Personnel selection is the process used for hiring individuals from the pool of job

applicants having the required qualifications, knowledge, skills and competence to fill the
vacant positions in the organization. The personnel selection process is the tool that
management applies to differentiate between applicants who are qualified and who are
unqualified by using different techniques. Selection is a negative process of employment
because the applicants who qualify are only offered employment and the unqualified
applicants are denied the opportunity. The aim of the selection process is to choose the
most suitable candidate whose contributions will be most valuable for the organization.
Essentials for the procedure of personnel selection
The personnel selection procedure has a number of stages which help the organization in
securing more information about an applicant. At every stage, some applicants are rejected
because their skills and knowledge do not match with the organization’s needs. Therefore,
it is very important to prepare a proper selection procedure that will suit the organization’s
requirements and will help in choosing the most suitable applicant. For a successful
selection procedure, the following requirements should be satisfied:
 The number of applicants should be sufficient; otherwise it will be difficult to choose
the best candidate.
 There should be persons who will select the candidates and those persons should be
chosen on the basis of the type of candidates to be selected.
 A proper job specification should be developed beforehand with which candidate’s
knowledge, skills, abilities, etc can be compared.
Importance of personnel selection procedure
For any organization, success is dependent on the quality of personnel that are selected for
the job. So, the selection procedure is a very significant function of an organization’s
management. The significance of selection can be seen from the following factors:
1. Procuring skilled workers- personnel selection helps in hiring only the desirable
candidates.
2. Reducing the cost of training – proper personnel selection reduces training cost because
the qualified candidates will be good at grasping the techniques of work.
3. Personnel problems can be solved – proper personnel selection means workers will be
satisfied with their work and hence personnel problems in the organization can be reduced.