Afi’s

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 really 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, proposes 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.

Basil’s

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.
Organisations should prioritise candidate experience during the selection
process in order to select the best candidate. Top candidates are unlikely to accept
offers from the organisation if the process is unstructured, dull, too long or
unreasonable. 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.
Besides that, the organisation must ensure that the hiring managers are
properly trained in order to 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.). 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. (SHRM, n.d.). 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.
References:

Anderson, K., 2019. 7 Ways To Improve The Recruitment And Selection Process |
Coassemble. Coassemble. Available at: https://coassemble.com/blog/industry/7-ways-to-
improve-the-recruitment-selection-process/ (Accessed: 1 November 2020).

App.croneri.co.uk. 2020. Recruitment — Legal Issues: In-Depth | Croner-I. [online]

Available at: <https://app.croneri.co.uk/topics/recruitment-legal-issues/indepth#DCAM-
1664100> [Accessed 31 October 2020].

Bratton, J., & Gold, J. (2012) Human resource management: theory and practice, 5th Edition,
Palgrave.
Brighthr. n.d. Selection Process Best Practices. Available at:
https://www.brighthr.com/articles/hiring/selection-process/selection-process-best-practices/
(Accessed: 2 November 2020).

Choi, S. and Park, C., 2014. Glass Ceiling in Korean Civil Service. Public Personnel
Management, 43(1), pp.118-139.

Fodchuk, K. and Sidebotham, E., 2005. Procedural Justice in the Selection Process: A Review
of Research and Suggestions for Practical Applications. The Psychologist-Manager Journal,
8(2), pp.105-120.

Glynn, C. and Marshall, Q., 2005. Avoiding a "Pounding" in Employment Litigation: A Few
Ounces of Prevention. The Psychologist-Manager Journal, 8(2), pp.121-130.

Hayton, E. 2018. 7 Tips For A Successful Employee Selection Process - Harver. Available at:
https://harver.com/blog/successful-employee-selection-process/ (Accessed: 31 October 2020).

Heneman, H., Schwab, D., Fossum, J. and Dyer, L., 1989. Personnel/Human Resource
Management. 4th ed. Homewood, Ill.: Irwin.

Kumari, N. and Malhotra, R., 2013. A Study of the Recruitment and Selection process: SMC
Global. ZENITH International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, [online] 3(2), pp.244-
254. Available at: <http://www.indianjournals.com/ijor.aspx?
target=ijor:zijmr&volume=3&issue=2&article=021> [Accessed 31 October 2020].

Rozario, S., Venkatraman, S. and Abbas, A., 2019. Challenges in Recruitment and Selection
Process: An Empirical Study. Challenges, 10(2), p.35.

SHRM. n.d. Screening And Evaluating Candidates. Available at:

https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/tools-and-
samples/toolkits/pages/screeningandevaluatingcandidates.aspx (Accessed: 1 November
2020).