Recruitment is a process that involves searching for potential candidates and encouraging them to apply for the vacant position in your company. Selection refers to the process of choosing the best candidate from the shortlisted ones to fill up the vacant position. Both recruitment and selection help the organization choose the right candidates for the right positions.
The success of your organization depends on your employees. Therefore, it’s important that you have a clear understanding of the difference between recruitment and selection. Stick around with us as we strategically differentiate between the two critical processes – recruitment and selection – in an employee hiring process.
What is Recruitment?
Recruitment is an elaborate process involving a series of activities that are aimed at attracting, interviewing, selecting, and hiring employees. Recruitment, on the whole, involves identifying a hiring need to filling it, and everything in between.
There are two types of hiring: internal or external. Internal hiring involves filling the open position with an existing employee from within the organization. And external recruitment involves bringing in new employees to fill the open positions.
Every company usually has its own hiring process. While larger companies may have a dedicated recruitment team, smaller companies may have just one recruiter handling the entire recruitment process. Some companies prefer outsourcing their recruitment process to recruitment firms.
Read this simple and in-depth guide on the process of hiring to know more about recruitment.
Generally, the hiring process follows a particular sequence that includes the following steps:
- Identify and analyze hiring needs/job requirements
- Advertise the job position
- Attract candidates to apply
- Manage job applications
- Assess and scrutinize the job applications
- Shortlist candidates
What is Selection?
Selection is the process that involves placing the right person in the right job. Once the job applications for the advertised position start pouring in, the recruiter has to review them to shortlist the candidates.
The process of selection involves picking up a certain number of applicants from hundreds of them. Like recruitment, the selection also follows a particular sequence that involves a number of steps:
- Screen applicants
- Weed out unqualified/unsuitable job applicants
- Test the skills of shortlisted candidates through intelligence test, aptitude test, personality test, performance test, etc.)
- Conduct interviews
- Verify references
- Confirm medical fitness for the job
Recruitment Vs Selection: Know the Difference
Features | Recruitment | Selection |
Definition | Process of searching candidates for the open role | Process of choosing the best candidate for the open role |
Factor | Advertise the vacant position | Fill the vacant position |
Objective | Invite more candidates to apply | Reject unsuitable candidates to choose the best one |
Approach | Positive approach where candidates are encouraged to apply | Negative approach where unsuitable candidates are weeded out |
Order | Performed before selection | Performed after recruitment |
Relationship | No contractual relation exists | Contractual relation exists |
Duration/Time | Short process (less time-consuming) | Elaborate process (more time-consuming) |
Cost-Effectiveness | Economical | Expensive |
Mass | Involves a large number of talent pools or candidates | Involves only a few selected candidates |
Difficulty Level | Simple and easy | Complex and complicated |
Scope | Involves everything from identifying a hiring need to filling the vacant position | Involves choosing the best candidates from the applications received |
| Not many hurdles for candidates | Many hurdles for candidates |
Process | Vacancies are notified through various sources, allowing candidates to apply through a form | Candidates need to pass through various levels (written tests, interviews,etc.) to get selected |
