In every organization, members of the organization are bound to move out of the

organization eventually, i.e., retirement, transferred to a better position in a different

organization, end of contract, and such. This makes recruitment an inevitable process in most
organizations. Recruitment is defined as the process of searching individuals and attracting
those who are interested and capable of filling in for a job vacancy in the organization
(Heneman, Schwab, Fossum and Dyer, 1989). In simpler terms, recruitment is the process of
selecting individuals with the right qualities that adequately matches the description of the
job. The selection process of an organization is a crucial practice due to the large impact it
may have on applicants, which may lead to discrimination lawsuits against the employers
(Fodchuk and Sidebotham, 2005). Kumari (2013), an assistant professor (Humanities &
Management) at Manav Rachna International University, India, proposed that there are three
primary reasons to highlight the importance of choosing the perfect applicants, which are
costs, performance and legal obligations. All things considered, the following essay will
discuss actions organizations can attempt in the effort to ensure that the selection processes
are prosperous against legal challenges and suggest more initiatives organizations can do to
ensure that selection processes are effective in selecting the best candidate for the job.

The main purpose of recruiting is to attract potential employees while appealing to

them about applying for the job at the recruiter’s organization. It can also be interpreted as
the hiring process of the perfect applicant to fit the job description and meet its requirements
(Kumari and Malhotra, 2013). However, this also generates potential for legal issues between
the employees and the organization or specifically unsuccessful applicants if recruitments are
not done properly. Thus, this makes it clearly important for the managers (of a
company/organization) in charge of hiring to be absolutely rational and careful at all times
during the recruiting process. The selection process is a complex and important part of
Human Resource Management; hence, the employer responsible for hiring successful
applicants should have sufficient data from the applicants to help make the employer’s
decisions and support the employer’s choices (Rozario, Venkatraman and Abbas, 2019).
Additionally, this will help eliminate any unconscious biases that the employer has and
allows him/her to focus more on each applicant’s attributes and skills. There are numerous
other approaches organizations can try to ensure that the selection process treats every
applicant equally and avoid legal issues with unsuccessful applicants. For instance,
organizations should review their existing recruiting process and selection method for any
potential discrimination towards the applicants. Job descriptions and job duties should be
stated appropriately and objectively as to not suggest discrimination unintentionally, for
example towards women (Recruitment — Legal Issues: In-depth | Croner-i, 2020). Research
during the 3rd MOPAS International Conference has shown that in 2011, the percentage of
senior executive ranks occupied by women in the Korean government was only 3.2% (Choi
and Park, 2014). Organizations should take proper care when describing the job and not
shape it around the premise that a person of a specific gender, age, and ethnic group will
accept the advertised position (Recruitment — Legal Issues: In-depth | Croner-i, 2020).
Furthermore, organizations must frequently remind the workplace boundaries of the company
to their employees for example by conducting seminars regarding workplace behavior. This
will undoubtedly improve the hiring staff’s decision-making and selection process as to
ensure that job applicants are treated fairly and justly. This alternative also helps reduce the
possibilities of unlawful behavior of the hiring staff during an interview or other recruiting
activities. The Equality Act 2010 states that employers must ensure that job seekers are not
discriminated in any way specifically by age, gender reassignment, civil partnership and
marriage, race, sex, sexual orientation, disability, and religion (Recruitment — Legal Issues:
In-depth | Croner-i, 2020). It is common for most refined organizations to have written
guidelines as to what the organization deems acceptable workplace behavior and it is usually
issued to every employee at the time of hiring (Glynn and Marshall, 2005). Likewise,
computerized training modules and seminars on workplace behavior are just as popular. If
litigation were to occur based on the grounds that the applicant was not treated fairly by the
hiring staff, it may be necessary for the organization to prove that the hiring staff has
acquired the materials and training on workplace behavior (Glynn and Marshall, 2005). This
is important for the organization as the consequences of the litigation might tarnish the
reputation of the organization and this may disrupt any major ongoing projects that the
organization has.
 According to Bratton and Gold (2012, p. 221), the selection process is a method in
which managers and others use particular tools to select job applicants that are most likely to
succeed in the job from a pool of applicants, provided management objectives and legal
requirements. Managers need to select employees carefully because hiring errors can severely
impact the organisation. Selection processes may differ from organisation to organisation.
There are a few proven methods that can enhance the effectiveness of candidates selection
process.

G-factor, also known as General Mental Ability, is proven to be one of the most
powerful approach when it comes to predicting the extrinsic career success of a candidate
according to Lang and Kell (2020). This psychometric investigation incorporating both
cognitive abilities and human intelligence is widely utilised by major companies worldwide
such as Microsoft, Samsung and Apple during the screening process of candidates. There are
a few tests designed to measure candidates’ performance such as Kaufman Brief Intelligence
Test, short-term memory test, verbal comprehension, numerical reasoning and Progressive
Matrices (Salgado, 2017). This method is deemed to be highly reliable and it is applicable for
every level of jobs in every industry. Besides, hiring personnel need no special training to
administer the test as the GMA testing will be built catering to organisations’ selection
system. Researches shown that employees hired using this measure are generally more
productive by 9.7% compare to those who were hired according to their education and
experience alone which will eventually lead to a 9% decrease in new hiring. With that being
said, organisations are able to gain high ROI and reduce cost in hiring by investing in this
hiring method (Bonaccio, Reeve and Lyerly, 2016).

Organisations should prioritise candidate experience during the selection process to

secure the top talent and shape an excellent employer. Candidate experience shape the
perception and feelings of a candidate towards a company during all points of contacts during
the recruitment process including job search, application process, interview process and on-
boarding experience as shown below (Anbu, 2019).
Candidate Experience Process, KR (2015)

According to HayGroup (2020), 70% of graduates are negatively affected by other’s

bad experience with an organization. Top candidates are unlikely to accept offers from the
organisation if the process is unstructured, dull, too long or unreasonable. A long and
complex application procedure will also cause 25% of the candidates to disengage from the
process (HayGroup, 2020). Hence, it is important to establish a positive experience for the
candidates (Hayton, 2018). Managers need to think about what the candidates might be
looking for during the interview and selection process in order to create a better experience
for them. Each candidate should receive details, feedback, and support that suit their
individual needs. If candidates have bad experience during the selection process, they may
refuse the job if selected and tell other good potential candidates thus creating a bad
reputation for the organisation. For example, P&G simplify the whole application process on
their website with just 4 easy steps: Application, Assessment, Interviews and Offer with a
learn more button to guide candidates into knowing more detailed information regarding the
stage and what to expect during the process.

Besides that, the organisation must ensure that the hiring managers are equipped with
proper training and tools to find best suitable candidates and avoid any biased hiring
decisions. They must be equipped with effective shortlisting, interviewing and assessment
skills and be able to carry out the selection process professionally and methodically (Brighthr,
n.d.). Interview training and competency based interview guides are essential for hiring
manager to be perfectly skilled at identifying the requirements, qualifications and and
behaviours for a candidate to perform the job (Dunn, Mount, Barrick and Ones, 1995). The
selection process has to be systematic and impartial because if it is not, the organisation could
miss the opportunity to hire the best-fitting candidate for the job. The questions asked during
interviews should be related to the job and selecting the candidate should be made based on
whether the candidate is qualified for the job and not based on the manager’s personal
judgement of the candidate.

Other than that, the organisation should take advantage of online technologies by
using social media platforms to screen the candidates and it is also known as “cybervetting”
(SHRM, n.d.). In fact, though the ethic of this practice has been highly debated, a survey
conducted by CareerBuilder in 2018 highlights that 70% of employers carried out candidate
screening process via social media platforms during the hiring process and the number spiked
even higher due to the social distance constrain causing the inability of hiring managers to
conduct face to face interview with their candidates. The 3 main platforms employers tend to
assess are LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter according to Summit Search Group and many
hiring personnel perceived LinkedIn as a secondary resume for a candidate. Via social media
sites that are more personal such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, hiring managers will be
able to access photographs of the job candidates and information about their qualifications,
work experience, geographical position, hobbies and interests. This allows the hiring
managers to have an in-depth view of the candidate’s character and skills that sometimes may
not be seen in interviews such as how well they interact and get along with other people.
Some people tend to lie on their resume thus by going through their social media, managers
may be able to verify a certain skill or experience mentioned by the candidate.

Next, the organisation should collect and analyse feedback from the candidates
regarding the selection processes (Anderson, 2019). Regardless of whether the organisation
chooses to accept or reject them, the candidates’ insights could be valuable to the
organisation in order for them to improve their selection processes to make it more efficient
in the future to select the best candidates. Gathering candidate input can highlight any places
where the current selection process can leave the applicants feeling out of the loop and
recognise elements of the process that may benefit from enhancement.

In conclusion, a fair and effective selection process are critically essential in

delivering intangible benefits to an organisation including attracting the right talent pool,
securing the best candidates, ensure employee retention and performance as well as
enhancing the hiring cost effectiveness in terms of time, resource and cash. Prevalent and
sensitive legal challenges with extreme consequences involving not only fines, litigation costs
and even tarnishing of the most valuable asset of a company: reputation and publicity can be
avoided. Lastly, incorporating multiple selection methods can also improve the reliability and
quality of hiring process dramatically, thus ensuring best candidates to see through the whole
recruitment process, keeping the organisation running at full capacity and develop
competitive advantages for future growth in the industry.
References:

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human resource management models. Asian Journal of Multidimensional Research (AJMR),
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