Recruitment

I have chosen www.monster.co.uk as an online recruitment site to review.

Use of the site - Monster's website proved to be very useful in the time I used it. This is because I found various job roles in areas that I was specifically looking for using the two search bars at the top of the home page.

Layout - The layout of Monster's website is very good overall. This is because there are two search box's at the top-centre of the page that allow people to search for jobs that they are interested in, in a certain location. The position of these search box's are easy to find which is important as they are pivotal features to the website. In addition, there is also a drop down menu at the top-centre of the page that is also easy to find which is crucial as the drop down menu allows viewers to access specific sections from any page e.g. "Forums".

Accessibility - All of the links on Monster's website worked that I clicked on and linked to the correct pages. This shows that the accessibility part of Monster's website is very good as employers and employees can navigate around Monster's website quickly and easily. In addition, typing "Monster" into Google generates Monster.co.uk as the first result so the website can be easily accessed even if the URL isn't typed into the address bar.

Efficiency - All of the web pages within Monster.co.uk load quickly without delay. On average, each page took two seconds to load. This means that Monster.co.uk is a very efficient website.

Fit for purpose - Monster.co.uk is fit for purpose i.e. is suitable for people looking for jobs / employers as the website looks stylish yet professional, all the links work properly including the drop down menu, the search bar works and all the content necessary for people looking for jobs / employers is available.

Content - Monster's content is very good. This is because all of the information is given in a professional manner. For example, the content has a serious tone and avoids giving unnecessary and inappropriate information e.g. jokes which is appropriate given the nature of the site. In addition, the site doesn't contain advertisements. This is good because it the viewer won't be distracted from finding the information that he/she is looking for. Their are also no pop-ups on Monster which is good as they can be frustrating to keep closing for users that want to simply browse the website without any sort of interruption.

Security - Monster appears to be a secure website. This is because users with Monster accounts have unique email-addresses and passwords to use in order to sign in. As a result, it is difficult for people to hack into other people's accounts without knowing their email address and password. Any job postings that look questionable can also be reported to Monster to ensure the users safety.

Design - The background of Monster's website is white which is very clean looking but also very professional looking. The background is therefore suitable for Monster given the subject matter of the site. In addition, the font colour of the text on Monster's website is black which is appropriate as it looks professional and is easy to read given that the background is white.

Advantages of on-line recruitment:

1. Cost - It's free to put job vacancies on your own website and costs only a few hundred pounds to put job vacancies on a recruitment website. On-line recruitment is therefore very cheap overall, especially in comparison with off-line recruitment.

2. Quick - Job vacancies can be uploaded in seconds, with applicants applying and interviews taking place within a space of a few hours. Suitable candidates can therefore be identified and recruited very quickly.

3. Easy - Uploading job vacancies is a very simple task even for people that aren't very IT literate. As a result, both novice and experienced computer users can upload job vacancies with ease.

4. 24/7 - Websites are accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. As a result, candidates can apply for job vacancies at any time giving them the convenience of being able to apply when it's most convenient for them.

5. Audience - On-line recruitment is considered to be not only a standard part of job hunting for young people but also older people too. As a result, their is a wide range of different types of people applying for jobs whether they are young and have potential or old and have years of experience.

Disadvantages of on-line recruitment

1. Not everyone has access to the Internet - Despite the fact that on-line recruitment is very popular, not everyone is connected to the Internet. As a result, certain demographics that are less likely to be connected to the Internet will be somewhat discriminated against.

2. Too many candidates - Despite the fact that it may appear that having many candidates is a positive thing, on-line recruitment can attract too many candidates that aren't suitable for certain roles. As a result, it can be time consuming to manage and separate poor candidates from good candidates.

3. Doesn't always work - Not all job vacancies can be filled online with on-line recruitment. This is the case particularly with more senior roles that may require headhunters. As a result, on-line recruitment is limited in it's ability to fulfil certain positions.

4. Process is impersonal - On-line recruitment is impersonal as the process is automated. This may put off candidates from applying that may be suitable for particular positions.

5. Groups that can't use certain technologies will be discriminated against - Groups that can't use technologies such as the Internet will be discriminated against as it will be physically impossible for them to apply for a certain role online.

A recruitment campaign that really interested me was a IT web designer role for The Cookehouse. The campaign really interested me as I did ICT at A level and GCSE levels respectively so I knew I had enough qualifications and experience in IT to be considered seriously as an applicant. This is because the campaign clearly stated in the paper that I was reading the campaign from that they are looking for candidates with qualifications and experience in IT, which I have. In addition, the campaign had a slick and clean background which caught my eye immediately. Having read that I had the qualifications that they were looking for, the stylish background of the campaign gave me the impression that this is a company that would value an employee such as myself if I were to get a position at The Cookehouse.

http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects/empreltns/psycntrct/psycontr.htm

I understand that a physcological contract is a contract that exists psychologically or mentally as opposed to a legal contract that is physical. As a result, a physcological contracts exist from verbal agreements while legal contracts exist from written and signed agreements. From reading the link above, the recession of the 1990's and the effect of globalisation are largely responsible for why the term has become so popular although the term dates back as early as the 1960's. The recession of the early 1990's is responsible for popularising the term because during that period, the number of employees that were getting laid off was very high as job security was uncertain and not guaranteed. Globalisation is also responsible for popularising the term because foreign workers would do the jobs of others for less money and in some cases, more efficiently. This resulted in employees being made redundant in favour of the foreign workers, increasing the unemployment rate.

Recently, employees are becoming increasingly concerned about their job security which is why it is very important that employers communicate with their employees regularly regarding their performance and role in the company and negotiate accordingly i.e. the "physcological contract" as it helps to restore confidence in the employees and therefore motivate them into working more productively and efficiently.

In conclusion, I have learnt quite a lot from this topic on Recruitment. This is because this is a topic that I'm not particularly familiar with or have much knowledge of. It is also a subject that I've found interesting as it is something that would be of relevance to myself once I leave University and apply for a full time job.

References

Recruitment image - Available from: http://www.jobquest.com.sg/website_picture/recruitment-handshake.jpg [Accessed 01 February 2010].