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GCSEBusinessEdexcelRevision Notes2. Building a Business2.5 Making Human Resource DecisionsEffective Recruitment

Effective Recruitment (Edexcel GCSE Business) : Revision Note

Lisa Eades

Written by: Lisa Eades

Reviewed by: Steve Vorster

Updated on

Different job roles and responsibilities

  • Businesses have a wide range of job roles which are all related to each other in the organisational structure

  • The names of job roles and their specific responsibilities will vary depending on the business

    • There should be similarities between the responsibilities of job roles at each level

Examples of job roles and responsibilities

Role

Examples

Responsibilities

Director

  • In a restaurant, this is likely to be the business owner

  • In a school, this is the governors or headteacher

  • Overall business performance

  • Target setting

  • Corporate objectives

  • Making key business decisions

  • Reporting to shareholders and other key stakeholders

Senior manager

  • In a restaurant, this is likely to be the head chef and head waiter

  • In a school, this is the deputy and Assistant Headteachers

Managing and leadership of business functions

  • Functional strategies

  • Overseeing the work of teams and their supervisors

  • Medium-term decision making

Supervisors or team leaders

  • In a restaurant, this is likely to be the sous chef and shift manager

  • In a school, this is the head of year or head of faculty

  • Managing a group of workers

  • Delegate work

  • Reward and discipline operative staff

  • Make routine decisions

  • Department budgeting

  • Organise staffing

Operatives and support staff

  • In a restaurant, this is junior chef, kitchen porter and waiters

  • In a school, this is the teachers, teaching assistants, finance and administrative staff

  • Carrying out work delegated by supervisors

  • Support colleagues as directed

How businesses recruit people

  • The recruitment process involves identifying job roles that are needed and seeking people to fill vacancies

Recruitment Documentation

  • Businesses use a range of documents in the recruitment process

Documents used in the recruitment process

Flowchart titled 'How Businesses Recruit People' with steps: Person Specification, Job Description, Application Form, Curriculum Vitae (CV).
Documents used in recruitment include the person specification, job description, CVs and application forms

  • Before a business starts to look for new employees, it writes a person specification and a job description

    • A person specification details the essential and desirable characteristics of the person suitable for the job, including

      • Qualifications

      • Experience

      • Skills such as the ability to drive or IT capabilities

      • Personal characteristics and attributes

    • A job description details the features of the job, including

      • Duties

      • Hours and location of the job

      • Managerial or supervisory responsibilities

      • Pay and conditions

  • Once the job is advertised the business may accept applications from candidates via Curriculum Vitae (CV) or an application form

Comparing application forms and CVs

Benefits of an application form

Benefits of a CV

  • All applicants provide identical information in the same format so they are easy to compare

  • More applicants may apply because it is easier for candidates to prepare and adapt a standard CV

Drawbacks of an application form

Drawbacks of a CV

  • Limited information can be expressed by candidates so key desirable attributes may not be identified

  • Comparing different formats and content of CVs can take more time and lengthen the recruitment process

 Methods of Recruitment

  •  Recruitment can be internal or external and will depend on the needs of the business

Internal and external recruitment

Method of Recruitment

Explanation

Benefits

Drawbacks

Internal

  • Where a person who already works for a business is appointed to a job role

  • This is commonly achieved through promotion or reassignment

  • The member of staff is already familiar with business culture and working practices

  • The business is aware of the employee's strengths and weaknesses

  • There is no need for induction training

  • Expensive advertising is not needed

  • Employees can be ready to start their new role immediately

  • When an employee moves to a new role their old job needs to be filled

  • There may be resentment amongst employees who are overlooked 

External

  • Where a business hires an employee from outside of the business

  • A higher number of applicants may be attracted

  • New recruits are usually highly motivated and keen to impress

  • New ideas and experience are brought into the business

  • New employees may need support from colleagues and induction training which slows down productivity

  • Advertising for external staff can be expensive and take a long time

  • A candidate who performs well at interview may be unsuitable for the job when they start work

Selecting the candidate for the role

  • Once candidates have submitted their applications and the business has shortlisted suitable candidates, a variety of methods can be used to select the right worker for the job role

Selection methods

Flowchart showing recruitment steps: interview, testing role play, facility tour, group discussion, and presentation, detailing candidate assessments.
Common selection methods used to recruit employees 

  • If a business needs to recruit quickly or if it is struggling to find the right employee it may use a recruitment agency to carry out the advertising and recruitment process on their behalf

    • New employees may be found quickly through a recruitment agency which has potential candidates already enrolled

    • It can be expensive, as businesses have to pay a fee for these services

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    Author
    Reviewer
    Lisa Eades

    Author: Lisa Eades

    Expertise: Business Content Creator

    Lisa has taught A Level, GCSE, BTEC and IBDP Business for over 20 years and is a senior Examiner for Edexcel. Lisa has been a successful Head of Department in Kent and has offered private Business tuition to students across the UK. Lisa loves to create imaginative and accessible resources which engage learners and build their passion for the subject.

    Steve Vorster

    Reviewer: Steve Vorster

    Expertise: Economics & Business Subject Lead

    Steve has taught A Level, GCSE, IGCSE Business and Economics - as well as IBDP Economics and Business Management. He is an IBDP Examiner and IGCSE textbook author. His students regularly achieve 90-100% in their final exams. Steve has been the Assistant Head of Sixth Form for a school in Devon, and Head of Economics at the world's largest International school in Singapore. He loves to create resources which speed up student learning and are easily accessible by all.