Executive Summary
The process of recruiting, selecting and evaluating employees is for the purpose of ensuring that only the best-qualified candidate is picked by the end of the process. The assessment team should be keen to ensure that applicants with the desired skills and ability to perform are the ones selected in this process.
It is through this that the recruitment project can be considered a success. In this project, the human resource management will ensure that all the applicants are taken through a rigorous process that would help obtain the needed skills for the firm. Also important is to ensure that this recruitment process is done within the budget limits. This would help ensure that the entire process is undertaken within the expectations of the firm.
The evaluation process would further enhance the ability of the management and the hired employees to work in an integrated environment where giving directions would be easier. It is also important to be conscious of some of the existing labor laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act, the law on Equal Employment Opportunity and Occupational Health and Safety Act, among others.
Introduction
The process of hiring the right workforce can be very challenging, and it requires a proper approach to ensure that it is successful. Human resource management unit must realize this fact during the recruitment process.
In the insurance industry, there is always a need to ensure that it is only the most qualified employees who are hired because of the challenges that exist in this industry. According to Mathis (2012), every level of office has a different selection plan that is most appropriate.
This scholar says that the selection procedure used when hiring a secretary will always be different from that used when hiring a projects manager. This is because what is needed of a manager is very different from what is needed from a cleaner. In the insurance industry, when selecting the right employee for a managerial position, care should always be taken to ensure that the process is done by the law. Fair Labor Standards Act is one of the main laws that employers within the United States are expected to observe.
During the recruitment process, the human resource management unit must factor in this law to avoid any possible legal battles. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission also has set laws that are meant to ensure that no one is discriminated against based on race, religion, physical disability, gender or any other demographical factor, during the hiring process.
Another important law that the management should be conscious of when hiring these employees is the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Observing these laws would help ensure that this firm is not subjected to any form of litigation for a breach of law after the recruitment.
Job and Person Descriptions
Determining who to employ in every given position within a project, it is important to describe the job of that particular person. Job description entails what the office should achieve, roles and responsibilities of the occupier of the office, the person the officer in that office will be answerable to and the remuneration that the office caries. Snell (2013) says that job description helps in matching the skills of the occupier of the office, and the expectation of the entire project.
It helps in determining the office that will be responsible for every single activity within the implementation process. In this case, the job will involve junior management.
The officer for this office will be responsible for managing sales agents of this firm. The sales agent will be reporting to this office, and the officer in charge will report to the marketing manager of this insurance firm. It is the responsibility of the office holder to ensure that employees in this department are always motivated and able to meet the set targets in their respective tasks.
Person description involves describing the person that would hold a particular office within the project. When describing the person, care should be taken to ensure that there is a match with the job description. Person description would simply be the characteristics of the person who would be fitting into an office whose requirements have clearly been stated.
The characteristics of the person would always be analyzed based on the descriptions given when describing the job. In this case, the desired candidate must be able to work in teams. The candidate should be computer literate and be able to work under minimal pressure. This candidate should have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in human resource management or an equivalent academic qualification.
Recruitment Method
Recruitment is a very important stage in looking for the right workforce for a given project. According to Mathis (2012), recruitment involves gathering a pool of potential employees who can undertake a given duty within a firm. This means that when recruiting, the human resource officer must ensure that all the necessary qualities of the potential candidates for every position are gotten from the final list of the candidates to be selected.
The human resource management unit should have a comprehensive plan of how to recruit the most qualified candidates for various positions within the project. Given the nature of the job market in the United States, the management can use various methods in recruiting potential candidates for various positions in this project.
Selection Method
Selection of the employees from the potential candidates is one of the most challenging tasks in the process of hiring employees. This scholar says that care should always be taken to select the best-qualified candidates out of the applicants of the job. Snell (2013) affirms that the selection panel should always be in a position to determine the best candidates within the short period available following the closure of the application period.
The decision should always be based on the testimonials of the candidates, ability to present and express self before the panel, and the physical attributes. In this selection process, the panel should select employees in the managerial position using either compensatory scorecard method or successive hurdle approach. Compensatory scorecard approach helps in selecting the best candidates who will be satisfied with the compensation that the firm offers.
This will eliminate cases of dissatisfaction of the employees once they are hired. In successive hurdle strategy, the applicants would be subjected to screening at various stages, starting with the simplest stages where most are expected to pass, to the most complex stage where only the best-qualified specialists can pass. The selection can then be done based on the best-qualified candidates, is described as the last man standing.
Compensatory Scorecard Approach
Snell (2013) says that when shortlisting candidates for an interview, it is always important to assume that three out of four will be disqualified, while one out of every three will be disinterested with the job when the salary is specified. As such, it is always important to shortlist at least seven for every single position that is available.
The management should always base the selection approach to this theory. The shortlisted candidates should receive application forms which can easily be sent online. The applicants should then be subjected to an online personality and skill test after which they will undergo a telephone interview.
The candidates will be awarded scores using Multiple Regression Method. The selection team will then rate the employees based on their scores. The team will select the applicants based on their position on the scorecard. In any case, an applicant declines the offer the next best candidate would be given that position. The approach will be used to select five candidates for each of the two positions.
Successive Hurdles Approach for the other three positions
Another possible approach that such an insurance firm can use to hire an entry-level manager into the firm is the successive hurdle approach. This approach would help get the most qualified candidate for this position. This approach is very appropriate when selecting a few candidates out of a large list of applicants. It is popular because selection panels have lauded it as an easy approach to use. The recruits also favor this approach because it is considered as a fair approach where only the best candidate would remain standing.
Substantiating the Selection Methods
Review of Application Forms and Resumes
At this stage, the panel tasked with the selection process will review the application forms and resumes of the applicants before they are invited for further test. On interest at this stage would be to ensure that the information in the resume and that of the educational certificates tally. It is also at this stage that the management would determine whether the applicants meet the academic qualifications desired for the post.
The resume presentation will also help understand the personality of an applicant. Snell (2013) says that the resumes also helps in understanding other important qualities of an applicant, such as the experience gained in this industry. This scholar says that the level of education of an employee would determine the approach taken in handling various tasks within the firm.
Experience is also very important in determining how well an employee can perform a given task. Employees with experience in a given field are always more efficient and can perform assigned tasks within a shorter period. The resumes also help in determining an employee’s language, logic, and mathematics skills based on their education and experience in a given field.
Testing of the Skills
It is always important for the selection panel to test the skills of applicants whenever this is possible. Most of the recruiting specialists currently prefer testing skills using Alpha-Numeric Data Entry Test for the officers who would be responsible for managing record within the firm. The test can be administered online, and the scores are in words per minute, and with a minimum allowable error rate of 98 percent. The applicants can also be assessed at the Assessment Center by relevant authorities.
The Cognitive Test
According to Molander (2009), Cognitive test refers to the process of testing the strength of the mind. It is a process that is meant to test the mind. In any of the identified managerial positions, there will be a need to conduct a cognitive test to determine the mental capacity of the applicants.
There are various scientific approaches that can be used in testing the mental capacity of an individual. This cognitive test is very vital in determining the capacity of an individual to perform a given duty within a specified time. The test is very important for managerial positions because this position would always demand that an individual makes a decision that will affect other employees and the firm during its normal operations. These individuals must, therefore, be in a position to make decisions that are rational.
Testing the Personality
The process of testing the personality of an applicant is always important in determining how effective an employee would be within a firm. Personality testing helps to determine how, upon successful recruitment, such an individual would manage self, and other situations when faced with them in a practical setting.
The selection team can use the NEO PI-R test. This test will help in understanding such qualities of the applicants as the attitude, the emotions, motivational style, among other personality traits. This will help in identifying candidates with the ability to manage their attitude, feelings, or emotions when faced with situations that may be challenging.
The entry-level managers should be subjected to this test because of their role within the firm. Anyone in the leadership position should always have a strong personality that would enable him or her to meet the challenges that come with their position. They should be able to control their emotions and be able to motivate others to work effectively.
Assessment Centre
The process of assessing these employees should happen within the assessment centers. The assessment centers should be under the direct supervision of the head of the human resource department, with the help of Human Resource Assistants.
The human resource manager will ensure that the other HR assistants, who will be the assessors, understand the assessment strategies that are appropriate when assessing the applicants. They should understand the matrix method used to assess innovation, influence, analysis, and empathy of the employees. These assessors will be focusing on the candidates’ leadership capabilities, oral skills, attention to details, and persuasive skills.
Interviews
Most of the selection panels consider interviews as the most appropriate process of understanding the applicants due to its high validity. It is for this reason that has made this process the most important part of a selection process because it offers the management opportunity to understand the applicants.
The process will be used in this recruitment process to increase the validity of the selection process and ensure that finally, the most qualified candidate will be the one to be selected. As Mathis (2012) says, this not only increases the chances of selecting the best-qualified candidates but also eliminates the possibility of an applicant using the credentials of others.
Background and Reference Checking
According to Molander (2009), reference checking is always important in the selection process. This scholar says that referencing helps in confirming the details given by the applicant with the help of the external sources. The assessors will confirm the details of the applicants by contacting external sources to determine the previous performance and academic qualifications.
References
Mathis, R. (2012). Human resource management: Essential perspectives. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Molander, C. (2009). Managing human resources. London: Routledge.
Snell, S. (2013). Managing human resources. Mason: South-Western.