Employee selection process: what is it and why is it important

The employee selection process is fundamental for your organization since the employees will help you meet your objectives and goals.

If someone asks you: what is the most important asset your company has, the answer should be clear: people, that is, your human capital.

Most professionals, regardless of their profession, are faced at some point with managing people. And one of the most relevant elements in this regard is the personnel selection process because, if you do it effectively, you will have a clear competitive advantage, not only in terms of performance but also in terms of long-term strategies.

In fact, some say that most of an organization’s problems are caused by poor personnel selection.

In this post, we will try to define the selection process and describe its most important aspects.

---

---

What is an employee selection process?

The employee selection process (AKA personnel selection process)  is the process followed for hiring an employee in an organization. 

It starts when a person applies for a vacancy or when the recruiter has found an interesting profile and culminates with the hiring of a new co-worker. 

The objective of the process is to choose the most valuable candidate for the organization. However, everything between point A and point B may vary from company to company, as each has its own internal policies and recruiting methods.

Qualities, knowledge, skills, or experience to fill the vacancy demanded by the organization are evaluated by using personnel selection techniques and methods. In this way, the personnel selection process is the tool that the Human Resources area and the management apply to differentiate between qualified and unqualified candidates.

Why is employee selection important?

As we´ve mentioned before, the success of any organization depends on the quality of the selected personnel. Therefore, the selection procedure is one of the most critical HR department functions for the management of an organization. 

Some of the reasons why this process should be carried out in the best possible way are:

Personnel selection procedure helps get qualified workers…

Recruitment helps to hire only desirable candidates and is the key to creating a competitive team that really adds value to the company.

…and getting qualified workers helps to reduce costs

Hiring qualified and suitable candidates can save training costs as they will better understand work techniques. It also allows you to save time, which is always welcome.

Facilitates integration

Suppose you choose candidates who do not fit the company’s values or have the necessary soft skills. In that case, adaptation and integration problems are bound to arise.

After all, emotions are contagious, and those employees who are dissatisfied or do not adapt well can “contaminate” the rest of the team. 

In the same way, when we feel that we are in the right place the work environment is much more positive.

Reduces talent drain and boosts motivation

Proper personnel selection means that workers will be satisfied with their jobs. When interests are aligned, you get the people who are part of a specific project to acquire a sense of belonging that will make them want to grow together. In this way, you will build loyalty and prevent talent from leaving.

Main personnel selection methods

These are the most commonly used methods in personnel selection processes:

Interview	Employers ask candidates some questions about their work experience to determine whether or not they have the skills and attitudes required for the vacancy.
Psychometric test	Evaluates a person’s personality and attitudes (for example, cognitive ability) to determine if they have the potential for the position being applied. In this way, the employer can get to know the candidate better.
Employee selection test	These are tests related to the knowledge required for the position. For example, a skills test to measure the candidate’s ability to operate machinery, use some software, teach a class, etc.
Simulated situations	This technique is intended to place the candidate in an ordinary that they may face in the job. This can be done by simply stating the case and asking the candidate to act accordingly.
STAR method	STAR stands for “situation, tasks, actions, and results”,  This method helps to create an easy-to-follow story with an apparent conflict and resolution.

SMOWL helps to raise the reliability of your processes to a new level

As you can see, the importance of a good employee selection process is huge for your company, and this process and methods should receive a trustworthy and quality follow-up. 

That’s why we recommend adding an extra security layer to your online personnel selection process.

How? 

At SMOWL we have just what you need: a proctoring tool that will guarantee the identity of your candidates at all times. Combining the mentioned personnel selection techniques with our security system will raise the reliability of your processes to a new level.

Contact us, try SMOWL and turn your employee selection process into something much more reliable.

---

---