What Is Selection in Staffing?

Selection is the stage of the recruiting cycle at which managers choose candidates who will be offered employment from the applicant pool. The selection process varies greatly, depending on the size of the hiring organization, the number of applicants and the amount of available positions.

The terms recruitment and selection are often heard used together when discussing human resources or staffing. Recruitment is the effort of attracting applicants, while selection is the process of determining which of the applicants will be offered a job. The two steps may be conducted by the same person or be split between departments. In larger companies, the human resources department typically handles recruitment, while the department with the vacant positions makes the selection.

The selection process begins with a review of applications or résumés to eliminate applicants who do not have the required skills or experience. Next, the candidates who meet the basic qualifications are screened, often by a combination of phone screenings, email communications or face-to-face interviews. Background checks, drug screens, employment and reference verification and skills testing may also be part of the process, which concludes when a hiring decision has been reached.

Many tools are available to help streamline selection. Many companies require electronic applications that can be set to screen out those without the required skills or education. Use of social networking sites can significantly speed up verifying employment and checking references. If multiple interviews are involved in the selection process, aligning the schedules of key managers in advance can speed up interviewing, which is the phase where most slowdowns occur.

Be sure your selection process does not unintentionally screen out candidates based on racial or gender or other characteristics that come under the jurisdiction of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. This is especially important when using social media as a tool in recruiting, as social media allows for the determination of race, gender, age and disability and has been a focus in recent EEOC violation complaints.