Introduction
People consider recruitment and selection process as part of the most important domains in human resource management. Companies that conduct the process in the right manner as required often succeed when it comes to tapping new talents for enhanced productivity in the companies.
According to Huselid (1995: 23), It should however be noted that, a number of companies that fail in the process face a lot of difficulties and rather than inviting success for the company or organization, the recruitment and selection processes become the starting points of the company’s downfall. My organization, ABC marketing Company faces a serious problem because of the inefficiency in the recruitment and selection processes.
The nature of the problem in ABC Marketing Company
ABC marketing company has been experiencing loses because of failure in the human resource department. This problem prevails amid the company spending many resources in the ventures in an effort to get the best people for positions that arise in the company or replacing workers who leave the company (Protosky 2004: 43).
Whenever the need for recruitment and selection in the company arises, the venture turns out as a waste of resources since it is repeated again after every two months due to reported incompetence among the newly recruited employees.
Experts have proved several causes as well as reasons that result to the failure of the recruitment and selection process. If the causes were amicably resolved, ABC Marketing Company would avoid the associated loses of material resources, finances as well as time.
Causes of the problem
The major causes of the problems that ABC marketing Company faces in handling the recruitment and selection venture include vague description of jobs.
Unclear job description
ABC’s human resource management personnel have been handling the process with laxity, which makes them define the jobs for which they invite applications. This leads to people who lack the necessary skills for the specific positions getting chances only for others to discover their uselessness in the company later.
This also results to the leaving out of others who seem more qualified and ones who could have handled the positions better once granted the chance. The issue of adverting of the jobs still raises alarm.
A failure to advertise the job openings effectively
Failure to embrace technological advancements when it comes to the aspects of recruitment and selection have resulted to the company losing instead of gaining despite the fact that they spend less when advertising the vacancies or conducting a recruitment.
The use of means that are not popular lead to the failure of many potential candidates not being able to access the information and in turn not being able to apply for the positions. Because of poor posting of the vacancies, the number of applications sent is usually low which makes it impossible to get the ideal candidates for the vacant positions. Many talented people miss the opportunities just because they are not aware of the recruitment.
The use of ill-trained personnel in the process
Ill trained people have received the mandate of handling such a daunting task as the recruitment and selection process in ABC. The case results to such blunders that yield catastrophic results as poorly planned and handled interviews conducted which makes it impossible for the best people to get into the positions that they deserve (Cable, and Turban 2001: 12).
The manner of handling the selection process at ABC seems demanding for those who wish to seek for a permanent arresting of the problem in the recruitment and selection procedures, despite its being one of the most expensive ventures that the company undergoes.
Cases of corruption and canvassing in the process
The increased number of corruption cases in the department has contributed greatly to the problems that are sinking the company into the turmoil of loses. Corrupt officers have been on the record receiving bribes and incentives from applicants to make them sail in the process. This has indeed resulted to the worst problems in that the productivity of the workers which is reflected in the worker’s output is very low which contributes to the decline of the company’s profits.
Qualified people who would in turn have performed better in the positions are denied the chances just for the simple reasons that they are not known and that they did not oil any one’s hands. This problem eats both the ethical and the professional image of the company.
A rushed recruitment process
The time set aside for the whole process of recruiting and selecting new workers in the company seems too short. This means rushing of the applicants through the selection process. This then results to the speculation and estimation of their abilities rather than giving them enough time to reveal their competence (Becker 2005: 45).
This rush in the process contributes to a number of under qualified candidates who had the composure during the interview finding their way into the positions apart from the deserving ones who would have proven their worth when given the right conditions.
This rush is dangerous in that only the people with instant appeal to the interviewers get the chances and they may necessarily not be the ideal candidates for the positions.
Suitable solution for the problem
In order to permanently deal with the problem in the recruitment and selection processes at ABC, the responsible people need to handle the causes in a manner that will ensure that none of them is left unattended. A good solution is to seek the services of experienced personnel such as that of recruitment firms. Successful companies just outsource these services and save a lot of resources and time (Huselid 1995: 67).
Established recruitment agencies when entrusted with duties such as these ones by companies handle them to successful completion considering that they want to retain clients and a good name will obviously come to them when they handle the process successfully.
Most recruitment firms have embraced state of the art technology when it comes to posting the jobs for their clients (Lee 2005: 5). They have as a result conducted a research to establish the places where they can post the job adverts to attract the majority number of applicants.
The selection process therefore kicks off without any hurry, which in most times involve a number of interviews, some conducted through the phone, others online and others physically. For effective results, those given the responsibility of contacting the recruiting firm should do that in time so that the process can utilize the time that it deserves.
For instance, they should give a period of not less than four months to the recruitment firms to handle this considering that some of the applicants who may suite in the positions well may be committed elsewhere while still willing to take part in the process.
Allocating enough time to these firms gives a chance for innovation in the manner in which they will conduct the process to ensure that they land at the best candidates for the positions (Breaugh 2005: 17). When given enough time, the recruitment firm will ensure that the posted positions that are clearly described to ensure that they attract applications from only the qualified people.
Important descriptions that define the position correctly are left out or understated, which makes it impossible to trap the best candidates for such openings when the process is hurriedly done. According to Chapman (2003: 89), the worry of dealing with incompetent people fades in that the recruitment firms have very skilled personnel capable of handling the process for any vacant position in the organization.
The best firms handle more than one interview per day, which makes the interviewers very much aware of the nature of a variety of applicants to avoid the problems of choosing people based on first impressions. Since most of the recruitment firms ask for a single package when conducting such processes for companies, ABC can surely save funds on this since they will rest assured of replacements whenever problems arise afterwards. This service happens in the initial package to the satisfaction of the company.
Likely obstacles that may occur
In most companies, bureaucracy is a major obstacle to the implementation of solutions aimed at initiating change. The approval of the strategies faces many formalities and steps to the extent of tempering with the timing of the venture (Boudreau, and Rynes 1985: 5). For an effective implementation of the solutions to the problems that ABC faces, there arises the need to deal with the characteristic bureaucracy of the company first.
Corrupt officials who benefit in the process pose another big threat to the implementation of this solution. According to Becker, they may subject the process to a lack of cooperation and at times oppose the venture in favor of the initial protocols (2005: 65). This will however not pose a big threat afterwards considering that no one will doubt the efficiency of the solution after the analysis of the initial results.
To deal with this completely, there arises the need to practice the importance of morals and the uplifting of professional ethics in the company (Ryan 2000: 9). This will ensure an effective dealing with anyone caught interfering with the process. The company’s human resource manager is supposed to be a person of integrity and outstanding morals who will show cooperation to the firm that the company outsources to handle the tasks.
Conclusion
It is only when the right people and the best for that matter are selected to fill particular job openings in the company that the company experiences growth. The company administrators should then stop at nothing in ensuring satisfaction in the tackling of the recruitment and selection process since it holds the success as well as the future of the company or organizations (Barber 1998: 10). The company also benefits by saving time to deal with other issues and saving resources upon observing the right procedures during the process.
Reference List
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Breaugh, J., ‘Research on employee recruitment: So many Studies, so many remaining questions’, Journal of Management, 2005, 26: 405–34.
Cable, D.M., and Turban, D.B, ‘Establishing the dimensions, sources and value Of job seekers’ employer knowledge during recruitment’, in G.R. Ferris (ed) Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management. New York, NY: Elsevier Science. 2001, pp. 115–63.
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Huselid, M., ‘The impact of human resource management practices on turnover, productivity and corporate financial performance’, Academy of Management Journal, 1995, 38: 635–72.
Lee, I., ‘The Evolution of E-Recruiting: A content analysis of Fortune 100 career websites’, Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations, 2005, 3 (3): 57.
Protosky, D., ‘Selection testing via the Internet: Practical considerations and exploratory empirical findings’, Personnel Psychology, 2004. 57: 1003–34.
Ryan, A., ‘Applicants ‘perceptions of selection procedures and decisions: A critical review and agenda for the future’, Journal of Management, 2000, 26: 565–606.