First published: April 16th, 2019
Last updated: February 10th, 2022
Recruitment, simply put, is the process of hiring new employees, an essential step when growing a business.
The recruitment process starts with advertising a job and ends when someone starts with the business. Businesses tend to put a lot of effort into finding new talent, so choosing the wrong candidate can be a waste of time and money.
Seeking the right talent can be challenging. This is true no matter which recruitment methods a business uses.
Stages of the recruitment and selection process
The recruitment and selection process involves various stages:
- Identifying what skills are required for the role
- Advertising to and attracting the right talent
- Choosing your interview questions
- Performing interviews
- Conducting pre-employment checks
- Creating employment documents for new starters
These are just the basic points to take note of. When it comes to how you recruit people, you have much to consider.
There will be challenges in the human resource recruitment process. So, what would be the best HR strategy for recruitment and selection when looking for talent?
The hiring process can vary depending on the resources available. Some businesses will have HR professionals in charge of hiring candidates, whereas others may rely on recruitment agencies.
Types of recruiting
A HR department will come up against certain challenges when handling job openings. Luckily, there are options for making the search easier for potential employees.
One option is to consider internal recruiting.
Internal
If a role within your business is a good fit for a qualified candidate who currently works in a different role, hiring managers can reach out to them. Still, it’s advisable to advertise the role externally in order to avoid potential claims of discrimination.
Approaching an existing, trusted, and qualified employee can save you time and effort. It can also strengthen your business’s image and performance. It shows those within and outside your business that you respect and value your staff.
Internal recruiting uses many of the same processes as when recruiting external candidates. For example, there must be a fair interview process that considers each candidate equally.
However, internal recruiting can speed up the recruitment process. After all, some employee selection methods may require factors such as written or practical tests.
An existing employee will have already proven their abilities in their current role.
External
Hiring for a role isn’t always a straightforward task. After conducting a job analysis to see what’s required for the role, specific types of recruitment may merit consideration.
Most of the methods are external recruitment. However, there are some that aren’t either internal or external recruitment. These methods include:
- Outplacement recruitment: This form of recruitment is considered neither an internal nor external recruitment method. It’s an employer-sponsored benefit. Outplacement supports staff that are made redundant, helping with CVs and finding new job opportunities. It can also transition an employee from one job to another, whether it’s in a different branch of the business or a sister business.
- Staffing recruitment: Staffing recruitment usually deals with external recruitment agencies. This type of recruitment is primarily used for short-term roles or temporary contracts.
- Retained recruitment: For large businesses with a regular need for new recruits, external recruitment specialists handle retained recruitment. It will exclusively see the recruiters work to fill a specific role by finding their own candidates. They will do so using resources and methods outside of the business that’s seeking candidates.
- Contingency recruitment: This type of recruitment is similar to retained recruitment, with one exception. The hiring business will only need to pay the recruitment specialists in the event they hire a candidate.
How to accelerate your hiring strategy
A structured interview process involves receiving CVs and then inviting candidates in for an interview or a series of interviews. By posting your job specification online, you can quickly reach a wide audience and bring in the talent you seek.
This process provides many advantages, including:
- Cost-effectiveness: It’s one of the cheaper strategies you can use to generate interest in a vacancy.
- Speed of the process: The process makes the recruitment cycle quick in comparison to other approaches.
- Reach a wide audience: With an online placement you can reach a global audience. This ensures you can reach a wider pool of talent.
- Effective application management: In the event of many applications, it’s possible to manage this effectively and find talented candidates faster.
There are some disadvantages to this approach, though, not least a number of inappropriate candidates. Your business will have to sift through individuals who don’t have the experience or may be unsuitable.
And then there’s the interviewing stage, which is generally time-consuming. It also isn’t the most accurate way to ensure an employee will work out in your business.
Your probation period can control new starter risks, but there will always be uncertainties with any new hire you bring into your business.
Benefits of outsourcing your recruitment and selection process
If you’re seeking advice on how to handle candidates, Peninsula can help. Our HR consultants can clear up any confusion you may encounter in the recruitment process.
Get in touch today on 0818 923 923.
