Recruitment and selection: what are they, and what are their differences?

The concepts of recruitment and personnel selection, as well as their differences and the procedures they entail, contain so many varied nuances that it is essential to know them to have a global vision as close as possible to reality.

To shed some light on these terms, we have prepared an article in which we will answer the questions mentioned above and others that are directly related to recruitment and selection.

Let’s analyze the importance of recruitment and selection.

What are recruitment and selection concepts?

Recruitment and selection of personnel is a process through which a potential candidate for a specific vacant position for an organization is identified.

Both the recruitment and selection of personnel are carried out according to a previous strategy and planning designed to ensure that the volume of human capital required is adequate for the company to be competitive.

The company’s Human Resources (HR) department will generally carry out the entire process. Suppose the company does not have its own department. In that case, it will outsource the process to an external recruitment and selection agency that will lead the process according to the needs and considerations set by the company.

How does recruitment differ from personnel selection?

The main differences between recruitment and selection of personnel in a company occur for the following reasons: 

• Position in the process phase. 
• Need -or not- of coordination with the HR department. 
• Actions involved.

Let’s look at them in more detail.

Position in the process phase

The position in the onboarding phase of the process makes a substantial difference between the recruitment and selection of personnel. 

Thus, recruitment is in the initial phase, while personnel selection is in the final phases of the process.

In other words, it is not until the recruitment actions have been completed that the personnel selection process can begin, from which the chosen candidate(s) will emerge. 

Need -or not- of coordination with the HR department

Although on many occasions the list of candidates has its origin in the procedure implemented by the Human Resources department, on many other occasions, there are situations in which the candidates themselves send their profiles to the companies or recruitment agencies, spontaneously and without being associated with any open and ongoing selection process.

Actions involved

In the recruitment phase, potential candidates are detected and evaluated, while in the personnel selection phase, the necessary actions are taken to ensure that the candidate fills the vacancies.

Other differences

In addition to the above, there are other differences related.

Recruiting vs Selection

What phases are involved in the recruitment and selection of personnel?

In order to have an overall view, we will now take a look at the stages of the process for each of them.

What is recruitment like in a company?

Recruitment begins when the need for a profile to fill a vacancy is detected. 

The next step will be to draft a job description that will mark the limits of the professional profile of the applicants. 

With the professional profile clarified, the search for candidates begins, either internally or externally.

This leads to the presentation and collection of CVs that will determine whether the candidate is suitable or unsuitable. 

And here begins a new phase which is the selection phase.

What is personnel selection like in a company?

Suitable candidates will move on to the next stage of the recruitment process, where they will be screened through a selection test. 

With the results obtained from this selection, a second screening will be carried out in order to draw up a short list of candidates who will go on to the selection interview.

Once the interview is completed, the results of each test are evaluated, credentials are verified, and a decision is made among all the candidates to whom an offer will be made.

Final considerations

Associated with the digital transformation process in which we live immersed, many companies and employment agencies have correctly interpreted the need to incorporate digital versions of recruitment and personnel selection into their procedures. 

This means that in order to avoid fraud and bad practices, it is necessary to implement a series of process control and debugging measures. 

Aware of this problem, at Smowltech, we have designed a series of specific and customized proctoring solutions to meet the demands of our clients. 

Access our free demo and see first-hand the advantages of contracting our products and services.