Recruiting, selection and socialisation

Question 1

What is the definition of labour supply?

Answer 1

The availability of workers who possess the required skills that an employer might need

Question 2

What is the definition of labour demand?

Answer 2

It is the number of workers an organisation needs

Question 3

What is human resource planning?

Answer 3

It is the process an organisation uses to ensure that it has the right amount and right kinds of people to deliver a particular level of output

Question 4

What forecasting techniques exist in human resource planning?

Answer 4

2 basic categories of forecasting techniques:

1. Quantitative: mathematically sophisticated quantitative techniques to estimate labor demand and supply. Disadvantages: most rely heavily on past data or previous relationships between staffing levels and other variables, such as output or revenues; most of these techniques are outdated, so they are less appropriate today, when firms are struggling with destabilising forces such as rapid technological change and intense global competition
2. Qualitative: rely on experts’ qualitative judgments or subjective estimates of labor demand or supply. Advantages: flexible enough to incorporate whatever factors or conditions the expert feels should be considered. Disadvantages: subjective judgments may be less accurate or lead to rougher estimates than those obtained through quantitative methods

Question 5

What is recruitment?

Answer 5

A process of generating a pool of qualified candidates for a particular job

Question 6

What is selection?

Answer 6

The process of making a hire or no hire decision regarding each applicant. The process typically involves determining the characteristics required for effective job performance and then measuring applicants on those characteristics, which are typically based on a job analysis

Question 7

What are the challenges in the hiring process?

Answer 7

Poor hiring decisions are likely to cause problems from day one. Unqualified or unmotivated workers will probably require closer supervision and direction. Workers who were hired with inadequate skills or experience may require additional training yet may never reach the required level of performance. They may also give customers inaccurate information or give customers a reason to do business with competitors.

Question 8

What are the major turnover costs?

Answer 8

1. Separation: Exit interview, paperwork processing
2. Recruitment: Advertising, recruiter fees
3. Selection: Pre-employment testing, interviewing
4. Hiring: Orientation, training
5. Productivity: Vacancy costs, disruption

Question 9

What are the steps to the recruitment process?

Answer 9

1st: Go to where the applicants are: Millions of users are on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and many people are now using these and other forms of social media to network and find leads for jobs.
2nd: What do they want and what do you have to offer? Some of the characteristics that can be important to prospective employees include: Working atmosphere, Career opportunities, Work-life value, Job characteristics, Pay
3rd: Treat applicants like customers

Question 10

What are the sources of recruiting?

Answer 10

• Current employees
• Referrals from current employees: it can create employment opportunity problems
• Former employees: A firm may decide to recruit employees who previously worked for the organisation. Typically, these are people who were laid off
• Former military: Some organisations recruit former military in the belief that military experience will result in better and more consistent job performance
• Customers: Customers can be a convenient and cost-effective source of employees. Customers are already familiar with the organisation’s products or services. Recruiting customers can capitalise on this familiarity, as well as on enthusiasm and alignment with the brand
• Print and radio advertisements: Employers are increasingly turning to the Web as a recruitment tool because online ads are relatively cheap, are more dynamic, and can often produce faster results than newspaper help-wanted ads. The Web is not only an economical, efficient means to recruit, but it is also a convenient tool for job seekers.
• Employment agencies: Many organisations use external contractors to recruit and screen applicants for a position
• Temporary workers: Temporary workers provide employers the flexibility to quickly meet fluctuating demands. Bringing in temporary workers enables employers to bypass the time-consuming hiring process of job interviews and background checks. Temporary workers also provide a buffer between the changing business environment and the permanent workforce.
• College recruiting: Your school probably has a job placement office that helps students make contacts with employers

Question 11

Comment on external VS internal candidates:

Answer 11

Hiring externally gives the firm the advantage of the fresh perspectives and different approaches. Sometimes it also makes economic sense to search for external specialists rather than bear the expense of training current workers in a new process or technology.
A disadvantage to externally recruited workers is that it may take weeks before a new recruit has learned the job. Bringing in someone from the outside can also cause difficulties if current workers resent the recruit for filling a job they feel should have gone to a qualified internal worker.
Internal recruiting, usually in the form of promotions and transfers, also has its advantages and disadvantages. On the positive side, it is usually less costly than external recruiting. It provides a clear signal to the current workforce that the organisation offers opportunities for advancement. And internal recruits are already familiar with the organisation’s policies, procedures and customs.

Question 12

Comment on recruiting protected classes:

Answer 12

An integral part of many organisations’ recruitment efforts, both externally and internally, is attracting women, minorities, people with disabilities and other employees in the protected classes.

Question 13

What are the most commonly used selection methods?

Answer 13

1. Letters of recommendation
2. Application forms
3. Ability tests
4. Personality tests
5. Honesty tests
6. Drug tests
7. Interviews
8. Reference checks
9. Background checks

Question 14

In the context of selection methods, what do the letters of recommendation represent?

Answer 14

They are not highly related to job performance because most are highly positive

Question 15

In the context of selection methods, what do application forms represent?

Answer 15

Organisations often use application forms as screening devices to determine whether a candidate satisfies minimum job specifications, particularly for entry-level jobs. The forms typically ask for information regarding past jobs and present employment status.

Question 16

In the context of selection methods, what do ability tests represent?

Answer 16

Various tests measure a wide range of abilities.
Cognitive ability tests measure a candidate’s capability in a certain area and are valid predictors of job performance when the abilities tested are based on a job analysis.
Physical ability tests used by police and fire departments measure strength and endurance.
Work sample tests ask applicants to perform the exact same tasks they will be performing on the job.

Question 17

In the context of selection methods, what do interviews represent?

Answer 17

Although the job interview is probably the most common selection tool, it has often been criticised for its poor reliability and low validity. Other criticisms include human judgment limitations and interviewer biases. Another criticism is that traditional interviews are conducted in such a way that the interview experience is very different from interviewee to interviewee. Structured interviews are valid predictors of job performance. Structured interviews have been used very successfully at numerous companies. To operate within the limits of the law, interviewers should remember the “nine don’ts” of interviewing:

a. Don’t ask applicants if they have children, plan to have children, or what child-care arrangements they have made.
b. Don’t ask an applicant’s age.
c. Don’t ask whether the candidate has a physical or mental disability that would interfere with doing the job. The law allows employers to explore the subject of disabilities only after making a job offer that is conditioned on satisfactory completion of a required physical, medical, or job skills test.
d. Don’t ask for such identifying characteristics as height or weight on an application.
e. Don’t ask a female candidate for her maiden name. Some employers have asked this to ascertain marital status, another topic that is off limits in interviewing both men and women.
f. Don’t ask applicants about their citizenship.
g. Don’t ask applicants about their arrest records. You are, however, allowed to ask whether the candidate has ever been convicted of a crime.

Question 18

In the context of selection methods, what do personality tests represent?

Answer 18

Personality tests assess traits, individual workers’ characteristics that tend to be consistent and enduring. Many traits can be measured in a variety of ways, and this lack of consistency produces problems with reliability and validity. The “Big Five” factors, now widely accepted in the field of personality psychology, follow: Extroversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Emotional stability, Openness to experience

Question 19

In the context of selection methods, what do honesty tests represent?

Answer 19

Employee theft is a serious problem for organisations, thus it is no surprise that employers want to make sure that they are hiring honest workers. Honesty or integrity tests are designed to identify job applicants who are likely to engage in theft and other undesirable behaviour.