A Case Study on Recruitment & Selection- The HR aspect in Retail

Authored by:
(Ms.) Merlyn Mascarenhas
email id: merlyn_mas@yahoo.co.in / Mobile no: 9892863320
Faculty - Human Resource Management
IES Management College and Research Centre.
‘ Vi s h w a k a r m a ’ M . D . L o t l i k a r Vi d y a S a n k u l , P l o t N o . 7 9 1 , S . K . M a r g ,
Bandra Reclamation, Mumbai – 400050

ABSTRACT:

The Indian retail market is of enormous size about US$ 401 billion. But organized retail is not so
huge and it is at only US$ 24.1 billion. However, the opportunity for growth is huge —by 2015,
retail industry is expected to grow to US$ 804.06 billion. The Recruitment and Selection
function of human resources has special significance in retail as the employees operate in a
distinctive environment. This paper focuses on the recruitment and selection function in the
Indian Retail Industry with specific emphasis on a live case.

INTRODUCTION:

Introduction to the Recruitment and Selection function

Every organisation has the option of choosing the candidates for its recruitment processes from
two kinds of sources: internal and external sources. The sources within the organisation itself
(like transfer of employees from one department to other, promotions) to fill a position are
known as the internal sources of recruitment. Recruitment of candidates from all the other
sources (like outsourcing agencies etc.) are known as the external sources of recruitment.

Some of the External Sources of Recruitment are given below:

1. PRESS ADVERTISEMENTS: Advertisements of the vacancy in newspapers and journals are

a widely used source of recruitment. The main advantage of this method is that it has a wide
reach.
2. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTES: Various management institutes, engineering colleges,
medical Colleges etc. are a good source of recruiting well qualified executives, engineers,
medical staff etc. They provide facilities for campus interviews and placements. This source is
known as Campus Recruitment.

3. PLACEMENT AGENCIES: Several private consultancy firms perform recruitment functions

on behalf of client companies by charging a fee. These agencies are particularly suitable for
recruitment of executives and specialists. It is also known as RPO (Recruitment Process
Outsourcing)
4. EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGES: Government establishes public employment exchanges
throughout the country. These exchanges provide job information to job seekers and help
employers in identifying suitable candidates.

5. LABOUR CONTRACTORS: Manual workers can be recruited through contractors who

maintain close contacts with the sources of such workers. This source is used to recruit labour for
construction jobs.

6. UNSOLICITED APPLICANTS: Many job seekers visit the office of well-known companies
on their own. Such callers are considered nuisance to the daily work routine of the enterprise.
But can help in creating the talent pool or the database of the probable candidates for the
organisation.

7. EMPLOYEE REFERRALS / RECOMMENDATIONS: Many organisations have structured

system where the current employees of the organisation can refer their friends and relatives for
some position in their organisation. Also, the office bearers of trade unions are often aware of the
suitability of candidates. Recruitment Management can inquire these leaders for suitable jobs. In
some organizations these are formal agreements to give priority in recruitment to the candidates
recommended by the trade union.

8. RECRUITMENT AT FACTORY GATE: Unskilled workers may be recruited at the factory

gate these may be employed whenever a permanent worker is absent. More efficient among these
may be recruited to fill permanent vacancies.
Some of the Internal Sources of Recruitment are given below:

1. TRANSFERS: The employees are transferred from one department to another according to
their efficiency and experience.

2. PROMOTIONS: The employees are promoted from one department to another with more
benefits and greater responsibility based on efficiency and experience.

3. Others are UPGRADING and DEMOTION of present employees according to their

performance.

4. RETIRED and RETRENCHED employees may also be recruited once again in case of
shortage of qualified personnel or increase in load of work. Recruitment of such people save time
and costs of the organisations as the people are already aware of the organisational culture and
the policies and procedures.

5. The DEPENDENTS and RELATIVES OF DECEASED EMPLOYEES and DISABLED

EMPLOYEES are also done by many companies so that the members of the family do not
become dependent on the mercy of others.

According to Thomas Stone “Selection is the process of differentiating between applicants in

order to identify and hire those with a greater likelihood of success on the jobs.”

In simple words, “It is the functions perform by the management of selecting the right employees
at the right time after identifying the sources of human resources, searching for prospective
employees and stimulating them to apply for jobs in an organization.” The objective of the
selection decision is to choose the individual who can most successfully perform the job from the
pool of qualified candidates.

Both recruitment and selection are the two phases of the employment process. The differences
between the two are as follows:

1. Recruitment is the process of searching the candidates for employment and stimulating them
to apply for jobs in the organisation whereas selection involves the series of steps by which the
candidates are screened for choosing the most suitable persons for vacant posts.
2. The basic purpose of recruitments is to create a talent pool of candidates to enable the
selection of best candidates for the organisation, by attracting more and more employees to apply
in the organisation whereas the basic purpose of selection process is to choose the right candidate
to fill the various positions in the organization.

3. Recruitment is a positive process i.e. encouraging more and more employees to apply whereas
selection is a negative process as it involves rejection of the unsuitable candidates.
4. Recruitment is concerned with tapping the sources of human resources whereas selection is
concerned with selecting the most suitable candidate through various interviews and tests.
5. There is no contract of recruitment established in recruitment whereas selection results in a
contract of service between the employer and the selected employee.

Thus the Recruitment and Selection function has been discussed comprehensively.

Introduction to the Retail Sector in India

Retail is India’s largest industry, accounting for over 10 percent of the country’s GDP and around
8 percent of the employment. Retail industry in India is at the crossroads. It has emerged as one
of the most dynamic and fast paced industries with several players entering the market. But
because of the heavy initial investments required, break even is difficult to achieve and many of
these players have not tasted success so far. However the future is promising; the market is
growing, government policies are becoming more favourable and emerging technologies are
facilitating operations. Retailing in India is gradually inching its way toward becoming the next
boom industry. The whole concept of shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer
buying behaviour, ushering in a revolution in shopping in India. Modern retail has entered India
as seen in sprawling shopping centres, multi-storeyed malls and huge complexes offer shopping,
entertainment and food all under one roof. The Indian retailing sector is at an inflexion point
where the growth of organized retailing and growth in the consumption by the Indian population
is going to take a higher growth trajectory. The Indian population is witnessing a significant
change in its demographics. A large young working population with average age of 24 years,
nuclear families in urban areas, along with increasing working-women population and emerging
opportunities in the services sector are going to be the key growth drivers of the organized retail
sector in India.
OBJECTIVE:

The objective of the research is to emphasize the importance of the Recruitment and Selection
function. After this, we need to understand the process it follows and find a best possible solution
to meet the challenges of this process.

METHODOLOGY:

The Research Methodology is based on primary data made available by an in-depth interview at
a Retail Store. Also secondary data is carried out through various web-site portals, books and e-
articles. The assimilation of the information is used to suggest ways and means to face the arising
challenges of the Recruitment and selection function.

FINDINGS:

RETAIL STORE #1:

COMPANY PROFILE: Essar are the leading players in Steel, Oil & Gas, Power,
Communications, Shipping Ports & Logistics, Construction and Minerals. They have operations
in 20 countries. They employ 60,000 people with a market of US$ 15 billion. Essar continues to
expand with focus on markets in Asia, Africa, Europe, America and Australia. It is a low cost
manufacturer with high quality products and innovative customer offerings.

Essar vision:
We will be a respected global entrepreneur, through the power of positive action.
Essar mission:
We are committed to innovative growth, through our personal passion, reinforced by a
professional mindset, creating value for all those we touch.
Essar spirit:
It has changed significantly and continues to evolve and to keep pace with the changing times.

Vodafone-Essar is a joint venture of Essar Communication Holdings Ltd. It is India’s largest

cellular service companies with over 100 million telecom subscribers in India and Kenya. It has a
majority stake in the telecom assets of the Dhabi Group in Uganda and the Republic of Congo.
The Mobile Store has its CEO as Mr. Srikant Gokhale with the Essar Group venture. It is the first
countrywide chain of telecom retail outlet. It offers a world class shopping environment, with
state of the art technology. It currently runs 1,300 outlets branded “the MobileStore” and has the
vision to have over 2500 outlets across 650 cities in next 2 years.
It is a one stop mobile solution shop that provides, multi brand handsets, accessories,
connections, repairs, VAS etc. Its outlets are in three formats: Large - 1000-1500 square feet,
Medium- 800-1000 square feet and Corner-150-200 square feet, with smaller formats located
primarily in large malls.

It offers the widest and most comprehensive range of mobile phones with special offers from all
the key brands available across the globe. It has undertaken an extensive training program to
equip all its employees with in-depth knowledge of the products and brands available at the
store, thereby allowing them to provide the right kind of guidance to the customer. All major
handset brands like Nokia, Sony Ericsson, LG, Samsung, Motorola, Fly, Sagem, HP, iMate,
Dopod, HTC and Blackberry are available at the store. It has also tied up with all leading
operators like Airtel, Vodafone, BPL, Idea, MTNL/BSNL and Reliance, Tata Indicom.

The HR department carries out the main functions of recruitment, selection, induction,
performance appraisal, compensation management and other work related to HR policies and
grievances.

The Sources of Recruitment at the ‘Mobile Store’ is explained in Fig. 1 as follows:

The Manpower Requirements are done city-wise with time-lines for store deployment and salary
& designation to be offered. The different sourcing avenues include consultants, campus
placements, referrals, portals, advertisements and walk-ins.
 FIG.1: Sources of Recrutiment at the ‘Mobile Store’

The following are the subsequent steps in the Selection Process:

FIG.2: Step 1 of the Selection Process at the ‘Mobile Store’

FIG.3: Step 2 of the Selection Process at the ‘Mobile Store’

FIG.4: Step 3 of the Selection Process at the ‘Mobile Store’

As seen from Figures 2 to 4, the selection process has been briefly illustrated. At the first stage,
candidates are screened on the basis of age, education and qualifications along with a pleasing
personality. The second stage comprises of Preliminary Eliminations. This is done on the basis of
an Interview, followed by counseling and then training. The Final Selection takes place in Stage
3, where the Operations Management Team selects the suitable candidate. This is followed by
signing-up and Registration. Thus the process is rigorous and effective.

CONCLUSIONS:

Thus we are faced with the following Recruitment and Selection challenges and their solutions:

Sr. No. Recruitment Challenges Recruitment Solutions

1 To exclude poor applicants to avoid By including applicants with

counter-productive work. promising potentials.

2 The recruitment policies, sources & Successful recruitment program

methods have to be evaluated from
time to time.
shows good number of successful
placements, number of offers made,
and number of applicants, Cost
involved and time taken for filling up
the position.

3 To bring in more effectiveness in the Uses methods like Video conference

recruitment process for following reasons of time savings,
faster decision making, cost savings
in candidate travel, lodging, etc. and
an opportunity to meet the
candidates before narrowing the list
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

1. http://www.ibef.org/

2. http://retailindustry.about.com/

3. http://www.citehr.com/

4. http://wfnetwork.bc.edu/

5. http://www.naukrihub.com/

6. Human Resource Management, By K. Aswathappa

7. Human Resource Management, By V.S. P. Rao

8. KPMG Report Indian Retail on the Fast Track: Bridging the Capability Gaps.

9. KPMG Report Indian Retail: Time to change lanes

10. Harvard Business Review Articles

11. http://www.chillibreeze.com/