A PROJECT REPORT

ON
RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION

(IBM INDIA VASHI)

FOR THE PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT

FOR THE AWARD OF
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT STUDIES

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

..
(PROF.ANJU SONKHALA)

SUBMITTED BY
DICHA SINGH

SRM UNIVERSITY
INSTITUTE OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
 Submitted In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of Business
Administration

Academic Guide Submitted by:

Faculty Name – Vikas Sir Student Name – Kumari Deepa
Designation – HR Registration No -35110
SRM University MBA (Batch 2010 – 2012)
NCR Campus, Modinagar

Institute Of Business Management

Certificate

It is to certify that Candidate Enrollment number 35110050042 D/O Shri GOPAL PRASAD
BARNWAL is a beneficed student of M.B.A. at SRM University. To the best of our Knowledge
dissertation report titled “A STUDY OF RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION” submitted by her
original contribution. The study was conducted at IBM INDIA GURGAON.

Dean, IBM Project Guide

Date-: Date-:
 DECLARATION

I, Kumari Deepa hereby declare that this research report entitled “A STUDY OF

RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION ”, has been completed based on actual

study carried out by me in IBM INDIA,

and this has not been submitted to any other University towards any other

degree.

I am presenting an authentic report of my work, carried out under the guidance

of Mr. SUMIT KUMAR WATAS (HR Manager) , This research report is

original & the information, data & fact furnished their in are actual, based on

study carried out by me.

KUMARI DEEPA
 ACKNOLEDGEMENT

The topic for research is well known topic but always having a great scope of

study. This was interesting to have undergone the project in this era of education.

Every accomplishment needs the support of a number of Mentors .I would also

like to thanks to Mr. SUMIT K WATAS (MANAGER HR IBM) who was having a

continuous supervision on my project. I dedicate this Project

Report to my Parents.

KUMARI DEEPA

PREFACE

The importance of an academic course would gain advantage and acceptance of the true form,
only through practical experience. Hence it is quite necessary to put the theories into talk.
My project is based on people Awareness. The topic of my project is “A STUDY OF
RECRIUTMENT AND SELECTION”.

Practical exposure for the MBA students is very necessary because what they study in the
classroom is not the reality. Situation in the market is unknown and very much unpredictable. So
the practical experience is very much necessary this is made possible with the Dissertation report
in IBM INDIA.
I have tried my best to collect useful information , analyze and present an unbiased and
impeccable report

Table of Content

1 Introduction
•Concept of the Research Area
• Conceptual framework
• Selection of research topic
• Review of literature
2. Company Profile
•Brief on IBM
•Vision
•Values
•About the promoters
3. Objectives of the Study
4. Research Methodology
•Hypothesis
•Research design
•Tools/techniques used in the study
•Scope and limitations of the study
5. A critical analysis of past study conducted
6. Scope for further studies
7. Conclusions & Suggestions
 INTRODUCTION OF RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION

Definition and Meaning

Recruitment

According to Edwin B. Flippo, “Recruitment is the process of searching the

candidates for employment and stimulating them to apply for jobs in the
organization”

Meaning:

Recruitment is the activity that links the employers and the job seekers. A
process of finding and attracting capable applicants for

Employment

Selection

ACCORDING TO THOMAS STONE “Selection is the process of Differentiating

between applicants in order to identify and hire those with a greater likelihood
of success on the jobs.”

In simple words………..

It is the functions perform by the management of selecting the right employees

at the right time after identifying the sources of human resources, searching for
prospective employees and stimulating them to apply for jobs in an
organization.
The objective of the selection decision is to choose the individual who can most
successfully perform the job from the pool of qualified candidates.

EXPLANATION

Employees well selected and well placed would not only contribute to the efficient
running of the organization but also offer significant potential for future
replacement.

Recruitment is concerned with both engaging the required number of people, and
measuring their quality. It is not only a matter of satisfying a company’s needs; it is
also an activity, which influences the shape of the company’s future. It is a process
that not only helps to select and fill a vacancy physically, mentally, and
temperamentally but also helps to develop an employee into a desirable employee.
Selection process searches persons with potential who would grow in the
organization.

The organizational practices in selection in India vary considerably. The private and
public sector organizations differ in their selection practices. Selection for public
sector undertakings is governed by the principles laid down in 1961 (Prasad, 1973)
and are operationalised by Public Enterprises Selection Board, Union Public Service
Commission, National Institute of Bank Management, Subordinate Services
Commission, etc.

The process of selection begins with the understanding and definition of the job to
be performed by those involved in selection. These are then converted into job
specifications (qualifications), which are made public. Job opportunities should be
publicized in such a way that they enable the organisation to draw upon prospective
candidates from a wide cross- section of the society.
 Systematic and planned selection helps the organisation to derive the following
advantages.

1. It helps to generate only relevant applicants through a self- selection process on

the part of the potential applicants. It thus saves time and money.

2. Careful selection is functional in choosing highly motivated employees and thus

develops a culture of a committed way of work life. Pareek and Rao (1981)
suggest that through proper selection of new entrants it is possible to build a
desirable culture and desirable norms in the organisation. Once such a culture is
established it also influences the new entrant’s orientation.

3. Proper selection also ensure high degree of satisfaction among the employees by

letting they know that their capabilities are being properly utilized and that they
are now wasting their time and talent. This feeling is likely to raise the morale of
the employees and may result in higher levels of commitment and productivity.

4. It ensures supply of the right type of personnel in a short duration of time.

5. In any selection there are chances of selecting a wrong person and also chances

of losing a right person. Both are equally costly to the orgnaization. Systematic
selection ensures minimization of such errors:-

• Error of omission

• Error of commission

1. It helps build the image of the organization. It ensures purely objective, merit-

related selection and hence establishes an image of impartiality. This attracts

more qualified and better candidates to the organisation.
2. Systematic selection is a tremendous blessing for human resources information
systems. It provides a useful data bank for personnel audit and research, and
potential for upward mobility in the organisation.

The process of Selection consists of three stages: Recruitment, Screening and

Selection

Recruitment

The first stage in selection is to make the vacancies known to a large number of
people and the opportunities that the organisation offers. The process of attracting
people to apply is called recruitment. Recruitment is also defined as a process of
searching for prospective employees and stimulating them to apply for jobs. It is
different from selection, which begins after recruitment has ended. While
recruitment, is a process of attracting people selection is a process of choosing a few
among those who have been attracted.

The need for recruitment may arise out of the following situations.

1. Vacancies due to transfer, promotion, retirement, termination, permanent

disability, or death.

2. Creation of vacancies due to expansion, diversification, growth, or job re-

specification.

Recruitment is done by using a number of methods.

1. Employment Agencies

There are a number of private employment agencies like Ferguson Associates, ABC
Consultants, SB Billimoria, who register for employment and can furnish a list of
suitable candidates when sought by employers from their data bank. Generally, these
agencies, these agencies also recruit on behalf of the organisation without
necessarily disclosing the identity of the organisation. They go as far as short-listing
the candidates for organisation but the final decision is taken by the representatives
of the organisation.

1. In terms of cost this might turn out to be cheaper than the organizations doing it

themselves. The time and man hours saved by the company executives in
processing and short-listing the candidates could perhaps be utilized elsewhere by
the organization.

2. Up to a certain point the organizations identity remains unknown.

On the other hand, there is always the risk of losing out in screening some person
whom the representatives of the orgnaization would have liked to meet.

2. Advertisement

It is the most widely used method for generating applications. Its reach is very wide.
Different mass media could be used to make people aware of the opportunities.
There are special journals and magazines that cater to different market segments and
putting an advertisement in them may generate a large number of relevant
applications. However, in preparing and advertisement, lot of care has to be taken to
ensure that some self-selection among applicants takes place. In other words, only
qualified people should think of responding to advertisements.

A good advertisement has to be specific and clear-cut in what it is looking for.

Subramanian and Devi (1984) studied 496 advertisements published in the Hindu
during 1981. Public sector enterprise inserted as many as 125 out of 496
advertisements. Their results revealed that public sector enterprises provided better
job descriptions, job specifications, compensation details, qualifications, age and
selection procedures as compared to private sector enterprises.

A good, carefully worded advertisement can also help in building the image of the
organisation.
3. Campus Recruitment

While campus recruitment is a common phenomenon in the West, in India it has

made its mark rather recently. Many organisations send their representatives every
year to national institutes of higher learning like Indian Institutes of
Management,Indian Institutes of Technology and similar others. I In fact many
institutes have regular placement offices which not only send out the profiles of
graduating students, but also help the visiting company representatives in
administrative details. The organizations have definite advantages through campus
recruitment. First, the cost is low; second, they can arrange interviews at short
notice,; third, they can meet the teaching faculty; fourth, it gives them an
opportunity to ‘sell’ the organisation to a large student body who would be
graduating later, as well as establish a goodwill through presentations and
distribution of company material. One of the drawbacks of campus recruitment for
employing organizations is that they interview candidates who have similar
experience and education.

4. Deputation

Deputation refers to sending an employee to another orgnaization for a short

duration of two to three years. Deputation is a pretty common method of recruitment
in the public sector organizations and government agencies in India. It also takes
place in the private sector when an employee is sent to another unit of the same
group for some time. However, deputation in Indian context is generally, seen with
reference to public sector organizations and government agencies. Deputation is
useful because it provides ready expertise and the organisation does not have to
incur the initial cost of induction and training. Since the deputation period is
generally limited to two to three years, it is often a handicap.
5. Professional Association

Very often, for certain professional and technical positions it may be useful to go to
professional associations (e.g. All India Management Association). An application
routed through these associations would, perhaps, be better in terms of qualification
as some of these association themselves do a preliminary screening. In India, this is
not a very common practice and those few that do provide this kind of service have
not been able to generate a large number of applications.

6. Word of Mouth

Sometimes it may be more economic, both in terms of time and money, to pass the
word around about the possible opening. This could be done either through
individual employees or unions. It often serves the purpose of keeping the union
involved in recruitment and ensuring industrial harmony.

7. Casual Applications

Often the organisation receives self- solicited applications seeking suitable

opportunities. Many organizations I keep a live file of such casual unsolicited
applications and whenever a befitting position opens, invite them to apply through
formal channel. One major problem with this method is that such people apply to a
number of organizations, and when they are needed by the organisation, either they
are absorbed by other organizations or are not interested in the position.

8. Raiding

Raiding is a technical term used when employees working elsewhere are attracted to
joint organizations. The organizations are always on the lookout for qualified
professionals, and are willing to offer them a better deal if they make the switch.
There are always some employees who are professionally very competent, but
dissatisfied with something or the other in the organisation. They form the ‘easy’
group to attract. The other group is formed of those who are equally competent but
are quite satisfied with their present position. To attract them, the organization has to
offer a very lucrative package of perquisites. Whatever may be the means used to
attract, often it is seen as an unethical practice and not openly talked about.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

PERSONNEL/ HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT MODEL

Economic Labor Markets Laws and Labour Unions

Forces Regulations

EXTERNAL INFLUENCES

PERSNNEL/HUMAN PERSONNEL / HUMAN

RESOURCE RESOURCE OUTCOMES

ACTIVITES
INDIVIDUALS

Ability Motivation

Support Activities
Analyzing Individuals

and jobs
Assessing Outcomes Attraction
Human Resource Performance

Planning
Functional Activities Retention
External Staffing Attendance
 JOBS Requirement Satisfaction

Rewards

Internal Staffing and

Development
Compensation Other
Labour Relations
Work Environment

THE TWO FACE OF SEARCHING AND SCREENING

Individual

Organization

Activate search

Make inquiries and apply

Applicant 600

Communicate job openings and attributes

Screen applicants

Screen opportunities

Continued interest

Continued interest

Reject

Potential hires
Closed internal Recruitment System

Under a closed internal recruitment system, employees are not made aware of job
vacancies. The only people made aware of promotion or transfer opportunities are
those who oversee placement in the human resource department, line managers with
vacancies, and contacted employees. The way a vacancy is typically filled under a
closed system is shown below.

Manager notifies human resources of vacancy

CLOSED INTERNAL RECRUITMENT SYSTEM

Human resources searches filed for candidates

List of candidates given by human resources to manager

Position filled by manager

Open internal recruitment system

Under an open internal recruitment system, employees are made aware of job
vacancies. Usually this is accomplished by a job posting and bidding system.

An open system gives employees a chance to measure their qualifications against

those required for advancement. It helps minimize the possibility of supervisors
selecting only their favorite employees for promotion or transfer. Hidden talent s often
uncovered.
 OPEN INTERNAL RECRUITMENT SYSTEM

Manager notifies human resources of vacancy

Human resource posts job opening

Manager fills position

Manager interviews candidates

List of candidates given by human resources to managers

Human resources screens candidates

Human resources receives bids from interested applicants

An open system may, however, create unwanted competition among employees for
limited advancement opportunities. It is a very lengthy and time- consuming process
to screen all candidates and provide them with feedback. Employee morale may be
decreased among those who are not advanced.

Targeted system of internal recruitment

Under a targeted system, but open and closed steps are followed at the same time. Jobs
are posted, and the human resources department conducts a search outside the job
posting system. Both systems are used to cast as wide a net as possible. The large
applicant pool is then narrowed down by KSAOs. Seniority eligibility, demographics,
and availability of applicants.
A targeted system has three advantages; a thorough search is conducted, people have
equal opportunity to apply for postings, and hidden talent is uncovered.

SCREENING

In the overall process of selection, screening comes after the recruitment is

complete. Screening is a process of reducing the number of applicants to a few who
have better chances of selection than those screened out. Screening is generally done
on two counts- eligibility and suitability.

Eligibility is to see if the applicants fulfill the minimum qualifications stipulated n

the recruitment announcement. Those who do not qualify are straight away
eliminated from the selection. It is difficult to decide on the criteria suitability. One
can choose only those with a high percentage of marks, but that is not always a
guarantee for good performance. A judgment has to be made looking at the job
specifications. In general, those distant from job specifications are screened out in
the first round itself.

Screening can be done by using a variety of methods. Some of these method are
discussed below:

1. Preliminary applications

On the basis of minimum information in a preliminary or self- prepared application,

screening could be done. Only those who qualify at this stage are sent a
comprehensive application blank. If this facility is not available, then the
information provided in the comprehensive application blank itself becomes the
basis for screening.
2. Tests of De-selection

Many organizations in India are now using psychological tests to deselect a number
of applicants. If the number of applicants is large, higher cut- off scores are set to
reduce the number to a manageable size. These are generally tests of intelligence and
environmental awareness. In many academic institutions, banks, etc., this is a
common practice. The cut- off point is determined by a general formula of a number
of vacancies multiplied by four. The idea is to get four times the number of
vacancies, call them for interviews, group discussions, or any other subsequent
methods of selection. Research has shown that 1:4 ratios for selection give enough
margins for choice. Although this ratio is not always strictly adhered to, it is a
common practice.

3. Screening interviews

Another method of screening is to have a short duration interview with all the
candidates and then decide who should be asked for a comprehensive interview at a
late date. This is a good technique, provided the number is not large. Many
companies in campus interviews use this technique.

While screening does help to reduce large numbers to manageable proportions, it

also has the possibility of losing some applicants who could have performed well in
the subsequent selection. With more clear understanding of job description, however,
this risk could be reduced.
SELECTION

Managing Recruitment and Selection System

ATTRACT

ENGAGE

TRANSACT

SATISFY

RETAIN
Selection is choosing a few from those who applied. Some selection is:

1. Application Banks

This is first methods in IBM, used for collecting information from the applicants.
The general purpose of application blanks, according to Athreya (1968), is to “secure
desired factual information from an applicant in a form convenient for evaluating the
applicant’s qualifications”.

Purpose of Applications Blanks: Lipsett, Rodgers and Kenter (1964) have identified
three purposes of application blanks: preliminary screening, aid in interview, and a
selection device in its own right. A wider application shows that the application
blank serves the following purpose.

1. The provide the candidates first formal introduction to the company. Prior to
receiving the application, the company knows nothing about him/her.

2. They generate data in uniform formats and hence make it easy to make cross
comparison of the applicants.

3. They generate data that can serve as a basis to initiate a dialogue in the
interview. This may be true for both preliminary and final interviews. Areas that
need to be further explored are identified on the basis of blank also provide leads
for subsequent interviews.

4. Data in the application blank can be used for purpose of analysis and research in
personnel. In addition, some minimum data on employees selected have to be
stored for subsequent use.

5. Since the major part of the application blank is structured, the responses could be
pre-coded for computerization. This is particularly useful when a large number
of applications are generated and there are time and resource constraints.
6. Often application blanks require the applicants to provide information in an
unstructured way (i.e. “anything else you would like to mention” or “state in
your own handwriting why you wish to be considered for this post”, etc.). This
gives a very useful clue to the organizing and presentation abilities of the
applicant.

7. Sometimes the application blanks are designed with weight ages assigned to
various items in the applicants blanks based on past experience. These are called
weighted application blanks.

Contents of application blanks: Though the information sought in applicant blanks

may vary according to the level of the position and the organization, most
application blanks seem to contain the following kinds of information.

1. Personal data- name, date and place of birth, address sex and other identification
marks.

2. Marital data- whether married, number of children, whether spouse is working,

education of the spouse and children, other dependents, etc.

3. Physical data- height, weight, general health condition, whether physically

handicapped, etc.

4. Educational data- various levels of formal education, years, and marks obtained,
distinctions, subjects taken, merit awards, scholarships, etc.

5. Employment data- past experience, years, position, company, salary, promotions,

professional courses attended, nature of duties, reasons for leaving previous jobs,
membership of professional bodies and associations.

6. Extra academic data- sports and games, NSS, NCC, level of efficiency achieved
in extra academic activities, prizes, hobbies and interest, pastime activities etc.
7. References- names of two or more people who can credentials by way of the
suitability of the candidate to the announced position.

Generally, they are ex-employees or ex-teachers, and the references consist of a free-
floating letter.

2. Interview

Interview is, perhaps, one of the most widely used method of selection. A survey by
Spriegeland James (1958) conducted on 236 firms in USA in 1930 and a second
survey by the same authors conducted on 852 firms in 1957 showed that 94 per cent
and 99 per cent organizations, respectively, used interview as a method of selection.
Unfortunately we do not seem to find a similar survey in the Indian context, but if
one talks to the representatives of ten organizations, chances are that nine out of
ten would be using interview as a method of selection.

Interview is one of the few situations where a candidate comes face-to-face with the
representatives of the organization. It is, thus, seen as an interaction between the
interviewer and the applicant and a situation in which both participate. Tharp (1983)
explains the rationale of the interview process when he says, “Only through the
interview process can a manager gather sufficient data to be able to predict whether
a candidate will be successful in the position for which he or she is being
considered.

A face-to-face interview has several advantages which are not otherwise available.

1. To an organization it may provide a situation to verify certain information given

in the application blank.
2. There are certain areas where information can be sought only through interview.
For example. How does one evaluate the motivation and commitment? Or hopes
and aspirations.

3. In an interview setting the applicant also gets an opportunity to explain certain

things which he may not like to put on paper. Additionally, he can seek
information on the organization, its future plans, and his own growth prospects in
the organization so as to help him take a well informed decision.

4. Interview, provides an opportunity of two-way interaction facilitating the

gathering of complete information to take meaningful decisions.

5. Interview provides an overall picture of the applicant which comes as piecemeal

when other methods are used. A well conducted interview that puts the applicant
at case and provides an environment where the applicant can talk freely about
himself, helps generate information that would provide useful insight into the
personality of the applicant as a whole.

There are different methods of interviewing applicants. These methods vary

according to the purpose of interview and the nature of position for which the
applicants are interviewed.

3. Business Games

For positions where decision-making is the most important components, some

techniques are developed to assess the decision- making ability of the applicants.
These are called business games. Applicants for supervisory or managerial positions
are put in a simulated exercise of actual decision- making. A problem is provided to
them along with all the necessary information and constraints. The applicant is asked
to make a decision and the quality of this decision is judged by how well the
applicant has processed the information provided to him. One example of business
games is the “in-basket” techniques.
IN-basket technique for selecting managers was developed by Lopez (1966). It
consists of providing the applicant with background material on the organization
such as its history, organization structure, operating procedures, roles, financial data,
targets, and past achievement, etc. It helps to set the applicant in a more of less
realistic situation. Along with this information a set of problems are provided. In
basket is like an in-treay in an office where the incoming papers are placed. The
problems contained in the in-tray by way of memos, letters, and reports are related
to each other in some way and are also related to a master plan. The idea is that the
decision taken should be in consonance with the overall reality of the organization
and should not be an isolated case (Jaffee, 1971_. Once the exercise is over the
applicant’s judgment and performance is evaluated. The applicant explains the
decisions that he took and why he took those decisions.

It is a powerful technique for selection, particularly for the managerial cadre and
provides insight into the applicant’s abilities and behavior. However, the
development of such an exercise is time consuming. Often the exercise may not be
taken seriously by the participants; hence the behavior may not be very spontaneous.

In the Indian context this excise is quite often practiced but as part of interview.
Here the interviewer may provide a situation to the applicant and ask him to indicate
what he would do and why. However, as an independent selection tool its use has
been nominal.

4. Group Discussion @IBM

Another frequently used technique for the selection of supervisory and management
staff and particularly for management trainees in India is known as leaderless group
discussion or just group discussion. Before the individual, face-to-face, interview
takes place a group of applicants ranging from six to ten are either provided a
company situation or a topic on which they are allowed some times to discuss among
themselves. The discussion is preceded by a preparation time which provides an
opportunity to the applicants to think of the subject matter and evolve strategy of
making their contribution.

Group discussion is generally unstructured. There are no predetermined expectations

of who will perform what role seen is how the group takes its shape, what is this
shape, and who has contributed most to this. Depending upon the job expectation a
variety of things could be examined. Generally, the quality of content, its delivery
time management, interpersonal competence, and behavior in the group are assessed.
The assessment is done by more than one person who is also members of the
interview panel. These assessments are done independently.

Since the assess are also members of the interview panel, it provides them an
opportunity to follow up certain points during the face-to-face interview. This
method is extremely useful as it’s generates some very useful data on the behavior,
personality, and leadership qualities in the group. It is time saving as six to ten
applicants can be observed simultaneously. However, the assessors have to be careful
because vocal applicants with better schooling may score better because of their
delivery. Hence emphasis should be placed on content and general behavior.

1. Physical Examination

This, as a method of selection, is most useful where physical strength is most

important or where physically handicapped are employed. Other than providing a
sound, hygienic environment and legally protecting the organization, there does not
seem to be any other reason why physical examination should be undertaken.

SELECTION DECISION@IBM

Calhoun (1967) defines selection as a two-way decision making process in which

both the organization and the applicant match talent with requirements of the job.
While we may not be so much concerned with the decision-making process of the
applicant, a closer look has to be taken to see how and why an organisation takes the
final selection decision. Monappa and Saiyadain (1979) have identified four methods
of taking selection decision when multiple methods are involved.

1. Multiple Hurdles

As the name suggests the decision is sequentially taken. Each method of selection is
sequenced as a scale of importance and in each case a minimum performance is
predetermined. All the methods of selection are hurdles that have to be crossed till
the applicant competes the last hurdle. An applicant must score above the minimum
score in the first hurdle before he goes to the second. Similarly, he must get the
minimum score before he goes to the third and so on till he has crossed all the
hurdles.

One significant advantage of this technique is that at every stage the number of
applicants is reduced. In other worlds, there is a progressive reduction in the number
of applicants and this also reduces the cost of selection. However, it has the danger
of losing some capable applicants on earlier hurdles because either the cut-off on
these hurdles was arbitrarily set or due to psychological factors the applicants could
not perform well.

2. Profile matching

This method has elements of multiple hurdles because first, a profile of a successful
employee has to be developed. The technique to develop such a profile is the same as
identifying the cut-off score. Once the cut-0off score of the average successful
employee is ready this can be used against fresh applicants to see who comes closest
to the profile. The most important point in this technique of taking selection decision
is the proximity with the ideal profile. A is the ideal profile on a variety of selection
methods, B and C are the profiles of two applicants.

The proximity in case of B and C with A is calculated by s using the statistical

technique of correlation of coefficient. If we calculate the coefficient, we will find a
higher relationship between A and B than A and C, although the profile of C happens
to be on much higher levels than the ideal profile. In terms of decision B would be
the most suited applicant than C despite the fact B has scored less on interview and
application rating when compared to the ideal. C scored better on all counts and yet
would not be selected. The logic is simple. A successful employee does not have to
be the one who has done exceptionally well on all the selection than another. Hence,
his contribution may be good to begin with but may not sustain long. This is true of
all high fliers in the organization. They soon start believing that every rule,
instruction, policy, etc. is designed to frustrate them and hence lose motivation.

Interview Score

Group Discussion

Test

Score

Application Rating Score

3. Multiple cut off

The multiple cut off technique the applicant has to score above the ideal on all the
methods of selection. Unless an applicant scores above the ideal on all the
components of selection he cannot be considered for selection.

The major problem of this technique is that a simple addition of all the scores above
the ideal does not help in ranking the applicants. One may score better than the other
on a given segment and yet it is possible to get the same total as the other because of
variations elsewhere. Sometimes this problem is solved by giving weight ages to
each segment, multiplying weight ages with the raw scores for each segment, and
then adding them to get a single total. To some extent this takes care of the
intersegment variations. However, developing weight ages for each segment is a time
consuming exercise and requires a number of statistical exercises in advance.

4. Multiple Regressions

An efficient way of taking care of the problem discussed in multiple cut- off is to
use multiple regression models which have a built-in facility of taking into
consideration the relative contribution of all the segments. Readymade computer
packages are already available and all one needs to do is to feed the selection data in
the computer. This technique assumes that each score on the selection method is
linearly related to the performance score and that selection scores have
compensatory power. In other words, high score in one makes up for the low score in
the other. This technique is mathematically very elegant but unfortunately is not
practiced quite often in selection.

SELECTION OF RESEARCH TOPIC

AN IDEAL SELECTION PROGRAM

An ideal selection program is one that effectively links people requirements into the

goals of the firm as shown below:-

People Requirements Goals of a Firm

• Self Directed • Reward creativity

• Flexible • Retain talent
• Multi skilled • Pay at market
• Creative • Internally equitable
• Team oriented • Manage poor performance
• Encourage growth
Internal equity is a measure of how an organization values each of its jobs in relation
to one another.
Once an employee has been selected for a particular position in a firm, he/she must be
made aware of exactly what his/her job entails and how will he/she be rewarded.

An illustration of such a process can be as follows:-

What does the job do

How much is the job worth

Review Determine pay, salary range Determine

benefit bonus
eligibility eligibility
Appraise performances

Reward through merit, bonus

• These are usually based on the “going rate” for a job.

• The quality of external comparison is critical.

• Not all position exist in all organization thus determining job worth is difficult.

• Pay levels can jump substantially due to employee shortages.

• A job market value does not always reflect internal equity.

 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

“The only thing constant in life is change”

The HR revolution as it is called, words like selection strategy and resource dynamics
have crept into the HR vocabulary. Traditionally business and consequently human
resource policies and organizational structures grew to reflect and self fulfill each
other. However the present scenario is highly evolved and different from traditional
thinking. Today the business has changed and so has the rationale behind attracting,
selecting, rewarding and retaining trends. A few observations are:-

Today’s Business Traditional Business Trends

• Flat and de-layered • Built around hierarchy and grades.

• Controlled by managers and • Controls managers and employees

employees • Job focused
• Team focused • Slow bureaucratic
• Adaptive, requires mobility • Policy based, structured
• Flexible, decentralized • Internal equity is the driven.
• Externally focused

Reward Trends
From To

• Narrowly defined jobs and • Broader generic roles, emphasis

job standards on continuous development.

• Inflexible job evaluation • Flexible job evaluation.

system. • Broad banded pay structure, focus
• Hierarchical and rigid pay on career development,
structures, where focus is on improvement
next promotion. • Emphasis on “risk” pay.
• Consideration of pay into
base pay.

Williams and Dresher (1992) examined the relationship between compensation and
applicant behavior, although their perspective was that of the organization and not the
individual applicant. Using a sample of 352 U.S. banks, they examined the
relationships between compensation system attributes (Pay level and the level. And
flexibility of benefits) and recruitment customs, including size of applicant pool,
acceptance rates, and length of time required to fill positions. The first outcome, size
of applicant pool, is the dependent measure most closely related to the decision to
apply. Williams and Dresher (1992) did not find a significant relationship between pay
level and number of applicants.

The Price Waterhouse study of managerial responses to recruitment advertisements

(cited in Redman and Matthews, 1992) found that 84% of respondents felt that
location was a key determinant of whether they would apply for a job.
Communication Realism during Recruitment

One of the more critical decisions that organizations must make about their
recruitment practices involves the accuracy, or realism, of the information they
provide. One approach is to “sell” the job and organization, by portraying them in the
most favorable light; in other by emphasizing positive features and disregarding
negative features. A second approach is to provide complete and balanced information
about the job, revealing both positive and negative features. Programs intended to
deliver such balanced information are known as “realistic job previews” or RJPs. An
extensive stream of recruitment research has focused on the relative merits of RJPs
versus traditional “selling” approaches.

RJP Effects

The use of RJPs has been recommended because they are expected to lead to a variety
of positive outcomes for the organization, including higher job satisfaction,
commitment and performance, as well as lower turnover. RJPs may also have
immediate effects on recruitment outcomes in that the provision of negative
information may reduce applicants’ willingness to accept the job. Wantons (1992)
argued that the primary objective of RJPs is to reduce turnover, and most RJP research
reflects this priority.

Breughel (1983) summarized the four mechanisms by which RJPs are expected to
influence turnover: met expectations, ability to cope, air of honesty/commitment, and
self- selection. First, RJPs are supposed to reduce turnover by lowering initial job
expectations to a level consistent with actual job experience. Employees whose pre-
hire expectations are met are more likely to remain on the job; employees whose pre-
hire expectations are not met are likely to de dissatisfied with the job and ultimately
to leave it. Second, employees who know that challenges to expect from a job my
develop coping skills that help them meet those challenges, perhaps by planning in
advance how they will respond. Third, recipients of realistic previews may feel more
committed to employers who provide them with realistic information because they
appreciate the employer’s honesty and because their decision to accept the job was
based on complete information. Finally, RJPs may lead to applicant self selection:
Applicants who are not likely to be satisfied with the job will not accept job offers,
and those who do accept will therefore be more likely to remain.

Policy-Capturing as an Alternative

Policy capturing is an alternative approach to investigating the role of attributes in job

choice that addresses some of the concerns associated with direct estimation. Under
this approach, research subjects are presented with a series of job descriptions in
which attribute levels are systematically varied. For each description, subjects are
asked to indicate whether they would accept the job (or how likely they would be to
accept the job). Subjects need not be asked to explicitly report the importance of
specific attributes. Rather, regression analysis is used to calculate the relative impact
the different attributes had on job choice. This approach has several advantages over
direct estimation. It does not require self- insight on the part of applicants, it provides
a context for the decision by providing information about attribute levels and
variability, and it ties attribute variation directly to the job choice criterion.

An early example of this technique was provided by Feldman and Arnold (1978). They
presented 62 graduate students with descriptions of job opportunities that provided
information about the following attributes.

• Opportunities to use ones skills and abilities

• Among of autonomy and independence

• Responsibility

• Providing essential services/ products to the public

• Salary and fringe benefits and

• Schedule flexibility.

Two levels of each attribute were used, with a completely crossed design resulting in
64 descriptions. Subjects read each description and indicated how willing they would
be to accept the position described by making a scale ranging from “extremely
unwilling” to “extremely willing”. Regression results indicated that salary and
benefits explained the most variance in willingness to accept the job (in other words,
that salary and benefits was the most important attribute). Followed by use of skills
and abilities, responsibility, autonomy, having flexible hours, and providing essential
goods or services.

Feldman and Arnold (1978) also asked their subjects to rank order the importance of
the six attributes included in their study. They then were able to compare direct
estimation and policy- capturing results. The two sets of results did not agree. Most
notably, pay, which was identified as the most important attribute by the policy-
capturing analysis, was ranked by the subjects as fourth in importance (behind
opportunity to use skills and abilities, autonomy, and responsibility).

Subjective Factors: “Fit” Models of Job Choice

The second content- based approach to job choice described by Fehling 3et al. (1968)
as the subjective factors model. This model employs a matching or “fit” perspective.
Its underlying logic is that individuals have different emotional and psychological
needs and that they will seek jobs that best fit their individual needs.

Delaney and Hassled (1996) provide additional evidence regarding recruitment’s

effect on the bottom line. Using a sample of 590 firms from the National
Organizations Survey, they assessed whether the ratio of applicants to job openings (a
measure of recruitment intensity) was associated with informants perceptions of
organizational performance. They found that recruitment intensity was unrelated to
perceived organizational performance, a broad measure incorporating issues such as
product quality, customer satisfaction and new product development. Recruitment
intensity, however, was significantly and positively related to perceived market
performance, a measure focusing on economic outcomes, such as profitability and
market share.

Though many other studies of the relationship between human resource practices and
firm performance have been conducted (generally with positive results), they
generally shed little light on recruitment issues per se, First, although recruitment has
been identified as a key practice by a number of scholars, it is not always included in
studies of human resource policies impact on firm performance. Second, because
many of the studies are concerned with examining the impact of integrated programs
or bundles of human resource policies, it is often impossible to disentangle the results
of individual policies, such as those related to recruitment.

Taylor and Bergmann (1987)

Taylor and Bergmann (1987) studied the effect of a single organizations recruitment
activities on applicants at five points immediately following campus interviews;
during the period between campus interviews and site visits; following site visits; at
the time an offer was extended; and at the time job choice decisions were made. A
wide variety of recruitment variable were assessed, including variables relating to the
campus interview, the site visit, and various general administrative procedures.

Taylor and Bergmann had two primary hypotheses: first, that job applicant reactions
would be influenced by job attributes, and second, that they would be influenced by
recruitment activities. In addition, they hypothesized that the strength of recruitment
effects would vary as a function of offer characteristics (how similar this offer was to
others), applicant characteristics (how much work experience they had), and labor
market opportunities (how many alternative opportunities applicants had). They
concluded that recruitment’s effects were largely limited to the earliest stages of the
process. And that at later point’s perceptions of job attributes explained far more
variance in applicant reactions than did recruiting practices. They also found little
evidence that the strength of recruitment effects varied as predicted.

This study made several important contributions to the literature. First, it was one of
the earliest studied to consider recruitment activities that occurred after the initial
campus interview, and remains one of the only studies to investigate the effect of the
process by which job offers are extended. Second, it provided a rich context for
studying recruitment effects by incorporating job attributes as alternative influences
on applicants and by studying factors expected to moderate reactions to recruitment.
Third, it represents an ambitious attempt to collect longitudinal data and investigate
effects over time, though sample shrinkage severally impaired the author’s abilities to
carry out true longitudinal analyses, as discussed in more detail.

Context

According to Rynes (1991), important aspects of the recruitment context include

internal factors (such as organizational characteristics and norms) and external factors
(such as labor markets and legal regulations). To what extent does current recruitment
research take internal or external context issues into consideration?

By and large, the recruitment literature has not been particularly successful in
attending to context issues. Little attention has been paid to internal organizational
factors, such as the organizations business to internal organizational factors, such as
the organizations business strategy or the overall attractiveness of its jobs. Nor do we
know much about how recruitment issues vary across industries or across occupations.
But these factors could be important determinants of organizational choices regarding
recruitment practices. They also could be important determinants of organizational
choices regarding recruitment practices. They also could be important moderators of
the effectiveness of specific recruitment practices. This inattention to organizational
context may simply reflect how infrequently recruitment research is approached from
the organizations perspective, and therefore may not be remedied until researchers pay
more attention to the organization as an actor in recruitment.

Factors external to the organization have also received scant attention in the
recruitment literature. Most disturbing is the fact that the influence of labor market
forces on recruitment strategies and recruitment effectiveness has largely been
ignored. It seems quite likely that recruitment goals and outcomes will differ across
tight versus loose labor markets. In addition, recruitment practices and outcomes may
differ significantly depending on the structure and norms of different labor markets.
For example, campus placement markets, such typically bring together soon-to-be
college graduates and relatively large employers, tend to be characterized by long lead
times (offers extended well before anticipated start dates) and the potential to
accumulate and choose from multiple offers. Markets involving small employers or
experienced hires may be less likely to permit the accumulation of offers, a factor that
might well alter the role of recruitment. This suggests that the dangers of relying too
heavily on campus placement settings as research sites are twofold: it focuses our
attention not only on a particular kind of applicant but also on a particular kind of
labor market.

What we know about context

Context Issues Evaluation of current knowledge

base

Internal Almost no knowledge

External Almost no knowledge

Overall, then, we know little about how the context in which recruitment occurs
influences its impact. The problem can be addressed in severally ways. First,
recruitment researchers can (and should) provide detailed information about the
context in which their research was conducted, describing the nature of the
organization(s) involved as well as the type of labor market studied. This information
would enrich our understanding of individual studies, and at the same time would
facilitate meta- analyses examining the role of contextual factors across studies.
Second, individual studies could systematically examine context issues, for example
by simultaneously studying different labor markets.

A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF PAST THEORIES

In the changed economic scenario, the prospects of gaining and maintaining a

competitive advantage is extremely essential for organizations to survive. This can
only be achieved if the organization works as an integrated unit and has a sound
recruitment and selection procedure.

The employees are the most valuable assist of any organization so utmost care should
be taken to develop a sound recruitment and selection process in orders to attract,
engage, satisfy and retain employees.

Thus the study of recruitment and selection is of extreme importance as it aims at

gaining meaningful insights into the organizations policies and identifying the gaps
that may exist in the current system.

As it has been rightly said “Today’s Recruit is Tomorrows Industrial Relation

Problem”.

COMPANY PROFILE IBM

IBM is leader in IT industry it have its operations over 77 countries so HR plays a major role in
the development of the company.
In INDIA it has 7 offices in different cities including Gurgaon, Delhi and Banglore.
There are certain salient features of the company:
SALIENT FEATURES

• Productivity is based on personal ability factor.

• Business fluctuates by the week /day /hour.

• Constant fluctuations in short term customer demand.

• Irregular job workflow for the employees.

• Adjusting supply to demand.

• Subjectivity of standards due to concepts like hospitality, service, cleanliness.

• Complicated pay system-linked with range of skills.

• An in-built quality Vs speed dilemma.

HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING

Human Resource Planning is the process through which the management strives to have the right
number and the right kinds of people at the right places, at the right time to do things which
result in both the organization and the individual receiving the maximum long-range benefit.

HRP consists of a series of activities:

1. FORECASTING future manpower requirements, either in terms of mathematical projections

of trends in the economic environment and development in industry or in terms of judgmental
estimates based upon the specific future plans of a company.

2. MAKING AN INVENTORY of present manpower resources and assessing the extent to

which these resources are employed optimally.

3. ANTICIPATING manpower problems by projecting present resources into the future and
comparing them with the forecast of requirements to determine their adequacy, both
quantitatively and qualitatively.
4. PLANNING the necessary programmers of recruitment, selection, training, development,
utilization, transfer, promotion, motivation and compensation to ensure these future manpower
requirements are properly met.

This planning cannot be rigid or static; it is amenable to modification, review and adjustments in
accordance with the needs of an organization or the changing circumstances.

NEED FOR HRP:

Human resource planning is necessary for all organizations due to the following factors:

1. To carry on work, each organization needs personnel with the necessary qualifications, skills,
knowledge, work experience and aptitude for work. These are provided through effective
manpower planning.

2. Since a large number of persons have to be replaced due to old age, retirement, physical
incapacitation or mental ailments, there is a constant need for replacing such personnel.

3. Frequent labor turnover, which arises due to several factors and is unavoidable, is another
factor that makes Human Resource Planning essential.

4. In order to meet the needs of expansion programmers of the company, HRP is unavoidable.

5. To meet the challenge of new and changing technology, existing employees need to be
trained or new blood injected in an organization.

6. Human resource planning is also needed in order to identify areas of surplus personnel or
areas in which there is a shortage of personnel.

7.

PROCESS OF HUMAN RESOURCE PLANNING:

The process of Human Resource Planning is one of the most crucial, complex and continuing
managerial functions. It is a multi-step process, which includes various issues, such as:

• Deciding goals or objectives.

• Estimating future organizational structure and manpower requirements.

• Auditing human resources.

• Planning job requirements and job descriptions.

• Developing a human resource plan.

Deciding objectives of HRP:

The ultimate purpose of HRP is to relate future human resources to future enterprise need so as
to maximize the future return on investment in human resources. In effect, the main purpose is
one of matching employee abilities to enterprise requirements, with an emphasis on the future
instead of present arrangements. The objectives maybe short term (i.e. for one year) or long term.
For example, the short-term objective maybe to hire 15 persons from Scheduled Tribes for
purposes of training. The long term objective maybe to expand the market, to produce a new
product etc.

Estimating the future organizational structure & manpower requirements:

The management must estimate the future organizational structure at a given point in time.
Several factors including business forecasts, expansion and growth, design and structural
changes, management philosophy, government policy, product and human skills mix and
competition affect this determination.

After estimating the future organization structure, the next step is to draw up the requirements of
human resources, both for the existing departments and for new vacancies. In determining the
requirements of human resources, the expected losses which are likely to occur through labor
turnover-quits, retirement, death, transfers, promotions, demotions, dismissals, disability,
resignations, lay-offs and other separations-should be taken into account. Changes in human
quality resulting from the experience gained in the jobs during the period and the training
achieved also need to be considered. After making adjustments for wastage, anticipated and
expected losses and separations, the real shortage or surplus may be found out.
Auditing human resources:

Once the future human resource needs have been estimated, the next step is to determine the
present supply of manpower resources. This is generally done through what is called the "skills
inventory." A Skills Inventory contains data about each employee's skills, abilities, work
preferences and other information that indicate his overall value to the company. Other methods
used in organizations for this purpose are organization charts, manning tables, manpower
replacement charts etc. They tell us 'what exists in stock' and what is needed to be added to that
stock,' taking into account the capability, qualifications, experience, skill, knowledge and
promotional potential of employees.

Job Analysis:

Job Analysis includes the preparation of job descriptions and job specifications.

Developing a Human Resource plan:

This step refers to the development and implementation of the human resource plan, which
consists of finding out the sources of labor supply, with a view to making an effective use of
these sources. The policy has to be decided upon i.e. should the personnel be hired from within
through promotional plans or should it be obtained from an outside source.

JOB ANALYSIS

Job analysis is the term used to describe a process which involves the analysis of a job into its
component parts or tasks to provide the date required for a variety of purposes. These include
recruitment, management development, developing organizational and wage structures,
improving job methods and safety and, of course, establishing training needs. The general
principles of job analysis are applicable to all situations, whether in the factory, the office and
maintenance of servicing departments both in plant and in the field, in fact anywhere where work
is being done.
The distinction between these terms is that a job specification states what a job should be whilst
a job description sets out what it actually is, taking into account the specific knowledge and skills
the jobholder brings to it. Clearly when someone is recruited to a job, he seldom matches the job
specification precisely and often it is necessary to modify the duties and responsibilities to make
use of the skills and knowledge that the new comer can bring to the position. In some instances
the job descriptions of other people in the department may well be modified in order to
accommodate the new arrival and to optimize departmental performance.

Where we are examining a newly created job, we produce a specification based on what we think
the job should look like. Where the position is already occupied by an employee, it is possible,
with the benefit of the experience of the jobholder, to write a job description setting out
document should normally cover:

• The scope and purpose of the job and its objectives.

• The work performed in the job: the detailed functions/duties and whether operational,
supervisory, or managerial etc.

• The responsibility for (a) resources, quantified where possible under the six M’s; manpower,
machines, materials, methods, money and minutes, and stating clearly where accountable: (b)
policy decisions, whether individually or through committees.

• The organizational relationships i.e. position in the hierarchy, cross- functional interfaces.

• The training and experience needed

• The working conditions, e.g. (a) location; (b) nature of work activity; (c) hours of work; (d)
whether member of a group; (e) health/safety risks.

• The pay scale and conditions of service

• The opportunities for advancement within the organization.

To produce such a document we therefore need to know a good deal about the job and where it
fits into the general scheme of things. If the post is deemed to be necessary to the future of the
organization, it should not be too difficult to define its purpose. No job should exist without a
clear statement of its scope and intent and the objectives the jobholder is expected to achieve.
For example, the objectives of a personnel manager may be:

• To promote and maintain sound industrial relations practice throughout the organization.

• To recruit employees at all levels below first line management in sufficient number sand of
acceptable standards to meet the needs of the manpower plan.

• To contribute to the formulation of company personnel policies and agreements and to ensure
their effective implementation.

• To establish the training needs of employees at all levels and to take the necessary steps to
see that these need are satisfied.

• To provide a welfare service to employees at all levels and to implement health and safety
policies.

Tabulating the work performed in the job may be more difficult. We can readily establish
whether it is a managerial, supervisory, specialist or operational job but ascertaining the detailed
functions to be performed requires analysis and may have to be approached in different ways
depending on the job. The process entails the collection and examination of a good deal of data,
some of which will be considered appropriate for inclusion in the job analysis and some of which
will be rejected. Where the job is already being carried out, one what in which such data can be
accumulated is by discussing it with the jobholder. He should be in possession of as much
information as any one and often he will be able to offer facts, gleaned form experience, which
no one else knows about. Off course, approaching the employee for such a purpose requires care.
He needs to be put at his ease and reassured as to the reasons for the exercise. He must not see it
as putting him under any threat, for example of being moved, or worse, of losing his job
altogether.
Performance review, whether used as part of a management development scheme or

not, is an effective means of establishing training needs provided those carrying out

the review are competent to recognize those needs when subordinates do not meet

their targets.

JOB ANALYSIS: THE MOST BASIC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT TOOL

Human Resource
Planning

Recruitment

Tasks Responsibilities Duties Selection

Job Training and

Descriptions Development

Job Performance
Analysis Appraisal

Job Compensation and

Specifications Benefits

Knowledge Skills Abilities Safety and Health

Human Resource
Research
 SCOPE OF FURTHUR STUDIES

RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION@IBM

Recruitment is the process of generating a pool of candidates for a particular job. IBM
announces the job's availability to the market and attract qualified candidates to apply. The
market from which the firm attempts to draw job applicants can be internal, external, or a
combination of the two. In other words, the firm may seek applicants from inside the
organization, out side the organization, or both.

Selection is the process of making a hire or no hire decision regarding each applicant for a job.
The process typically involves determining the characteristics required for effective performance
on the job and then measuring applicants on those characteristics. The characteristics required
for effective job performance are typically based on a job analysis, which is a systematic study
and summary of a job depending on applicants scores on various tests and/ or the impression
they have made in interviews, managers determine who will and will not of offered a job.

Socialization involves orienting new employees to the organization and to the units in which
they will be working. It is important that new employees be familiarized with the company's
policies and procedures and with performance expectations. Socialization can make the
difference between a new worker feeling like an outsider and feeling like a member of the team.

Socialization

Selection

Recruitment

A proper system of selection and placement helps to achieve the following.

1. A feeling of satisfaction among the employees that their capabilities are being-properly
utilized by the organization and that they are not wasting their talents. This feeling is likely
to raise the morale among employees and may result in higher levels of commitment and
productivity.

2. Supplying the right type of people to the needy department or units within an organization in
short period of time. Such prompt action is likely to keep up the morale of the departments
at high level as the needs are being attended to more promptly.

3. Minimizing the wastage of human talent, through providing opportunities for people to apply
their capabilities.

4. High level of employee-commitment and by providing them opportunities to work on jobs

that they like and are capable of performing.

5. Availability of data about all employees and their capabilities to facilitate human resource

administration in future including promotions, transfers, etc.

One wrong person selected for a given job or one wrong placement can cause a host of problem
in an organization. The criticality of selection and placement increases as one goes up the
managerial hierarchy.

Matching the man with his job involves ensuring the following:

1. The persons occupying a particular role, job or position has the technical, managerial and
other capabilities required to perform the functions associated with that job.
2. If he does not possess some of them, he has at least the potential to develop them within a
reasonable period (which has to be determined by each organization separately for different
jobs) and the organization is willing to invest in his development.

3. The person has a chance to acquire new capabilities and also use a reasonable portion of his
capabilities in performing the functions assigned to him with a minimal feeling of his
talents being wasted.

SELECTION PROCEDURES AND TECHNIQUES

1. Advertisement

In recruiting new entrant’s advertisement in newspapers and announcements in institutions where

candidates are likely to be available serves both the purposes of attracting and filtering
candidates. It serves the purpose of attracting the candidate by making known the opportunity to
a number of candidates looking for such opportunities. It serves the purpose of filtering through
a description of the job duties and responsibilities associated with it, and of capabilities required
as measured through standard indicators like educational background, experience, the
emoluments given, future prospects, etc. Candidates going through such details may decide for
themselves whether they have the required capabilities.

The more details are given are in an advertisement, the better will be the screening of candidates.
Advertisements of jobs for which a large number of candidates are expected to apply give only
broad descriptions. Similarly, not too specific job descriptions and indicators are presented in
advertisements for higher level managerial positions, as higher level positions require
capabilities not so easily measurable through indicators like degrees, training courses attended,
etc. For example, the ability to coordinate the activities of various departments.

2) Application Blank

While an advertisement screens out some candidates and attracts the right kind of people, the
application blank serves the purpose of screening out less potential candidates. Most companies
use a standard form of application for getting details about candidates. While such standard
formats are desirable in terms of getting uniform data about all candidates, and letter of record
purpose, it needs to be supplemented with job-specific application blanks. The general
application blank may elicit all the data required for personnel records such as name, address,
educational background, experience, other indicators of capabilities, etc.

It is possible to develop weighted application forms that can get a lot of data about the candidate.

1. Cognitive Ability Tests

Several kinds of cognitive ability tests are used to ensure matching of the persons with the job.
They include knowledge tests, ability tests, aptitude tests, and simulation exercises. Ability and
aptitude tests are the most commonly used tests.

Tests measuring knowledge or information are the easiest to develop and most appropriate to use
for jobs that requires knowledge of certain things.

Ability tests are used when certain abilities are believed to be critical in the performance of a job
or role for which the candidate is considered. Ability tests are appropriate for lower level jobs
where abilities are quantifiable. For example, a test a clerical speed and accuracy for clerks,
typing and stenography tests for stenographers. However, higher managerial abilities like
planning, coordinating, organizing, etc., have not been tapped for assessment. Higher
managerial abilities could be accessed through simulation and other exercises.

Ability test measures the actual capabilities processed by the candidate, aptitude tests measure
the capacity of the person to develop the capabilities required by the job.

4) Non-cognitive Instruments

Personality tests and other non-cognitive instruments are increasingly being used to match the
person and the job. By non-cognitive instruments in meant the instruments measuring behavioral
dimensions other than knowledge, intelligence, abilities, aptitudes, and technical skills around
which, traditionally, personnel selection revolved.

5) Interviews
Interviews are organized generally in the final stages of selection, after the top talent among the
applicants has been identified through tests and a few have to be selected from among them. It
is generally at this stage that the top management of administrators of the organization, who have
otherwise little time to spare, come into the picture. This is because they want to personally
ensure that only good candidates are filtered in. Interview is the most commonly used method
of final selection.

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT@IBM

Training is the most important function that contributes directly to the development of human
resources. If human resources have to be developed, the organization should create conditions in
which people acquire new knowledge and skills and develop healthy patterns of behavior and
styles. One of the main mechanisms of achieving this environment is training.

Training is essential because technology is developing continuously and at a fast rate. Systems
and practices get outdated soon due to new discoveries in technology, including technical,
managerial and behavioral aspects. Organizations, which do not develop mechanisms to catch up
with and use the growing technology, soon become outdated. However, developing individuals in
the organization can contribute to the effectiveness of the organization.

Training and development are important activities in all organizations, large and small. Every
organization, regardless of size, needs to have well-trained employees in its workforce who are
prepared to perform their jobs.

The term 'training' refers to the acquisition of specific skills or knowledge. Training programs
attempt to teach trainees to perform a specific job and a particular activity.

The term 'development' usually refers to improving the intellectual or emotional abilities needed
to do a better job.
BENEFITS OF TRAINING:

Training usually is a strategic human resource activity because it plays a major role in
determining the effectiveness and efficiency of an organization. A successful training and
development program will achieve the following benefits:

• Improve the quality and quantity of work done.

• Reduce the learning time required for employees to reach

acceptable standards of performance.

• Create more favorable attitudes, loyalty and cooperation.

• Satisfy human resource planning requirements.

• Reduce the number and cost of accidents.

• Help employees in their personal development and advancement.

• Help organizations to respond to dynamic market conditions and

changing consumer demands.

Different jobs require different capabilities. These capabilities can be considered under four
categories:

1. Technical

2. Managerial

3. Behavioural

4. Conceptual
TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES:

They deal with the technology of the job or the tasks the employee is expected to perform. They
include information, skills and knowledge.

MANAGERIAL CAPABILITIES:

They include the ability to organize, coordinate, plan, monitor, evaluate and redesign a variety of
activities. As managers have the task of getting things done by others with optimal use of
resources for achieving the best possible results, they need to possess managerial capabilities.
Knowledge of management techniques like PERT, systems analysis, performance budgeting etc.
are evidences of managerial capabilities. Management skills involve the application of these
techniques for better planning, better coordination, better monitoring, and for better achievement
of results.

BEHAVIOURAL CAPABILITIES:

These include leadership skills, ability to motivate others, communication skills, ability to work
as a team member, dynamism, initiative etc. Mere knowledge of behavioral sciences does not
ensure that person has behavioral capabilities. Attitudes and orientations play an important role
in determining the effectiveness of the employees to a great degree.

CONCEPTUAL CAPABILITIES:

These involve conceptual understanding of one's own tasks in relation to those of others,
imagination, futuristic thinking, model building capabilities and perception of various tasks and
their interrelationships within the organization and outside it.

TYPES OF TRAINING:

1. Orientation/Induction Training:
The orientation or induction training is given to employees as soon as they join an organization.
The purpose of this training is to orient the employee to the company and its tasks, to help his
role in detail and see the link his role has with other roles in the company, to help him understand
the expectations of other employees from him, and to give him a feel of the organization and feel
part of it.

The induction training normally does not focus on skill development. It focuses more on
perspective development and understanding of the organization. Without such understanding of
the organization, its mission etc., the employee may soon feel alienated. Induction training is one
way in which culture and traditions are established and maintained through socialization of the
new employees into the culture of that organization.

2. On-The-Job Coaching:

On-the-job coaching is another way of training employees. This type of training is given to
employees who are new to a given job (not necessarily to the organization). The purpose of this
kind of training is to equip the employee with the capabilities required to perform various tasks
of his job. This may involve skill training by the supervisor of the employee, either on a day-to-
day basis or periodically. On-the-job training techniques also include job instruction training, job
rotations, internships, coaching and counseling. On-the-job training should be particularly
stressed upon during the early stages of their careers.

3. Apprentice Training:

Apprentice training is given to those who have just completed their studies and are about to enter
the organizational world. The apprenticeship involves practical training under the guidance of
one or more instructors designated by the organization to train the trainees.

IN-HOUSE TRAINING:

In-house training programs are programs offered exclusively for the employees of an
organization by the organization. The Training Department assesses the training needs of various
categories of employees periodically, invite suggestions from the senior executives of that
company on the training needs as perceived by them, keep in touch with the new developments
taking place in the outside world that have relevance to their own organizational activities and
periodically invite outside trainers to train their employees.

In the in-house training programmers, the training department may use its own senior employees
as trainers or may depend exclusively on outsiders or may use both sets of resources.

SPONSORED TRAINING:

As most organizations do not have sizeable units of training, it is easier for them to sponsor a
few employees for training by outside agencies.

DISTANCE TRAINING:

Distance training is the training conducted without the trainer being physically present near the
trainee. The most well known forms of distance training are correspondence courses, auto-
teaching machines, programmed instruction materials, video and audio cassette programs,
alumni bulletins etc. This form of training is useful mainly to keep the trainee informed about
various developments in his field or to acquaint him with new technology, processes etc.

CONCLUSION

Human Resource departments share a responsibility for improving organizational effectiveness

by analyzing individual and organizational problems and making adaptive changes. Many HR
departments are responsible for collecting and analyzing information that pertains to these
problems. The results are used to assess the adequacy of present policies and to suggest
necessary changes.

Human Resource research is an important activity of an HR manager. Research has the

advantage of being systematic, objective and purposive.
FUNCTIONS OF PERSONNEL RESEARCH:

Human Resource research serves the following functions:

1. To build upon existing knowledge:

Human resource research is a relatively new field although some work as been done. A number
of topics are still unexplored. Unorganized labor and its problems, female employment practices,
work group performance, managerial philosophy, motivation etc. are some currently researched
topics in HRD. This can provide a starting point for HR research, as these areas are important
and have implications for the effective functioning of an organisation.

2. Appraisal of proposed programmers and activities:

Before a change is introduced, it should be ensured that it would be effective. An organization,

for example, maybe interested in replacing obsolete machinery or introducing a new promotion
policy. HR research can help in predicting the employee response to these changes and their
reasons for their response, whether positive or negative.

1. Evaluation of current and new policies and practices:

Introducing a change in personnel policies or practices is difficult. Once a change is introduced,

the change agent must continuously evaluate its outcome. In addition to mere evaluation, such
research provides suggestions and clues for revising and making mid-course corrections in
policies and practices.

1. Anticipation of HR problems:

The smooth running of an organization today does not guarantee that it will remain so in the
future. A competent manager is thus one who not only manages today’s problems but also can
foresee problems and take corrective measures. Therefore, the need for continuous research to
maintain a control over the future cannot be overemphasized.
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

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