Chapter 4: Sourcing: Recruitment, Selection & Orientation

• The Labor Market• Determining Labor

Needs• Recruiting• Selecting the Right

Person• Orientation

The Labor Market

• The supply of people looking for jobs & the jobs available in the given area.

• You are looking for people with certain characteristics & they are looking for jobs with certain characteristics.

• The trick is to get a match!

The Labor Market

• The U.S. unemployment rate fluctuates around 4.8%.

• The NRA estimates that the number of jobs in the industry will grow by 15% over the next decade.

• Despite this the labor market looks to remain tight & competitive.

Jobs to be Filled

• Many of the jobs in food & lodging operations:– demand hard physical

labor. – are filled with safety

hazards.– are uninteresting &

monotonous.– are entry level pay, but

with the possibility of promotion.

Days & Hours of Work

• Days & hours are irregular, scheduling patterns vary:– Split shifts– Part time – Unusual hours– On call

Days & Hours of Work

• You also have varying needs according to days of the week.

• These form a fairly predictable pattern, (i.e. weekends, holidays, banquets, schools, & hospitals).– Predictable enough for you to plan your hiring

& scheduling.

Sources of Workers

• The U.S. work force changes continually.

• The majority of new workers are women, minorities, & immigrants.

Sources of Workers

• If the job your looking to fill is above the lowest level, the first step is to look inside your own operation.

• Consider how people would feel if you brought someone in from outside to fill a job or a shift they would like.

• It is important for morale to give your workers first chance.

Sources of Workers

• The top recruiting methods are:–1. In-house job referral–2. Company Web site–3. Newspaper/magazine–4. Job fairs–5. Online resumes –6. Schools–7. Employment agencies–8. Professional/industry association 

Major Sources of Workers

• 1st job• Students• Women• “Moonlighters”

• Unemployed• Just want to get away• Retired• Disabled

Your Labor Area

• Know the labor market in your own industry: prevailing wages, unemployment rates, its makeup, competing enterprises.

• Know the demographics: ethnic groups, income levels, education levels, where the different groups live.

• Know about the community.

Determining Labor Needs

• Defining Job Qualifications

• Forecasting Personnel Needs

• Training VS. Buying Skills

Defining Job Qualification

• Job Specification- lists the:– Knowledge, info. needed to perform job duties.– Skills & abilities, competence needed to perform a task. – Work experience. – Education & training.– Performance standards, specific skills you are looking for.

• Do not discriminate in any way!!!• Phrase (& think) in concrete terms what each job

requires.

Forecasting Personnel Needs

• Anticipating your needs for staff gives you more time to look for the right people.

• Use records of past sales, they might indicate past trends.

• Scheduling & downtime are key factors in forecasting your personnel needs.

Scheduling

• Let your employees know that you value their opinion.

• Try to meet the needs of both- your employee & the company.

• Examine your schedule for efficiency of your needs & ways of organizing shifts to be more attractive to employees needs.

• Consider revamping.

Downtime

• The length of time a position is vacant until a employee that can fully perform fills it.

• Forecast appropriately for downtime.

• If necessary fill out a employment requisition form.

Training VS. Buying Skills

• There is no security in hiring for experience.

• You may have to pay more to break years of bad habits.

• If you do hire for experience be sure to check references.

• Training is expensive but likely to be less costly in the end.

• You really do not have time not to train people!

Recruiting- a form of marketing.

Looking actively for people to fill jobs.

• Be appropriate- put your message out in appropriate places.

• Be competitive- sell your job as well as others.

• Be constant- on the look out all the time.

• Use the Multiple Approach- don’t depend on a single resource.

On-Line Applicants & Selection Tests

• Many companies have a space for employment opportunities on their Web sites.

• This free advertising is attracting an increasing number of applicants.

• Applications can be completed on-line saving both time & money.

• Applicants may also be asked to complete selection tests on-line.

Internal Recruiting

• Promoting from within.

• To let all employees know about a opening use a job posting.

• Employee referral programs may be used when you cannot find a current employee to fill the position.

External Recruiting

• Seeking applicants from outside the operation.

• Can be done via company website.• 2 types of advertising are

classified & displayed.• How to apply: Open or Blind.• Advertise in a major paper.• Some employers use radio or

television.• Advertise in your own operation.

Employment Agencies• Private Employment Agencies:

– Normally charge a fee. – Most often handle management &

high skilled jobs.

• Temporary Agencies: – Charge by the hour. – Good for peak business periods.

• Job Service Centers:– Free! – Screen & provide applicants for

entry level jobs.

Direct Recruiting• Practiced primarily by large

organizations seeking management or top level culinary skills.

• Recruiters go where the job seekers are- colleges, job fairs, etc.

• Advantage: you may get better employees & you are creating a good image for the future.

• Additional external sources- organizations involved with minorities, women, disabled, immigrants or other special groups.

Evaluating Your Recruiting

• Learn what sources give you the best workers.

• Learn what the success rates are.

• Learn what the costs are.

• Learn the tenure of people from each source.

• Also evaluate your own recruiting efforts.

Selecting the Right People

• The Application: – “A fact finding sheet.”

• The Interview:– Find a quiet place.– Listen attentively. – Prepare a list of questions based on the job

description. – Some use a structured patterned interview.

Selecting the Right People

• You are after 2 kinds of information: – Hard data on skills,

experience.– Personal qualities

important to the job.

Selecting the Right People

• Evaluate the applicant immediately on your list of specifications for the job, using a rating system that is meaningful to you, such as a point system or a descriptive ranking: – (1) exceptional, hire immediately– (2) well qualified– (3) qualified with reservations– (4) not qualified

Evaluation

• Can-do Factors: includes job knowledge, past experience, & education.

• Will-do Factors: includes the applicants willingness, desire, & attitude toward performing the job.

• Halo effect- or overgeneralization: Jumping to conclusions based on 1st impressions.

• Truth in Hiring: telling the applicant the entire story about the job, including drawbacks.

Testing• Some companies use tests as an additional method of

evaluating applicants.• Various tests are used:

– Skills tests measure specific skills

– Aptitude test measure ability to learn.

– Psychological tests measure personality traits.

– Medical examinations measure physical fitness.

• To use a test it must be reliable, valid, & relevant.• The Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988

prohibits the use of polygraphs in screening for job applicants.

Reference Check• The final step helps to weed out

applicants.• 1st verify substance- factual info.

about the applicant.• Then style- how they did in

previous jobs, how well the got along with others.

• IF YOU NEGLECT THE REFERENCE CHECK YOU RUN THE RISK OF HIRING A PROBLEMED WORKER!

Making the Choice

• Don’t jump to hire someone you have previously known. Look at the big picture!

• Don’t hire too quickly.• Don’t rush to hire the applicant who

interviewed the best.• Don’t hire on intuition.• Don’t hire just because someone is

highly recommended.• When you make the offer do it in

writing, include all conditions.

Making the OfferThe following points should appear in the

offer letter, as appropriate:

• Department • Position title • Supervisor • Location • Rate of pay • Schedule of shift• When jobs start, where

to report, whom to report to

• Clothing & equipment needed

• Meal arrangements• Parking• Arrangements for

orientation/training• Brief description of

benefits• Probationary period• Appointment time

for filling out additional personnel forms (such as the I-9 form)

Negligent Hiring

• Fear of negligent hiring & retention litigation is a hiring manager’s worst nightmare & the most compelling reason to conduct in-depth criminal records searches of job applicants.

Orientation• Introduces each new employee to the job &

the workplace.

• Tells new staff members what they want to know & what the company wants them to know.

• To communicate this information you can give out a employee handbook.

• This creates positive employee attitudes toward the company & the job.

Creating a Positive Response

• If you do not have an orientation for each new employee, somebody else will, your other workers

• Their orientation will be quite different from yours, & it may have a negative impact.

Creating a Positive Response• You want to:

– Create an image of the company as a good place to work.

– To foster certain feelings in your new people: that they are needed & wanted.

– Create the beginnings of a sense of belonging.

– Reduce anxieties & promote confidence & security.

Communicating Necessary Information

• Employees want to know certain information (i.e. pay rate, overtime, days & hours of work, etc.).

• Employers want them to know this, plus other information (i.e. rules & regulation, company policy etc.).

• You can have it all printed in a booklet, commonly called an employee handbook.

• Give them the booklet to take home.

• An orientation checklist is an excellent tool for telling your employees what they need to know.

© 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc