Recruitment and selection of staff can be something that is all too often seen as a routine exercise. This can mean that it does not receive the attention to detail that other business investment decisions merit. Consider a typical cycle of employment:
• Business Planning
• Workforce Planning (audit of current workforce compared to predicted future requirements)
• Recruitment & Selection
• Employment contract (terms, conditions, policies)
• Training and Development
• Day to day operation/Employee Relations
• Termination (resignation, retirement, redundancy, dismissal etc.)
INFLUENCES ON RECRUITMENT
Many things can affect recruitment, both on the supply side and the demand side. Taking demand first:
When a new position is created, it is likely that reasonable thought will have been applied in determining the nature of the job and a justification of the costs involved. Hopefully, some account will also have been taken of the longer-term needs of the business. However, when a current post becomes vacant, many organisations can fall into the trap of assuming that all that is required is a like-for-like replacement - without considering possible changes in requirements that may have arisen or may be just around the corner. By considering the bigger picture, a wide range of factors, such as succession planning, workforce planning, development potential, longer term skill and capacity needs, can all influence the nature of the vacancy.
A review of this type could question the actual business for a ‘replacement’. This does not have to be a given. Action can be taken to influence labour demand. This can include consideration of alternatives to recruitment such as increased overtime, reorganisation of work methods, different shift patterns, possibly to allow flexible working or changing the aspirations in terms of skill base, possibly supported by additional training. More extreme measures could involve modifying the production targets or product mix right through to relocation of part or all of the operation.
Even after the demand side of the argument has been clarified the question of supply can have a major factor in determining how the position is best filled. Factors that will be relevant here are the availability of suitable skills in the local / national market, the potential to train and develop existing or new staff, possible changes in the labour market i.e. demographic change, opening / closure of similar organisations, local educational facilities and so on. If deemed appropriate this may be a good time to review the company’s reward strategy in an effort to increase the attractiveness of the organisation to new recruits and also to help to retain more of the current workforce. Remember this should not just be all about money but how overall ‘packages’ are made up and tailored to suit the different employees and their varied needs.
DEFINITION OF RECRUITMENT
Recruitment is about identifying what is needed and attracting suitable candidates who may fill those requirements. Selection can be separated out from recruitment and is about the process of choosing and appointing a candidate - this will be covered in detail next month.
METHODS OF RECRUITMENT
Options for publicising/advertising a vacancy are many and include the following:
• Local media: newspapers, radio etc.
• National media: newspapers, magazines, radio/television or specialist publications such as the Fresh Produce Journal.
• IT: Many jobs are now advertised on individual organisation’s websites or, alternatively, on the web site of a specialist advertiser or recruitment consultancy.
• Job Centre: this remains a well used and practical source, particularly for jobs that may be traditionally described as manual.
• Professional recruiters: this may include employment agencies, recruitment consultants and/or search consultants. There are significant differences in the ways of working of these.
• Word of Mouth: Although there is potentially a risk of infringing employment legislation in the areas of equality and discrimination, many vacancies are still filled in this way. There is nothing wrong in this way of approaching things, as personal recommendation can be of significant two-way benefit. The only word of caution here is in the nature of the relationship of the person doing the recommending and their experience of the prospective candidate i.e. these should always be first hand, related recommendations.
• Out and about: Many organisations use job fairs, open days, site notice boards, school/college visits or university milk rounds
SELECTING THE BEST METHOD
So, how do you set about choosing which of these to use. The answer, as with most things connected with HR is that it depends on the circumstances.
Some of the key questions to ask yourself include:
• What kind of applicant is sought?
• Are suitable applicants likely to be available locally?
• What methods have been used for similar vacancies in the past?
• How successful was that process?
• How quickly must the vacancy be filled?
• How attractive is the job or the organisation likely to be?
• What is the recruitment budget?
FACTORS WHICH MAY INFLUENCE YOUR DECISION, INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:
DIY: For most routine jobs, advertising is perhaps the first obvious port of call. The cost of an advertisement will vary according to the publication, size and type e.g. colour, b&w etc. However, there is no guarantee that the advertisement will be successful and if an appointment is not made then position will have to be filled by other means. This does not have to mean that all the costs (and time) are necessarily wasted as, used positively, recruitment advertising can, in certain circumstances, be an effective way of promoting an employer brand image.
It may be appropriate, even if the recruitment and selection process is to be carried out in house to still seek professional help with the advertisement - if only to reduce the risk of infringing the various pieces of legislation that govern content. Remember also that the administrative and selection costs will be higher following advertisement.
AGENCY: Using a recruitment agency (as opposed to a consultant) may seem relatively expensive but can be a quick way to fill a vacancy, as candidates will be selected from an existing data bank of people actively looking for a job. With any reputable agency any fee due should only be payable upon appointment. One down-side is that the agency may not advertise the vacancy and therefore the candidates are only those registered with that agency - although many today will post appointments on their website as part of their service. The type of agency can vary from generalist high street ones such as Reed, Brook Street Bureau etc to specialist ones that may segment their business by factors such industry type or job function.
CONSULTANCY: Using a recruitment consultant may seem to be an even more expensive option, however, they will provide a full service, from the initial search through to screening and the interviewing of candidates that minimises the associated on costs of selection. One of the main benefits is that they can perform a wide search to find exactly the right candidate. The types of service offered will depend on the requirements of the client and their specific recruitment brief. Advertised selection is generally more appropriate if the job brief is fairly open. Where the requirement is more specific a search or headhunt is usually a more efficient and effective way of find a suitable candidate. As with agencies there are generalist consultancies that cover areas such as FMCG or broad commercial roles but there are also for almost every sector niche recruiters that cover specific areas such as Produce, Horticulture, Distribution etc. Again the best choice will depend on the nature of the assignment e.g. customer facing roles could be more open to a broad commercial person who has experience of your particular customer whereas perhaps something like a procurement or technical role would require specific industry knowledge and could only be dealt with via specialist. Whatever your requirement it is always a good idea to build a working relationship with one or two consultancies as good people are always at a premium and in an increasingly competitive market, any means of finding out about them first has to be to your advantage.
THE ADVERTISEMENT: INITIAL IMPACT
Whatever the selected method of attracting candidates, the initial specification for a consultant or any external advertisement is the key to attracting suitable applicants. A very wide range of factors could cause initial de-selection by potentially strong candidates. For example, advertising in the wrong media may lead to missing potential applicants altogether. A badly worded advert may lead to an immediate negative image. This could equally apply to an “over the top” advert, which may imply the perfect job in the perfect company. (If anyone finds that please let me know so that I can join the queue). Many factors are already in place before an advertisement is placed. The organisation may offer a well-known brand. This can be a positive or negative factor depending upon the image of that brand. The organisation itself may be well known, nationally or locally. Again, this reputation could be good or bad, depending on the reasons for previous publicity. (One of the advantages of using a consultant is that they can act as your advocate, especially if the company is trying to change its image or getting over some previous adverse press.)
An advertisement should, therefore, capture the strengths and highlight the advantages of a job and the organisation without overselling. Apart from legal aspects mentioned earlier, it may well be worth a small investment by inviting a specialist to provide generic or specific advice on advertising style.
SELECTION
Whatever the method of attracting candidates and whether the shortlist is one or a hundred, the next step is to select and appoint. More about this next month.
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