Significant Impact of Recruitment and Selection Procedures on Organizational Growth - Research Paper Example

 Title There is significant impact of recruitment and selection procedures on organizational growth. Table of contents 1. Introduction and overview 3 1.1 About National Health Services (NHS) 3 1.2 Aims and Objectives 4 2. Recruitment and Selection at NHS: 5 2.1 Advertising for a vacancy 5 2.2 Short listing 5 2.3 Interviews 6 2.4 References 6 2.5 Selection/Appointment 6 2.6 On-boarding and induction 6 2.7 Rejection 7 3. Implications of Recruitment and Selection Procedures 7 4. Comparison with recruitment and selection in Police Department, UK 8 5. Functions involved in R&S Procedure 9 6. Conclusions and Recommendations 10 References Appendices 1. Introduction and overview: This report highlights the significance of recruitment and selection (R&S) processes to enhance organisational performance and their role in achieving strategic goals. This report aims to highlight specific strategies associated with recruitment and selection that can contribute towards achieving organisational goals at National health Services (NHS), United Kingdom. The report will analyse the impact of strategically planned recruitment and selection processes on department’s performance and its contribution towards achieving organisational goals. This report elaborates the steps involved in recruitment and selection at NHS and its associations and highlights implications of these procedures on the organisation. It also identifies various functions involved in successful R&S process. 1.1 About National Health Services (NHS): The National Health Services is the public administration unit responsible for provision of healthcare for all UK citizens and is funded by taxes. It works in collaboration with thousands of different trusts that are majorly categorized as the primary care trusts, acute trusts, hospital and foundation trusts, ambulance and care trusts, mental health trusts etc (Brooks, 2008). In order to ensure high-quality service and healthcare to its people, the NHS strives hard to appoint the best talent in the industry. The NHS employs a variety of workforce including nurses, general physicians, consultants, technical and scientific staff, administrative staff for finance and accounting activities, staff dealing with logistics and transportation, etc. Owing to its wide variety of workforce, talent acquisition is a core function at NHS, which is guided by a variety of complex and advanced systems have been put in place. Moreover, research indicates that the workforce at NHS is rapidly graying and shrinking, which necessitates integration of workforce planning at strategic level in order to ensure smooth running of the operations from thousands of locations within the country (Hurst, 2005). Hurst (2005) asserts that the huge demand for health to be catered to by the NHS services is being met by stringent staffing and personnel numbers at most of the primary care trusts. However, equally important are the right mix of workforce size and type achieved through appropriate recruitment and selection, which ensures a balance between supply and demand of services. All these complexities and challenges can be addressed by adopting clear recruitment and selection procedures as well as retention practices. Considering the quantity and complexity of demand, it becomes imperative for NHS to acquire the best talent and resources in order to remain competitive as well as provide high-quality health care service. The aim of this report is reinforce the significance of recruitment and selection procedures at NHS, which can be counted as one of the strategies used by NHS to achieve its larger goal of providing the best healthcare service to the citizens of UK. The NHS Employers (2010) states, ‘As a public sector employer, and the largest employer in Europe, the NHS also has a duty to increase employment opportunities for young people, graduates, multi-disadvantaged groups and the long-term unemployed. As well as fulfilling their social responsibility, NHS organisations will benefit from a more diverse workforce, which, in turn, can lead to more innovation, higher staff satisfaction and better patient care.’ 1.2 Aims and Objectives: This report aims to explore the recruitment and selection procedures followed at NHS. To achieve the above, the report attempts to identify different recruitment and selection procedures adopted by NHS and its associations. Secondly, it explores the procedures used for attracting sufficient applications from candidates that possess the required skills, qualities, experiences and competencies. Thirdly, procedures for selecting and appointing the best suitable candidates will be studied. Next, their validity and consistency will be assessed such that they produce fair recruitment and selection. Lastly, the report will assess the extent of involvement by other departments in the process of recruitment and selection as well as their contribution to meeting the organisational goals. 2. Recruitment and Selection at NHS: Integration of recruitment and selection with overall HR strategy involves working with HR functions such as resource planning, training and development, operations and administrative departments. NHS has developed standard operating procedures for recruitment and selection activities, which are modifiable and adaptable to all trusts and associations. The most common procedure is shown in appendix 1.1. 2.1 Advertising for a vacancy: NHS advertises on its website for job vacancies through a thorough job description and candidate preferences once the need for the position is confirmed. This will help to attract many applications of which the best ones may be chosen. Assessment of vacant position and need for hiring may be done by the managers in coordination with the finance and HR teams. As a best practice, a series of questions may be asked, as shown in appendix 1.2. 2.2 Short listing: Once the applications are received from potential candidates, the HR team evaluates these applications and shortlists the most suitable ones in accordance with the job description and candidates’ applications. Usually, short listing activity is carried out by the recruiter in liaison with the line manager. Short listing helps in identifying the candidates who meet essential job criteria; moreover, short listing process should also consider organisational policies related to anti-discrimination, salary, previous job and UK citizenship/work permit. 2.3 Interview: The recruitment team invites these shortlisted candidates for face-to-face interviews with a panel of members, which includes HR personnel and managers accredited to interviewing from other departments. These interviewers carry out a structured interview to judge the interviewee’s skills, experience, competencies, attitude, behaviour and readiness to take up the job. Interviewers should adhere to interviewing protocols with respect to candidates’ personal issues. 2.4 References: Conditional offering of the job with respect to satisfactory references, health checks and other pre-employment checks are carried out once the interviewers select the candidate. References from previous employment are collected. Pre-employment checks include verification of identity, right to work checks, registration and qualification checks, employment history and reference checks, criminal record checks, and occupational health checks (NHS Employment Check Standards, 2010). 2.5 Selection/Appointment: The most suitable candidate is selected for the job and informed about the same by the person that chaired the interview. The candidate may negotiate and review the job offer including pay, benefits and location and finally inform his/her decision about accepting the job. All unsuccessful candidates are informed about the result and feedback is sought. 2.6 On-boarding and induction: After successful completion of these checks and upon obtaining a clear record, the candidate is on-boarded and sent for induction. Post induction and orientation, the candidate is sent for any process-related training if required. This completes the recruitment and selection procedure. 2.7 Rejection: Hindrances in any of these steps and/or candidate’s failure to answer the interview appropriately would be dealt as not fit for the job and the candidate is rejected. The same is informed to the candidate by the recruitment team. 3. Implications of Recruitment and Selection Procedures: Recruitment is the process of seeking applications for a vacant position within the organisation. Recruitment from internal employees and from external sources have different implications for the organisation in terms of cost and employee commitment. Different recruitment procedures include internal advertisement published on company’s intranet, notice boards, announcements etc; publish on internet for public view, in news papers, or through job sites. These procedures will help in attracting as many applications as possible, which will in turn help in screening and short listing the best candidates available. Recruiting the right person for the job is the key to organisational success. Structured recruitment and selection procedures are of great value to recruiting the right person for the job. Research conducted by Smith, Gregg and Andrews (1989) on effectiveness of selection procedures through predictive validity have indicated varied impact on post-employment (see appendix 3). At NHS, the interview process is the most critical screening point, which actually helps the interviewers to accurately judge candidate’s fitment with the position. Interview process can be structured, unstructured or semi-structured. Evidences indicate that interviewing personnel opt for structured interviews for complex job roles, as required at NHS. Structured interviews help the interviewers in accurately assessing the job knowledge of the candidate; however, semi-structured and unstructured interviews are more apt for assessing soft skills such as interpersonal skills, commitment, and attitude of the candidate (Billsberry, 2007). Organisations such as NHS Direct (2006) and NHS 24 (2005), which provide healthcare services through telephone and internet, follow similar recruitment and selection procedures; however, an additional assessment center approach is included where the candidate applying for front-end/non-administrative job is assessed through formal ability testing, role plays, group exercises and/or discussions (see appendices 2.1 and 2.2). These tests are to assess the candidates’ knowledge on the job as well as general ability. A combination of two or more selection procedures are also followed by many organisations. 4. Comparison with recruitment and selection in Police Department, UK: For example, other public service organisations such as the Police department in the UK also follow similar guidelines for recruitment and selection, which consists of five steps namely, advertising about the vacancy along with job description; seeking job applications; screening and proceeding for assessment through interviews, exercises, written tests, numerical and verbal reasoning tests; conducting the police fitness test to check for physical strength and health checks; and finally background and security checks (Police Recruitment Process, n.d). However, the structure of interviewing and testing would differ according to the job requirement. These differences are to ensure that the candidates being hired possess all required skills for the job, which can be used to achieve organisational goals. 5. Functions involved in R&S Procedure: The entire recruitment and selection process involves the coordination and working of personnel from different departments. Various personnel involved in the process include the policy makers, recruitment partners, training and development, resource planning from HR department; line managers or middle management from each department; planning personnel from logistics and administrative departments. Majority of activity related to recruitment and selection is carried out by HR personnel right from hiring to on-boarding and then in employee retention. HR personnel frame policies related to the employment, recruitment and selection processes and exit policy. HR personnel would be required to carry out the recruiting and screening of application at the initial stages according to the job description provided by the departmental managers. HR personnel conduct candidates’ on-boarding and induction activities; referencing checking and pre-employment checking activities. Personnel at the front and middle management level from other departments such as operations, facilities, nursing care, accounting section etc are usually involved in the interviewing or assessing parts of the selection process. All employees hired must be given sufficient pre-process and process training so that they are equipped with required skills to carry out the work in an efficient manner. Personnel from logistics department coordinate with HR and other departments to plan for the space and other facilities required for the new hires. 6. Conclusions and Recommendations: In conclusion, recruitment and selection are systematically conducted procedures to attract the best talent that can help the organisation in achieving its goals. NHS achieves this through a policy that provides a strong framework for recruitment and selection processes, which individual organisations modify according to nature of their job or position. By following a standardized approach, NHS aims to attract the best talent available for all vacant positions irrespective of the nature of the vacant job. This ensures the best candidates are hired for the job. However, every recruitment and selection procedure has its drawbacks like misinterpretation of information, biasness, miscommunication, insufficient advertisement etc. Hence, it is recommended that modification of recruitment and selection procedures according to the position vacant would help in minimizing these limitations to a certain extent. For example, recruitment procedures can include referencing by existing employees in addition to commonly followed procedures. A combination of structured and unstructured interviews would help in better assessment of candidates’ competencies and attitude. Personality tests can replace semi-structured interviews during lack of time or resources for interviews. Moreover, for recruitment and selection to be successful in achieving organisational goals like highest performance and employee retention, and lowest employee turnover, we strongly recommend contribution from and involvement by other functions in formation of R&S policies and procedures as well. References Brooks, P. 2008. What is the NHS? The NHS. Available from, http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/health-services-guide/what-is-the-nhs.htm (Accessed May 12, 2011). Billsberry, J. 2007. Experiencing Recruitment and Selection. John Wiley & Sons: England. Dale, M. 2004. Manager's guide to recruitment and selection. 2nd ed. Kogan Page Publishers: London. Hurst, K 2005. Recruitment and Selection. In Primary care trust workforce planning and development. Whurr Publishers: London. (Ch.7; pp:126-140). Recruitment toolkit for managers. (2010, Feb) Improving Health, Improving Services. Lincolnshire Primary Care Trust. Version 2. NHS. Available from, http://www.lincolnshire.nhs.uk/Documents/About%20Us/Work%20for%20us/Recruitment%20Toolkit%20Version%202%20_2_.pdf (Accessed May 12, 2011). NHS 24. 2005, March. Recruitment and Selection Policy and Procedure. NHS24.COM. Available from http://www.nhs24.com/content/mediaassets/board/2005-03-30%20Item%203.3%20recruitment%20and%20selection%20policy.pdf (Accessed May 12, 2011) NHS Direct. 2006. Recruitment and Selection Policy and Procedure. NHSDIRECT.NHS.UK. Available from http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/About/FreedomOfInformation/FOIPublicationScheme/~/media/Files/FreedomOfInformationDocuments/OurPoliciesAndProcedures/HRAndEmployment/011008_Recruitment_and_selection_policy.ashx (Accessed May 12, 2011) NHS Employment Check Standards. 2010, October 2. Employment Checks. NHS Employers. Available from,http://www.nhsemployers.org/RecruitmentAndRetention/Employment-checks/Employment-Check-Standards/Pages/Employment-Check-Standards.aspx (Accessed May 12, 2011). NHS Employers. 2010, October 26. Recruiting in the UK. Recruitment and Retention. NHS Employers Available from, http://www.nhsemployers.org/RecruitmentAndRetention/DomesticRecruitment/Pages/Home.aspx (Accessed May 12, 2011). Police Recruitment Process. n.d. How to become a UK police officer. Police Recruitment. Available from http://www.police-recruitment.com/Police-Recruitment-Process.php (Accessed May 12, 2011). Simms, H. (ed.) 2005. Recruitment, selection and organisational context. In Human Resource Planning. University of Cambridge: UK. (pp: 23-44). APPENDICES Appendix 1.1 Recruitment flow chart Source: Recruitment toolkit for managers, 2010; p.14. Appendix 1.2 Source: Simms, 2005; p.43. Appendix 2.1 Source: NHS 24, 2005; p;17. Appendix 2.2 Source: NHS 24, 2005; P.18. Appendix 3 Source: Dale, 2004; p.160. 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