CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Recruitment and Selection is a vital process for every successful organization because having the right staff improves and sustains organizational performance. The impact of an organization’s selection system influences bottom-line business outcomes, such as productivity and financial performance of any organization. In the operations of any organization, recruitment and selection is the major function of the human resource department and recruitment process is the first step towards creating the competitive strength of organizations. Recruitment process involves a systematic procedure from sourcing the candidates to arranging and conducting the interviews and requires lot of resources and time. Accordingly, recruitment and selection are conceived as the processes by which organizations solicit, contact potential appointees, and then establish how appropriate it will be to appoint any of them (Sisson, 2004).
Recruitment and selection are the two phases of the employment process but there is a difference between the two. The recruitment is the process of searching out the candidates for employment and stimulating them to apply for jobs in the organization while selection involves the series of steps by which the candidates are screened for choosing the most suitable persons for vacant posts. Available evidence indicates that there is a positive and significant relationship between recruitment and selection criteria and the performance of an enterprise. Gamage (2014) for example discovered a positive association between recruitment and selection and business performance, with specific reference to recruitment and selection criteria and organizational performance. He maintained that some of the recruitment and selection criteria include sourcing candidates by advertising or other methods, screening potential candidates using tests and interviews, selecting candidates based on the results of the tests or interviews, and on-boarding to ensure that the candidates are able to fulfill their new roles effectively.
Thaly (2013) noted that there is a variety of recruitment approaches (for example employee referral, campus recruitment, advertising, recruitment agencies/consultants, job sites/portals, company websites, social media and so on.); and most organizations use a combination of two or more of these as part of a recruitment process or to deliver their overall recruitment strategy. However, which recruiting channels should be used depends on the job position, on the company’s employer brand, on the resources the company has on its recruiting team, on how much recruiting budget the company has. A company can use any of the channels and find out which suits the best. Every recruiting channel offers different benefits and limitations and works better for certain situations and companies.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
It is a difficult task for organizations to search, recruit, and select talented people in today’s tight labor market. As there are fewer qualified talents available, the competition is intensifying. This shortage makes it essential for organizations to conduct effective recruitment and selection, and put in place effective recruitment and selection criteria to recruit, maintain and retain quality talents. Most organizations make use of interview, aptitude and knowledge tests to screen potential job applicants. Aptitude tests afford companies an opportunity to make a more informed decision when it comes to hiring. The tests assess many factors which are very important in terms of choosing the right candidate. They can assess an applicant’s ability to solve problem, reasoning, write coherently and get along with others. In conjunction with the interview, the tests give a very accurate picture of a candidate’s potential to be successful in the position they are pursuing.
Recruiting has always been a stitch in the side of company’s performance. It is expensive, time consuming, even though study after study shows the high cost of employee turnover in time, money, and lost productivity, recruiting has continued to be rushed and superficial, sometimes based on nepotism and favoritism. When organizations are not able to attract, recruit and retain the right talents due to lack of adequate human resource planning and lack of clear and concise recruitment and selection policy the productivity of the workforce will be low, and the effect on the organization will be poor performance.
It is therefore clear from the foregoing that unconventional selection practices can ruin any business plan thereby affecting the overall target of the firm.
There is the need for management to put in place policies or strategies that will help recruit and select the best employees to strive towards the achievement of organizational goals and objectives. The study therefore is focused on recruitment and selection criteria and organizational performance.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The main objective of the study is to assess the impact of recruitment and selection criteria on organizational performance, while the specific objectives of this research work are to:
Evaluate the usefulness of interview and aptitude test on the selection of right talents for the organization.
Examine the consequences of recruitment and selection planning on organizational performance.
Identify the effects of clear and concise recruitment and selection policy on organization’s performance.
Examine the positive effect of internal recruitment on workers performance.
Research Questions
The following research questions were formulated for the study.
How useful is interview and aptitude test on the selection of right talents for the organization?
What are the consequences of recruitment and selection planning on organizational performance?
What are the effects of clear and concise recruitment and selection policy on organization’s performance?
What are the positive effects of internal recruitment on organization performance?
1.5 Statement of Hypotheses
The research hypotheses are:
H0: There is no significant relationship between interview and aptitude test in the selection of right talents for the organization.
H0: There is no significant relationship between recruitment and selection planning and organizational performance.
H0: There is no significant relationship between clear and concise recruitment and selection policy on organization’s performance.
H0: There is no significant relationship between internal recruitment and workers performance.
1.6 Significance of the Study
In general terms the study is expected to impact on Human Resource experts/professionals, management of Diamond bank plc, regulators, academia and the general public. The output of this study contributes to knowledge and literature in the subject under investigation. It is useful as a source of reference to researchers, academics, students, policy makers, HR professionals and other stakeholders interested in how recruitment and selection criteria impacts on the performance of organization.
The study would highlights the problems encountered by management in its bid to equip organization with qualified manpower through recruitment and selection. The study would also help management and workers of Diamond bank plc to identify the current recruitment and selection challenges so as to find the requisite remedies for quality service delivery and maximization of productivity and profitability. The findings and results also provide a more reliable scientific measure and perspective for describing and evaluating the level of efficiency of the system and its effect on corporate performance and customer satisfaction.
1.7 Scope of the study
The study is conducted within the framework of investigating the impact of recruitment and selection criteria to improve organizational performance in the banking sector. It covers the period between 2013 to 2016. The study would be carried out on Diamond Bank plc Eket Branch, Akwa Ibom State.
1.8 Limitations of the Study
This research like any project in life is likely to be thwarted by limitations; notable ones are enlisted as follows: The reluctance and in certain instances, outright refusals on the part of officials to release information which will help enrich and further assist to establish a strong validity and reliability of the study. Another limitation was inadequacy of required research to fast track the completion of the study.
1.9 Operational Definition of Terms
Human resources Department (HR): is the company department charged with finding, screening, recruiting and training job applicants, as well as administering employee-benefit programs. As companies reorganize to gain competitive edge, human resources play a key role in helping companies deal with a fast-changing environment and the greater demand for quality employees.
Organization: organization is an entity comprising multiple people, such as an institution or an association, that has a collective goal and is linked to an external environment.
Organizational Effectiveness: The efficiency with which an association is able to meet its objectives. The main measure of organizational effectiveness for a business will generally be expressed in terms of how well its net profitability compares with its target profitability. Additional measures might include growth data and the results of customer satisfaction surveys.
Recruitment: this has to do with searching for and obtaining a pool of potential candidates with the desired knowledge, skills and experience to allow an organization to select the most appropriate people to fill job vacancies against defined position, descriptions and specifications.
Vacancy: an unoccupied post or office.
1.10 Organization of the Study
This study is made up of five chapters. Chapter one, covers the introduction, statement of the problem, objective of the study, research questions, significance of the study, definition of terms, limitation of the study and organization of the study. Chapter two is concerned with the literature review. Chapter three covers the research methodology used in the study. Chapter four covers the presentation and analysis of data. Chapter five covers the summary of findings, conclusion and recommendations.
