Externalising the recruitment process within the army and its positive and negative effects.

Contents:
Executive summary
Part I.
Question A.
1) Recruitment as a two way process.
2) Opportunities of externalising recruitment.
3) Dangers of externalising recruitment.
Question B.
1) Concept of selection.
2) Methods of selection.
3) Advantages of selection process.
4) Disadvantages of selection process.
Question C – Induction and Socialisation
Part II.
Word count
References
Executive Summary:
The purpose of this report is to analyse what the advantages and disadvantages of the army externalising their recruitment process would be and what the results of using a civilian recruitment team to attempt this would be. It will look into a structured recruitment process include steps for an effective induction and socialisation process, methods that the army will follow and potential positives and negatives on all of these approaches.
Part I:
Question (a):
Considering the concept of recruitment as a two way process developed in Book 2, Session 3.2, highlight some main opportunities and dangers to be considered by the Army in externalising the recruitment processes.

1) Two way process:
Recruitment can be seen as a two way process between both the employer and the employee. The new recruit can find out if they fit in, while the business assess whether the recruit is a good addition. Both are as important as the other as without the business there is no job, but without the employees there would be no business. Although the business as a whole is more important both stakeholders need to be treated equally when looking into recruitment processes.

2) Opportunities:
The main opportunity that the army has in externalising the recruitment is the estimated savings. It states “the deal will save the Service £250 million overall over a decade by removing well paid senior NCOs and officers from backroom work”. They can look to replace jobs with higher payed staff, as well as looking to bring in new officers and cover a number of different roles. Because the new recruits will be at an entry level their wages will be less in comparison to the other soldiers who have been laid off.
It states externalisation ”will help it improve the quality of recruits, reducing the ‘wastage’ of those dropping out during training.” So as well as improving financially it will also help them get more for their money. Having a civilian recruitment team who is impartial will mean that the recruits will be given more accurate information and an overall experience, this will allow recruits to make an informed decision leading to a decreased dropout rate and a higher level of quality recruits.

3) Dangers:
A potential danger is the high numbers of personnel being laid off, at the same time the Army are hiring elsewhere and investing £1 Billion, this could lead to strikes within the Army. If current employees feel like the army are making a wrong decision, or they missed out on a promotion then this may lead to demotivation.
Another danger is that the externalisation is only an estimated profit. As with any new business opportunity it is filled with risks and the chance of failure. If the estimated savings over a decade are not met or more money needs to be injected into the recruitment process then this could have a negative effect on the recruitment team and the army.

Question (b):
Using ideas from Book 2, Session 3.3, introduce the concept of selection, outline the main methods of selecting employees and discuss their main advantages and disadvantages for selecting soldiers.
1) Concept of Selection:
Selection is the process that allows the business to establish the expectations around a specific role as well as allowing recruits to see what their responsibilities are. This can include a job analysis to give a detailed description of the role, skills and attributes required, responsibilities and required standards, both mentally and physically. To get this process