A CASE ANALYSIS OF

[RECRUITMENT OF A STAR]

HRM Submission by,

GROUP J1

PROBLEM STATEMENT.
Stephen Connor, director of research at RSH, has to recruit a semiconductor analyst from a
shortlist he has, as his start performer Peter Thompson has just resigned due to better offer
from its competitors.

SWOT of the company- RSH

Strengths

Weakness
Opportunities
Threats

Encourages team work

Seniors help juniors to develop their skills
Employee turnover is low
Ensures good interpersonal relations among employees
For recruitment they rely on third party
They have no backup for any star performer
Currently a deal with PowerChip Company is coming up
Spread of the news about senior analyst resigning may lead rivals to
attract other employees of RSH

SWOT Analysis of each candidate from the perspective of RSH:

Gerald Baum
Strengths

Weakness

Opportunities

Threats

Good personality
Vast knowledge of industry
Very good at stock picking
Very bright
Ranking in semiconductor industry
He was not punctual as he came late to the lunch with Stephen
He had changed many firms in short time period
His subordinates and team members are not treated well by him
Asked questions related to compensation only
Lower access to upper managements in companies
His vast knowledge of industry can be utilized well to proceed ahead

with the PowerChip project

His higher ranking in semiconductor industry can open doors to many

companies
Due to his lower access to upper managements in companies he might
seem unreliable to several companies as connections matter a lot in this
industry

Because of his monetary motivation he might switch the company again

Ranking in semiconductor industry

Image of a celebrity in the industry
Very enthusiastic
Vast industry knowledge and experience
Good interpersonal skills
Team player and respected mentor
Lack of precision and hence relies on his team a lot
He is getting old hence his motivation for meeting with the clients

frequently might be low

His reputation can help on this current deal as well as further deals to a

great extent
He might retire soon as he is aging

Very good at stock picking

Very friendly personality
Has strong contacts at PowerChip and buy side
Experienced in sales and trading
Second runner up in ranking in semiconductor industry
Very eager to please
Weak in report writing
Got ranked for the first time which might not be a reliable credit
His contacts at PowerChip and buy side can be a major contributing

factor for cracking the deal

His experience in sales and trading is an added advantage for future

deals
His eagerness to please might not be taken well by the buy side or could

David Hughes
Strengths

Weakness

Opportunities
Threats

Seth Horkum
Strengths

Weakness

Opportunities

Threats

also lead him to change firm in future

Sonia Meetha
Strengths

Technical and sales background

Clients are pleased with the way she gives response
Has global connections

Weakness

Opportunities
Threats

Excellent report writing skills

8th rank in semiconductor industry
Might not be able to adjust to a big firm like RSH as she comes from a

small firm
Not ken on traveling as she has kids to take care of
Can get higher rankings and can get clients with her global efforts
May not be dedicated to work after sometime due to personal priority
She might be slow at work in RSH

Knows the organizational culture

Has worked with Peter closely
Has shown improvement in her work
Good technical knowledge
No ranking in industry
Not favored by the upper management at RSH
Introvert
Cannot take decisions on her own as she relies on senior analyst
She is adaptive to change hence can adjust very quickly
Her lower contacts level because of her introvert nature might not lend

much deals to RSH

She is prone to mistakes which is not acceptable from a senior analyst

Rina Shea
Strengths

Weakness

Opportunities
Threats

SWOT of the company- RSH

Strengths

Weakness
Opportunities
Threats

Encourages team work

Seniors help juniors to develop their skills
Employee turnover is low
Ensures good interpersonal relations among employees
For recruitment they rely on third party
They have no backup for any star performer
Currently a deal with PowerChip Company is coming up
Spread of the news about senior analyst resigning may lead rivals to
attract other employees of RSH

PESTLE ANALYSIS of RHS

Political

Nil

Economic

Demand for increasing skilled semicondcotor analysis leading to increase to job

switch.

Social

The Job profile demanded a lot of support and co-ordination from junior employees
Ability to build relations with Sales force, traders.
Willingness to work in teams and guide Junior analyst.

Technological:

Increasing use of technology especially to mine data with new technology was a
relative new phenomenon in the industry.
Technology was also used in the RnD wing to keep up competition.

Legal

Nil.

Factors affecting the situation:

OFFER FROM COMPETITORS:

As Peter Thompson had received an offer from one of RSH competitors as it usually
happens, he had announced his resignation. As he occupied the position of a start
analyst, there was an urgent need to fill the position.
Also, Stephen Connor did not offer enough to retain Peter Thomson to continue his
employment at RSH.

UPCOMING DEAL:

There was an upcoming deal with the Power Chip Company. This was at heart to
the company and Peter Thompson had his expertise and experience in the field.
With his resignation there was an immediate permanent start analyst needed

LACK OF SKILL-SET WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION

There was a lack of employees with similar set of skills and experience within the
company itself. Stephen considered Rina Shea ( A junior analyst) who to promote to
the position, however after careful analysis he though she was not ready for the
position.
Even within the company other employees did not feel confident about her, as she
was still a Junior Analyst. Stephens Boss also did not condone promoting Rina
Shea. In his eyes there was no real analyst covering semiconductor. So , there was
an added pressure from his Boss.

Critical factors

Resignation of Peter Thompson

Upcoming deal with Power Chip Company.

KEY THEORIES

Equity Theory : Johns Stacey Abrams Theory states that If a worker feels he is getting
treated fairly according to what he thinks is what he deserves then he will be happy.This
should be more serious for employees who hold key positions.
Existence Relatedness Growth (ERG) : As seen from the case an organization has to give
the right compensation to retain its key positions and starts. Such decisions are very
important from the perspective of retaining employees who make strategic decisions.RSH
should have retained its star performer.

POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

Alternative 1 : Select Gerald Barum for his industry know how, vast knowledge, ranking in
semiconductor industry and work on his Job changing past habits.
Alternative 2: Go for David Huges for his experience, ranking and his image as a team
player. However his long run plan needs to be discussed more as he might retire soon as per
the industry standard.

Alternative 3: Recruit Seth Horkum for his friendly personality and stock picking ability.
His experience in sales and trading can also come handy.
Alternative 4: Go for Sonia Meetha for her technical and Sales background. However it has
to be borne in mind that she adjusts in a big form like RHS as she comes from a small firm.

DECISION CRITERIA

Selecting a star performer is not just a simple recruitment, but also a strategic decision.

Functional , technical skill and industry know how

Long term loyalty to take care of permanent position.
Team Play as the role should motivate and work with junior analysts.
Ranking in the industry was an indicator.
Interpersonal skills
Ability to pick stocks.

RECOMMENDED DECISION:

As per carefully analysing company and individual SWOT, Alternative 1 has a

danger of the employee switching Jobs. Alternative 2 is aged for the industry and as per
industry standard he might retire early. Alternative 4 is also a good substitute but has no
experience with a firm the scale of RHS.
The best alternative would be Alternative 3.Seth Horkum has all the key attributes
to be selected. First, he is a team player as he is known for it from his past performance
Exhibit 7.Second, he is known good at stock picking as can be inferred from his interview
with Stephen Connor. Also since the target segment is PowerChip that can definitely bring
more insights to the skills needed to excel in PowerChip. Further his experience in sales and
trading is also another added advantage. He as a very flexible personality which can come
handy while dealing with junior analysts. He is also the runner up in semiconductor industry.

Also he can be trusted in terms of the longevity that Stephen Connor is looking at for the
position of a permanent employee. Some of his weakness like eager to please personality can
be dealt by Stephen Connor as could be inferred from his interview.