RECRUITMENT: RIGHT PERSON AT THE RIGHT PLACE

Anshika Aggarwal* Deptt. Of Management Invertis University, Bareilly, India Pradeep Singla** Deptt. Of Elect. & Comm. Hindu College of Engineering, Sonipat, India

Abstract

This article highlights a pragmatic guide as to how organizations can increase their diversity through their recruitment practices through various activities to reach their target candidates; and rewarding employees when they successfully increase diversit y through recruitment. Increasing the diversity of an organizations workforce is a primary concern for many businesses with the realization that it can bring significant competitive advantage. The challenge lies in how organizations can best do this. The article summarizes findings from recent research on recruitment It highlights the adoption of the recommended systematic procedures and a high use of ``tried and trusted'' methods including word-of-mouth recruitment and the hiring of ``known quantities''.

Introduction:

This article will attempt to paint a broad backcloth to the issue of recruitment by considering some current issues in and around organizations of all kinds which recruiters, and those responsible for managing organizations more generally, might consider when embarking on the recruitment process. Companys most important asset is its people. Having the right people with the right skills in the right positions makes the difference

between business success and failure. Few managers would refute that. More contentious, though, is the issue of how to get those people into the right places. The issues spring from the perspective that, whenever you recruit, you are, to a significant extent, first creating and then continually re-creating your organization. A focus on the human library seems to recognize the central place of people in defining and representing what these organizations are. Not the least reason for this is the recognition that the people you recruit need to be both ever more skilled and more adaptable if they are to provide the level of service required in a climate of constant change.

Recruitment of staff is a professional skill in its own right and should form part of the portfolio of management skills. Recruitment equals other important management activities such as strategic planning, budgetary control, and marketing of the service, and the results usually have an immediate impact on the quality service. A successful recruited team depends on the right blend of professional expertise, interpersonal skills, and service orientation to achieve organizational objectives and meet the needs of individual users. The effectiveness of the service is largely dependent on the ability of the manager to select the right people to make up the team. At worst, poor recruitment can lead to an inefficient service, dissatisfied users, low morale within the team, and lack of professional credibility. Furthermore, recruitment mistakes can be costly and time consuming to remedy.

The Recruitment Process:

Texts on recruitment invariably recommend a systematic procedure comprising four stages: 1. An assessment of whether the vacancy needs to be filled, 2. A job analysis: This is the procedure for determining the duties and skill requirements of a job and the type of person who should be employed for it.

3. A job description: A list of jobs duties, responsibilities reporting relationship, working conditions and supervisory responsibilities 4. A job specification: A list of jobs human requirements that is the requisite education, skills, personality etc.

The prescriptive literature usually makes the distinction between formal recruitment methods including press advertisements, Jobcentres and other agencies and more informal methods, such as recommendations from existing staff. Word-of-mouth methods are recognized as having some distinct advantages. As well as the obvious advantages of

speed and cost, not only is the new recruit a ``known quantity'', he or she is likely to have been given more prior knowledge about the firm and the job, and what to expect from it

The need for new staff, whether temporary or permanent, arises for a number of reasons which may include: The most obvious first someone has left and needs to be replaced; Maternity leave cover; A special project, perhaps for a limited period and requiring specialist skills not currently available in your team; Holidays or sickness leave; A backlog of work needs to be cleared;

The basis on which you employ people may vary according to your different needs. Staff might be full time, part time (whole days, part days, or job share), temporary or permanent. They may be employed directly by you or by a recruitment consultancy. If the post is temporary, the contract could be indefinite, fixed term, or subject to renewal at specified intervals. Ideally, everyone who is new to recruiting and selecting staff should attend a practical training course on interviewing and selection of at least two to three days, to learn and practice the appropriate techniques before starting on the real thing. It is always very difficult to unlearn poor interview technique later on.

Outlined below is a plan for developing an effective diversity recruiting strategy:

1. Know your market: In order to effectively recruit from minority groups, it is important to understand your available talent market. Use internal resources to help you get to know your market place.

2. Build the business case: The linchpin to the success of any diversity recruitment programme is to win the hearts and minds of those it will most closely impact hiring managers. A sound commercial justification for recruiting for diversity is crucial. Most companies appreciate that there is a commercial benefit to be gained by widening the candidate search to include diverse groups. Many companies simply recruit for diversity as it is seen as the right thing to do. However, the commercial benefits of having a workforce with greater cultural awareness, more points of view, different approaches or best practice from different industries will lead to improvement to the bottom line. It will also generate greater respect and awareness for the individual amongst the workforce.

3. Channels to market: The key to success in diversity recruitment is to widen the pool of recruits that you are targeting, and to have an effective strategy to reach your target audience. The most important aspect of recruitment from a consumers or customers point of view is that the best people are recruited to do the job. Employees are the backbone to an organizations competitive advantage, and if the organization does not target mature workers, or women, or ethnic minority communities, for example, then it is a failure to use the widest talent pool available to find the best employees.

4. Reward greater diversity recruiting: Traditional measures of success in the recruiting area are cost and time of hiring. Most firms refuse to give recruitment agencies extra incentives for identifying diversity candidates or for successfully recruiting diverse individuals. In recruiting, what you want done gets done faster when it is rewarded, so measuring and rewarding recruiters for diversity hires becomes an essential element of success.

5. An ongoing focus: Recruiting for diversity cannot simply be perceived as successful, once new diverse employees have joined the organization. Equally important is the integration and retention of a diverse workforce. Organizations need to invest time in

understanding these employees personal drivers and motivators, which may vary significantly from existing staff.They must How to increase diversity through your recruitment practices provide a clear communication avenue where employees can feedback any concerns or issues they may be experiencing, so the organization can address these.

Conclusion

The greatest resource in any organization is its people. Whether you are interested in creating a first-rate symphony orchestra or a skilled surgical team, a Super Bowl contender or a top-notch sales force or a superior public service corp, such as the Peace Corps, it all starts with quality people. After years of glossing over the importance of the people factor as a primary determinant of organizational success, employers are finally recognizing the value of employees as a crucial resource. There are many indications that increased importance is being attached to the human component of an organization. For example, many organizations now refer to employee-oriented activities as human resource (HR) activities rather than as personnel functions. Another manifestation of this growing recognition that the human element is essential for organizational functioning is the shift of many traditional personnel functions out of the personnel (human resources) department. In many organizations, what once were viewed as traditional personnel department activities (career development, for instance) now are seen as part of a line managers job.

References:

Alison Jago, Selecting your team: how to find the right people Richard Lee (1994)PP 2(2),Recruitment in Context Human Resource Management International Digest (2005) PP13(3) Emerald Group Publishing Limited Jeremy Tipper (2004) PP 36(4), How to increase diversity through your recruitment practices

Marilyn Carroll, Mick Marchington, Jill Earnshaw Manchester School of Management, UMIST, Manchester, UK, and Stephen Taylor Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK ,(1999) PP 21(3), Recruitment in small firms Processes, methods and problems. Nader Baroukh and Brian H. Kleiner (2002) PP 25(3) , Recruitment and Training of Public Servants Bakewell, K.G.B. (1977), Management Prin ciples and Prac tice . Bittel, L.R. (1988), The McGraw- Hill 36- Hour Man agement Course. Carroll, T. (1976) Management. Drake, J.D. (1989), The Ef fective In ter viewer. Larson, J.R. and Mitchell, T.R. (1987), People in or ganizations. Odiorne, G.S. (1987), The Hu man Side of Man agement. Stoner, J.A. and Wankel, C. (1986), Management Duggan, B. and Croy, G. (2004), Should you outsource recruitment?, Supply Management, 7 October, pp. 26-7, ISSN 1362-2021. Pratt, N. (2004), Lets go to work, Banking Technology, September, pp. 24-6, ISSN 0266-0865. Tulip, S. (2004), Hire education, People Management, pp. 46-51, ISSN 1358-6297.