For you as a manager, any newly vacant position provides a good opportunity to actively consider the organisation of your staff and the opportunities to strengthen the competencies within your team. There may be possibilities for internal transfers, development of the position or increasing the diversity of your team. It is an important part of the recruitment process to first assess whether there are alternatives, before advertising a new position externally.
Consider the following questions:
- Should the position be filled, cut or moved to a different department?
- Are there any part-time employees who might want to increase their contract hours, ref. AML § 14-3?
- Which competencies are presently needed at the department?
- If there is a possibility for an internal transfer to this position, does this open the need for external recruitment elsewhere? And which tasks should be allocated to a potential external candidate?
- Should there be a revised allocation of work tasks between departments, teams or networks?
- Is it possible or advisable to transfer part of the tasks of the position to other employees in order to facilitate a continuous development of competencies?
- How diversified is the department with regards to educational background, work experience, competence, age, gender and ethnicity?
- How should the position be ranked hierarchically and in terms of salary?
- Could the position be filled by someone with disabilities?
- Assessment of cost?
- Permanent or temporary employment?
The goal of job analysis and specification of requirements
A job analysis is the very foundation of the recruitment process. The analysis serves as an important preparatory step that sets the framework for all phases of recruitment. Furthermore, the analysis aims to:
- Define the text of the job advertisement
- Define the basis of qualifications on which applicants shall be selected and assessed
- Help to prepare for the job interview and collect relevant information from references