1. Human Resources Management: Module 1 Recruiting and Hiring
Produced in conjunction with
The African Entrepreneur Collective and
Opportunity International

2. Learning Objectives
By the end of this section you will be able to identify the key activities required to:
Create a staffing plan
Write and post job descriptions
Conduct professional interviews
Facilitate a positive induction process
By the end of this section you will be able to identify the key activities required to:
Create a staffing plan that will help you set annual hiring goals
Write and post job descriptions that will attract the right candidates
Conduct thorough and professional interviews that reveal candidate strengths and weaknesses
Facilitate a positive induction process by welcoming & orienting new staff

3. The hiring process includes four key phases
Planning
Create a staffing plan to understand your specific hiring needs
2. Recruitment
Write job descriptions
Advertise the positions
3. Selection
Select candidates to interview
Conduct interviews & exams
Reference checks
4. Hiring and Orientation
Notification of employment
Orientation of new staff
The hiring process includes four key phases.
The first is planning. This includes creating a staff plan to understand your specific hiring needs.
The second is recruitment. This involves writing job descriptions and advertising the positions.
(etc.)

4. 1) Planning
Advance planning makes recruiting and hiring more successful
Otherwise, you may rush to fill a position at the last minute, forcing you to hire a candidate who is not ideal
A staffing plan is a tool you can use to clarify and anticipate your future hiring needs
This plan includes an analysis of your present and future staff requirements.
It should be updated every term to reflect new information

5. Drafting a staffing plan
Begin with your current staff requirements:
How many students and staff do you currently have?
What additional staff do you need to hire to meet your current needs?
What skills and experience will those additional staff require?
When drafting a staffing plan, begin with your current staff requirements:
How many students and staff do you currently have?
What additional staff do you need to hire to meet your current needs?
What skills and experience will those additional staff require?
This is a sample staffing plan that shows only the current staff requirements. This school has 100 students enrolled for Currently, the school is employing 6 teachers, 1 administrator, and 2 support staff. However, several additional staff are needed to serve the current students adequately, so the school proprietor is about to begin the hiring process. She needs to hire 2 more teachers, including a math instructor and an English instructor. She also needs to hire 1 more administrator, a Chief Academic Officer to oversee curriculum. Finally, she needs to hire a Facilities Manager to take care of the building.
Sample
Staffing Plan: 2014
Current students: 100
Current staff
Addl. staff required
Notes on required staff
Teaching staff 6 2
Math instructor
English instructor
Administration 1
Chief Academic Officer
Support staff
Facilities Manager

6. Drafting a staffing plan (continued)
Next, consider your future staff requirements
How do you expect your organization to evolve and grow in the future?
What new staff will be required to meet the demands of the growth?
Given expected rates of attrition (staff turnover), how many staff might you need to hire to replace those who leave?
Next, consider your future staff requirements
How do you expect your organization to evolve and grow within the next few years? Are you planning to expand the number of students enrolled?
What new staff will be required to meet the demands of the growth?
Given expected rates of attrition (staff turnover), how many staff might you need to hire to replace those who leave? Remember, teachers might leave for personal reasons, because they got a new job, or you might decide to dismiss teachers because of poor performance. It is always better to plan ahead for these possibilities.
The table below shows how you might expand your staffing plan to include future staff requirements.
This school anticipates growing from 100 students in 2014 to 150 students in 2015, and to 200 students the following year.
The school proprietor estimates that she will need to hire 3 more teachers to serve the additional students in 2014, and 2 more teachers for the following year.
She also believes she will need to hire 1 new administrator after she grows to 150 students, and 1 new support staff for each additional 50 students.
Sample staffing plan:
2014:
100 students
2015:
150 students
2016:
200 students
Current staff
Addl. staff required
New staff required
Teaching staff 6 2 3
Administration 1
Support staff

7. Activity: Draft a staffing plan
Instructions: Draft your own staffing plan on a piece of paper, using the template below
Staff Plan
This year
____ students
Next year
Notes on specific needs
Current staff
Addl. staff required
Number of new staff required
Teaching staff
Administration
Support staff
(You are invited to pause this video to complete this exercise)

8. 2) Recruitment Take a minute to consider the following questions:
What strategies do you currently use to recruit great staff?
What is most challenging about staff recruitment?
What strategies do you currently use to recruit great staff? Where and how do you advertise open positions?
What is most challenging about staff recruitment? Is it finding the right candidates, or just finding time to interview them?
In this section we will discuss strategies for making your recruitment more effective and efficient.

9. Writing job descriptions
Before writing a job description, take some time to reflect on the specific skills and attributes you are seeking in candidates
What roles and duties will they be responsible for?
What skills and attributes should they possess?
What prior experience would be helpful for this role?
Your written job description should include the following sections:
Overview of your organization’s mission, size, and location
Key responsibilities/roles of the position
Required skills and attributes
Desired professional experience, qualifications, and education
Instructions and deadline for submitting an application
Writing a job description is the first step in recruiting for an open position.
Before writing a job description…

10. Advertising the position
School leaders can use a variety of strategies to advertise open positions. Before advertising your next position, consider:
What advertising strategies have worked well in the past?
How did I find my best current staff?
What new advertising strategies could I try this year?
A few ideas to get started:
Ask current staff and parents to refer qualified candidates
Contact local teacher certification programs to recruit their top graduates
Advertise through different media (newspapers, radio, billboards)

11. 3) Selection
The selection process is critical to identifying the top candidates from among all the applications you received
Selection usually includes four steps:
Screening written applications to choose candidates for interviews
Conducting oral interviews
Written examinations of the subject matter to be taught, if relevant
Checking references to hear the opinions of former supervisors

12. Conducting oral interviews
Interviews can help you understand a candidate’s attitude, communication, and instructional style, all important qualities that cannot be measured in written examination.
Advice for conducting effective interviews:
Select 1-2 other school leaders to join you on the interview panel
Create a scoring guide that summarizes the qualities you will be evaluating (e.g., instructional skills, interpersonal skills, communication, prior experience)
For teaching positions, ask candidates to prepare a 10-minute sample lesson that they will deliver in front of you during the interview
Draft a list of questions that you will ask all candidates
Conduct interviews and evaluate candidates on the scoring guide, then compare and discuss your scores with your panel members

13. Sample interview scoring guide
Instructional skills (10 points) – based on 10-minute sample lesson
Explained concepts clearly
Provided relevant examples
Engaged “students” with questions and exercises
Interpersonal skills (5 points)
Ability to work with a team
Leadership ability
Communication (5 points)
Clarity in giving responses
Listening skills
Prior experience (5 points)
Experience in similar roles
Knowledge of the subject to be taught
Here is a sample scoring guide that you might use to evaluate candidates during interviews. The guide is divided into four sections, with each section scored out of a certain number of points. The first section is “instructional skills.” Your score for this section should be based on the 10-minute sample lesson that the candidate delivers in front of you. You should score the candidate on a scale of 1 to 10 based on how well he or she explained concepts clearly, provided relevant examples, and engaged his or her “students” (in this case, you and your interview panel) with questions and exercises to reinforce the material. The other three sections are based on the candidate’s responses to your interview questions, and scored on a scale from 1 to 5. “Interpersonal skills” is focused on the candidate’s demonstrated ability to work with a team and act as a leader. Your score for “Communication” should reflect the candidate’s clarity in giving responses and listening skills. Finally, the “Prior experience” score should evaluate the candidate’s experience in similar roles and knowledge of the subject.

14. Written examination
For positions that require detailed content knowledge (e.g., teachers of math, science, or English), a written examination can be valuable in assessing a candidate’s depth of knowledge
You can write the examination yourself, or, if you are not an expert in the topic at hand, consult your staff or outside experts to create an appropriate written examination
The written exam can be delivered before or after the oral interview, and results can be combined with interview results and references to create a holistic impression of the candidate
For positions that require detailed content knowledge (e.g., teachers of math, science, or English), a written examination can be valuable in assessing a candidate’s depth of knowledge
You can write the examination yourself, or, if you are not an expert in the topic at hand, consult your staff or outside experts to create an appropriate written examination
The written exam can be delivered before or after the oral interview, and results can be combined with interview results to create a holistic impression of the candidate
Now you are ready to select your top candidate and give him or her a formal job offer!

15. Reflection questions What is your current process for hiring teachers?
How might you adapt some of the strategies from this video to improve your teacher hiring process in the future?

16. 4) Hiring and Orientation
After your successful candidate accepts an offer, a series of actions are required to finalize his or her appointment:
Complete legal documents (such as the contract), and create a personnel file that includes the contract, job description, and induction plan
The induction plan describes the new employee’s orientation and training process, probation performance targets, and plan for monitoring and evaluating performance
It also clarifies the new employee’s start date and responsibilities

17. Facilitating a positive induction process
“Induction” is the process of orienting new staff to the organization’s mission, vision, management structure, and expectations
Your induction process should include the following elements:
Welcome: Create a welcoming atmosphere for the first day on the job
Inform: Provide your new employees with critical information they need to do their job, such as giving them a folder of key materials (school handbook, employee policies, academic calendar) on their first day
Train: Arrange for new employees to receive formal training on their specific duties and responsibilities during their first week
Set targets: Discuss performance expectations with your new employees, including when and how they will be assessed
Support: Schedule one-on-one check-ins with your new employees after 1, 3, and 6 months on the job to discuss their performance and support them in resolving challenges
New employees need your support to be successful. “Induction” refers to the process of orienting new staff to the organization’s mission, vision, and expectations, as well as the overall management structure. This process prepares your new employee to begin contributing to your organization.

18. Activity: Creating an Induction Plan
Think about an employee you plan to hire in the new few months
Write down 4-5 actions you will take to ensure that this new staff member has a positive induction and orientation process

19. End of Human Resources Management: Module 1 Recruiting and Hiring
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