CHP 5 – Personal Planning and Recruiting – Flashcards

Workforce or employment or personnel planning is the process of deciding what positions the firm will have to fill, and how to fill them. Its aim is to identify and address the gaps between the employer's workforce today, and the firm's projected workforce needs.

First, the employer will analyze the company's needs with employment planning and forecasting results. Then, a pool of candidates will be found through various ways. Next, applicants will apply to slated positions. Selection tools are then used to screen out unqualified candidates and pool the candidates that most fit the job positions. Next, the interviews will take place and the final choice from the candidates will be chosen.

This is an example of a workforce planning system, typical of what Towers Watson consulting firm would use in analyzing the client's business plan and workforce data. This type of analysis will help with projections and to better understand business plan changes that influence headcount and skills requirements within jobs. Systems like this help with what is called succession planning. Succession planning is the ongoing process of systematically identifying, assessing, and developing organizational leadership to enhance performance.

Systems like this help with what is called succession planning. Succession planning is the ongoing process of systematically identifying, assessing, and developing organizational leadership to enhance performance.

Managers consider several factors when forecasting personnel needs. From a practical point of view, the demand for the product or service is paramount. Thus, in manufacturing firms, sales are projected first. Then the volume of production needed to meet sales requirements is determined. Finally, the staff needed to maintain this volume of output is estimated.

Trend analysis is the study of a firm's past employment needs over a period of years to predict future needs. Trend analysis provides an initial rough estimate of future staffing needs.

Ratio analysis is a forecasting technique for determining future staff needs by using ratios between, for example, sales volume and number of employees needed. Ratio analysis assumes that things like productivity remain about the same. If sales productivity were to rise or fall, the ratio of sales to salespeople would change.

Scatter plot is a graphical method used to help identify the relationship between two variables. In forecasts of business activity (like sales), you should also be able to estimate your personnel needs.

Computerized forecasts enable managers to build more variables into their personnel projections. Computerized systems and Excel spreadsheets quickly translate estimates of projected productivity and sales levels into forecastable personnel requirements. Store traffic and staffing retail stores is one example used in these computerized estimates.

Managerial judgment is also an important phenomenon when predicting staffing needs. Few historical trends, ratios, or relationships will continue unchanged into the future. Judgment is then needed to modify the forecast. Important factors that may modify your initial forecast of personnel requirements include decisions to upgrade quality or to enter into new markets.

The recruiting yield pyramid is the historical arithmetic relationships between recruitment leads and invitees, invitees and interviews, interviews and offers made, and offers made and offers accepted. Filling even a few positions might require recruiting dozens or hundreds of candidates.

Applicant tracking systems are online systems that help employers attract, gather, screen, compile, and manage applicants. Other services such as requisitions management, applicant data collection, and reporting are also used by companies. Many companies use third party companies to handle such services.

There are three main types of employment agencies: 1) public agencies operated by federal, state, or local governments; 2) agencies associated with nonprofit organizations; and 3) privately owned agencies.

Alternative Staffing: - Contract Employees - Offshoring and Outsourcing Jobs

Using contract employees is one such means. Temporary employees (contract workers) are examples of alternative staffing. Even if companies use contract employees through third-party staffing firms, the companies are still liable for illegal contract workers. The employer's liability depends on the degree to which its supervisors control the temp employee's activities, so the more the agency does, the better. Many third-party staffing firms handle the training, and negotiate the salaries or pay rate.

On-demand recruiting services are services that provide short-term specialized recruiting to support specific projects without the expense of retaining traditional search firms.