The Importance of Good Recruitment & Selection

Effective recruitment and selection methods benefit organizations in multiple ways. Employee engagement, sustained job performance, employee retention and low turnover are some advantages of best practices in recruitment and selection processes. All of these benefits have an impact on the company's bottom line, which illustrates how important the recruitment and selection process is to an organization's workforce and overall business success.

Engagement refers to the enthusiasm, motivation and level of commitment employees exhibit in the performance of their job duties. The recruitment and selection of qualified applicants can directly impact employee engagement. In the recruiting process, identifying applicants whose work history suggests they demonstrate commitment is one way to predict their level of commitment to your organization. In-depth interviews are an ideal way to identify candidates who are enthusiastic about the qualifications they can bring to your organization.

Generally speaking, an applicant seeking career opportunities elsewhere while still employed is probably not in jeopardy of losing her job due to poor performance. Candidate interviews – particularly those that use extensive and in-depth questions – shed light on the candidate's job performance, skills and competencies. Recruiting isn't an exact science; however, skillful interviewers ask questions that elicit responses about the candidate's strengths as well as areas for improvement. Understanding a candidate's strengths and weaknesses is the first step in predicting a prospective employee's future performance.

Recruiters and employment specialists look for candidates who exhibit the desire to commit to one employer for a reasonable period. Based on 2017 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, workers in the Baby Boomer generation had an average of 11.9 jobs during a 26-year period of their working lives. This means an average job commitment of a little more than two years.

Employee retention is important to employers for reasons related to hiring and training costs, as well as business continuity. A good recruitment and selection process eliminates applicants whose work history and intent don't indicate their desire to remain with your company for more than the average length of time.

Similarly, low turnover is another sign of an effective recruitment and selection process, especially because most turnover occurs during the first 90 days of employment. Recruiters can often pinpoint the signs that an applicant is prone to job hopping or less committed to staying with the company for a reasonable period. In addition, candidates whose work history indicates they have been involuntarily terminated from several jobs are easy for recruiters to identify.

Maintaining low turnover within an organization is initially the responsibility of recruiters and employment specialists. Their duty is to identify candidates who appear more likely to perform well and remain stable employees.