Recruitment Meaning ,definitions & types

Govt. college for Girls,Sector-11,Chandigarh

•Recruitment is the cornerstone of the whole public Personnel structure. •It is the entry point of the persons and it determines the quality and efficiency of Civil Services •Stahl says unless recruitment policy is soundly conceived there can be a little hope of building first rate staff. •Administration has become more and more Complicated and complex due to technological progress

• Therefore, Heads of the organization needs to pay utmost attention to the process of recruitment.

Background : • Merit principle of recruitment in India was first introduced

in the year 1953 by East India Company. • Before merit system three main systems existed in the

different countries of the world. (1) Sale of Offices practiced in pre-revolutionary France

enabled the rich people to acquire the govt .posts. Freed the govt. from patronage, favoritism and political interference.

(2) Patronage System followed in Britain and other countries chose candidates by favoring them on personal( family,kinship,relations and personal loyalities) or political grounds (political links)

(3) Spoils System followed in the U.S.A. considered the appointments in the govt. as spoils for the party winning the elections

• Democratic sentiments and increasing complexity of administration has made the above mentioned methods of recruitment outdated.

• Recruitment on the bases of ability and merit has now been widely accepted by almost all the countries of the world.

• Meaning and definitions: • Recruitment is a process of finding suitable prospective employees by

stimulating them to apply for jobs in the organisation.

• According to Marshall E. Dimock recruitment means “ Securing the right people for the right jobs and it may take the form of advertising for large groups of employees or tracking out a highly skilled individual for special work”

• L.D.White observes, “Recruitment in short revolves around the problem of attracting the best not the most…..the task is one jointly for the Civil Service Commission and for the operating departments…..Recruitment involves more than mere announcement and passive acceptance to meet the requirements of the public service.it must be active,searching,selective,persistent and continuous”

• Types of Recruitment

1.Direct Recruitment or Indirect Recruitment 2.Positive or Negative Recruitment 3.Mass Recruitment or Individual Recruitment Direct Recruitment or Indirect Recruitment • Direct Recruitment means filling up vacant

posts by suitable and qualified candidates available in the open market through competitive examinations conducted by Union Public Service Commission.

• Indirect Recruitment means filling up vacant posts by suitable and experienced candidates who are already in govt. service.

Advantages of Direct Recruitment • Provides equal opportunities to all qualified

persons for entry into public sevice. • Brings in new blood into the service with their

new ideas and outlooks. • Helps youth from University and Colleges to join

public service career. • Checks stagnation in public services.

• Suitable for technical and professional fields as they require latest knowledge which the young men can easily supply.

• Motivates the employees already in service to keep abreast of new developments so as to match the talent of young people for filling up of higher posts.

Disadvantages of Direct Recruitment • No previous administrative experience. • Prolonged and intensive training has to be given to

young recruits. • Use of direct recruitment for filling up higher posts kills

the initiative of employees already in service.

• Causes jealousy and heart burning among the senior and experienced employees.

• Increases the burden on recruiting agencies. Advantages of Indirect Recruitment(By Promotion) • Provides enough incentive to work as promotion is

guaranteed by well defined conditions of service. • Gradual advancement from junior to a higher level is a good

form of compensation. • Direct recruitment is no guarantee for securing efficient

employees for senior positions. • No system of examination can be foolproof or satisfactory in

discovering the best talent among the fresh candidates.

• Reduces the burden and expenses of the Public Service Commissions.

• Utilization of hardwork, efficiency and experience of the employees already in job.

• Promotions are essential aspect of ‘Career Service’.

Disadvantages of Indirect Recruitment

• Leads to inbreeding and discourages new blood from entering an organisation.

• Narrows the area of selection.

• Gives opportunities to persons already in service.

• Internal source may dry up.

• Seniority does not always mean selecting capable hands.

• Fear of stagnation and conservatism.

No one system can be adopted exclusively. A good recruitment policy should combine the two methods to achieve best results. In almost all the countries, including India, both the methods of recruitment are followed.

2. Positive and Negative Recruitment • Active search by the recruiting agency for the best qualified

and most competent candidates for appointment is Positive Recruitment.

• Keeping unqualified and unfit candidates without playing an active role in attracting the best candidates is Negative Recruitment.

3. Mass or Individual Recruitment

• Mass Recruitment techniques are adopted for non-technical , non-specialised posts of general nature.

• Individual Recruitment is made for particular posts requiring specialized knowledge, skill or technical knowhow and experience.