RECRUITMENT, SELECTION, PLACEMENT & INDUCTION

Recruitment – Meaning

The process of finding and hiring the best-qualified candidate (from within or outside of an organization) for a job opening, in a timely and cost effective manner. The recruitment process includes analyzing the requirements of a job, attracting employees to that job, screening and selecting applicants, hiring, and integrating the new employee to the organization.

Source & Methods of Recruitment

Every organisation has the option of choosing the candidates for its recruitment processes from two kinds of sources

1.       Internal Sources

2.       External Sources

The sources within the organisation itself (like transfer of employees from one department to other, promotions) to fill a position are known as the internal sources of recruitment. Recruitment candidates from all the other sources (like outsourcing agencies etc.) are known as the external sources of recruitment.  The internal recruitment sources are very important, but they cannot be used to fill every vacancy in the organization. It is very important to realize, that in many organization, the internal recruitment is divided into two separate processes:

Internal Recruitment – is a recruitment which takes place within the concern or organization. Internal sources of recruitment are readily available to an organization. Internal sources are primarily three – Transfers, promotions and Re-employment of ex-employees. Re-employment of ex-employees is one of the internal sources of recruitment in which employees can be invited and appointed to fill vacancies in the concern. There are situations when ex-employees provide unsolicited applications also.
Internal recruitment may lead to increase in employee’s productivity as their motivation level increases. It also saves time, money and efforts. But a drawback of internal recruitment is that it refrains the organization from new blood. Also, not all the manpower requirements can be met through internal recruitment. Internal sources are primarily: 

Transfers: The employees are transferred from one department to another according to their efficiency and experience. 

Promotions (through Internal Job Postings) :The employees are promoted from one department to another with more benefits and greater responsibility based on efficiency and experience.

Re-employment of ex-employees: Re-employment of ex-employees is one of the internal sources of recruitment in which employees can be invited and appointed to fill vacancies in the concern. There are situations when ex-employees provide unsolicited applications also.

Retired and Retrenched employees may also be recruited once again in case of shortage of qualified personnel or increase in load of work. Recruitment such people save time and costs of the organisations as the people are already aware of the organisational culture and the policies and procedures.
The dependents and relatives of Deceased employees and Disabled employees are also done by many companies so that the members of the family do not become dependent on the mercy of others.

External Recruitment – External sources of recruitment have to be solicited from outside the organization. External sources are external to a concern. But it involves lot of time and money .The external sources of recruitment include –Employment at factory gate, advertisements, employment exchanges, employment agencies, educational institutes, labour contractors, recommendations etc.

Employment at Factory Level – This a source of external recruitment in which the applications for vacancies are presented on bulletin boards outside the Factory or at the Gate. This kind of recruitment is applicable generally where factory workers are to be appointed. There are people who keep on soliciting jobs from one place to another. These applicants are called as unsolicited applicants. These types of workers apply on their own for their job. For this kind of recruitment workers have a tendency to shift from one factory to another and therefore they are called as “badli” workers.

Advertisement – It is an external source which has got an important place in recruitment procedure. The biggest advantage of advertisement is that it covers a wide area of market and scattered applicants can get information from advertisements. Medium used is Newspapers and Television.

Employment Exchanges – There are certain Employment exchanges which are run by government. Most of the government undertakings and concerns employ people through such exchanges. Now-a-days recruitment in government agencies has become compulsory through employment exchange.

Employment Agencies – There are certain professional organizations which look towards recruitment and employment of people, i.e. these private agencies run by private individuals supply required manpower to needy concerns.

Educational Institutions – There are certain professional Institutions which serve as an external source for recruiting fresh graduates from these institutes. This kind of recruitment done through such educational institutions is called as Campus Recruitment. They have special recruitment cells which help in providing jobs to fresh candidates.

Recommendations – There are certain people who have experience in a particular area. They enjoy goodwill and a stand in the company. There are certain vacancies which are filled by recommendations of such people. The biggest drawback of this source is that the company has to rely totally on such people which can later on prove to be inefficient.

Labour Contractors – These are the specialist people who supply manpower to the Factory or Manufacturing plants. Through these contractors, workers are appointed on contract basis, i.e. for a particular time period. Under conditions when these contractors leave the organization, such people who are appointed have to also leave the concern.

Unsolicited Applicants – Many job seekers visit the office of well-known companies on their own. Such callers are considered nuisance to the daily work routine of the enterprise. But can help in creating the talent pool or the database of the probable candidates for the organisation. 

Recruitment At Factory Gate – Unskilled workers may be recruited at the factory gate these may be employed whenever a permanent worker is absent. More efficient among these may be recruited to fill permanent vacancies. 

Purpose & Importance of Recruitment

·         Attract and encourage more and more candidates to apply in the organisation.

·         Create a talent pool of candidates to enable the selection of best candidates for the organisation.

·         Determine present and future requirements of the organization in conjunction with its personnel planning and job analysis activities.

·         Recruitment is the process which links the employers with the employees.

·         Increase the pool of job candidates at minimum cost.

·         Help increase the success rate of selection process by decreasing number of visibly under qualified or overqualified job applicants.

·         Help reduce the probability that job applicants once recruited and selected will leave the organization only after a short period of time.

·         Meet the organizations legal and social obligations regarding the composition of its workforce.

·         Begin identifying and preparing potential job applicants who will be appropriate candidates.

·         Increase organization and individual effectiveness of various recruiting techniques and sources for all types of job applicants

Selection – Meaning

Selection is the process of picking up individuals (out of the pool of job applicants) with requisite qualifications and competence to fill jobs in the organization.

According to dale yoder, “selection is the process in which candidates for employment are divided into two classes those who are to be offered employment and those who are not. Selection means a process by which qualified personnel may be chosen from the applicants offering their services to the organization for employment.”

Steps/Process/Methods of Selection

1.    Preliminary Interview: The purpose of preliminary interviews is basically to eliminate unqualified applications based on information supplied in application forms. The basic objective is to reject misfits. On the other hands preliminary interviews is often called a courtesy interview and is a good public relations exercise.

2.    Selection Tests: Jobseekers who past the preliminary interviews are called for tests. There are various types of tests conducted depending upon the jobs and the company. These tests can be Aptitude Tests, Personality Tests, and Ability Tests and are conducted to judge how well an individual can perform tasks related to the job. Besides this there are some other tests also like Interest Tests (activity preferences), Graphology Test (Handwriting), Medical Tests, Psychometric Tests etc.

3.    Employment Interview: The next step in selection is employment interview. Here interview is a formal and in-depth conversation between applicant’s acceptability. It is considered to be an excellent selection device. Interviews can be One-to-One, Panel Interview, or Sequential Interviews. Besides there can be Structured and Unstructured interviews, Behavioral Interviews, Stress Interviews.

4.    Reference & Background Checks: Reference checks and background checks are conducted to verify the information provided by the candidates. Reference checks can be through formal letters, telephone conversations. However it is merely a formality and selections decisions are seldom affected by it.

5.    Selection Decision: After obtaining all the information, the most critical step is the selection decision is to be made. The final decision has to be made out of applicants who have passed preliminary interviews, tests, final interviews and reference checks. The views of line managers are considered generally because it is the line manager who is responsible for the performance of the new employee.

6.    Physical Examination: After the selection decision is made, the candidate is required to undergo a physical fitness test. A job offer is often contingent upon the candidate passing the physical examination.

7.    Job Offer: The next step in selection process is job offer to those applicants who have crossed all the previous hurdles. It is made by way of letter of appointment.

Objectives of Selection & Recruitment

Recruitment and selection objectives include a variety of components related to finding, hiring and retaining qualified employees. Clear definitions of the job qualifications allow easier identification of potential candidates. Recruitment consists of attracting capable individuals using methods such as outsourcing and the internet. Selection objectives consist of evaluation techniques such as interviews, background checks and competence tests.

·         Qualifications - An understandable and clearly defined list of required qualifications aids the recruitment process by eliminating unqualified potential candidates. A straightforward list of necessary skills and achievements simplifies the process and is the first objective for recruitment. The most important qualifications belong in the body of the job description.

·          Identification - Identification of competent applicants remains a main recruitment and selection objective for businesses seeking reliable employees. An applicant who appears qualified on paper may wind up unhappy and unmotivated in the job if the fit is wrong.  

·         Attraction - Recruitment and selection objectives include maintenance of a diverse set of attraction methods. Businesses must draw in applicants by actively recruiting qualified people, especially if the field is competitive.

·         Evaluation - Solid evaluation practices ensure the recruitment and selection process results in competent and motivated workers. A varied and extensive evaluation method helps achieve the objective.

·         A final objective of the selection process entails confirming the results of the evaluation using another method. For example, references checks confirm the validity of the applicant resume and claims of experience. Interview questions related to test results double check outcomes of both.

Difference between Recruitment & Selection

S. No.	Recruitment	Selection
1	Recruitment refers to the process of identifying and encouraging prospective employees to apply for jobs.	Selection is concerned with picking up the right candidates from a pool of applicants.
2	Recruitment is said to be positive in its approach as it seeks to attract as many candidates as possible.	Selection on the other hand is negative in its application in as much as it seeks to eliminate as many unqualified applicants as possible in order to identify the right candidates.
3	The basic purpose of recruitments is to create a talent pool of candidates to enable the selection of best candidates for the organisation, by attracting more and more employees to apply in the organisation	The basic purpose of selection process is to choose the right candidate to fill the various positions in the organisation.
4	Recruitment is concerned with tapping the sources of human resources	Selection is concerned with selecting the most suitable candidate through various interviews and tests.
5	There is no contract of recruitment established in recruitment	Selection results in a contract of service between the employer and the selected employee.

Placement

Meaning

Placement is a process of assigning a specific job to each of the selected candidates. It involves assigning a specific rank and responsibility to an individual. It implies matching the requirements of a job with the qualifications of the candidate.

Placement basically refers to the system of assessment and selection by which vacancies are filled by staff serving in an organization. Placement can also be defined as the internal filling of vacancies as distinguished from external recruitment. Placement is a process of assigning a specific job to each of the selected candidates. It involves assigning a specific rank and responsibility to an individual. It implies matching the requirements of a job with the qualifications of the candidate.

Importance/Significances of placement

The significances of placement are as follows:

·          It improves employee morale.

·          It helps in reducing employee turnover.

·          It helps in reducing absenteeism.

·          It helps in reducing accident rates.

·          It avoids misfit between the candidate and the job.

·          It helps the candidate to work as per the predetermined objectives of the organization.

Principle of Placement

A few basic principles should be followed at the time of placement of a worker on the job. This is elaborated below:

1. Man should be placed on the job according to the requirements of the job. The job should not be adjusted according to the qualifications or requirements of the man. Job first; man next, should be the principle of the placement.

2. The job should be offered to the person according to his qualification. This should neither the higher nor the lower than the qualification.

3. The employee should be made conversant with the working conditions prevailing in the organization and all things relating to the job. He should also be made aware of the penalties if he commits the wrong.

4. While introducing the job to the new employees, an effort should be made to develop a sense of loyalty and cooperation in him so that he may realize his responsibility better towards the job and the organization.

5. The placement should be ready before the joining date of the newly selected person.

6. The placement in the initial period may be temporary as changes are likely after the completion of training. The employee may be later transferred to the job where he can do better.

Proper placement helps to improve the employees’ morale. The capacity of the employees can be utilized fully. The right placement also reduces labour turnover, absenteeism and also the accident rate. Than the employee can adjust to the required environment of the organization effectively and the performance of the employee will not be hampered.

Induction

Meaning

Once an employee is selected and placed on an appropriate job, the process of familiarizing him with the job and the organization is known as induction.

Induction is the process of receiving and welcoming an employee when he first joins the company and giving him basic information he needs to settle down quickly and happily and stars work.

Objectives of Induction

Induction is designed to achieve following objectives:

·          To help the new comer to overcome his shyness and overcome his shyness nervousness in meeting new people in a new environment.

·          To give new comer necessary information such as location of a café, rest period etc.

·          To build new employee confidence in the organization.

·          It helps in reducing labor turnover and absenteeism.

·          It reduces confusion and develops healthy relations in the organization.

·          To ensure that the new comer do not form false impression and negative attitude towards the organization.

·          To develop among the new comer a sense of belonging and loyalty to the organization.

Advantages of formal induction

The advantages of formal induction are: -

·          Induction helps to build up a two-way channel of communication between management and workers.

·          Proper induction facilitates informal relation and team work among employee.

·          Effective induction helps to integrate the new employee into the organization and to develop a sense of belonging.

·          Induction helps to develop good relation.

·          A formal induction programme proves that the company is taking interest in getting him off to good start.

·          Proper induction reduces employee grievances, absenteeism and labor turnover.

·          Induction is helpful in supplying information concerning the organization, the job and employee welfare facilities.