Chapter 7

Selecting Right
Talent
 Learning Objectives 2

 The nature of selection and appreciate its role in

organisational effectiveness

 The selection process, demarcate the stages and describe

each step

 The new methods of selection and understand their

implications

 The selection practices in India

Nature of Selection
 Selection is the process of picking individuals (out of the
pool of job applicants) with requisite qualifications and
competence to fill jobs in the organisation

 Recruitment and selection are the two crucial steps in

the HR process and are often used interchangeably

 Recruitment is said to be positive in its approach as it

seeks to attract as many candidates as possible.
Selection, on the other hand, is negative in its
application inasmuch as it seeks to eliminate as many
unqualified applicants as possible in order to identify the
right candidates
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Selection as a Source of Competitive
Advantage

 Work performance
 Cost incurred

Source: Thomas H. Stone, Understanding

Personnel Management, p. 175
Outcomes of the Selection Decision

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Organisation of Selection
 It is easier for the applicant because they can send their applications
to a single centralised department/agency
 It facilitates contact with applicants because issues pertaining to
employment can be cleared through one central location
 It helps operating managers to concentrate on their operating
responsibilities. This is especially helpful during peak hiring periods
 It can provide for better selection because hiring is done by
specialists trained in staffing techniques
 The applicant is better assured of consideration for a greater variety
of jobs
 Hiring costs may be cut because duplication of effort is minimized
 With increased government regulations on the selection process, it is
important that people who know about these rules handle a major
part of the selection process
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 Selection Process

Source: Adapted from Personnel—The Management of Human Resources

by R. Wayne Mondy and Robert M. Noe III, p. 156
Contd.6
 Selection Process
► Employment Interview
 Objectives of Interviews
 Types of Interview

Keith Davis, Human Resources and

Source: William B. Werther and

Personnel Management, p. 243

Contd.7
 Selection Process
► Preliminary Interview
 Scrutiny enables the HR specialists to eliminate unqualified job
seekers based on the information supplied in their application forms
► Selection Tests
 Personality tests
 Interest tests
 Graphology test
 Medical tests
 Choosing Tests: Tests must be chosen based on the criteria of
reliability, validity, objectivity and standardization

Human Resources,
Mondy and Robert
Source: R. Wayne

Management of
Personnel: The
M. Noe III,

p. 176
Results of a Validated Test 8
 Selection Process
► Employment Interview

Types of Employment Interviews Contd.9

 Selection Process
► Employment Interview
 Common Interview Problems
• Interviewers do not seek applicants’ information dimensions needed for
successful job performance
• Interviewers may make snap judgments early in the interview
• Interviewers permit one trait or job-related attribute to influence their
evaluation of the remaining qualities of an applicant
• Interviewers have a tendency to be swayed by negative information about
the applicants
• Information from interviews is not integrated or discussed in a
systematic manner
• Interviewers’ judgments are often affected by the pressure to favour a
candidate
• Interviewer’s judgment regarding an applicant is often affected by the list
of available applicants
• Some other problems are worth recollecting
• Sex, race and attitudes similar to those of the interviewer may lead to
favourable evaluations
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Selection Process
 Employment Interview
• Steps to Overcome Problems

Guidelines to Interviewers

Contd.
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Selection Process
► Reference and Background Checks
Reference checks cover the following:
• Criminal record checks
• Previous employment check
• Educational record checks
• Credit record checks
• Civil record checks
• Union affiliation checks
• Character reference check
• Neighbourhood reference check

Contd.
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Selection Process
 Selection Decision
• After obtaining information through the preceding steps,
selection decision—the most critical of all the steps—
must be made
• The views of the line manager will be generally
considered in the final selection because it is he/ she who
is responsible for the performance of the new employee

 Physical Examination
• A job offer is, often, contingent upon the candidate being
declared fit after the physical examination
Contd.
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Selection Process
Job Offer
• Job offer is made through a letter of
appointment
• The company may also want the individual to
delay the date of reporting on duty
• Decency demands that the rejected applicants
be informed about their non-selection
• It needs no emphasis that the applications of
selected candidates must also be preserved for
future references
Contd.
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 Selection Process
Contracts of Employment
• Job title
• Duties
• Date when continuous employment starts and the basis for
calculating service
• Rate of pay, allowances, overtime and shift rates, method of
payments
• Hours of work including lunch break and overtime and shift
arrangements
• Holiday arrangements
• Sickness
• Length of notice due to and from employee
Contd.
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 Selection Process
Contracts of Employment
• Grievance procedure (or reference to it)
• Disciplinary procedure (or any reference to it)
• Work rules (or any reference to them)
• Arrangements for terminating employment.
• Arrangements for union membership (if applicable)
• Special terms relating to rights to patents and designs,
confidential information and restraints on trade after
termination of employment
• Employer’s right to vary terms of the contract subject to
proper notification being given

Contd.
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 Selection Process
Concluding the Selection Process
• Contrary to popular perception, the selection
process will not end with executing the
employment contract
• There is another step — a more sensitive one —
reassuring those candidates who have not been
selected
• The issue relates to ‘No Shows’ by selected
candidates. These are the individuals who pass
through the selection rigour, receive employment
offers, but fail to report to duties
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Assessment Centres
► An assessment centre is not a physical location but
an approach to selecting managers based on
measuring and evaluating their ability to perform
critical tasks
► An assessment centre may last from two to five days,
during which time a group of candidates (usually 6 to
12) takes a series of work sample tests and other
selection devices, such as various interviews, tests,
exercises and feedback sessions

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Barriers to Effective Selection

►Perception

►Fairness

►Validity

►Reliability

►Pressure

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Pause and Ponder

Pressure was a decisive factor in the selection of a

candidate in the past. These are the days of market
forces and private sector dominance. Do you think
that pressure still works? If yes, where and what
type?

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 Evaluation of Selection Process
• Cost per Hire (CPH)

• Time to Hire (TTH)

• Quality of Hire
Selection

• Programme Audit

Audit of the Selection Programme 21

Making Selection Effective

►Competency Based Hiring Techniques

►Training Interviewers

►Assessing Culture Fitment

►Selection Team

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 Placement
► Placement refers to allocation of people to jobs. It
includes initial assignment of new employees,
promotion, transfer, or demotion of present
employees
► Placement Problems
 Independent: non-overlapping routes or territories are
allotted to each worker
 Sequential: activities of one worker are dependent on the
activities of a fellow worker
 Pooled: there is high interdependence among activities

Contd.
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 Placement

Assessment-classification Model and Employee Placement

Source: Wayne F. Cascio and Elios M. Awad, Human Resources

Management, p. 265
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