Human Resources Planning, Recruitment & Selection - Electronic Portfolios - Literature review Example

Running Header: E-Portfolios Name of the Student: Name of the Instructor: Name of the course: Code of the course: Submission date: Human resource planning in the organization is aims at recruiting and selecting highly motivated employees who possess the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities. However, with the advancement in technology and increased emphasis on competency based leaning, employers are utilizing e- portfolios to assist in recruitment and selection process( Chris and Chris 2008, p.13) . E-portfolios enable students to share with human resource managers about their learning, personal development and job expectations. Furthermore, the recent growth in social media has presented employers with an effective platform from where they can recruit employees. This paper is going to reflect the issues related to the use of e-Portfolios in recruitment and the ethical and legal implications resulting from the increasing use of digital and social media in recruitment. . The objective of the selection process is to identify and select the best applicant with the required skills and knowledge to fill the vacancy. Nigel (2011, p. 3) argues that social media presents a fast, efficient and cost effective means of recruitment and selection. The Mahara platform offers students with online spaces where they can save their learning progress. It enables the students to collect, reflect and share the achievements online. In my opinion, the Mahara e-portfolio acts as a link between students and employers. It provides the employers with the suitable information pertaining to the student learning and skills. Diana (2003, p.3) notes that many e-portfolios are currently accumulating in the Mahara e-portfolio as the number of students increase year by year. This certainly presents a challenge as additional costs will be required to maintain the server. In my opinion it is not ethical to delete the students’ e-portfolios from the Mahara platform as it exposes them to employers. However, charging students some fees associated with maintaining their e-portfolios would appear to be a more ethical. According to Brisbane (2009, p. 7) e-portfolios assist business process by enabling job applicants to understand and conceptualize their development in relation to their skills and attributes. The e-portfolios enable students to build their knowledge in reflective, personalized and lifelong method. According to me, the Mahara e-portfolio enables students to shape themselves towards their carrier needs. This makes it easier for the recruiting organizations to use the Mahara e-portfolio to identify the expertise of the student. This is based on the student learning experiences. However, it is not clear how institutions can encourage their students to undertake critical reflection in the designing and using the e-portfolio (Diana 2005, p, 5). In my experience, e-portfolios do not contain instructions that will enable students effectively assess their reflective learning. Students can unethically manipulate their learning process so that they can appear more experienced to employers. According to Stefan (2010, p.268) electronic portfolios are constituents of educational innovations which aim at systematic and self controlled development of qualifications which are based on collection of meaningful items electronically. They reveal the student skills and competencies through a collection of artefacts stating the experiences, achievements and learning (Gordon, Lisa and Elizabeth 2009, p.16). Through the use of Mahara, students can create their e-portfolios in the platform. This will enable the companies to easily evaluate the students by the use of their e-portfolios in order to determine their suitability to fill the vacancy. In my opinion the Mahara e-portfolio does not contain the professional evaluation of the student which can assist organizations to determine whether the student actually possesses the required skills and knowledge. George and John (2005, p. 3) emphasize that it is difficult for employers to evaluate the student e-portfolio to ascertain whether it is valid and reliable. In my experience students engage themselves in unethical practices of changing their information in order to match the requirements of the employer. E-portfolios indicate students’ accomplishments but who ascertains the information? In addition, the student e-portfolio in Mahara platform cannot be totally relied upon to provide information pertaining to the experience and achievements of the student. The fact that the student is allowed to update or change the profile further makes it unsuitable to be used by employers for selecting applicants. With the advancement in social media, organizations can obtain the required human resource by engaging across the wide range of networking portfolios (Nigel 2011, p.5). The recruiting organization must specifically access the platforms where the students’ e-portfolios are stored. For instance, the Mahara e-portfolio provides students information access to organizations. However, the e-portfolio does not provide all the essential information necessary for effective recruitment. In my experience students only put selective information which is mostly biased and aimed to favor them. Therefore, the use of e-portfolios is only effective if it is used together with other methods of recruitment. In my experience, the continued use of social media presents a legal concern to employers relating to the security and privacy of the student e-portfolios given how easy it is to access the plat forms. How can the Federal Education and Privacy act regulations govern the e-portfolio provided by the student in the Madaraba e-portfolio? I think that this calls for the development of policies to govern information access and ensure that it is secure and private. According to Taleo (2010, p.2) the use of social networks does not reflect demographic distribution of the population. For instance, the Mahara e-portfolio is not common in Africa. This clearly indicates that proper programs must be put in place to ensure all individuals have equal opportunity for employment. Nigel (2011, p.8) notes that the continued use of social recruitment creates a barrier to those who have no access to the platforms. Organizations must come up with methods that will ensure equal opportunities to all individuals. In conclusion, e- portfolios’ present students with an efficient way of marketing their achievements to prospective employers by providing them with a means of promoting their experiences and learning. According to my knowledge social media provides a faster and cost effective means of recruiting candidates hence students can use it as a means of creating their e-portfolios to their prospective employers. However, legal and ethical issues pertaining to information privacy and security must be observed. I however think that the continued use of social recruitment may lead to unequal employment opportunities hence the need to complement the method with traditional recruitment techniques. References Brisbane, E 2009, ‘E-Portfolio Concepts’, Australian Learning & Teaching Council, vol. 1, no. 1, pp.1-3. Buzzetto, N 2010, ‘Assessing the Efficacy and Effectiveness of an E-Portfolio’, Interdisplinary Journal of E-Learning and Learning Objects, vol. 6, no.1, pp. 61-84. Gillian, H 2008, ‘Australian E-Portfolio Project’, Australian Learning & Teaching Council, Vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 1-155. Joyes, G, Gray, L & Hartnell, E 2009, ‘Effective Practice with E-Portfolios: How can the UK Experience Inform Implementation?’, Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 15-27. Lorenzo, G & Ittelson, J 2005, ‘An Overview of E-Portfolios’, Educause Learning Initiative, vol.1 no. 1, pp. 1-27. Miller, A 2009, ‘Learning Communities’, International Journal of Learning in Social Contexts, vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 1-140. Schein, R, Wilson, K & Keelan, J 2009, ‘Effectiveness of the Use of Social Media’, Peel Public Health, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 1-63. Strohmeier, S 2010, ‘Electronic Portfolios in Recruiting? A Conceptual Analysis of Usage’, Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, Vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 268-280. Taleo 2010, ‘Social Network Recruiting: Managing Compliance Issues, Taleo Business Edition, vol. 1, no. 1, pp.1-7. Viadeo 2011, ‘Social Recruitment in Digital Age’, Viadeo Business Solutions, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 1-5. Ward, C and Moser, C 2008, ‘E-Portfolios as a Hiring Tool: Do employers Really Care’, Educase Quartly, vol.1, no. 1, pp.13-14. Wright, N 2011, ‘The Impact of Social Media in Recruitment’, Wright Recruitment, vol.1 no.1 pp. 1-14. Read More