Recruitment Process

 

 

 

The Human Resources department is usually responsible for recruiting new staff and for training them to do their job. When job vacancies arise, it draws up documents for specific purposes, organises and runs interviews. The Human Resources department has to follow certain procedures before a job can be advertised. This page will explain these different stages in detail.

 

Vacancy occurs - Three reasons why a vacancy may arise in a business:

• retirement
• promotion
• to go to a new job

 

The Human Resources manager then draws up a job description - The job description should contain these basic details about the vacancy:

• the job title
• the position in the organisation chart
• a list of duties

 

Person specification drawn up - The person specification represents the ideal qualities of the person required to fill the vacancy:

• qualifications
• experience
• personality

 

The job is advertised- The Human Resources manager needs to consider the following:

• what details need to go in the advert
• where the advert should be placed

 

Candidates apply for the job - The advert tells candidate what to send in:

• a letter of application or a completed application form
• a copy of their curriculum vitae or CV. The CV contains personal information about their qualifications and interests.

 

Application forms filtered to create shortlist of candidates being considered - If you compare these documents you can assess whether the person has the right skills for the job:

• the CV
• the job application form
• the job specification

 

Arrange the interviews - Why are the candidates interviewed? Whether a person gets the job or not depends on their performance at interview

 

The interview is held - What are the interviewers looking for?

• good answers to all the questions
• the candidates' attitude and dress
• body language

 

Follow up references - What is a reference? The names and addresses of people who can provide details of your performance with a previous employer or give evidence of your good character

 

Appoint candidate to the job - What happens if references are not satisfactory?

• the job offer will be withdrawn and offered to someone else
• it might be necessary to re-advertise