SELECTION

Selection is a process which involves choosing the most suitable candidates from those that apply for a vacancy, whilst keeping to employment terms and regulations.

“Tesco is a major international company with many job opportunities, including management, graduate, school leaver and apprentice posts. Tesco needs to have people with the right skills and behaviours to support its growth and development. Tesco has clear organisational structures, detailed job descriptions and person specifications. It provides user-friendly ways of applying for jobs and a consistent approach to recruitment and selection. This means it can manage its changing demand for staff.” (The Times 100, 2011)

Screening at Tesco

Screening candidates is a very important part of the selection process. This ensures that those selected for interview have the best fit with the job requirements. In the first stage of screening, the recruiters will look carefully at each applicant’s CV. A well- written and good looking CV helps Tesco to assess whether an applicant matches the person specification for the job. The advantage of the screening process is that an organisation gets an overview of the candidate and sees what he/she has achieved in the past according to the CV. On the other hand, the candidate can be lying in their CV and get selected to go through to the next stage, whereas someone else, with a better CV, may miss out; this is a drawback.

Assessment centres at Tesco

A candidate who passes screening attends an assessment centre. The assessment centres take place in store and are run by managers. They help to provide consistency in the selection process. Applicants are given various exercises, including team-working activities or problem solving exercises. The advantages of using assessment centres in the selection process are they not only help the firm in placing the right candidate for the right job but also help in developing the candidates. In addition, it is regarded as a fair means of assessment by the candidates themselves. Assessment centres have fair few disadvantages though on the long run, they prove very useful to the company by saving it the cost of false decisions. One of the disadvantages is that assessment centres can be very time consuming and is costly. Moreover, they require highly skilled experts to observe and they may have their own biased opinions whilst evaluating the candidates. Unsuccessful candidates who receive poor assessments may lose self belief in their abilities through de-motivation. (The Times 100, 2011)

Interviews at Tesco

Candidates approved by the internal assessment centres then have an interview. Line managers for the job on offer take part in the interview to make sure that the candidate fits the job requirements. There are several benefits when it comes to using interviews as a selection process. The employer is able to judge the candidate by their first impression and also see the way the candidate approaches the questions and how they communicate. On the other hand, interviewers can be biased and discriminate against certain groups.  

“Workforce planning is vital if a business is to meet its future demands for staff. It allows a business time to train existing staff to take on new responsibilities and to recruit new staff to fill vacancies or to meet skill shortages.” (The Times 100, 2011)

EXPERIENCE OF AN INTERVIEW WHEN I APPLIED FOR A PART TIME JOB

During the end of last year, I applied for a part time job at Chocolate Box, which is based in Heathrow Terminals 1 and 5. I was successful with my application and was called in for an interview. It was my first real interview and some nerves were creeping in. The interview process was rigorous and effective because the questions being asked related specifically to the job and what qualities I brought to the company. The interviewer, who was the manager of Chocolate Box, seemed impressed by my responses, though I seemed hesitant at first to make sure I think well before answering the questions. The interviewer was impressed with the personality I had shown along with the way I spoke and my overall gesture. This being my first proper interview, I managed to gain knowledge on how interviews work and what to expect when I have any other interviews in the future.

The ways in which Tesco can improve its selection process is by using several other methods of selection. Referencing is one of the ways in which they can do this; it helps them decide on which candidates are best for the job as they can get details of the applicant from past employers or someone (non-blood related) who knows the candidate thoroughly well. Through referencing, they will be able to get honest personal views which will help towards deciding which candidate to select. Another way in which the selection process can be improved is by having more than one interviewer. This may be because if one interviewer forgets to ask something important, the other interviewer is on hand to ask the question. Also, at the end of the interview, they may have different views on the applicant and take enough time to make judgements as a team.

REFERENCES

The Times 100 (2011) Tesco Selection Process [online] Available from:

http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/case-study--recruitment-and-selection--132-323-5.php

M.Simpson, 2011, powerpoint presentation.