Selection

N
• Selection is the process of picking individuals who have relevant
qualifications to fill jobs in an organization.

J U
• It is the process of differentiating between applicants in order to

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R
identify and hire those with a greater likelihood of success in a job.

A GA
• It is also an attempt to strike a happy balance between what the
applicant can & wants to do and what the organization requires.

SI N
 Essentials of Selection

N
• Picking individuals possessing relevant

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qualifications.

J R
• Matching job requirements with the profile of

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candidates.

A GA
• Using multiple tools and techniques to find
the most suitable candidates capable of

I N
achieving success on the job.

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 THE Goal of Selection

High
MISS HIGH HIT

N
False Negative Error True Positive

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Inaccurate Accurate

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prediction prediction
Job Performance

(Person would have succeeded on the (Person succeeds on the job)

R R
job)

A GA
LOW HIT MISS
True Negative False Positive Error

N
Accurate Inaccurate prediction

I
prediction (Person fails on the job)
(Person would not have succeeded on

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Low

the job)

Low High
Predicted Success
 Selection Process
• Preliminary Interview

N
• Selection Tests

U
• Employment Interview
•
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Reference and Background Analysis

R
A GA
• Selection Decision
• Physical Examination

N
• Job Offer
•
•
SI
Employment Contract
Evaluation
 Preliminary Interview

N
• The HR department tries to screen out the obvious misfits
through this courtesy interview.

J U
• A prescribed application form is given to candidates who are

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R
found to be suitable.

A GA
• Application form is a printed form completed by job aspirants
detailing their educational background, previous work history

I N
and certain personal data.

S
 Selection Tests

N
• A test is a standardized, objective measure of a sample of
behavior.

J U
• Selection tests are increasingly used by companies these days

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R
because they measure individual differences in a scientific way,

A GA
leaving very little room for individual bias.
• Types: Ability test, Aptitude test, Personality test, Interest test,

I N
Graphology test, Polygraph test and Medical test.

S
 Selection Tests
• Ability Test: They measure a candidate’s learning ability
and also the ability to understand instructions and make
judgments. They do not measure any single trait but

N
several mental abilities (memory, vocabulary, fluency,

U
numerical ability, perception etc).

J
• Aptitude Test: They measure a candidate’s potential to

R
A GA R
learn clerical, mechanical and mathematical skills. Since
they do not measure a candidate’s on the job
motivation, they are generally administered in
combination with other tests.

SI N
• Personality Test: They measure basic aspects of a
candidate’s personality such as motivation, emotional
balance, self confidence, interpersonal behavior,
introversion etc.
 Selection Tests
• Interest Test: These are meant to find how a person in
tests compares with the interests of successful people in
a specific job. These tests show the areas of work in

N
which a person is most interested.

U
• Graphology Test: Here a trained evaluator tries to

J
examine the lines, loops, hooks, strokes, curves etc in a

R R
person's handwriting to assess the person's personality

A GA
and emotional make-up.
• Polygraph Test: It is a lie detection test. During the test,
the operator records the respiration, blood pressure and

N
perspiration of the subject as he or she responds to a

I
series of questions posed to elicit the truth.

S
• Medical Test: This reveals physical fitness of a
candidate. This also includes drug test and genetic
screening.
 Standards for Selection Tests
• Reliability: The ability of a selection tool to measure an

N
attribute consistently; when a test is administered to the
same individual repeatedly, he should get approximately

U
identical scores.

J R
• Validity: The extent to which an instrument measures what it

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intends to measure; in a typing test, validity measures a

A GA
typist’s speed and accuracy.
• Suitability: A test must fit the nature of the group on which it
is applied. Usefulness: Exclusive reliance on any single test

I N
should be avoided.

S
• Standardization: Norms for finalizing test scores should be
established. Qualified people: Tests demand a high level of
professional skills.
 Employment Interview

N
Interview is a formal, in-depth conversation

U
conducted to evaluate the applicant’s

J R
acceptability.

R
A GA
• One to One Interview
• Sequential Interview

N
• Panel Interview

SI
 Objectives of Interview

N
• Helps obtain additional information from the

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applicant

J R
• Facilitates giving general information to the

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applicant such as company policies, job,

A GA
products manufactured
• Helps build the company’s image among the

I N
applicants

S
 Types of Interview
• Structured: A predetermined checklist of questions, usually asked of
all applicants. Useful for valid results, especially when dealing with
large number of applicants.

N
• Unstructured: Few, if any, planned questions. Questions are made up
during the interview. Useful when the interviewer tries to probe

U
personal details of the candidate to analyze why they are not right for

J R
the job.

R
• Mixed: A combination of structured and unstructured questions,

A GA
which resembles what is usually done in practice. A realistic
approach that yields comparable answers plus in depth insights.
• Behavioral: Questions limited to hypothetical situations. Evaluation is

I N
based on the solution and approach of the applicant. Useful to

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understand applicant’s reasoning and analytical abilities under
modest stress.
• Stressful: A series of harsh, rapid fire questions intended to upset the
applicant. Useful for stressful jobs, such as handling complaints.
 Placement

N
• Placement is the actual posting of an employee to a
specific job—with rank and responsibilities attached
to it.

J U R
R
• Most organizations put new recruits on probation for

A GA
a given period of time after which their services are
confirmed.
• Placement, however, should be made with as little

I N
disruption to the employee and organization as

S
possible.
 Induction
• Induction, also called orientation is designed to provide a
new employee with the information he or she needs to

N
function comfortably and effectively in the organization.

U
• It is a planned introduction of new hires to their jobs,

J
their peers and the company.

R R
• Conveys three types of information:

A GA
Ø General information about the daily work routine.
Ø A review of the firm’s history, founding fathers,
objectives, operations and products or services, as well

I N
as how the employee’s job contributes to the

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organizational needs.
Ø A detailed presentation of the organization’s policies,
work rules and employee benefits.
 Orientation Program

N
Four strategic choices:

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J
• Formal or Informal

R R
• Individual or Collective

A GA
• Serial or Disjunctive
• Investiture or Divestiture

SI N
 Transfers
• A transfer is a change in job assignment. It may involve a
promotion or demotion or no change at all in status and
responsibility.

N
Purposes of transfer:

U
• To meet organizational requirements

J R
• To satisfy employee needs

R
A GA
• To utilize employees better
• To make the employee more versatile

N
• To adjust the workforce

SI
• To provide relief to overburdened employees
• To reduce conflicts
• To punish employees
 Transfer Policy
• Organizations should clearly specify their policy

N
regarding transfers. Such a policy would normally

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consist of the following things.

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Ø Specify circumstances under which the transfer has

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been effected

A GA R
Ø Name the persons authorized to effect transfers
Ø Mention the basis for the transfer

N
Ø Clarify the position regarding pay, allowances,

SI
benefits etc
 Promotion

N
• Employee movement from current job to another that is
higher in pay, responsibility and/or organization level is

J U
known as promotion. Promotion has powerful

R
motivational value as it compels an employee to utilize

R
his talents fully, and remain loyal and committed to his

A GA
or her job and the organization.
Bases of Promotion

I N
• Merit based promotions

S
• Seniority based promotions
 Exit
• Resignation: A voluntary separation initiated by the employee
himself is called resignation. It is always better to find why the
employee has decided to quit the organization. Properly

N
conducted exit interviews would help throw light on factors
behind the curtain.

J U
• Retirement: Termination of service on reaching the age of

R
superannuation is called retirement. To avoid problems,

R
organizations normally plan replacements to retiring employees

A GA
beforehand.
• Death: Some employees may die in service. Death caused by
occupational hazards, of course, would attract the provisions of

I N
Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923. The normal separation of

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people from an organization due to resignation, retirement or
death is known as attrition.
• Lay off: A lay off entails the separation of the employee from the
organization temporarily for economic or business reasons.
• Retrenchment: A permanent lay off for reasons other than punishment
but not retirement or termination owing to ill health is called
retrenchment. Legally speaking, employers in India are required to give
advance notice or pay equivalent wages before the actual lay off date
(50 per cent of basic wages plus allowances).

N
• Outplacement: Outplacement assistance includes Efforts made by the

U
employer to help a recently separated employee find a job. Apart from

J
training support to such employees, some organizations offer assistance

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in the form of paid leave travel charges for attending interviews, search

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firm expenses ,etc.

A GA
• Suspension: Suspension means prohibiting an employee from attending
work and performing normal duties assigned to him.
• Discharge and dismissal: The termination of the services of an

I N
employee as a punitive measure for some misconduct is called dismissal.
Discharge also means termination of the services of an employee but

S
not necessarily as a punishment. A discharge does not arise from a
single irrational act such as alcoholism, willful violation of rules,
insubordination, carelessness, dishonesty, inefficiency, violent acts,
unauthorized absence for a long time.