Weekly task assignments and individual group projects

HRM

Recruiting is a critical function in human resources management (HRM). In the knowledge economy, it is important for companies to build their stock of human resources, and this means both recruiting and retention. The latter has many dimensions but this paper will focus on the critical importance of the recruiting function. Strategy, no matter how well-conceived, must be executed, and it takes quality people to do that. Everyone from leaders to front-line workers must be responsible for the success of the organization, so finding the right people is a critical element of strategy.

Today, much of recruiting comes from either informal channels like networking, or formal electronic formal channels. Strohmeier (2007) highlights that the field is still young, with multiple different models subject to analysis and no clear conclusions about best practices. This makes it all the more important to have qualified human resources professionals to assist with the recruiting function. Where companies fail to innovate in the recruiting functions, bad habits become embedded and the company suffers from this inertia, as Robinson (2003) demonstrated in her case study of Japanese companies, who HRM practices are deeply embedded and as a result contribute little to strategy implementation.

In addition, there are many advances with the new technology that not only necessitate having a qualified recruiting team on staff. Consider technologies like social networking mapping software, which can help identify top talents (or red flags). A technology like that is complex, but can add value to the organization by getting the right fit in the people that join the company (Bhattacharya & Huntley, 2005).

Thus, what recruiters do is that they use the best tools available to find the right match between the role and the candidate. This is a complex task, especially given the need to measure soft skills like communication, intelligence, learning and growth potential. Being able to identify the hard skills is easy -- we have computers that scan resumes for hard skills. What the HRM recruiting professional does is use that starting point to further drill down and find the best candidates with the full range of skills. If this sounds like too much effort for front line work, remember that this is what we do for the future leaders and managers of the organization. The recruiting department builds the leadership talent pool for tomorrow, so that the organization is never short of qualified people.

The value of recruiting is tremendous. In this world, there is a shortage of talent. There are never enough talented people with the exact skills we need, and therefore the recruiter who can identify the right people and bring them into the company is the recruiter that adds value. Firms that have the best people are the ones that innovate in front of the curve. These are the firms that, in the information age, are equipped out outcompete. The talent pool becomes a source of competitive advantage. If the company's HRM systems can deliver a steady stream of talented individuals, then recruiting can be a source of sustainable competitive advantage (No author, 2012).

This trend towards increasing importance of the recruiting function is something that follows a trend over the past several decades. During the early 20th century, when Henry Ford basically bribed workers and F.W. Taylor reduced them to cogs in a machine, there was little role for the recruiter other than to find more warm bodies. Since then, however, the economy has moved more towards a service economy. Outsourcing has taken many low-skill jobs away from the country, it is important for companies to focus on information and critical thinking as the key skills that will drive competiveness, via innovation.