Hiring new employees is a complicated process and it requires hard work and great attention to detail, both with regard to the potential candidates being considered as well following company protocol.
The Human Resources (HR) Department is responsible for managing the process from start to finish – from scouting potential talent and offering people jobs to creating employment contracts and keeping staff happy. It’s safe to say that HR doesn’t merely have a role in the recruitment and employee acquisition process, it is almost entirely responsible for it altogether.
But, what really goes into the recruitment process? In the most simple sense, it’s about finding potential employees who would be a good match for your company in terms of skills, experience and shared values. However, the actual process of a lot more complicated than that.
What is Involved in Recruitment?
In the context of large companies, recruitment is the process whereby prospective employees are identified, interviewed, hired and onboarded. The process can be conducted in many different ways, depending on the position that needs to be filled, the ideals of the company in question, the required expertise and more.
In some cases, job openings can be advertised online publicly, or if the position is very specialised, HR personnel may need to find and contact specific people who are qualified and fit the requirements for the position. These days, recruitment software is also often used to track down top candidates.
Whatever the case may be, HR personnel and the department more generally are in charge of heading up these processes and making sure they find the appropriate personnel to fit the positions in question.
What is the Role of HR in the Recruitment Process?
The recruitment process is very much dependent on the position that needs to be filled, and normally, the direct line manager under whom the new recruit will work will have input into the hiring decision. But the degree of input and the method of collaboration will depend on the position, the company and more, and overall, it’s HR personnel that head up the process and manage it from start to finish.
What goes into the recruitment process?
Well, a nice way to look at it is in terms of the so-called “5Rs of Recruitment”:
1. Requisition: Acknowledging the need for a new hire, outlining the job and what it’ll involve and deciding what kind of employee you’ll need to hire.
2. Recruitment: Identifying a pool of potential candidates, posting job advertisements and reaching out to desired employees.
3. Review: Review candidates, evaluating their skills, experience and expertise, and start shortlisting the front-runners. This step should involve interviewing candidates too.
4. Ratings: Once all applicants have been evaluated and reviewed, it’s time to start ranking them in order of who is the most qualified and suitable for the job based on a plethora of criteria.
5. Retention: From there, the top candidate needs to be hired, but the role of HR doesn’t stop there. Once the new employee has been hired, it’s essential that great effort is put into retaining them, as high turnover rates are never ideal.
Of course, it’s not always as neat and tidy has merely creating a list of five things that start with the same letter, although it does allow for the organisation of the process in an easy-to-remember way.
Some additional and more specific responsibilities of HR in the recruitment process include:
- Recruitment Marketing
- Passive Search for Candidates
- Evaluating Referrals
- Checking Up on Recommendations
- Evaluating and Verifying Candidate Experience
- Creating a Candidate Evaluation Process
- Tracking Applicants’ Progress
- Ensuring Compliance
- Organising Employee Data and Information
- Onboarding New Employees
Handling the recruitment process is one of the most important roles of HR personnel, and it’s ongoing. Large HR departments with plenty of staff will be able to maintain constant scouting for top talent, along with consistent recruitment marketing. Most importantly, it’s essential that once employees are hired, HR maintains their focus on keeping staff happy and maintaining communication with employees.
