CHARACTERISTICS AND BEST PRACTICES FOR SELECTION PROCESS
Changes in demographics, advanced technology and globalization are continuously causing exigencies and fluidity in business environments, making it imperative for organizations to have the brightest talents as a competitive advantage to survive (Ekuma, 2012). Organizations are in a fierce competition of recruiting the smartest employees; however the human resource and managers must review their recruitment and selection process. Employee selection methods used should contribute towards enhancing organizational image but importantly predict the job performance of the employee to a realistic extent. The selection process is expensive, thus hiring the wrong candidate for a job is the most significant loss any organization can ever incur. Therefore, it is vital to understand the characteristics of a vast selection process and the best practices for developing a selection process.
Employee selection branches from human resourcing meaning the process through which managers and other use particular elements to choose from a pool of applicants n individual or individuals are probably to succeed in the job in accordance to the management goals and legal requirements. An effective should have a criteria development which involves determining what source of information should be used and how to achieve during the interview. Usually, the criteria are related directly to the job analysis and job specifications. The process involves discussing the skills abilities, and personal characteristics necessary for one to be successful for a job. Having a criterion before reviewing the recipes helps a Human Resource to be fair while selecting individuals for the interview.
Reviewing resumes is the second aspect of an effective selection process. The reviewing process differs from one company to the other. Usually, the method used to review resumes is determined by the size of the organization and the type of job as well (Stachová et al., 2019). Managers should be mostly concerned with the disparate impact, which is unintended discrimination against a specific group as a whole by using a particular requirement. Different treatment which involves maybe not interviewing a candidate due to one’s perception of their age, race or gender is another concept manager should be concerned about—the next fundamental aspect of the selection process interviews. After managers have identified the candidates meeting the criteria, then it is necessary to select individuals to be interviewed. Most organizations do not have the time to review fifty or more candidates; thus, it is essential to choose the appropriate method of interviewing. Organizations can use unstructured or structured interviews to make the process efficient. In the former questions are set to match the specific applicant while in the latter, the items are standardized based on the job analysis.
Other aspects determining the effectiveness of a job is testing. The test is usually conducted upon successful completion of interviews. If a check is administered to measure a candidate’s credibility, communication should be made to the interviewer, and the criterion of the tests be developed in accordance to specific test scores and expectations before interviewing, and testing is done. Tests are necessary to gauge an individual’s KSAOs with other candidates. There are different types of tests; cognitive ability tests, personality tests and physical ability tests. Also, job knowledge tests, work sample are other categories of tests. The final aspect of making a selection process effective is making an offer. Often when organizations hire a candidate, most feel their job is done; however, making an offer is equally essential to conducting interviews or tests. In situations where the proposals are not handled well, then one is likely to lose the candidate or have the candidate starting a job on the wrong pace. Making offers through email or letter is considered to be more formal.
Best practices for the selection process
The costs associated with hiring, especially when the selection process goes wrong is high. Thus enterprises need to attract and retain the best talents if they hop survive in the global market; therefore, it is crucial some of the best practices one can employ in a selection process. Discussed below are the three best practices of a selection process. The first practice involves job analysis which is a systematic examination of the purpose, responsibilities and scope of a position in supporting business objectives. Analysis of job provides foundational basis for the description of the position and establishment of the standards and selection of any criterion necessary for the position (Department of Education and Training, 2019). A final analysis will yield to the production of high-quality description giving precise information to potential applicants and hiring managers as well as providing information on the classification of the position. It will help in the attraction of suitable applicants and selection of the best individual for the job.
Additionally, it will aid in considering options that make the position most accessible to a large pool of potential candidates. A job analysis will also support in designing assessments around the selection criteria for the post. Description of the job should involve tasks, organizational information and selection criteria. The description should be relevant to the current position and also consider future operation needs to ensure the attraction of people who can adapt to a changing working environment.
Attracting applicants is the second practice of a selection process. This role promotes the department as a great place to work and stands out from the competition. The attraction includes determining application requirements in advertisements and advertising to attract diverse applicants. Organizations should consider leveraging their social media online presence to attract job seekers and show how the organization offers competitive employment benefits, various and respectful culture while emphasizing on professional growth. The attraction also includes engaging and attracting prospective candidates and finally planning of the selection process. To engage and attract potential applicants, one should provide specific information to boost persuasiveness and credibility. Also, managers should highlight the benefits that come with the job position. Planning of the selection process should include applicant care; maintaining regular contact, and a good relationship with the applicants were possible. These give the first impression as applicants are probably pursuing other vacancies. It’s also crucial to ensure efficiency and professionalism if the selection process.
Assessment and selection involving knowing the audience is the third practice towards an effective selection process. In this practice, organizations should have a robust approach of determining whether the skillset of prospective applicants and suitability of a role with a deportment is thoroughly cross-checked and at the same time eliminating biasness. Assessment aids in ensuring any corruptions risks are addressed through pre-screened checks and managing conflicts of interest (Newell, 2005). This limit recruitment of applicants on falsified or inaccurate information. Positions involving high integrity risks or significant financial delegation are subjective to most rigorous pre-screening checks. Assessment and selection practices can be conducted as soon as advertising periods close and the panel has received all applications, including the late ones that the hiring manager may have accepted. Assessment includes shortlisting, assessing applicant’s suitability for a position and adjusting the workplace as per the requirement. Also, performing referee checks, scoring assessments results, and ranking applicants are the other components of assessment, respectively. Others aspects are ranking applicants, making decisions and making offers respectively.
Employees are the root of a successful business; thus, the selection process is a crucial aspect to any organization in ensuring the company has the best talent. Understanding and exploring the characteristics of an effective selection process is essential to any human resource or manager involved in a selection process. Best practices of selecting the best candidates play a crucial role in ensuring any selection method preferable to an organization is effective, efficient and credible. Hiring the wrong candidates for a task can cost an organization a lot starting with the resources deployed in the selection process.
References
Department of Education and Training, Victoria (2019). Best Practice Guide Recruitment and Selection.https://www.education.vic.gov.au/hrweb/Documents/Best-Practice-Guide-Recruitment-Selection.pdf
Ekuma, K.J., 2012. The importance of predictive and face validity in employee selection and ways of maximizing them: An assessment of three selection methods. International Journal of Business and Management, 7(22), p.115.
Newell, S., 2005. Recruitment and selection. Managing human resources: Personnel management in transition, pp.115-147.
Stachová, K., Stacho, Z., Papulová, Z. and Jemala, M., 2019. An effective selection process is the key to quality job positions occupation conditional for long-term competitiveness. Production Engineering Archives, 24(24), pp.5-9.
The Selection Process. Retrieved from; https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_human-resource-management/s09-02-criteria-development-and-resum.html.