Personnel selection: 10 keys to choose the best employee

In the world of Human Resources, it is necessary to know the best methods for recruiting workers.

Human capital is, without a doubt, the great driving force of the company. Personnel selection processes are key to the success or failure of an organization. for an organization to be successful or not. Choosing the right candidates to fill the different positions in the company will be decisive for the good performance of the workers and the company's performance. Choosing the wrong candidates is also a great expense.

Some consequences of a bad personnel selection process are the following:

• Dissatisfaction of the workers and bad performance of these.
• Problems of adaptation and integration.
• Increased turnover.
• Higher cost in training and new selection processes.
• Losses for the company and worse results.
• Poor working environment.

Keys to a successful selection process

To avoid these negative consequences, it is possible to follow a number of steps to make the recruitment process effective.. We see them in the following lines.

1. Detect the needs

The first step to achieve success in the personnel selection process is to define well the position to be filled.. This basic task, which may seem like common sense to HR experts, may not be so common sense to those individuals who have not received training in this field. Strange as it may seem, there are still people who use the classic interview system, so they do not analyze in detail the needs of the position, nor do they thoroughly prepare the recruitment process.

The first step, therefore, is to have a thorough understanding of the tasks performed in the job and the skills needed by an individual who wants to work in that position. Key information will need to be gathered, such as the purpose of the workplace, the functions performed there, the requirements demanded, and the competencies and skills that a worker must possess in order to perform well in the job. to be able to perform well in the job.

Getting to know the job position can be done a few weeks before the interview or, ideally, by drawing up the organization's competency catalog, in which all jobs are where all jobs are well defined and stored for possible future selection processes. The job description is key to be able to evaluate the competencies of the candidates in the interview and to know what to ask them in order to extract the maximum of useful information.

2. Plan it

Another key to success in a recruitment process is good planning. Some companies have implemented a comprehensive human resources plan, which takes into account the processes of selection, training, remuneration, etc., and which greatly facilitates personnel management at all levels. This makes it easier to identify needs and to plan for and to be able to plan an improvement, for example, in the training of certain employees. training of certain employees, for example. When this is not the case, it is necessary to plan the selection process to know how it will be carried out. However, always after having assessed the needs.

3. Take into account the organization's needs

A personnel selection process takes into account three key elements. On the one hand, the job position, which, as I have already mentioned, must be well defined. A second key element is the employee, since the competencies he or she possesses must match the requirements of the position.

But the third element, and no less important, is the organization, since each company is different and has its own values, work environment and way of working. has its own values, its own work climate and its own way of working.. Workers must not only fit the job, but also the organization and its culture. Knowing the company in depth is also key to be able to evaluate candidates who aspire to a job within the company.

4. Evaluate competencies

What differentiates classic selection processes from modern ones is the concept of competencies, which arose from the need to assess not only the set of knowledge, skills and abilities that an individual possesses, but also his or her ability to use his or her skills to respond to specific situations and solve problems that may arise. solve problems that may arise in the work environment. Competencies also take into account the attitudinal and evaluative component that is present in the actions of workers.

This concept includes four distinct dimensions:

• Knowing how to be: this is the personal element. These are the attitudes and values that guide an individual's behavior.
• Knowing: this is the technical element. The studies or knowledge that the person possesses.
• Knowing how to do: is the methodological element or the capacity to apply the knowledge: the ways of acting, the abilities, skills....
• Knowing how to be: this is the participative element and the capacity for interpersonal communication and teamwork.

The competencies help us to evaluate if the person fits in the position and also in the organization. in the position and also in the organization.

5. Detect the talent of your own company

Sometimes it is not necessary to look for talent outside the company because what we have in the company is good. Think of an employee who has been with the organization for 10 years and knows better than anyone how the company works. Maybe he is ready to perform better in another position, or it is possible to train him to work in another job where he can be even more useful to the company. Detecting talent is the key to internal promotion. The company wins and so does the employee, who feels valued.

6. Immerse yourself in the digital world and look for passive candidates.

Traditional recruitment methods are generally based on what is known as active candidate, since the company expects the resumes of the person interested in the position to arrive. The classic method is to post an offer, for example, on a job search website, where the candidates themselves take care of sending the CV to the company.

On the other hand, with the emergence of the 2.0 world, a new way of recruiting has appearedThis is the search for passive candidates by headhunters, something that works very well for certain positions, for example, senior positions. The passive candidate, normally, does not have the need to change jobs, but it is a talent that is usually highly valued.

7. Use the necessary tests and questionnaires

The most efficient recruitment processes include a variety of tests and questionnaires to select the right candidates for the jobs they offer. The job interview can be a good tool to get to know the applicant, but relying on this method alone may not be entirely reliable.

This is why it is possible to use different tests (e.g. role-playing games) or psycho-technical tests to determine the professional aptitude of candidates, to know their personality and to evaluate their motivation.

• You can learn about the different tests that exist in this article: "Types of recruitment tests and questionnaires".

8 Prepare the interview

As I said, knowing the needs of the position, planning the selection process, and using the competencies method is essential to get the most out of the job interview. Knowing exactly what competencies we need will allow us to recognize and measure them in each candidate we interview, and to do this we must plan an interview that is adapted to each case. In addition, this will allow us to compare the different applicants for the position and draw more reliable conclusions.

9. Pay attention to the incorporation

The selection process does not end with the selection and hiring of the candidate, but the incorporation to the job must also be an aspect to be taken into account to achieve success in this task. It is necessary that the candidate gets to know the company in depth and integrates correctly with colleagues and the culture of the organization so that he/she feels at ease and performs the functions in the best way possible. perform the functions in the best possible way..

10. Follow up

Follow-up is also key in the selection process, and evaluate the candidate in the short and medium term, through satisfaction surveys or performance appraisalsIt is essential to know if the choice we have made has been the right one.