How does a business recruit and select the right people to fill a job?
Recruitment and selection: internal and external recruitment, the recruitment documents (job description, person specification, advertisement, application form and CV), and the selection methods used to choose the best candidate.
A CCEA GCSE Business and Communication Systems answer on recruitment and selection. Covers internal and external recruitment, the recruitment documents, job description, person specification, advertisement, application form and CV, and the selection methods (shortlisting, interviews, tests and references) used to choose the best candidate.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
Have a quick question? Jump to the Q&A page
Jump to a section
What this dot point is asking
When a business needs staff, it must recruit (attract applicants) and select (choose the best one). Unit 2 expects you to explain internal and external recruitment, describe the recruitment documents, job description, person specification, advertisement, application form and CV, and outline the selection methods used to pick a candidate. Exam questions often ask you to compare internal with external recruitment and to explain what each document is for.
Internal and external recruitment
A business can look for a candidate inside or outside the organisation.
The recruitment documents
The exam expects you to know the standard documents and what each is for.
The job description and person specification are written first, because they define the post and the kind of person needed, and the advert and shortlisting are based on them.
The recruitment process step by step
Selection methods
Selection is choosing the best candidate from the applicants, using one or more methods:
- Shortlisting against the person specification to reduce applicants to the strongest few.
- Interviews, to question candidates and judge their suitability and how they come across.
- Tests (aptitude, skills or personality) and sometimes a presentation or trial task.
- References, from a previous employer, to check the candidate's record and reliability.
The right combination depends on the job: a senior role may use several methods, a casual job perhaps just an interview.
Why this matters
Staff are a business's most important resource, so recruiting and selecting the right people, at reasonable cost, is vital: a good appointment improves performance, while a poor one wastes money and disrupts the business. Knowing the documents and methods, and being able to weigh internal against external recruitment, lets you reason about how a business builds its workforce. It links directly to training (developing the people once hired) and to motivation and stakeholders.
Try this
Q1. State what is meant by recruitment. [1 mark]
- Cue. The process of attracting people to apply for a job vacancy.
Q2. Give two advantages of internal recruitment. [2 marks]
- Cue. Any two: cheaper and quicker, the candidate is already known and proven, motivates staff through promotion.
Q3. Name two documents used in recruitment and state the purpose of each. [4 marks]
- Cue. Job description (the duties of the post); person specification (the qualities needed); advertisement (to attract applicants); application form or CV (how applicants apply).
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of CCEA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
CCEA Unit 2 (style)4 marksExplain the difference between a job description and a person specification, and state what each is used for.Show worked answer →
A 4-mark explain question testing AO1 and AO2.
A job description sets out the job itself: the job title, the duties and responsibilities, the hours and where the work is based (2 marks). It tells an applicant what they would actually be doing.
A person specification sets out the kind of person needed to do the job: the qualifications, skills, experience and qualities required, often split into essential and desirable (1 mark). It is used to judge applicants and decide who to shortlist (1 mark). A strong answer makes the contrast clear: the job description describes the job, the person specification describes the ideal candidate.
CCEA Unit 2 (style)6 marksA business needs to fill a senior position. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of recruiting internally rather than externally.Show worked answer →
A 6-mark discuss question testing AO2 and AO3, needing two sides and a judgement.
Advantages of internal recruitment: it is cheaper and quicker (no need to advertise widely); the candidate is already known and proven, so there is less risk; and it motivates staff by offering promotion (up to 3 marks).
Disadvantages: it limits the choice to existing staff, so the best person may be outside; it brings no new ideas or skills into the business; and it leaves another vacancy to fill when someone is promoted (up to 3 marks).
Judgement: internal recruitment suits a senior role when the business has a strong, proven internal candidate and wants to reward and keep staff; external recruitment is better when it needs fresh skills or a wider field. Top marks need a supported conclusion tied to the senior post.
Related dot points
- Training: induction, on-the-job and off-the-job training, the benefits of training to the business and the employee, and the costs and drawbacks of training.
A CCEA GCSE Business and Communication Systems answer on training. Covers induction training, on-the-job and off-the-job training, the benefits of training to both the business and the employee, and the costs and drawbacks a business must weigh.
- Stakeholders: the internal and external groups with an interest in a business (owners, employees, customers, suppliers, the local community and the government), what each wants, and how their interests can conflict.
A CCEA GCSE Business and Communication Systems answer on stakeholders. Covers internal and external stakeholders, owners, employees, customers, suppliers, the local community and the government, what each wants from a business, and how stakeholder interests can conflict, with worked exam technique.
- Business communication: internal and external communication, written, verbal and electronic methods and business documents, choosing a suitable method, the features of effective communication and barriers to it.
A CCEA GCSE Business and Communication Systems answer on business communication. Covers internal and external communication, written, verbal and electronic methods and documents, how to choose a suitable method, the features of effective communication and the barriers that cause it to break down.
- Types of business ownership: sole trader, partnership, private limited company (Ltd) and the public sector, including limited and unlimited liability and the advantages and disadvantages of each.
A CCEA GCSE Business and Communication Systems answer on types of business ownership. Covers the sole trader, partnership and private limited company, the meaning of limited and unlimited liability, the public sector, and the advantages and disadvantages of each form of ownership.
- Implications of digital technology for business and customers: effects on ways of working and jobs, data security threats and protection, and the legislation businesses must follow when handling data and trading online.
A CCEA GCSE Business and Communication Systems answer on the implications of digital technology for business and customers. Covers effects on ways of working and jobs, data security threats and protection methods, and the legislation, such as data protection, that businesses must follow when handling personal data and trading online.