Staffing Training And Appraisal Essay Research Paper

Staffing, Training And Appraisal Essay, Research Paper

Introduction

No matter the breadth or the depth of an organization, it will always have the inherent need for human resources. It is safe to say that without manpower, no organization in the world would exist. Recognizing not only the need for people, but more importantly, the need for skilled, efficient and loyal employees has been a key turning point in defining the role of the HR professional.

As the people people or organizations, today s HR professionals work in a wide variety of capacities as mediators, mentors, job analysts, and career planners to name a few. However, perhaps some of the most important and challenging functions of HR professionals are directly related to the recruitment, selection, training, and appraisal of the organization s employees (or potential employees as the case may be). It is up to HR manager or management team to create processes and methodologies in recruiting, training, and appraising its staff in such a way that it is congruent with the values, vision and culture of the organization.

This can be an enormous challenge especially in today s business world where companies are constantly acquiring and merging together forming whole new identities at an exponential rate. In dealing with the ambiguity of the corporate world HR professionals realize that it is not singular performance of each and every HR function that will assure the best human resources for their organizations, it is the alignment and integration of all of the HR functions that create an environment that empowers and encourages employee growth, competency, and loyalty.

Staffing

There are two main components of the staffing function, which are the recruitment and selection of potential employees. Recruitment, which involves all actions in attracting applicants from both inside and outside the organization, is one of the most pivotal roles of the HR professional. The bottom line in the recruiting effort is to attract the most qualified applicants for the needed positions by communicating the qualifications needed in order to fulfill the position.

With a constant cycle of mergers and acquisitions occurring around the globe involving some of the world s most monolithic organizations, the role of recruiter has changed vastly over the past few years. Because organizations are finding themselves more and more saturated with talented and highly competent employees, they are looking to fulfill vacant positions within the organization. This is also a very logical approach because existing employees are already well oriented with the policies and culture of the organization and do not need to undergo the orientation that an external hire would require.

In contrast, recruiters have also had to become much more creative and ultimately aggressive in recruiting potential applicants externally. With the introduction of the World Wide Web and the increase in competitiveness among universities, colleges and other post-secondary institutions, graduates are entering the business world with more knowledge, skills and insight than ever before, making them desirable assets to many organizations.

With the increase in popularity of job fairs, co-op programs and web-based career centers, recruiters are now equipped with the resources they need to seek out and entice the most qualified of applicants. At the same time, graduates and other people seeking employment have become empowered to seek out their most desirable positions, and are challenging recruiters with a much more proactive and aggressive approach themselves.

Once the recruiter has aptly performed the function of attracting qualified applicants, they then assume the role of selector . In this capacity, it is up to the HR professional to select the best possible applicants to fill the positions that are needed. Usually the selection process involves the consideration of three types of information:

1. Education, Work Experience and Background History

2. KSAO s Ability, Performance, Personality, Honesty/Integrity

3. Medical Condition or similar considerations physical and psychological health

The selection process also usually involves, the initial sharing of information, filling out and application, initial interview, the administration of any tests, a final interview (or secondary interview with potential colleagues), reference checks, and then the final selection is made. Although the selection process varies in different organizations, the underlying framework is usually the same.

Throughout the entire recruiting and selection processes, the HR professional must also use their intuition and consider the applicant using less tangible measurement methods, such as observing their mannerisms, understanding the applicants personal values and beliefs and what their extra-curricular interests are. Although an applicant is judged more on his or her qualifications and skills, as a selector , it is important for the HR professional to select someone whose values and beliefs are congruent with the company and who they feel would best fit within the culture of the organization.

If an HR professional is able to use their intuition and people skills effectively in attracting and selecting applicants, they are ultimately integrating and aligning their staffing ro