Recruitment and selection

When recruiting new employees into the business , as a business we must find what
type of workers a business would need to recruit. For example – a farmer would
need to recruit employees when the harvesting season is close by.

Different types of employment are outlined below.

Full time employment

These are employees who are expected to work in a full time working week for a
business organization. The numbers of hours that are worked tend to vary from
country to country.

Full time employees are entitled to certain benefits such as health insurance and
overtime payment.

Part time employment

Part time employees are individuals who work below the average working hours ,
there is no specific amount of hours stated for these emplooyees but they are ideally
working for less than 30 hours.
This is a helpful way of recruiting employees as this will provide certain level of
flexibility.

These part time employees can be ideal to a certain set of employees such as
university students as they don’t have to commit working full time as they are also
committed to their studies as well.

Job share

Job sharing is a type of flexible work arrangement in which two people work part-
time schedules to complete the work one person would do in a single full-time job.
this can be appealing for workers who are looking to reduce their hours to provide
care for someone at home, or who are simply looking for a lighter workload without
quitting altogether. Flexible work arrangements can help employers retain
experienced workers who are looking for greater work-life balance. Job sharing can
also decrease benefits costs for employers, depending on their benefits policies.

Casual employment

Casual workers are employees who do not have guarantee of work from their
employers. their hours of work are very much uncertain and varied. these
employeers would ask them to come to work under very short notice. ( some are on -
call). for these individuals work is very flexible but they lack commitment when
compared to other full time employees
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Hashan Siriwardane
BA(Hons) International Business and Finance
Seasonal employment

This is where employers recruit staff during a particular of the year . the work that
they have to do is high and it’s full time basis but the life span of the job is short.

Some people prepare seasonal work because it suits their style and businesses can
obtain a sense of flexibility as seasonal workers are laid of when the season is over.

Temporary employment

This is where businesses recruit staff for a short period of time to cover up the staff
absence .( staff who are on paternity leave or those having long term sicknesses).

The work that assigned to temporary employees are likely to be a full time basis but
the duration of the contract may tend to vary.

Temporary employees might be taken by job seekers to earn some income when
they tend to look for a permanent post . but they need to understand that a
temporary post can create a doorway to a permanent position if the temporary
employee can do a much more better job than the one who is on leave.

Recruitment

A business may need to employ staff mainly due to the following reasons.

 When the business is expanding and it needs more labor

 When positions become vacant due to promotion
 When staff are needed temporarily to cover short term staff absences.
 When people are resigning and they need to be replaced.

Stages in the recruitment process

Recruitment is the process of identifying a job vacancy within a business and then finding a
suitable candidate to fulfil that role. Businesses go through a recruitment process. The
recruitment process is the steps a business takes when bringing new employees into a
business.

Identifying a job vacancy

Businesses must identify that a job vacancy is available within their organization. Vacancies
become available for a range of reasons including:

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Hashan Siriwardane
BA(Hons) International Business and Finance
  business growth
 an employee being sacked
 an employee choosing to leave the business
 an employee being promoted to another position
 maternity or paternity leave

Prepare a job description and person specification

The next stage in the process is to prepare a job description and person specification.

A job description is another document produced by a business that wants to fill a vacancy. Its
main purpose is to list all of the duties that are required in the role. A job description may
include the job title, rate of pay or salary, bonus information, hours of work, location of work,
all duties included in the role and whom the new employee would report to in the business.

A person specification is a document created by a business that wants to fill a vacancy. This
document provides information about the type of person the business wants to hire. A person
specification includes details about the educational background, skills, experience and
hobbies the business wants applicants to have.

Advertise
Businesses must then advertise the vacancy. This involves creating a suitable job advert, and
promoting it in locations that potential applicants will have access to. This will encourage
people to apply for the role. Businesses may advertise roles on their own website, job
websites, job boards, internal emails, newspapers and social media.

Shortlist
Once a business has advertised a job role and received job applications, they must shortlist
candidates. This is the process of looking through job applications(applications which
collects information about the job applicant), covering letters and CVs( a document used by a
job seeker that lists their personal details, qualification, work experience and other related
details)  to find out which applicants best meet the requirements of the role. Businesses will
often let the unsuccessful applications know they have not been shortlisted for interview.

References
Once applicants have been shortlisted, a business will sometimes want references for each
applicant. This is the process of contacting designated people, usually previous employers or
educational establishments to establish whether an applicant will be an ideal fit for the role
and the business. References may ask questions about areas such as attendance and work
ethic.

Interview

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Hashan Siriwardane
BA(Hons) International Business and Finance
The next stage in the process is to interview applicants. This can either be completed in a
group interview with several applicants at once, or as an interview with a single applicant.
Interviews may ask questions about experience, skills, qualifications, hobbies, questions
about the role and business being applied for and scenario based questions about how an
applicant would deal with specific situations.

Some businesses also undertake further testing of applicants at this stage.

Selection and appointment

The final stage in the recruitment process is to select and appoint the best candidate. A
business may have one or several positions available. Once they have selected whom they
want to employ, they must inform them that they have been successful. Once successful
applicants have been appointed, unsuccessful applicants can be informed that they are not
being appointed to the role.

Recruitment documents

When businesses wish to recruit they usually prepare two key documents, a person
specification to define the type of person the business wishes to recruit, and a job
description to describe all the duties involved in the role

 A job description is another document produced by a business that wants to

fill a vacancy. Its main purpose is to list all of the duties that are required in
the role. A job description may include the job title, rate of pay or salary,
bonus information, hours of work, location of work, all duties included in the
role and who the new employee would report to in the business.

 A person specification is a document created by a business that wants to fill a

vacancy. This document provides information about the type of person the
business wants to hire. A person specification includes details about the
educational background, skills, experience and personal qualities the
business wants applicants to have.

Often, a person specification is split into two sections – ‘essential’ and

‘desirable’. If something is classed as essential, it means a person must have
it in order to apply for the role. An example could be experience in a similar
role or a certain qualification. In contrast, if something is classed as desirable,
it means it is not a necessity to apply for the role, although it may give
applicants a better chance of getting the job. An example could be having
a master’s degree.

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Hashan Siriwardane
BA(Hons) International Business and Finance
 Application forms

A lot of businesses today use application forms to gather information from job
applicants . It is a standard form where every applicant will be expected to
submit a list of information on the form , this forms an advantage where the
same data is collected from each applicant which makes comparisons easier.
The following list in an application form will include the following .

 Full name and address

 Personal identification number (NIC)
 Details of Education
 Employment history
 Other relevant experience and qualifications
 A statement from the applicant as to why they applied for the post.
 Hobbies and interest
 Name and address of 2 referees

Curriculum vitae

A curriculum vitae, often abbreviated as CV, is a document that job applicants

use to showcase their academic and Professional accomplishments. It is used
to apply for positions within areas where a person’s specific knowledge or
expertise is required. A curriculum vitae is usually longer than a resume and
must include the information that the recruiter needs to verify the skills,
experience, and educational qualifications of an applicant.

Internal recruitment
Internal recruitment is often carried out through internal job adverts published via internal
emails, notice boards, business websites and internal company memos.

Advantages of internal recruitment include:

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Hashan Siriwardane
BA(Hons) International Business and Finance
 a quick process
 applicants will already be known to the business
 applicants may have previous experience in the role
 cheaper to recruit and advertise roles internally
Disadvantages of internal recruitment include:

 usually a small pool of applicants

 applicants may not be experienced in the role
a lack of fresh ideas in the business

External recruitment
External recruitment is often carried out through external job adverts published via external
emails, job websites, recruitment agencies, the business’ own website, newspapers and trade
magazines.

Advantages of external recruitment include:

 may bring new ideas into the business

 fresh enthusiasm and skills
 larger pool of potential applicants
Disadvantages of external recruitment include:

 may take the new employee time to settle into the business
 expensive to recruit
 new employee not previously known to the business
 can take more time than internal recruitment

The following are a few methods which attract applicants from outside the business

 Job centers – these are operated by the government and are used to advertise certain
jobs free of charge.
 Headhunting -this is where specific people are targeted for a certain vacancy.
 Word of mouth -this is where people find out about the job vacancy through friends or
other close contacts.
 Employment agencies – these are specialist department that help to recruit staff for a
business.
Short listing

Shortlisting is a critical stage in the recruitment process where

employers identify candidates from the applicant pool who best
meet the essential and desirable criteria for the job opening in

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Hashan Siriwardane
BA(Hons) International Business and Finance
 question and invite them to the next stage of the recruitment
process.
Shortlisting will help to speed up and better manage the hiring process.
One of the benefits is that it establishes standards for ideal
candidates. It also gives an organization valuable insight into the
recruiting strategy. If a company has difficulty finding applicants to
shortlist, it can signal that expectations are too high or job postings are
not on the right platforms. 

Interview
An interview is a type of formal meeting that is used to decide whether an applicant
is going to be suitable for a job role and the business. An interview may ask
applicants questions about themselves, the job role, or their previous experiences.
There are three main types of interviews:

 face to face
 telephone
 online

Interviews can be used to

 Help clarify information on the applicant form

 Assess the personality, motivation and attitudes, commitment and
communication skills
 Challenge questions by asking questions such as how they might deal with a
specific work-related problem.

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Hashan Siriwardane
BA(Hons) International Business and Finance