3.4 Recruitment & Selection Flashcards

All 39 cards in this deck

Give two reasons why a business may need to recruit a new employee.

Any two of: to replace an employee who leaves; business growth; to fill a skill gap.

Give two benefits to a business of an effective recruitment and selection process.

Any two of: high productivity; high quality output; high quality customer service; better staff retention.

What is internal recruitment?

Filling a job vacancy with someone who already works for the business.

What is external recruitment?

Filling a job vacancy with someone from outside the business.

Give one benefit to a business of internal recruitment.

Any one of: it is cheaper and quicker than advertising externally; the business already knows the employee's skills and reliability; the employee already knows how the business works.

Give one drawback to a business of internal recruitment.

Any one of: there are fewer applicants to choose from; no new ideas, skills or ways of working come into the business.

Give one drawback to a business of external recruitment.

Any one of: advertising costs more, especially in national media; it usually takes longer to fill the post; the business knows less about the candidate, so a poor appointment is more likely.

What is a CV (curriculum vitae)?

A document written by an applicant summarising their personal details, qualifications, work experience and skills.

Why might a business use application forms instead of relying on CVs alone?

The business chooses the questions, so every applicant gives the same relevant information and applications are quicker to compare.

What is a reference in recruitment?

A report on a candidate from someone who has known them, such as a former employer or teacher, which helps the business check that they are reliable and suitable for the job.

Give one drawback of using an interview to select a candidate.

Any one of: nervous candidates may underperform, so a good one is missed; a confident talker can impress without having the skills the job needs; the interviewer's personal bias can affect the choice.

What is the difference between a skills test and an aptitude test?

A skills test checks whether a candidate can already do the tasks the job needs; an aptitude test checks whether they have the potential to learn them.

Give one benefit to a business of external recruitment.

Any one of: a wider pool of applicants, so the best candidate can be chosen; recruits bring new ideas and ways of thinking, so creativity may improve.

What is a job description?

A document produced by a business setting out the title, duties and responsibilities of a job.

What is a person specification?

A document stating the qualities, skills, qualifications and experience an employer is looking for in a new employee.

Which documents might a job applicant send to a business?

An application form (produced by the business, completed by the applicant), a CV and a letter of application (both written by the applicant).

Give two methods a business can use to select the best candidate for a job.

Any two of: an interview; a test, e.g. a skills or aptitude test; a group activity; taking up references.

What is a skills gap?

When a business lacks employees with the skills or expertise it needs to carry out a particular activity.

Why does business growth lead to recruitment?

Growth creates extra work and new roles that existing staff cannot cover, so more employees are needed.

Why can internal recruitment still leave the business with a vacancy to fill?

The promoted employee leaves their old post empty, so that role must be filled too.

Give one advantage of using an interview to select a candidate.

Any one of: the employer can judge the candidate's communication skills and personality; candidates' answers to the same questions can be compared.

What does a group activity show an employer during selection?

How candidates work with others, e.g. their teamwork, leadership and communication skills.

Give two ways a business can advertise a vacancy internally.

Any two of: a staff noticeboard; an announcement at a staff meeting or word of mouth; an internal email; the staff newsletter or magazine; the business's intranet or website.

Give two ways a business can advertise a vacancy externally.

Any two of: a job website or the business's own website; social media; a local newspaper; a national newspaper; a specialist (trade) magazine; a jobcentre; a recruitment agency.

Why might a business advertise a skilled job in a national newspaper or specialist magazine instead of a local newspaper?

Skilled people may be in short supply locally, so it needs to reach suitable applicants across the country, even though the advert costs more.

What is a recruitment agency?

A specialist business that finds, advertises for and shortlists candidates on behalf of another business, in return for a fee.

Give one advantage to a business of using a recruitment agency.

Any one of: it saves the business's own time on advertising and shortlisting; the agency's specialist knowledge of where to advertise and what to ask makes a good appointment more likely.

How can internal recruitment motivate existing staff?

Employees can see a real chance of promotion within the business, which raises morale and gives them a reason to stay and work hard.

Why can internal recruitment cause problems among existing staff?

Colleagues who were not chosen may feel jealous or resentful of the person promoted, which can lower morale.

Why is a job description useful to people thinking of applying for a job?

It sets out the tasks and responsibilities, so they can decide whether they are able to do the job and want to apply.

How can a business use a person specification during selection?

To shortlist and compare applicants against the same skills, qualifications and qualities, and to decide which selection methods to use.

On a person specification, what is the difference between essential and desirable criteria?

Essential criteria are qualities an applicant must have to be considered; desirable criteria are extras that make an applicant stronger but are not required.

What is the difference between recruitment and selection?

Recruitment is attracting people to apply for a vacancy; selection is choosing the best person from those who apply.

What is shortlisting?

Using applicants' written information, such as application forms, CVs and letters of application, to choose a small number to invite to the final stage of selection.

What is a letter of application?

A letter written by an applicant explaining why they think they are suitable for the job.

What can a letter of application show an employer about an applicant?

Their written communication skills, such as grammar and punctuation, and how they describe their own experience and qualities.

Give one advantage to a business of asking applicants for a CV.

Any one of: it shows how well the applicant can organise information; the key details about the applicant can be seen at a glance.

Give one drawback of using references to select a candidate.

They may be inaccurate, e.g. a referee may exaggerate, or an employer may write a good reference because it wants the employee to leave.

Why do businesses often use more than one selection method?

Applicants may give false or misleading information in one source, so combining several builds a truer picture of what the person can do.