Recruitment Tips


 

The job market for small businesses in Nigeria is largely unpublished. The unpublished job market is also known as the hidden jobs market. In such markets, job openings are filled without being advertised. Some small business owners still indulge in what is called “Recruitment at factory Gate”. This type of recruitment is actually meant for filling casual vacancy of unskilled workers by placing advert board in front of the factory but reputable schools, hospitals, supermarkets are still using this to fill vacancies of Teachers, Nurses, Managers, Sales Assistants e.t.c. in their organizations. Apart from being demeaning, such strategy is a clear path to bad recruitment. 

 

Employers need to start evaluating cost of bad recruitment which apart from direct cost of recruitment, includes loss of revenue from sales if an ineffective salesman is employed, cost of time spent training the unproductive worker, high staff turnover and negative impact on morale of employees in general. I have seen many small businesses folding up due to bad recruitment. 

 

Business owners often complain it is difficult to get good employees in Nigeria but from my experience most of them do not have proper recruitment process. Some even unknowingly hurt their business in their attempt to hire new staff. A friend once told me that when he was about to relocate to Ibadan from Lagos with his family, somebody recommended a secondary school for his children. He promptly visited the school which has very good physical structure but he was discouraged from entering the premises by the notice on a weather beaten blackboard by the gate indicating that the school has vacancies for English Language, Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics Teachers!!! He concluded that 

the school must have problem with teachers. A school advertising vacancies at its gate for core subject Teachers cannot expect growth. 

 

Some business owners engage in laughable recruitment process which usually results in high staff turnover and its attendant costs. Such process involves placing of vacancy board in front of the business premise. And after receiving a couple of applications, the business owner arranges unplanned interview where gut instinct is relied upon and only technical skills are measured. The ‘best candidate’ is then offered an employment. I have been informed that as part recruitment process some may even ask prospective employee to swear oath administered in a traditional way to affirm that the company fund will never be stolen by the employee.

 

The best way to reduce high staff turnover however is to ensure that skilled applicants who fit into company’s culture are engaged, while ensuring that the remuneration packages are always competitive. It will be quite helpful for the growth of small businesses if their owners thoroughly understand recruitment process and also ensure that skilled recruiters are engaged to drive the recruitment process. 

 

At TruPurpose Job Shop, we deliver a fresh and innovative service to Job Seekers and Employers/Recruiters across the South West of Nigeria. We work hard to unearth hidden and unadvertised jobs for Job seekers and deploy tailor made and cost effective recruitment solutions to employers. Our role is to work with employers and job seekers to facilitate a successful match.

 

For more information, please call 08033234172 or e-mail info@trupurpose.com.ng



Tokunbo Sotade

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