According
to Korsten (2003) and Jones et al. (2006), Human Resource Management theories
emphasize on techniques of recruitment and selection and outline the benefits
of interviews, assessment and psychometric examinations as employee selection
process. They further stated that recruitment process may be internal or
external or may also be conducted online. Typically, this process is based on
the levels of recruitment policies, job postings and details, advertising, job
application and interviewing process, assessment, decision making, formal
selection and training (Korsten 2003).
Toyota
in North America used a selection process for production team members that
consists of four stages (Piatkowski, 2004)
1. Personal
interviews
2. Aptitude
tests
3. Job
simulation
4. Reference
checks
It is
virtually agreed that there is a greater dependency on effective recruitment
& selection process for the success of an organization. According to
Khanna, 2014 recruitment and selection, often termed as talent acquisition in
many companies, is the heart to business success and growth. As the business environment
becomes more and more competitive, having the right people with the right
skills for the right tasks becomes all the more critical. Indeed it can be a
source of competitive advantage (Chungyalpa & Karishma, 2016). It is
pertinent to mention that the changes in culture in contemporary organizations,
especially in 21st century has exposed recruitment to many
challenges (Ployhart, 2006) especially when digging for qualified &
competent applicants.
Recruitment
& selection could be considered as one of the key functions of HR
Department of a particular organization. The process, in summary involves the
following phases (Chungyalpa & Karishma, 2016).
• Job
analysis
Preparation
of Job Description (JD), examining tasks ‘why-how-when’, remuneration
Right number
of people, and the right kind of people, at the right places, at the right
time, doing things for which they are economically most useful
From
Application Form up to Placement & Induction
The
effective recruitment & selection begins with the leadership style
attributed to such activity in organizations (Armstrong,2014). The sense of
leadership requires in identifying the need for recruitment in first place
& acquire the talent based on factual requirement of the organization.
Polyhart (2006) reiterate the fact that decision makers may recognize staffing
as a key strategic opportunity for enhancing competitive advantage (VRIO
factors) & not mere hiring of individuals.
For
the recruitment & selection process to be effective, it is essential to recognize
the organizational values as well as the culture and the candidates’ profiles
are assimilated with them, ultimately only the ones who ‘Best Fit’ are
engrossed to the organization (Armstrong, 2008). The best-fit approach
emphasizes that HR strategies should be depending on the context, circumstances
of the organization and its type as well (Armstrong, 2008). Because such
employees are the individuals who carry the organization’s vision & mission
in future. In contrary, there is the need to attract people and this implies
that people have a choice about which organizations they wish to work for (Anosh
et al, 2014). As per Isenhour (2014) the
factors encouraging potential applicants in an organization such as size,
strategy, prestige are believed to signal the potential applicants about the
attractiveness and desirability of such organization as a better place to work.
The
motivational factors prescribed in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory are
imperative & required to be assessed cautiously when attracting the right
person, to the right job, on right time. Maslow established that peoples’ needs
could be divided in to five types which aroused in a lowest to highest order. The
lowest-order needs in the hierarchy must be fulfilled before the next order
need is prompted and this process continues until it reaches the peak (Kaur,
2013).
Leaders
require to take into consideration the needs of the individual, the new
technology that provides challenges and opportunities for meeting those needs,
enhanced employee motivation and commitment is possible (Benson & Dundis, 2003).
Thus it is essential these needs of the people are tackled at the forefront,
when recruitment & selection takes place and not when they are embedded to
the organization.
(Source: Studious, 2018)
The
model is primarily being used for motivation of employees of an organization,
based on their needs at the different stages of work life. The success &
sustainable growth of a company entirely depends on the competency of the
employees thus it is significantly important for such company to find &
recruit the most experienced, qualified & motivated candidates who will match the anticipated job profile
(Khanna, 2014). The Maslows Hierarchy could be used as a tool for attracting
the quality candidates by addressing the precise ‘need’ according to their
possession in the hierarchy.
Both
HNB & BOC, respectively the Sri Lanka’s leading private & state-owned
commercial banks have facilitated their corporate management with luxurious
vehicles indulging esteem needs for senior managers which further enticed with
club memberships & luxury apartments. On the other hand, the novices of
both banks hired as Banking Trainees & Banking Associates are gratified aiming
the needs in the bottom layers of Maslow’s triangle. This entails
physiological, basic & belonginess needs in the hierarchy explicitly a decent
salary, secured job, basic allowances, contented working environment with good
work relationships with superiors.
The
extended research for the Maslows theory carried out by McGregor hosted the
Theory X & Y, taking ‘Needs Theory’ to a different dimension in motivation.
According to Mohamed, (2013) Theory Y managers are the effective leaders who
could fulfill the psychological contract of workforces & will contribute
more to the organization under their patronage. It could be concluded that having
more Y type managers in the recruitment process will attract the anticipated
candidates who are qualified & experienced as well.
Figure
2.0: McGregor’s Theory X & Y – The Difference
Further
the effectiveness of the recruitment procedure rely on the tools that are being
used to identify the prospective candidates & their adaptability towards
the job role rather the JD. ‘Best Practices’ recognized by Chungyalpa &
Karishma in 2016 could be exercised for better recruiting & selection. Australian
Human Rights Commission follows four phase model in recruiting comprises of job
analyzing, interviewing, employment tests & finally interviewing.
At
present the recruitment and selection process is undergoing tremendous changes driven
by technological innovations with the use of social media and changes in
strategic outlook. The following are some of the key trends in recruitment and
selection process that are widely used in contemporary organizations
(Chungyalpa & Karishma, 2016).
1. Corporate talent network –
Online platform for promoting the company brand
name to attract new talent from a variety of sources including job candidates,
fans, employees, alumni, partners, suppliers and even customers.
2.
Building
an end-to-end talent brand –
How the company is being perceived by its
current employees, past employees and prospective employees.
3.
Use of
applicant tracking software (ATS) -
Software designed specifically
to meet the recruitment needs of a company focused essentially on managing the
entire recruitment process, monitoring ad campaigns, and creating an excellent
candidate experience.
4.
Develop
mobile recruitment strategy -
Growing trend among large
firms to create a mobile career site built specifically to meet the needs of
the mobile device users
5.
Growing
emphasis on using social networks -
Social networking sites such as LinkedIn,
Facebook
6.
Increased
focused on passive candidates -
Passive candidates (73%)
segment not actively seeking jobs but prone to new opportunities and offers.
Conclusion
Recruitment and selection
remains one of the most important functions of the HR department & also the
key to success in any organization. With the rapid rivalry among businesses,
selecting and recruiting the right and qualified talents become imperative in
order to sustain in the long run in the contemporary, complicated business
environment. Thus it is paramount important that the companies emphasizes the
factors highlighted in the article that could be concise to,
- Identify
key elements in recruitment & selection process
- Understand
the importance of talent acquisition
- Leadership
traits contribute to recruitment
- Staff
as source of competitive advantage
- Motivational
factors that attracts quality work force
- Modern
trends in recruitment
List
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Armstrong, M &
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Benson S G and Dundis S
P (2003) Understanding and motivating health care employees: integrating
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Chungyalpa W and
Karishma T (2016), Best Practices and Emerging Trends in Recruitment and
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technology perspective, Journal of
Technology Research, Vol 5
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Application of Theory X & Y in Classroom Management, International
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