ABSTRACT

The value of personnel selection is based upon two premises. The first premise is that there are differences between people and that these differences lead to discernible differences in the work that people perform. Unlike hardware components, which tend to be uniform in appearance, reliability, function and performance, human beings are extremely variable (see Chapter 8). The richness of this variation makes the study of people interesting, but can make the task of selecting people to perform specific functions to a required performance standard quite difficult. The infinite variety of manifestations in skill, knowledge, ability, interest, motivation and experience possessed by personnel needs to be matched in an appropriate manner to the tasks they are required to perform. The second premise of personnel selection is that it is entirely possible to measure the differences between candidates on criteria that are relevant to job performance. This can be extended to make predictions about how well each candidate is likely to perform the job for which they are being selected. Personnel selection is about choosing the best person for a particular job. Not necessarily the most qualified or the most experienced, but the most suitable. The extent to which the selection process is carried out is determined by a cost-benefit analysis (although it may not be formalised). For example, the recruitment of an unskilled manual labourer may be on a first-come-first-served basis, whereas the selection of a fighter pilot is through an extensive testing and selection process. The cost of failure in the selection of a labourer is relatively small, whereas it can cost £2.5 million to train a fighter pilot, and normally up to £1.5 million is spent before it is absolutely certain that they will succeed. In between these extremes a clerical worker is likely to go through a less intensive selection procedure than a person recruited into management. Selection procedures range from a single interview to complete assessment centres which may last a period of several days. Effort expended upon selection pays off most when the demands placed upon the job holder are likely to be high, there are distinguishable differences between

candidates, and the selection methods are both reliable and valid (Cook, 1988). These principles will be explored further within the chapter.