Recruitment And Selection: Methods And Assessment

1a Describe the purpose of recruitment assessment centres and what type of testing they could offer.

1b Discuss and compare three different methods of recruitment.

1c Discuss and compare three different selection methods.

1d Describe outsourcing and discuss its purpose.

1e What is the purpose of employee agreements and industrial relations

1f Summarise relevant legislation, regulations, standards and codes of practice that may affect recruitment, selection and induction.

1g Explain why terms and conditions of employment are an important aspect of recruitment.

1h Explain the relevance of psychometric and skills testing programs to recruitment.

1a Describe the purpose of recruitment assessment centres and what type of testing they could offer

Assessment centers are an efficient and an alternative strategy of recruiting talented individuals. Ideally, in the modern world, most firms prefer to see the caliber of people they wish to hire before they are assigned duties in the actual work place. Assessment centers give the image of the real candidates and how such individuals would behave in a real work place. Assessment centers bring out some traits among individuals by assigning candidates some tasks and checking how they would behave in such conditions.

In most cases, it is a controlled experiment to see which individuals have the desired outcomes that have been defined. Assessment centers help measure candidates objectively as the same criteria are used for all individuals. The centers also ensure that people receive satisfaction since it is fair and even those that are unsuccessful are happy due to the outcome. Assessment centers are also ideal in the sense that they give a more detailed and realistic position on the role of the job. Lastly, assessment centers are seen as more effective in projecting performance in actual jobs as they are a simulation of work situations.

Assessment centers offer aptitude tests that entail testing the sound capabilities; they test reasoning strength of the candidates. Some of the big four companies such PWC use tests such as cubics as a way of gauging the reasoning capacities of their prospective workers.

1b Discuss and compare three different methods of recruitment.

Internal sourcing is a process that involves advertising a position that is vacant or a new post in a firm to employees existing currently in the business. The method is attractive to many businesses because little training is required as it involves recruiting employees in vertical or horizontal levels. Expenses and costs associated with advertising in agencies and conducting background checks are minimized. It is also one way in which loyalty and unity among members of a team are enhanced.

External sourcing, on the other hand, is a method that conducts candidate search using external tools such as newspapers and job boards. External sourcing ensures that candidates brought on board have little or no experience directly related to the line of work in the business. Such a method is favorable for the business as it brings new concepts and ideas through various prospective candidates. External sourcing is also used if the current position cannot be filled internally due to the complexity of the post or its technical aspects. It is always advisable that businesses should understand the caliber of the candidates they intend to employ before accepting resumes and posting job advertisements.

Third party sourcing entails using the services of a placement agency in acquiring ideal candidates. Third-party are known to use and employ some techniques in matching and obtaining the ideal candidate by promising, for instance, better salaries and many benefits.

1c Discuss and compare three different selection methods.

Preliminary screening

After an employer has got a threshold regarding substantial interest in the position, screening commences where the recruiter screens the applications or resumes to ascertain the viable applicants to be contacted for the screening interview. One criterion employed to determine sufficient interest is the number of requests and also the time that the job was posted. In most instances, employers remove the job post after getting a manageable number of candidates. For small businesses, it would be prudent for them to select candidates based on the number of years of experience as they lack time to devote to such a lengthy procedure of obtaining ideal candidates.

Telephone interviewing

First round interviews in most cases employ telephone interviews. Telephone interviews give the recruiter an impression of whether a candidate is interested in the job.as for the small businesses; it saves time, and money as face to face interviews are eliminated. Telephone interviews also confirm that the ideal candidate has got what it takes regarding skills and qualifications.

In-person interviews

One of the reasons that make many businesses narrow down the selection process from screening to telephone interviewing is the fact face to face interview are time-consuming

1d Describe outsourcing and discuss its purpose.

Outsourcing refers to contracting out some services to a third party aiming to cut down costs of production and also improve efficiency on the part of the firm.

Outsourcing assists in risk management this is the case where human resource gets outsourced. In such a case, the outsourcing company helps in risk mitigation. Labour laws keep changing, and most employers find it difficult to remain updated on regulations affecting work premises. Outsourcing premises recruit professionals in HR so that they can stay abreast with employment laws. It is the role of the HR to ensure that the business complies with the laws to avoid costly lawsuits by employees.

Outsourcing also helps in cutting down operating costs.HR requires adequate space and qualified staff who have vast experience in such positions something that is costly for many businesses. For many small businesses, outsourcing is seen as cost-effective as compared to having another enlarged department responsible for HR functions.

1e What is the purpose of employee agreements and industrial relations

Employee agreements are necessary for a workplace as they define and provide a framework that governs relationship in employment. Contracts that are well written are more revealing and apparent since they lay a ground for regulations between employer and employee. Contracts also minimize risks on the part of employers in the case that an employee boycotts work and yet wants to get compensated. It is also through agreements that there is a section that resolves disputes in case they arise in future. It is through agreements that issue such as pay and allowances are defined.

Agreements provide a channel for raising issues such as pay rise in case they had been stipulated in the agreement after a specified period. On the other hand industrial relations play a vital role for any particular worker or employee. Issues regarding the safety of the employee while performing duties should be emphasized. Use of appropriate attire in the place of work is also necessary to minimize injury. Discrimination and sexual harassment should not prevail in any workplace, and if such behaviour exists, appropriate channels to solve such matters are detailed in industrial relations.

1f Summarise relevant legislation, regulations, standards and codes of practice that may affect recruitment, selection and induction.

Even though no recommended legislation applies to the selection process, employment is an area that is largely based on law and ethics. It is the duty of employers to ensure recruitment process is free of bias and objective for that matter.

Some legislations prohibit an employer from failing to short-list an individual based on discrimination. Reasons for discrimination may include race, age, and even sexual orientation. Employers should refrain from such behavior and activities.

Employers should also not fail to short-list a particular candidate because the candidate helped someone file a suit in a court of law. The law prohibits such actions and defines them as being discriminative.

Under the disability discrimination Act, an employer is supposed to provide the disabled with materials necessary to facilitate the involvement of such persons in recruitment. Such materials include services of an interpreter if an applicant has a hearing impairment. The employer should also ensure that the interview premises are accessible for all including those using wheelchairs.

1g Explain why terms and conditions of employment are an important aspect of recruitment.

According to employment act, every employee is entitled to terms and condition copy one month after starting a job. The requirements include working hours, wage and leave in case of sickness. The business has rules upon which any party that fails to abide is found culpable and in some instances may be taken to a court of law. It is in the terms and conditions document that the rights of both the employer and employee are stated clearly. It also reveals how duties are to be carried out on the part of the employee. The terms and conditions are important as they bring an essential component of the employee in the event of damaging property belonging to the employee. In most cases, where there is breakage or damage, it is solely the responsibility of the worker to pay for any losses incurred. The loss may be compensated through salary cut or any other channel as agreed upon by the employee.

1h Explain the relevance of psychometric and skills testing programs to

recruitment.

Psychometric primarily identifies and quantifies the mind regarding measurement. Some traits such as personality and behavior are difficult to measure in an interview, and that is why psychometric comes handy for employers. Psychometric is used together with other components to reveal the character of the candidate. Companies will use psychometric testing as one of the strategies to ascertain the performance of a candidate in future. Psychometric tests provide data that is measurable and objective in that it gives an overall view of a candidate. Some people argue that psychometric tests demonstrate scientific credibility to the recruitment process.

It is an accurate way of assessing candidates as it provides standardized evaluations. For some organizations and institutions, psychometric tests are used as a way of screening thousands of candidates in a recruitment drive. In such a case the hiring manager is relieved the huge workload of identifying ideal candidates. The tests measure how different persons differ in motivations, opinions and even values. Psychometric tests can also give a preference working style for a candidate and how these individuals interact with others as well as their working environment.