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According to Wehrich and Koontz, “The managerial function of Staffing involves the filling and keeping filled, positions in the organisational structure”.

Process: The staffing process includes the following steps:

(i) Estimating the Manpower Requirements: At the first step of staffing the need for required number of employees is estimated. At the time of determining the number of persons required, the possibilities regarding internal promotions, retirements, resignations and dismissals, etc. are also taken into consideration.

(ii) Recruitment: The process of recruitment includes the search of the various sources of employees, and encouraging them to send their applications to the enterprise.

(iii) Selection: Under the process of selection, competent applicants are selected out of a large number of them. It is important to keep in mind that the ability of the applicant and the nature of work must match.

(iv) Placement and Orientation: Placement means to join the post for which he/she has been selected. Under orientation the employee is given a brief presentation about the company and is introduced to his superiors. Subordinates and colleagues.

(v) Training and Development: At this step of process of staffing, training and development are imparted to the employees so that their efficiency and effectiveness is increased.

(vi) Performance Appraisal: At this step the capability of every employee is judged. To judge his capability his actual work performance is compared with the work assigned to him.

(vii) Promotion and Career Planning: Under this step, in the process of staffing, employees get promoted to higher posts on the basis of their capability.

(viii) Compensation: This step of staffing process involves fixing the compensation of an employee for his contribution to the organisation. Compensation refers to all forms of pay and rewards going to employees. Basically, it is the price for the job. It may be of the following two types:

(i) Direct Financial Payments: It includes wages, salaries, incentives, commissions and bonuses. It may be paid on the following two bases:

(a) Time Based Payment: Under this method, salary and wages are paid either daily, weekly, monthly or annually.

(b) Performance Based Payment: Under this method, salary or wages are paid on the basis of number of units produced by an employee.

(ii) Indirect Payments: It includes facilities like insurance, medical, vacations, etc. are provided free of cost by the employer.

Note: 1. Combined Pay Plan: A combined pay plan can also be created in the form of time based pay plus incentives for higher performance.

2. Factors Influencing Compensation Plan: The following factors must be considered while fixing compensation:

– Minimum Wage Payment Act

– Labour Laws

– Union’s Policies

– Competitor’s Policies

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(i) Helpful in Discovering and Obtaining Competent Personnel : Under staffing latest techniques are used for recruiting and selecting the employees. As a result, it becomes possible to search for and to select able employees for different posts. Under the recruitment process, search for employees is conducted and through selection they are selected.

(ii) Helpful in Better Performance: Through the medium of staffing, right people are posted at right places. Thus, suitable people are selected, keeping in mind the importance of organisational posts. As a result, it increases the efficiency and effectiveness of employees.

(iii) Helpful in Continuous Survival and Growth of the Enterprise: Every enterprise aspires for its continuous survival and growth. This is possible only when it has human asset of supreme quality. This, aspiration of an enterprise can be fulfilled through staffing.

(iv) Helpful in Optimum utilization of the Human Resource: Under staffing all the activities related to human resource are performed systematically. By doing this the situation of overmanning never arises. As a result, optimum utilization of employees takes place and subsequently, labour cost is reduced.

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1. Preliminary Screening: First of all, the applications received during the process of recruitment are scrutinized. Scrutiny of application forms is made to verify whether the candidate fulfills all the qualifications essential for the job. The preliminary screening is based on (i) preliminary interview (ii) filling up the blank application form.
2. Selection Tests: In the selection process, selection test has an important place. Through these tests, ability and skill of the candidates are measured. These tests are divided into following three categories:
   i) Proficiency tests ii) Psychological tests iii). Other tests
3. Employment Interview: Having successfully cleared all the tests related to employment by the candidate, he is called for the final interview. Its objectives are to see the looks of the candidate, his way of talking, his conduct and temperament, his interest, the presence of mind and maturity etc.
4. Reference and Background checks: After a candidate is selected successfully in an interview then some information about him is gathered from those persons whose name figures mentioned in the column of ‘References”. This information relates to the character, social relation, background etc. of the candidate.
5. Selection Decision: Applicants who clear Selection Tests, Employment Interview and Reference checks are selected. Prior to taking final selection decision, the opinion of the manager concerned is sought.
6. Medical Examination: Medical examination is done to check whether the candidate is fit to carry on the responsibilities assigned to him and whether he is physically fit or not. The selected candidate is suffering from any disease or not is also verified through medical examination.

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It is the most economical source because the organisation does not have to spend any amount on search for sources of recruitment, nor does it have waste time on long selection process. Moreover, such employees do not require much training. They are already well informed about all the activities of the organisation.

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To attract employees to business organisations usually two kinds of sources are tapped: (I) Internal sources, and (II) External sources

(I) Internal Sources: In case of internal sources, vacant posts are filled with employees available within the organisation. Mostly the following are included in it.

(i) Transfer: This procedure involves the transfer of an employee from one department or branch to the other department or branch on the same post. This procedure is usually followed when some employees are surplus in one department and there is shortage of similar types of employees in another department.

(ii) Promotion: Promotion is a process by which an employee working at the lower rank is appointed to the upper rank where his responsibility increases, his status and salary are also enhanced. A post can be filled by sending an inefficient employee at some lower-position. It is known as recruitment by demotion.

(iii) Lay-off: It refers to the temporary separation of the employee from the employer on the initiative of the latter. In most cases, the lay-off takes place due to lack of work. There is clear understanding between the employer and the employee that the preference will be given to that employee as and when the work will be available.Thus, by recalling the laid-off employees, vacant position may be filled up.

(II) External Sources:

(i) Direct Recruitment: Sometimes information about the vacant posts is pasted on boards placed at important places by the organisations. Such information is usually displayed at the Workshop, Office or the Factory Gate. People who are interested in these jobs apply for them. This method of recruitment is meant only for the recruitment of unskilled workers.

(ii) Campus Recruitment: It refers to recruitment from educational institutions. Some big organisations remain in touch with the educational institutions with the purpose of recruiting young talented people. These persons come from colleges, universities, management institutes, technical institutes, etc. These institutions have a placement cell each with the purpose of helping their young students to find suitable jobs. The human resource managers of various companies get in touch with these placement cells and obtain the suitable persons for appointment.

(iii) Recommendations: With a view to establishing good employer-employee relations, sometimes managers recruit people on the recommendation of their existing employees. In this way, present employees feel encouraged and there is a complete control over new employees. This source is mostly used for appointing lower level employees.