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Unlock This CourseWhen businesses need new employees, they must attract the right candidates and choose the best ones. This process starts with creating job advertisements that grab attention and clearly explain what the job involves. Once applications come in, employers use shortlisting to narrow down candidates to those most suitable for interview.
This is a crucial part of human resources management that can make or break a business's success. Get it right and you'll find brilliant employees who help your company grow. Get it wrong and you might end up with the wrong people or miss out on great talent.
Key Definitions:
Job advertisements are like shop windows - they're the first thing potential employees see about your business. A good advert attracts quality candidates, saves time in recruitment and helps build your company's reputation as a great place to work.
A brilliant job advert needs to do three main things: grab attention, provide clear information and encourage the right people to apply. Think of it like writing a dating profile - you want to be honest about what you're looking for whilst making yourself sound attractive!
Every job advert should include specific elements to be effective and legally compliant. Missing any of these could result in poor applications or even legal issues.
Clear, specific job title that accurately reflects the role. Include company name and brief description to build credibility and attract candidates who fit your culture.
Main duties and tasks the employee will perform. Use bullet points and action words like "manage," "develop," or "coordinate" to make it clear and engaging.
Essential qualifications, skills and experience needed. Separate "essential" from "desirable" to help candidates self-select appropriately.
Tesco's customer service assistant adverts include: clear job title, store location, flexible hours mention, key duties (serving customers, stock replenishment), essential skills (good communication, teamwork) and benefits (staff discount, pension). They use friendly language like "join our team" to create appeal whilst being specific about requirements.
Where you advertise depends on the type of job, your budget and who you want to reach. Different methods attract different types of candidates, so choosing the right approach is crucial for success.
Companies can look inside their organisation first (internal) or go straight to the public (external). Each approach has distinct advantages and challenges.
Methods: Company noticeboards, intranet, staff newsletters, team meetings
Advantages: Cheaper, motivates existing staff, candidate knows company culture, faster process
Disadvantages: Limited candidate pool, may create internal competition, no fresh ideas from outside
Methods: Job websites, newspapers, recruitment agencies, social media, university careers services
Advantages: Wider choice of candidates, fresh perspectives, new skills and ideas
Disadvantages: More expensive, longer process, candidates unfamiliar with company
The internet has revolutionised job advertising. Most job searching now happens online, making digital presence essential for attracting top talent.
Indeed, Reed, Monster - wide reach, cost-effective, easy application process. Popular with job seekers of all levels.
LinkedIn for professionals, Facebook for local roles, Twitter for tech jobs. Great for reaching passive candidates.
Careers page shows professionalism, attracts people specifically interested in your company, builds employer brand.
Once applications flood in, the real work begins. Shortlisting is about fairly and efficiently identifying candidates who best match your requirements. It's like being a talent scout - you need to spot potential winners from a crowd.
Before looking at any applications, establish clear criteria based on your person specification. This ensures fair, consistent decision-making and helps avoid discrimination.
M&S receives thousands of graduate applications annually. They use a structured shortlisting process: online application form, psychometric tests, assessment centre and final interviews. Each stage has specific criteria - academic achievement (2:1 degree minimum), leadership experience, commercial awareness and cultural fit. This systematic approach ensures they select candidates who'll succeed in their fast-paced retail environment.
Different approaches work for different situations. The key is being systematic, fair and focused on job-relevant criteria.
Use scoring systems based on essential criteria. Look for relevant experience, qualifications and evidence of required skills. Red flags include gaps in employment, frequent job changes, or poor spelling and grammar.
Focus on achievements rather than just duties. Look for progression, relevant experience and transferable skills. Be wary of generic CVs that don't address your specific requirements.
UK law protects people from discrimination in recruitment. Getting this wrong can result in legal action, bad publicity and missing out on great candidates from diverse backgrounds.
This law protects people from discrimination based on protected characteristics. Your job adverts and shortlisting must be fair and inclusive.
Specify age limits, gender preferences, or discriminate based on race, religion, disability, or sexual orientation unless there's a genuine occupational requirement.
Use inclusive language, focus on job-relevant criteria, offer reasonable adjustments for disabled candidates and ensure fair shortlisting processes.
Include equality statements, avoid unnecessary requirements, use diverse imagery and train staff involved in recruitment on equality principles.
A company advertised for "young, dynamic graduates" and was successfully sued for age discrimination. The word "young" suggested older candidates weren't welcome. The company had to pay compensation and change their recruitment practices. Better wording would be "enthusiastic graduates" or "energetic team players."
Technology is transforming how businesses advertise jobs and shortlist candidates. From AI-powered screening to video interviews, the recruitment landscape is rapidly evolving.
These computer systems help manage large numbers of applications efficiently. They can automatically screen CVs, rank candidates and track progress through the recruitment process.
Faster processing, consistent screening, better record keeping, reduced admin work and improved candidate experience through automated updates.
May miss creative CVs, can discriminate against certain formats, might overlook transferable skills and requires careful setup to work effectively.
Good businesses track their recruitment effectiveness to continuously improve. Key metrics help identify what's working and what needs changing.
Percentage of successful hires still employed after one year, performance ratings of new hires, cultural fit assessments.
Time to fill positions, cost per hire, number of applications per vacancy, shortlisting ratios.
Advertising costs, agency fees, internal time costs, cost of poor hires, return on recruitment investment.
John Lewis improved their graduate recruitment by analysing their process. They found their job adverts were too formal and weren't attracting diverse candidates. By using more inclusive language, advertising on diverse job boards and streamlining their application process, they increased applications by 40% and improved the diversity of their shortlisted candidates by 25%.