Recruitment and selection
Recruitment is the process of attracting suitable candidates to apply for a job vacancy; selection is the process of choosing the best candidate from those who applied.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Identify from the case whether recruitment is internal (from existing employees) or external (from outside the business), using the clues given.
- Learn the advantages and disadvantages of internal recruitment: quicker, cheaper, and the candidate already knows the culture, but it limits new ideas and skills and creates another vacancy.
- Learn the advantages and disadvantages of external recruitment: wider pool of candidates and new ideas, but slower, more costly, and the candidate is unfamiliar with the business.
- For explain questions, give one point plus a linked consequence for the specific business in the case.
- Learn what each selection method is best suited to testing: an interview tests personality and communication, an aptitude test tests a specific skill, and a reference checks past conduct and reliability.
- For justify or recommend questions on which recruitment method to use, weigh cost, speed and the skills needed against the case's evidence, then reach a supported decision.
Worked example
A small accountancy firm needs a new senior accountant urgently, ideally with several years of experience the current team does not have. Explain one reason why external recruitment might suit this vacancy better than internal recruitment.
- Identify the requirement stated in the case: experience the current team does not have.
- Identify what internal recruitment offers: only existing staff, who by definition lack this specific experience.
- Identify what external recruitment offers: access to a wider pool of candidates who may already have the exact experience required.
- Link this to the firm's need: external recruitment increases the chance of finding a candidate with the right skills straight away, without the firm having to develop them.
- Write the explained answer, combining the specific skills gap with why an outside candidate is more likely to fill it.
Practice questions
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Q1State the difference between recruitment and selection.Show answer
Answer: Recruitment is attracting candidates to apply for a vacancy; selection is choosing the best candidate from those who applied.
Q2Identify one method of external recruitment.Show answer
Answer: Advertising the vacancy online, or using a recruitment agency or job centre.
Q3Give one advantage of internal recruitment.Show answer
Answer: It is quicker and cheaper, since the vacancy is filled by an existing employee who already knows the business.
Q4State one selection method used to test a candidate's communication skills.Show answer
Answer: An interview.
Q5Explain one disadvantage of external recruitment.Show answer
Answer: It is more expensive and time consuming, for example advertising costs and a longer induction, because the candidate does not yet know the business.
Q6Identify one document a candidate usually submits when applying for a job.Show answer
Answer: A CV or application form.
Q7State one reason a business might use a recruitment agency rather than advertise a vacancy itself.Show answer
Answer: To save management time, since the agency filters and shortlists candidates before the business sees them.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE Business exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Explain one advantage and one disadvantage of using internal recruitment to fill a vacancy.
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A supermarket chain needs to appoint a new store manager for a branch opening in 3 months. It could promote an experienced assistant manager from another branch, or advertise nationally for an experienced retail manager. Evaluate whether the supermarket chain should use internal or external recruitment to fill this vacancy.
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See real GCSE Business past-paper questions, with official mark schemes →
Free printable worksheet
Want more practice on paper? Download the recruitment and selection worksheet pack - 8 pages of exam-style questions with a full mark scheme. One email opens every download in this browser for 14 days - no account, no card. Print it for personal and classroom use.
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