Hiring practices and recruitment strategies

Hiring People

The Recruitment and Selection Process

The human resources represent the most important resource that companies can use in creating value and building competitive advantage. In order to reach these objectives, companies must develop and implement efficient human resources strategies. These strategies must thoroughly focus on all the aspects related to human resources. This means companies should start by clearly assessing their human resources needs. Furthermore, companies must develop job descriptions and requirements that are in accordance with the activity and objectives established by its management. Based on these aspects, companies develop their recruitment and selection process.

This process follows common steps for most companies, but it is differently adapted in order to satisfy the human resources necessary of each company by employing the best candidates that are able to meet the requirements of the company. In other words, the productivity and efficiency of the company depends on the recruitment and selection process designed by the HR team.

The following pages focus on discussing several aspects that determine contradictions regarding the recruitment of personnel. This is because although companies agree upon the fact that they must hire quality employees in order to maintain and improve their global competitiveness, there are numerous companies that do not benefit from an efficient recruitment process. Even more, some of these companies consider that by hiring people to fill the openings, the hiring process is effectively working. These companies do not understand that even if some positions have been filled, it does not mean they hired the best qualified candidates.

Discussion

The literature in the field significantly addresses the contradictions observed in accordance with the hiring process. As mentioned above, although companies acknowledge the importance of the recruitment process, not many of them have a correct point-of-view on what the efficiency of this process means. By developing an incorrect view on their hiring process, it is quite unlikely that the company can develop successful human resources strategies.

There are different aspects that specialists in the field consider of being important in order to develop and implement an efficient recruitment and selection strategy. Some of these specialists consider that the success of the hiring process relies on the values that the company supports ad encourages. In addition to this, cultural identity is also considered to influence the hiring process. Specialists also make some useful recommendations in approaching this aspect.

They suggest that companies should do more than simply listing the skills and abilities required by the job. They should also identify the correct people for their organization. In order to achieve this objective, companies should develop job ads that clearly detail the requirements of each position, allowing potential candidates to determine whether they are right for the job in case (Owen, 2005).

Specialists that are in favor of this approach acknowledge the importance of the people involved in the recruiting process and of their activity. Therefore, they recommend HR managers to develop guidelines intended to help them in the recruitment and selection process. This approach should also be applied to the motivational strategy.

However, there are numerous experts in the field that point HR managers towards other strategies for improving the efficiency of their recruitment processes. For example, one of the most important aspects that certain specialists take into consideration is represented by the diversity within companies and the non-discriminatory hiring practices that such companies must develop (Perry & Kleiner, 2002).

Such hiring practices are expected to provide a series of advantages for companies that develop them. These advantages are represented by reduced employee turnover, reduced exposure to litigation, and an improved image of the company by recruiting people from diverse backgrounds, based on their skills and experience. In other words, this is pa protection measure for both the company and its employees.

These practices required increased efforts and attention from the employer. This is because in addition to develop the job descriptions, the HR team must locate qualified candidates that support the company's diversity strategy. However, some of the companies that develop and implement such strategies tend to focus their attention on hiring people from diverse environments rather than focusing on their skills required by the job.

Although the importance of non-discriminatory practices is stated by the government's rules and regulations, companies should not limit their activity to establishing them. The structure of the interviews and the analysis of the candidates are just as important. Not all managers are qualified to develop and sustain interviews with potential candidates, even if they occupy management positions. Therefore, the HR team of the company must be in charge of the recruitment and selection process.

It seems that the opinion of several specialists regarding the hiring process depends on their educational and professional background. For example, a popular opinion states that the hiring process is significantly influenced by economic conditions. In other words, employers review their hiring policies in order to be in compliance with regulations in the field (Segal, 2002). This has been observed to be performed when the economy is improving and it means that employers prepare for hiring a higher number of employees.

HR specialists agree on certain aspects that refer to companies' lack of understanding of HR practices. For example, although employers are aware of the fact that they should hire people based on their education and experience, many of them have the tendency to make their hiring decisions on subjective competencies. Furthermore, even in the case of existing employees, companies tend to make performance evaluations based on behavioral competencies, rather than on professional ones.

Although some of the HR specialists are strict about their recommendations to companies to focus on the skills required by each job, other specialists are in the favor of targeted recruiting. The process of targeted recruiting consists in orienting towards diverse channels in the attempt to increase and diversify the applicant pool that the company uses in the recruitment and selection process. There are several reasons that must be taken into consideration when deciding to use targeted recruiting. For example, by using this technique, companies are able to improve their image on the market because it reveals its interest in promoting diversity. In addition to this, there are important benefits derived from this strategy that can be used as a safety net against potential lawsuits based on discriminatory practices.

Other specialists in the field focus on deeper problems associated with HR management and with the recruitment and selection process. Their focus is directed towards the evolution of human resources management from the management of personnel. This is further translated in the differences observed in the recruitment and selection process.

Several research studies have addressed these aspects. Their findings reveal interesting facts. For example, it seems that one of the most important attributes associated with the recruitment and selection process is represented by the long-term perspective that this process follows. Companies in the current business environment tend to develop strategies that can be applied on medium term and on long-term. This allows the company to teach a stability level that influences the productivity and efficiency of its employees. In addition to this, it allows the company to reduce some of its costs (Millmore, 2003).

Other important attributes observed by these research studies are represented by rigorous evaluation. This is because these research projects have analyzed companies that are characterized by rigorous evaluation of their potential candidates. This point-of-view is in opposition with the points-of-view described above that reveal the reduced interest of companies in the [roper evaluation of their potential employees.

Another interesting fact identified by these studies refers to the involvement of numerous stakeholders in the recruitment and selection process. In addition to the importance of these stakeholders in the process design, they are also actively involved in this process. This situation has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are represented by a higher level of professionalism in the evaluation stage of the process. The disadvantages refer to the numerous disagreements that can emerge between these stakeholders. These disagreements can delay the decisions made in the recruitment and selection process. As a result, in such cases both the company and potential employees are affected.

The recruitment sources are another aspect that determines a series of contradictions. There are two types of recruitment sources: internal and external sources. Some of the companies and specialists in the field declare themselves in the favor of internal sources, while others tend to favor external sources. However, it is not that simple to determine which of these sources is the most suitable for certain companies. The differences between these types of sources recommend them in different situations.

In order to assess their effects, it is important to take into consideration their advantages and their disadvantages. The advantages of internal recruitment rely on the fact that they cost less and take less time. In addition to this, employers already know what people they are hiring. They are aware of their skills and performance. Such recruitment usually takes the form of professional advancements or promotions. The disadvantages of this type of recruitment is represented by the fact that it does not allow the company to hire people with new ideas that can help reorient its strategy.

The advantages of external recruitment consist in bringing people with new ideas within the company and continuing to the diversity of the company. The disadvantages are represented by the high costs and resources this type of recruitment requires. Most companies use this type of recruitment for lower level positions.