10 Human Resource Acquisition II

Dr Anurodh Godha

1. Learning Outcome:

After completing this module, you will be able to:
Describe the various internal sources of recruitment.
Understand the importance of external sources for recruitment
Understand the methods through which prospective candidates may be recruited.
Come across the various philosophies of recruitment
Know the various recruitment practices in India
Understand the concept of E-recruitment

2. Introduction

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Recruitment is a very important part for any company because recruitment not only helps the company expand but also brings in fresh and competitive ideas and improves efficiency of the operations of the company. Recruiting is the discovering of potential candidates for actual or anticipated organizational vacancies. Or, from another perspective, it is a linking activity-bringing together those with jobs to fill and those seeking jobs. A wrong candidate could be harmful to the company’s goals and retard its progress

The recruitment is the essential part for creating competitive advantage for an organization. Recruitment is one of the best opportunities to enrich the organization. The recruitment strategy is a key success factor. The organization has to choose the right mix of the recruitment sources, recruitment agencies and recruitment messages. HR Recruiter has to be skilled to identify the right profile of the best candidate, and they have to be promoted to managers as the best hiring option. HR Professionals must be flexible and innovative

Edwin B. Flippo views recruitment both as ‘Positive’ and ‘negative’ activity. He says “It is a process of searching for prospective employees and stimulating and encouraging them to apply for jobs in an organization. It is often termed positive in that it stimulates people to apply for jobs to increase the hiring ratio, i.e. the number of applicants for a job. On the other hand tends to be negative because it rejects a good member of those who apply, leaving only the best to be hired”

3. Sources of Recruitment

After the finalisation of recruitment plan indicating the number and type of prospective candidates, they must be attracted to offer themselves for consideration to their employment. This necessitates the identification of sources from which these candidates can be attracted. Some companies try to develop new sources, while most only try to tackle the existing sources they have. These sources, accordingly, may be termed as internal and external.

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3.1 Internal Sources

It would be desirable to utilise the internal sources before going outside to attract the candidates. Yoder and others suggest two categories of internal sources including a review of the present employees and nomination of candidates by employees. Effective utilisation of internal sources necessitates an understanding of their skills and information regarding relationships of jobs. This will provide possibilities for horizontal and vertical transfers within the enterprise eliminating simultaneous attempts to lay off employees in one department and recruitment of employees with similar qualification for another department in the company. Promotion and transfers within the plant where an employee is best suitable improves the morale along with solving recruitment problems.

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These measures can be taken effectively if the company has established job families through job analysis programmes combining together similar jobs demanding similar employee characteristics. Again, employees can be requested to suggest promising candidates. Sometimes, employees are given prizes for recommending a candidate who has been recruited. Despite the usefulness of this system in the form of loyalty and its wide practice, it has been pointed out that it gives rise to cliques posing difficulty to management. Therefore, before utilising this system attempts should be made to determine through research whether or not employees thus recruited are effective on particular jobs. Usually, internal sources can be used effectively if the numbers of vacancies are not very large, adequate, employee records are maintained, jobs do not demand originality lacking in the internal sources, and employees have prepared themselves for promotions.

Merits of Internal Sources: The following are the merits of internal sources of recruitment:

It creates a sense of security among employees when they are assured that they would be preferred in filling up vacancies.
It improves the morale of employees, for they are assured of the fact that they would be preferred over outsiders when vacancies occur.
It promotes loyalty and commitment among employees due to sense of job security and opportunities for advancement.
The employer is in a better position to evaluate those presently employed than outside candidates. This is because the company maintains a record of the progress, experience and service of its employees.
Time and costs of training will be low because employees remain familiar with the organisatio and its policies.
Relations with trade unions remain good. Labour turnover is reduced.
As the persons in the employment of the company are fully aware of, and well-acquainted wit, its policies and know its operating procedures, they require little training, and the chances are that they would stay longer in the employment of th organisation than a new outsider would.
It encourages self-development among employees. It encourages good individuals who are ambitious.
It encourages stability from the continuity of employment.
It can also act as a training device for developing middle and top-level managers.

Demerits of Internal Sources: However, this system suffers from certain defects as:

There are possibilities that internal sources may “dry up”, and it may be difficult to find the requisite personnel from within an organisation.
It often leads to inbreeding, and discourages new blood from entering in organisation.
As promotion is based on seniority, the danger is that really capable hands may not be chosen. The likes & dislikes of the management may also play an important role in the selection of personnel.
Since the learner does not know more than the lecturer, no innovations worth the name can be made. Therefore, on jobs which require original thinking (such as advertising, style, designing and basic research), this practice is not followed.

This source is used by many organisations; but a surprisingly large number ignore this source, especially for middle management jobs.

3.2 External Sources

DeCenzo and Robbins remark, “Occasionally, it may be necessary to bring in some ‘new blood’ to broaden the present ideas, knowledge, and enthusiasm.” Thus, all organisations have to depend on external sources of recruitment. Among these sources are included:

Employment agencies.
Educational and technical institutes. and
Casual labour or “applicants at the gate” and nail applicants.

Public and private employment agencies play a vital role in making available suitable employees for different positions in the organisations. Besides public agencies, private agencies have developed markedly in large cities in the form of consultancy services. Usually, these agencies facilitate recruitment of technical and professional personnel. Because of their specialisation, they effectively assess the needs of their clients and aptitudes and skills of the specialised personnel. They do not merely bring an employer and an employee together but computerise lists of available talents, utilising testing to classify and assess applicants and use advanced techniques of vocational guidance for effective placement purposes.

Educational and technical institutes also form an effective source of manpower supply. There is an increasing emphasis on recruiting student from different management institutes and universities commerce and management departments by recruiters for positions in sales, accounting, finance, personnel and production. These students are recruited as management trainees and then placed in special company training programmes. They are not recruited for particular positions but for development as future supervisors and executives. Indeed, this source provides a constant flow of new personnel with leadership potentialities. Frequently, this source is tapped through on-campus interview with promising students. In addition, vocational schools and industrial training institutes provide specialised employees, apprentices, and trainees for semiskilled and skilled jobs. Persons trained in these schools and institutes can be placed on operative and similar jobs with a minimum of in-plant training. However, recruitment of these candidates must be based on realistic and differential standards established through research reducing turnover and enhancing productivity.

Frequently, numerous enterprises depend to some extent upon casual labour or “applicants at the gate” and nail applicants. The candidates may appear personally at the company’s employment office or send their applications for possible vacancies. Explicitly, as Yoder and others observe, the quality and quantity of such candidates depend on the image of the company in community. Prompt response to these applicants proves very useful for the company. However, it may be noted that this source is uncertain, and the applicants reveal a wide range of abilities necessitating a careful screening. Despite these limitations, it forms a highly inexpensive source as the candidates themselves come to the gate of the company. Again, it provides measures for good public relations and accordingly, all the candidates visiting the company must be received cordially.

Table 10.1: Recruiting Sources Used by Skill and Level

_Source:_{Adapted from Stephen L. Mangum, “Recruitment and job Search: The Recruitment Tactics of Employers. “Personnel Administrator, June 1982, p. 102.}

As Jucius observes, trade unions are playing an increasingly important role in labour supply. In several trades, they supply skilled labour in sufficient numbers. They also determine the order in which employees are to be recruited in the organisation. In industries where they do not take active part in recruitment, they make it a point that employees laid off are given preference in recruitment.

Application files also forms a useful source of supply of work force. Attempts may be made to review the application to determine jobs for which the candidates filed for future use when there are openings in these jobs. The candidates may be requested to renew their cards as many times as they desire. All the renewed cards may be placed in “active” files and those not renewed for considerable time may be placed in “inactive” file or destroyed. Indeed, a well-indexed application file provides utmost economy from the standpoint of a recruiting budget.

Efficacy of alternative sources of supply of human resources should be determined through research. Attempts may be made to relate the factor of success on the job with a specific source of supply. Alternative sources can also be evaluated in terms of turnover, grievances and disciplinary action. Those sources which are significantly positively related with job performance and significantly negatively related with turnover, grievances and disciplinary action, can be effectively used in recruitment programmes. The assessment should be periodically performed in terms of occupations. It may be that source “A” is most effective for technical workers, while source “B” for semiskilled workers.

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Advantages of External Recruitment: External sources of recruitment are suitable for the following reasons:

It will help in bringing new ideas, better techniques and improved methods to the organisation.
The cost of employees will be minimised because candidates selected in this method will be placed in the minimum pay scale.
The existing employees will also broaden their personality.
The entry of qualitative persons from outside will be in the interest of the organisation in the long run.
The suitable candidates with skill, talent, knowledge are available from external sources. The entry of new persons with varied expansion and talent will help in human resource mix.

Disadvantages of External Sources:

Orientation and training are required as the employees remain unfamiliar with the organisation.
It is more expensive and time-consuming. Detailed screening is necessary as very little is known about the candidate.
If new entrant fails to adjust himself to the working in the enterprise, it means yet more
expenditure on looking for his replacement.
Motivation, morale and loyalty of existing staff are affected, if higher level jobs are filled from external sources. It becomes a source of heart-burning and demoralisation among existing employees.

4. Methods of Recruitment

Methods of recruitment are different from the sources of recruitment. Sources are the locations where prospective employees are available. On the other hand, methods are way of establishing links with the prospective employees. Various methods employed for recruiting employees may be classified into the following categories:

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4.1 Direct Methods

These include sending recruiters to educational and professional institutions, employees, contacts with public, and manned exhibits. One of the widely used direct methods is that of sending of recruiters to colleges and technical schools. Most college recruiting is done in co-operation with the placement office of a college. The placement office usually provides help in attracting students, arranging interviews, furnishing space, and providing student resumes.

Table 10.2: Methods of Contacting Prospective Candidates

For managerial, professional and sales personnel campus recruiting is an extensive operation. Persons reading for MBA or other technical diplomas are picked up in this manner. For this purpose, carefully prepared brochures, describing the organisation and the jobs it offers, are distributed among students, before the interviewer arrives. Sometimes, firms directly solicit information from the concerned professors about students with an outstanding record. Many companies have found employees contact with the public a very effective method. Other direct methods include sending recruiters to conventions and seminars, setting up exhibits at fairs, and using mobile offices to go to the desired centres.

4.2 Indirect Methods

The most frequently used indirect method of recruitment is advertisement in newspapers, journals, and on the radio and television. Advertisement enables candidates to assess their suitability. It is appropriate when the organisation wants to reach out to a large target group scattered nationwide. When a firm wants to conceal its identity, it can give blind advertisement in which only box number is given. Considerable details about jobs and qualifications can be given in the advertisements. Another method of advertising is a notice-board placed at the gate of the company.

4.3 Third-Party Methods

The most frequently used third-party methods are public and private employment agencies. Public employment exchanges have been largely concerned with factory workers and clerical jobs. They also provide help in recruiting professional employees. Private agencies provide consultancy services and charge a fee. They are usually specialised for different categories of operatives, office workers, salesmen, supervisory and management personnel. Other third-party methods include the use of trade unions. Labour-management committees have usually demonstrated the effectiveness of trade unions as methods of recruitment.

Several criteria discussed in the preceding section for evaluating sources of applicants can also be used for assessing recruiting methods. Attempts should be made to identify how the candidate was attracted to the company. To accomplish this, the application may consist of an item as to how the applicant came to learn about the vacancy. Then, attempts should be made to determine the method which consistently attracts good candidates. Thus, the most effective method should be utilised to improve the recruitment programme.

5. Philosophies of Recruitment

There are basically two philosophies of recruitment:

Traditional
Realistic

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The traditional philosophy is to get as many people as possible to apply for the job. As a result of this, a large number of job seekers apply for the job, which makes the final selection process difficult and can often result in the selection of wrong candidates. Wrong selection can, in turn, lead to employee dissatisfaction and turnover in the long run.

In realistic philosophy, the needs of the organisation are matched with the needs of the applicants, which enhance the effectiveness of the recruitment process. In realistic approach, the employees who are recruited will stay in the organisation for a longer period of time and will perform at higher level of effectiveness.

Table 10.3: Difference between Traditional and Realistic Job Preview

6. Recent Recruitment Practices

The hiring market in India has witnessed dramatic changes in the past decade. We can observe that while the number of people joining the workforce is still high, but “employable” brains are in short supply.

Newspaper advertisements were given preference five years’ back. As the recent practice we can see that the recruitment is done on campus and off campus. On campus recruitment means that the companies go to specific colleges spread across the country and hire according to their needs. When it comes to government recruitments or recruitments of public sector undertakings, the preferred mode followed is off-campus recruitment. Public Sector Banks adopt a different method of recruitment. They organise special test then the selection is made on the basis of test scores followed by a round of interviews.

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Some of the regular strategies used by MNC’s and private sector firms in India:

E-Recruitment
Walk-in sessions.
Job sites for recruitments
Head hunting.
Advertising in newspapers and job portals
Employee referrals and Internal Job posting
Social networking
Campus Recruitment
Targeting public sector employees, ex-servicemen
Online talent auctions
Talent referral programs/ employee referrals
Partnering with educational and training institutes/ campus recruitments
Availing the services of placement consultants
Participating in job fairs

6. 1 E-Recruitment

As per Dhruvakanth B Shenoy, Vice President-Marketing, Asia, Monster.com, India “The growth in the e-recruitment industry has been fuelled with the adoption of technology by prospective employers and Internet penetration. Organizations have cut costs by almost 80 percent over traditional recruitment modes by moving over to the online recruitment process.”

E-recruitment is a tool for many employers to search for job candidates and for applicants to look for job. Today Organizations have their own sites or job postings are given in the placement sites. Again the candidates can visit the sites, post resume, contact the company directly without any delay. All these are just one ‘click’ away. Recent trend of recruitment is e-recruitment or the internet recruitment or on-line recruitment, where the process of recruitment is automated.

Methods Used In E-Recruitment

Source: Designed by Author

A. Job Boards: These are the places where the employers post jobs (like www.naukri.com, www.timesjobs.com, www.monsterindia.com etc) and search for candidates. Candidates become aware of the vacancies. One of the disadvantages is, it is generic in nature.

B. The Corporate Website: The website of the organization can be used for posting a job through a link for career options where the potential candidates can log in for the current openings. On company’s own website, HR department has a choice of posting the vacancies freely and indicate the career path expected after joining the organisation. The corporate website attracts only the interested candidates towards itself.

C. Professional Websites: These are for specific professions, skills and not general in nature. Human Resource Management sites like www.shrm.org can also be used for the recruitment purpose. The professional associations will have their own site or society.

Benefits of E-recruitment

A. Wider Pool of Applicants: In the era of globalization the reach cannot be restricted at one place. E-recruitment provides global reach that also within a fraction of second. Truly the process supports the definition of recruitment by creating a vast pool of potential candidates.

B. Cost Efficiency: Job Advertisements posted on internet are cheaper as compared to those given in newspaper or magazines. Posting the job vacancy on website costs nothing while posting on a job portal can cost few hundred rupees, whereas a newspaper advertisement can cost in thousands.

C. Time Saving Process: Internet speeds up the recruitment process. Time to deliver; to communicate is minimized by this. Response is direct and immediate without any delay. From hiring time to shortlisting the CV to calling candidates for the interview to the final selection has reduced.

D. Reduced Paper Work: As the data collection, filing, and other administrative work are done electronically or through the software thus paper work or documentation has been reduced.

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Drawbacks of E-Recruitment

A. Vast Pool of Applicants: This benefits the Organizations as well as it is disadvantage to them also. Thousands of resumes in the huge database cannot be scanned in depth. Either first few candidates are called for interview or the resumes are screened based on some key words. Also, company can miss out on few good candidates.

B. Need To Be Computer Savvy: The process is restricted to computer savvy candidates only. As the search is based on various websites, too many processes and clicks, making it difficult for a layman to apply online for a particular position. It demands for a computer savvy person.

C. Legal Consequences: Just like the other sources of recruitment, this source should also be aware of the words used in the advertisements otherwise this may lead to the charge of discrimination.

D. Large Number Of Non-Serious Applications: Lot of applicants forward their resumes just to know their market value. They do not check the job description and job specification before applying to the job. At the time of interview the recruiter might realize that the candidate is not serious in leaving the current job.

Current Trends of E-Recruitment

A. Speedy Communication: Company and the prospective candidate can communicate with each other via blogs. The process is no longer restricted to one way communication like mails, faxes only. Blogs, podcasts, vodcasts are being considered a tool of e-recruitmant.

B. Online Newspaper Advertisements: All the national dailies are available on internet as e-paper. The method of posting advertisement in newspaper attracts attention of both the newspaper readers and those who use internet for applying to the job.

C. Candidate’s Preference: Earlier the employers had the privilege to be selective in hiring process, especially in screening resumes but were not always fair. Because of the time limitations, it was not possible to go through all the applications. Today, the candidates have the right to be selective in posting the resume and choose their employers.

D. Search Engine Advertisements: Print ad is phasing out due the popularity of search engine ads. Pay-per-click is not only convenient but also more attractive. Today, the candidates get the job advertisements on their emails. Email alerts also help in tapping the passive jobseeker in the market.

E. RSS Feed: The number of people sharing the information on how to the use the web more effectively to find a suitable role has gone up, making the usage of RSS feeders more by using software “RSS reader”. It is a family of web feed formats use to publish frequently updated works. Such as blog entries, news headlines in a standard format.

F. Social Networking: With the evolving Web 2.0 activities, lines of communication are created between like-minded people. This is done through user-generated content, via blogs, social networking, business community, discussion groups and recommendations online. Anything written online about organizations within community sites is considered to be worthy by the potential candidates, helping in the recruitment process.

6.2 Outsourcing

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Now-a-days HR processes are outsourced by organisations. The outsourcing firms do initial screening of the candidates according to the specific needs of the organisation and create a suitable pool of talent to make the final selection easier for the employer organisation. Outsourcing firms function as the intermediaries and they charge the employer organisations for this. The followings are the advantages of outsourcing.

The Company can save time and lot of its resources by outsourcing the HR process
More time to focus on strategic level processes of HRM
Company need not worry to plan for their human resources much in advance.
It provides competitive advantage and operational flexibility.
Outsourcing creates value for the employer organization
Management may focus on strategic level processes of HRM.

6.3 Poaching

It is a managerial approach that involves “buying talent” in place of developing it. It is concerned with employing competent and experienced persons of other reputed & competitive companies. Now-a-days companies offer attractive pay packages and better terms of service than that of current employer in order to attract talent. As this practice is considered unethical so it is not openly talked about. This practice weakens the human resource strength of the firm and subsequently the competitiveness.

7. Summary

Today Organizations have their own sites or job postings are given in the placement sites. Again the candidates can visit the sites, post resume, contact the company directly without any delay. All these are just one ‘click’ away. Recent trend of recruitment is e-recruitment or the internet recruitment or on-line recruitment, where the process of recruitment is automated.

you can view video on Human Resource Acquisition II

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