Features of a Sound Recruitment System:
Recruitment is the first and foremost step in personnel administration. In fact, the latter really begins with this step. Unless the personnel gets recruited, trained, and appointed, personnel administration cannot actually get initiated. The tone and caliber of the civil servants are determined, to a very large extent, by the process of recruitment. The relevance of government and administration to society again depends upon a sound system of recruitment. If the recruitment policy is faulty and wrong, it would lead to the recruitment of ill-quipped personnel which, in turn, always makes the administration weak and inefficient. It is, therefore, necessary that the recruitment policy and process should be sound and implemented and used objectively, effectively, and efficiently. The recruitment process should be characterized by all such features as can secure in it these qualities. The recruitment policy has to be well-planned and sound. It must be based upon the principles or features which are essential for making it a sound policy and process.
The following have been universally accepted as the essentials of a good recruitment policy.
(1) It must be Democratic- Recruitment policy must be democratic. It must provide opportunities to all the able, qualified, and competent persons. Information about the vacancies in government offices should be given to the eligible candidates by all available sources.
(2) Recruitment policy must be impartial and non-political- Recruitment policy must be impartial and non-political. All recruitments must be made by an independent, impartial, and non-political recruiting agency like a public service selection board or a civil service commission. The government should be bound to select for appointment only those candidates who stand selected and recommended by the impartial recruiting agency. The recruiting agency and the recruiting process must be kept free from political and governmental interference and pressures.
(3) Merit System of Recruitment must be Followed- Recruitment policy must be based on the merit system. The purpose of the Merit System is to get the best, ablest, and most competent persons recruited to the service. It is believed that even in ancient China and India, the selection of officials was made by the merit principle. The recruitment system has to be a merit system of recruitment by all means and in all cases.
(4) Placement of the Right Person in the Right Job- Placement of the right personnel in the right job brings efficiency into the administration. Because of the growth of democratic sentiments and the increasing complexity of administration, it has become a bigger and more important need that the candidates should be given placement in such a way that the right person gets appointed to the right job.
(5) Combination of Direct and Indirect Methods- The recruitment policy must be a good combination of direct and indirect methods of recruitment. It is necessary that capable persons who are already in the service must be given promotions and recruited to higher posts. At the same time, fresh, new, talented young persons must be recruited directly. To make recruitment policy more effective, it must be a combination of both.
(6) Recruitment must be positive and it should adopt scientific and modern methods of testing Merit- Recruitment policy must be positive. It must be planned to attract the best competent and qualified persons into government service. It must adopt scientific methods of testing merit like written examinations, interviews, personality tests, and viva voice.
Conclusion:
Recruitment is the key to a strong public service. Wrong and faulty recruitment is always a source of permanent weakness and inefficiency in the administration. Sound recruitment has now become a major issue of Public Administration. The quality and efficiency of civil servants, to a very extent, depend upon the recruitment policy and process.
A lapse at the recruitment stage can be a source of endless loss for the administration. Its ability to deliver goods and services gets adversely affected whenever and wherever it is manned by incompetent personnel. Sound and systematic recruitment alone can check such as eventuality. The Merit System of Recruitment and not any other system of recruitment has to be adopted. All the above-listed features must be incorporated into the recruitment policy and process with a view to making it a sound policy and an efficient process. Recruitment forms the formative stage of personnel administration and it has to be handled with full care, with full respect to the principles which are considered essential for making it a sound method of recruitment.
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