should provide following

information: -

* Brief history and operations of the company.

* The company’s organization structure.
* Policies and procedure of the company.
* Products and services of the company.
* Location of department and employee facilities.
* Safety measures.
* Grievances procedures.
* Benefits and services of employee.
* Standing orders and disciplinary procedures.
* Opportunities for training, promotions, transfer etc.
* Suggestion schemes.
* Rules and regulations.