After the recruitment has yielded a sufficient number of quality applications, the selection of candidates can begin. The selection process refers to the multiple steps involved in choosing people who have the right qualifications to fill a current or future job opening. Usually, managers and supervisors will have the ultimate decision as to who gets hired, but the role of HRM is to create a funnel, narrowing down the list of candidates and guiding managers in this process. Similar to the recruitment process, the selection process can be expensive. The time for all involved in the hiring process to review resumes, weigh the applications, and interview the best candidates takes away time (and costs money) that those individuals could spend on other activities. In addition, there are the costs of testing candidates and bringing them in from out of town for interviews. In fact, the US Department of Labor and Statistics estimates the combined direct and indirect cost of hiring someone new can reach upwards of $40,000 (Hamm, 2011). Due to the high cost, it is important to hire the right person from the beginning and ensure a fair selection process.

1. How to Select Employees

The selection process consists of five distinct aspects:

1. Criteria development. The first aspect to selection is planning the interview process, which includes criteria development. Criteria development means determining which characteristics are sought for the future employee and how those characteristics will be assessed during the selection process. As mentioned multiple times so far, the criteria should be related directly to the job analysis and the job specifications. By developing the criteria before reviewing any resumes, the HR manager can be sure he or she is being fair in selecting people to interview. Some organizations may need to develop an application or a biographical information sheet. Most of these are completed online and should include information about the candidate, education, and previous job experience.
2. Application and resume review. Once the criteria have been developed (step one), applications can be reviewed. Increasingly, HR managers use automated software to screen applications and CV’s. These are based on keywords searches and narrow down the number of candidates that must be looked at and reviewed.
3. Interviewing. After the HR manager and/or managers have determined which applications meet the minimum criteria, he or she must select those people to be interviewed. Most people do not have time to review twenty or thirty candidates, so the field is sometimes narrowed even further with a phone interview.
4. Test administration. Any number of tests may be administered before a hiring decision is made. These include drug tests, physical tests, personality tests, and cognitive tests. Some organizations also perform reference checks, and credit report checks. Increasingly, at this stage, companies also perform social media checks to confirm that the information in their resume is the same as posted online, or to see how applicants present themselves to the public.
5. Making the offer. The last step in the selection process is to offer a position to the chosen candidate. Development of an offer via e-mail or letter is sometimes a more formal part of this process. Compensation and benefits will be defined in an offer.

References

Bryant, A., “The X Factor When Hiring? Call It Presence,” June 26, 2010, New York Times, accessed July 12, 2011, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/27/business/27corner.html?scp=1&sq=Selander&st=cse&pagewanted=1.

Hamm, L., “Pre-Employment Testing,” IHD Corporation, n.d., accessed August 2, 2011, http://www.ihdcorp.com/articles-hr/pre-employment-testing.htm.