EDEXCEL GCSE BUSINESS · PAPER 2
Recruitment
Making human resource decisions · Lesson 2 of 4
Last Lesson
Answer from memory before the answers appear.
1. What is a flat structure?
Few levels of hierarchy and wide spans of control.
2. What is decentralisation?
Passing decision-making down to managers and staff lower down.
3. Give one barrier to communication.
Too many levels, jargon, distance or attitudes.
4. What is a freelance worker?
Someone self-employed and hired for specific jobs.
Learning Objectives
1. Explain the different job roles within a business.
2. Explain job analysis, job descriptions and person specifications.
3. Explain application forms and CVs.
4. Compare internal and external recruitment.
Roles Within a Business
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Directors Set the business's overall aims and strategy, and are responsible to the owners. |
Senior managers Turn the strategy into plans and run major parts of the business. |
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Supervisors and team leaders Organise and oversee teams of staff day to day. |
Operational staff Carry out the business's main work - making products, serving customers. |
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Support staff Help the business run smoothly - IT, cleaning, reception, administration. |
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Why Recruit?
Businesses need to recruit when:
▸ The business grows. A new branch, product or market needs more staff.
▸ Staff leave. Employees retire, resign or are promoted.
▸ New skills are needed. New technology or new activities need people with skills the business lacks.
▸ Getting it right matters. The wrong person is costly: poor work, low morale and the expense of recruiting again.
PART ONE
Recruitment Documents
Describing the job, and the person to do it.
The Recruitment Process
From a vacancy to a new employee.
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1 Job analysis Studying the job to identify its tasks, responsibilities and the skills needed. |
2 Job description and person specification Writing down what the job involves and what the ideal person is like. |
3 Advertise Internally or externally, where suitable candidates will see it. |
4 Shortlist Compare application forms and CVs with the person specification. |
5 Select Interviews, tests or trial shifts, then an offer to the best candidate. |
Job Description or Person Specification?
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JOB DESCRIPTION |
PERSON SPECIFICATION |
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▸ Describes the job. ▸ Job title and where it fits in the structure. ▸ The main tasks and responsibilities. ▸ Who the job holder reports to. ▸ Hours, pay and working conditions. |
▸ Describes the ideal person for the job. ▸ Qualifications needed. ▸ Skills and experience. ▸ Personal qualities, such as being a team player. ▸ Split into essential and desirable criteria. |
Application Forms and CVs
How candidates apply.
▸ Application form. A form designed by the business, so every candidate gives the same information - easy to compare.
▸ Curriculum vitae (CV). A document written by the candidate summarising their education, skills and experience.
▸ Covering letter. A letter explaining why the candidate wants the job and suits it.
▸ Shortlisting. The business compares applications with the person specification to decide whom to interview.
Finding the Right Person
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An interview lets the business check what a CV cannot show - how a candidate communicates, how they answer questions and whether they would fit the team. The questions come straight from the person specification. |
Interviews test candidates against the person specification. |
PART TWO
Internal or External?
Look inside the business, or outside it?
Internal or External Recruitment?
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INTERNAL RECRUITMENT |
EXTERNAL RECRUITMENT |
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▸ Filling a vacancy with someone already working for the business. ▸ Cheaper and quicker: no expensive advertising. ▸ The business already knows the person's abilities. ▸ Motivates staff, who see a chance of promotion. ▸ But: no new ideas, and it leaves another vacancy to fill. |
▸ Filling a vacancy with someone from outside the business. ▸ A much wider choice of candidates. ▸ Brings in new ideas, skills and experience. ▸ But: more expensive and slower. ▸ Riskier, as the business does not know the person, and existing staff may feel overlooked. |
Methods of External Recruitment
Where businesses advertise vacancies.
▸ Online job websites. Reach large numbers of candidates quickly.
▸ Social media. Cheap, and can target people with the right interests and skills.
▸ Recruitment agencies. Find and screen candidates for the business, for a fee.
▸ Local newspapers and job centres. Reach local candidates, often for operational roles.
Case Study
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CASE STUDY Pret: The Team Votes Pret A Manger, the sandwich and coffee chain, has long used an unusual final stage in recruiting shop staff. After an interview, candidates spend a paid trial day - a "Job Experience Day" - working in a shop alongside the team. At the end of the day the team votes on whether the candidate should be offered the job. Pret believes the people who work in a shop are best placed to judge who will fit in, and that staff who help choose their colleagues work better together. |
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Trial day Candidates work a real shift before being hired |
Team vote The shop team decides who joins them |
Key Terms
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Recruitment The process of finding and selecting new employees. |
Job analysis Identifying the tasks, responsibilities and skills a job needs. |
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Job description A document describing the job's title, tasks, responsibilities and conditions. |
Person specification A document describing the qualifications, skills, experience and qualities of the ideal candidate. |
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Application form A standard form candidates complete to apply for a job. |
Curriculum vitae (CV) A document summarising a candidate's education, skills and experience. |
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Internal recruitment Filling a vacancy with an existing employee. |
External recruitment Filling a vacancy with someone from outside the business. |
Your Task: Write the Documents
15 minutes
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A popular café needs a new shift supervisor. Write a short job description (title, main tasks, who they report to, hours) and a person specification with three essential and two desirable criteria. Then decide whether the café should recruit internally or externally, and why. 1. Write the job description. 2. Write the person specification. 3. Choose internal or external, and justify it. |
A good answer shows: A clear job description and a person specification split into essential and desirable, plus a justified recruitment choice.
Can I...?
☐ Describe the different job roles.
☐ Explain job analysis.
☐ Explain a job description.
☐ Explain a person specification.
☐ Explain application forms and CVs.
☐ Explain internal recruitment.
☐ Explain external recruitment.
☐ Compare internal and external recruitment.
Summary
✓ Roles: directors, senior managers, supervisors, operational staff and support staff.
✓ Job analysis leads to a job description (the job) and a person specification (the person).
✓ Candidates apply with application forms or CVs.
✓ Internal recruitment is cheaper and motivating; external brings new ideas and a wider choice.
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EXAM FOCUS Explain one benefit to a business of recruiting internally. (3 marks) Don't confuse the documents: the job description is about the job, the person specification is about the person. |