Human Resource Development and Organizational Behavior - Assignment Example

? Questions for Discussion I fully agree with this approach of recruitment as described in the article. Historically, organizations have employed recruitment approaches that do not fully tell the truth about the job. Most organizations concentrate much on the positive aspects of the job, without focusing on the negative aspects. Various organizations choose to disclose little potentially undesirable information to diminish the possibility that it will make the vacancy unappealing. Essentially, some companies believe that if they tell applicants the realistic job information, the applicants will not want the job. This approach of hiring employees without giving them a through understanding of what they are getting themselves into can backfire (Jean & Stanley 2011, p.121). When employees are hired and later find out that the job information was unrealistic, most of them will eventually leave the job. The costs of filling these positions include the cost of employing new employees, training costs, advertising costs and labor hours lost, thus making this process expensive. Giving realistic information about a job will attract only the interested candidates, thus reducing the staff turnover and in the long run reducing the costs of filling vacant positions. Companies need to focus on both the skills and motivation of the job applicants; an individual may have the job skills, but without motivation, he/she may not be interested with job (Packard, 2001). This approach will enable the recruiter to get the suitable applicants by observing and listening to their reactions and responses; once the hiring team presents the realistic information about the job. An applicant may see the job as a source of experience and after sometimes he/she will move into another career; such an applicant may not be the best for the job. There are applicants who will respond positively about the job; it will be wise to choose prospective employees from this group (Packard, 2001). Employers expect the applicants to give realistic information about their qualifications, skills, and work experience and use various ways to get the information from the applicants. Employers also need to give realistic job information to the applicants; honesty and trust will be the best policy (Jean & Stanley 2011, p.122). A well structured and transparent recruitment system may significantly reduce the rate of staff turnover, which are experienced within the first three months of employment, the period where both the employee and the company are typically on a probationary period. For example, Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, has 55,000 employees and hires an average of 200 people per day; while hiring, the firm employs realistic job previews. Applicants view a film illustrating the working conditions at Disney, before completing an application or an interview. After viewing the film, 10 percent of applicants eliminate themselves from the hiring process. Disney observes this as a good thing, as those self-selecting themselves out most likely would not have been an excellent fit with the organization. Honesty in the recruitment process may result to positive remarks about the company; the applicants will regard the company positively thus enhancing the company’s public image (Jean & Stanley 2011, p.124). # 2 There are key disadvantages of this recruitment approach. First, provision of realistic job information may prompt candidates to eliminate themselves voluntarily from consideration for a certain job. For this reason, it is normally assumed that such information will decrease the number of prospective employees who eventually accept the job. However, stiff competition for new workers may diminish the probability that realistic job information will become an essential part of a company’s recruiting efforts. Despite the confidence that this approach will reduce the probability of job acceptance, various analysis and reviews, of the literature of realistic job previews, have found that the provision of realistic job information to applicants has no effect on a company’s ability to hire qualified workers (Jon & Randy 2011, p. 266). On this regard, one might conclude that provision of realistic job information has no appreciable effect on the job acceptance rate. These analyses were based on the number of studies, which contained vital differences. Specifically, provision of realistic information substantially increases job acceptance rate in some studies while, in other studies, the opposite was true. The disparity of these findings implies that the provision of realistic information may operate differently under various circumstances. An example of such circumstance is where candidates had a prior exposure to a certain job before they were given realistic information. For example, almost everyone has had an exposure to bank tellers in performing the key elements of their job. Because of this, candidates for this position must have an apparent idea of what this job entails (Jon & Randy 2011, p. 267). Applicants with prior exposure to what a job entails gain less from the provision of realistic job information. Therefore, realistic job information has little or no impact on candidates with prior exposure to a job. Research regarding how people understand and utilize information provides a different viewpoint. These studies propose that individuals with prior job exposure are likely to have comprehensive, accurate, well defined mental structures for various job elements. These applicants must be able to comprehend and employ new information about the job, better than other applicants with no prior job exposure (Jon & Randy 2011, p. 268). Recruitment agencies may be a poor way of finding new employees since they frequently receive commissions for each person they place. If a company gives the mandate to these agencies to recruit employees on its behalf, these agencies may not give the realistic job information to applicants even if it is a company policy to provide this information (Packard, 2001). In some cases, agencies may be undiscriminating, thus leaving the responsibility of screening to the individual organization (Packard, 2001). Exposing the working conditions of a firm may lead to a negative view of the company regarding the treatment of employees. This can make it hard, for the corporation to attract and retain potential employees. Some companies may use this approach to counter inaccurate images concerning treatment of employees. For example, the fast-food giant McDonald’s responded to critics in the UK claimed that the corporation is a poor employer, through launching a poster campaign using the slogan Not bad for a McJob. The slogan detailed the benefits and flexibility of working hours of the company’s employees. The main objective of the corporation was not to provide realistic job information but to improve its public image (Jean & Stanley 2011, p.121). # 3 Jon & Randy (2011, p. 269) conclude that, just like as managers of an organization are interested in candidates who fit with their organizations, candidates typically seek organizations which provide an excellent fit with their needs and interests. Most candidates share same concerns such as job type, pay level, location and training opportunities. However, the information they want may differ, and how it will affect their decision making process can vary across candidates as well as within candidates over time. Most organizations give realistic job information tailored to candidates’ interests during interviews. Organizations frequently apply realistic job previews during interviews. However, there is an argument that realistic job information should be provided in the recruitments advertisements, at graduate recruitment presentations or in notices located in job centers. Providing realistic information about a job will help the applicants know the features of the job, especially in occupations where individuals may have limited information about the responsibilities and tasks of the job. Candidates may know little about an occupation or may have inaccurate expectations. Providing the realistic information in the job descriptions in an advertisement will enable the applicants to know in advance the expectations of a job. The applicants are able to match their needs with the culture of the organization and the job’s requirements. This earlier match by the applicants has the greatest effect on the job satisfaction, tenure, and commitment (Jon & Randy 2011, p. 270). There are various methods of conducting realistic job reviews, and they vary depending on the types of jobs or audience. One method is preapplication job interview; this realistic job preview is normally presented to anyone who has an interest in learning about a job. This approach is adapted to comprise basic information, such as pay scale, general job responsibilities and requirements, benefits, job locations, and work hours. This enables the recruitment agency to save both money and time if individuals who are obviously mismatched for the job opt not to apply. Brochures or booklets may also be used as a method of realistic job previews. These brochures should include the vital components of an effective realistic job preview. The essential components may include both the negative and positive aspects of the job. The brochures may also contain photo albums compiled by the workers working at a site (Jean & Stanley 2011, p.127). Multimedia presentations are also used to demonstrate to applicants what the job entails by showing employees engaged in the job. The recruitment agencies need to assess what situations demonstrate the job realistically and/or the ones typically causing early turnover due to inadequate information about the job. Group realistic job previews entail informing groups of prospective applicants about the job. Multimedia presentations and group realistic job previews may be successfully used during graduate recruitment presentations. Organizations may also present brochures or booklets containing essential information about the job to the potential employees through their websites, job centre notices, and job advertisements (Jon & Randy 2011, p. 271). References List Jean, P. & Stanley, M.G. (2011). Organizational Behavior: Tools for Success, New York, Cengage Learning. pp. 80-125. Packard, J. (2001). Inside track: warts-and-all hiring policy. The way to attract the right staff is to tell them the truth, says Jim Pickard. London, The Financial Times Limited. Jon, M.W. & Randy, L.D. (2011). Human Resource Development. New York, Cengage Learning. pp. 240-280. Read More