Marketing executives recruitment at baoviet life corporation

Recruitment and recruitment-related practices for marketing executives at Baoviet Life...52 2.3.1 Current situation of marketing executives recruitment at Baoviet Life...52 2.3.2.. Recru

BUSINESS SCHOOL

NGUYEN TUAN ANH

MARKETING EXECUTIVES RECRUITMENT

AT BAOVIET LIFE CORPORATION

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION THESIS

NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY

BUSINESS SCHOOL

NGUYEN TUAN ANH

MARKETING EXECUTIVES RECRUITMENT

AT BAOVIET LIFE CORPORATION

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION THESIS

SUPERVISOR: DR PHAM KHAC DUNG

This thesis, from the beginning to end, has received valuable assistanceand support from many people, to whom I would like to express my heartfeltgratitude

I am deeply grateful to my supervisor, Dr Pham Khac Dung, for hiscomprehensive, valuable advice, instructions, suggestions, and comments

I would like to give my thanks to all the lecturers, assistants, and staffmembers of the Business School for having assisted me during the time ofstudying and finishing my thesis

I am grateful to my Manager, my colleagues in Baoviet LifeCorporation for their great support during the time I carried out the project

Finally, my profound gratitude is expressed to my family and myfriends for their understanding and care, as well as their spiritual supports at

my times of difficulties

LIST OF TABLES 7

LIST OF FIGURES 8

EXCECUTIVE SUMMARY 9

INTRODUCTION 11

1 Rationale 11

2 Research objectives 12

3 Research questions 12

4 Research methodology 12

4.1 Research process 12

4.3 Data analyzing method 14

5 Research scope 15

6 Research structure 15

CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK 16

1.1 Recruitment, selection, and socialization 16

1.1.1 Perceptions 16

1.1.2 The purpose and importance of recruitment 17

1.1.3 Marketing executive recruitment 18

1.2 Factors affecting the recruitment practices 19

1.2.1 Organizational factors (Internal factors) 19

1.2.2 Environmental factors (External factors) 20

1.3 Literature review and theoretical framework 21

1.3.1 Literature review 21

1.3.2 Theoretical framework 22

1.3.2.1 Recruitment process 22

1.3.2.2 Selection process 27

1.3.2.3 Socialization process 35

CHAPTER 2: CURRENT SITUATION OF RECRUITMENT FOR MARKETING EXECUTIVES AT THE HEAD OFFICE OF BAOVIET LIFE 38

2.1 Introduction to Baoviet Life 38

2.1.1 Background of Baoviet Life 38

2.1.2 Organization structure 40

2.1.3 Labor structure 44

2.1.4 Some characteristics of marketing executives of Baoviet Life 45

2.2 Requirements for marketing executives recruitment at Baoviet Life 47

2.2.1 The role of marketing executives at Baoviet Life 47

2.2.2 Requirements for marketing executives at Baoviet Life 48

2.2.3 Requirements for marketing executives recruitment at Baoviet Life .51

2.3 Recruitment and recruitment-related practices for marketing executives at Baoviet Life 52

2.3.1 Current situation of marketing executives recruitment at Baoviet Life 52

2.3.2 Recruitment practices 53

2.3.3 Selection practices 56

2.3.4 Socialization practices 58

2.4 Assessing the efficiency of recruitment for marketing executives at Baoviet Life 59

2.4.1 Selection ratio 59

2.4.2 Turnover rate 60

2.4.3 Job performance 61

2.4.4 Recruitment and selection cost 62

CHAPTER 3: SOLUTIONS FOR A BETTER OUTCOME OF RECRUITMENT FOR MARKETING EXECUTIVES AT BAOVIET LIFE CORPORATION 64

3.1 Improve HR planning 64

3.2 Improve in job descriptions practices 65

3.3 Diversify the recruitment sources for marketing executives 68

3.4 Improve the recruitment process for marketing executives 70

3.5 Enhance the effectiveness of interviews 72

3.6 Improve the socialization 75

CONCLUSION 77

REFERENCES 78

APPENDICES 79

Baoviet Life Baoviet Life Corporation

LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1: Labor structure of Baoviet Life 44 Table 2.2: Education level of marketing executives at Baoviet Life 46 Table 2.3: Age groups of marketing executives of Baoviet Life 46 Table 2.4: Average salary/income of marketing executives of Baoviet Life from 2008 to 2010 47 Table 2.5: Requirements for marketing executives at Baoviet Life 49 Table 2.6: Recruitment plan for Marketing Department 55 Table 2.7: Cost for advertising vacant positons via some common channels 56 Table 2.8: Marketing recruitment results in 2008 - 2010 60 Table 2.9: Recruitment ratio from 2008 to 20010 60 Table 2.10: Turnover figures from 2008 – 2010 – Marketing Department

61

Table 2.11: Performance appraisals of Marketing Department 62 Table 2.12: Recruitment cost for Marketing Department 63

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Research process 13

Figure 2: The result of survey 14

Figure 1.1: Hiring process 17

Figure 1.2: Recruitment process 23

Figure 1.3: Selection process 28

Figure 2.1: Oraganization chart of Baoviet Life 41

Figure 2.2: Recruitment process of Baoviet Life 52

Figure 2.3: Human request form 54

Figure 3.1: HR requisition form 64

Figure 3.2: New selection process 71

Figure 3.3 Evaluation form 73

EXCECUTIVE SUMMARY

Enterprises all over the world are being swept away by the trend ofglobalization and integration Vietnamese enterprises, together with thosefrom other countries, are spontaneously contributing to the integration andglobalization of the world That Vietnam joins WTO even generates thisprocess more actively As a result of this, competitiveness has been greaterthan ever Under the pressure of competitiveness, Baoviet Life, a life insurer

in Vietnam has also been striving to accomplish its goals and missions,meeting the requirements for an enterprise of the new era From the view oftop managers of Baoviet Life, humans are the key element to the success ofthe enterprise Being aware of upcoming changes, Baoviet Lìfe has paid quite

a lot attention to developing technologies, enhancing service quality, as well

as attracting, maintaining and developing a strong labor force in both terms ofquantity and quality Recruitment, along with other human resourcesmanagement activities, plays an important role in getting suitably talentedstaff for Baoviet Life in particular and contributing to the development ofBaoviet Life in general Together with staff from other departments,marketing executives have been effectively taking part in bettering up theimage of Baoviet Life in the mind of customers From that point of view, I

decide to choose the subject “Marketing executives recruitment at Baoviet

Life Corporation” for my graduation thesis with two main objectives as

to get information related to the recruitment of marketing executives, theauthor conducted interviews with one Marketing manager, two HR managers,five marketing executives, and two HR executives, who have been involved

in the recruitment process 50 people, including managers, current employees,ex-employees, candidates were also surveyed for this purpose As for thesecondary data, the author has studied related documents including bothinternal and external sources to gain more facts and figures for the thesis

By studying the case of Baoviet Life, based on both primary andsecondary data, the author tried to find out the gaps between requirements andcurrent situation of recruitment activities for the positions of marketingexecutives According to the findings, there exist some shortcomings asfollows:

- Poor sources of candidates;

- Deficient quality of candidates;

- Inability to maintain good employees

In order to help enhance the quality and effectiveness of recruitment formarketing executives in Baoviet Life, from the gaps found out, the authorproposed some solutions to the current problems, which come in fourrecruitment-related sectors: (1) planning, (2) recruitment, (3) selection, and(4) socialization

With the solutions proposed, the author hopes and believes in a brightoutcome for marketing executives recruitment of Baoviet Life in the timecoming

1 Rationale

Integration in general and economic integration in particular is theobjective trend in the development process On the one hand integrationbrings about chances of development and on the other hand it generatesincreasingly fierce competitions among businesses Under the pressure ofcompetitions, companies must seek ways and means to gain advantages overthe others Among the resources of a company, human resources play animportant role in helping the company gain its competitive advantages.Having the right people at the right places is the greatest advantage of acompany

Formed in 1996, Baoviet Life Corporation (Baoviet Life) is the pioneer

in life insurance industry of Vietnam After over 13 years, Baoviet Life hasstrongly developed the organization with 60 branches all over the country As

an enterprise, Baoviet Life is fully aware of the important role of humanresources, especially the role of marketers in the organization Baoviet Lifehas paid quite a lot attention to human resources management practicesrelated to marketing executives, among which is recruitment and selection

However, due to some reasons, the result of recruitment for marketingexecutives at Baoviet Life does not really match its expectations Thissituation is reflected in the number of candidates, the quality of candidates,the turnover rates, and the selection ratios, etc… For the sake ofdevelopment, Baoviet Life really needs some solutions to this problem

By thoroughly studying the current situation of Baoviet Life, therequirements for marketing executives and basing on the theoreticalframework, the author will attempt to come up with some solution for a betteroutcome of recruitment for marketing executives at the Head Office ofBaoviet Life

2 Research objectives

- Identifying the requirements for a marketing executive at Baoviet Life

- Studying the current situation of recruitment for marketing executives

at Baoviet Life

- Proposing solutions for a better outcome of recruitment for marketingexecutives at Baoviet Life

3 Research questions

- What are the requirements for a marketing executive at Baoviet Life?

- How are recruitment practices for marketing executives beingimplemented?

- What solutions should be taken to achieve a better outcome ofrecruitment for marketing executives?

4 Research methodology

4.1 Research process

Figure 1: Research process

4.2 Data collecting method

For the research objectives, two types of data are simultaneouslyemployed:

- Primary data: Primary data used in the research are withdrawn from

in-depth interviews and a survey

Interviews have been conducted with one Marketing manager, two HRmanagers, five marketing executives, and two HR executives, who have been

Secondary

data

Marketing executives’ Job description

Company’s strategy

Marketing manager

HR managers Interviews

Current Marketing Manager & HR Managers

Current marketing & HR executives

Marketing candidates

Requirements for marketing executives

Current situation of marketing executives recruitment at Baoviet Life

Gaps Solutions

Ex-marketing executives Surveys

involved in the recruitment process The aim of conducting interviews was tocollect information related to requirements for marketing executives from theviews of marketers and HR specialists Interviews also contributedinformation related to the current situation of recruitment at Baoviet Life,such as procedures, involved people, etc.

50 people, including managers, current employees, ex-employees,candidates have been surveyed for the sake of drawing a picture ofrecruitment activities at Baoviet Life Information referring to Baoviet Life’srecruitment process as well as survey people’s opinions towards the currentrecruitment activities has been gathered People surveyed are as follows:

- Current managers, employees (20 persons): Give ideas of the process ofrecruitment for marketing executives, difficulties in socialization…

- Ex-employees (8 persons): Explain reasons for having left Baoviet Life,advantages and disadvantages when working at Baoviet Life …

- Candidates (22 persons): Comments on preparation for recruitment ofBaoviet Life, the reasonablility, suitability of recruitment steps …

- Secondary data: Secondary data are used for analyzing the current

situation and the efficiency of recruitment for marketing executives at BaovietLife as well as the requirements for these positions These data are withdrawnfrom both internal documents (e.g Recruitment and selection procedure atBaoviet Life, Annual reports, Job Descriptions) and external sources (e.g.Human Resources Management books, magazines, and journals, materialsfrom the internet)

Figure 2: The result of survey

Current marketing managers and executives 30 20

Source: Author’s summary

4.3 Data analyzing method

Data have been collected, synthesized and analyzed with MicrosoftExcel

The findings from primary and secondary data are illustrated in thethesis via graphs, charts, figures, and tables

5 Research scope

Research object: Recruitment for marketing executives at the Head

Office of Baoviet Life in Hanoi

Research location: Interviews and survey were conducted in Hanoi,

and all people interviewed and surveyed are now living in Hanoi

Research time: Secondary data are from materials dating during the

period of 2008 – 2010 Primary data are collected in the second half of 2010

6 Research structure

Chapter 1: Literature review and theoretical framework

Chapter 2: Current situation of recruitment for marketing executives atBaoviet Life

Chapter 3: Solutions for a better outcome of recruitment for marketingexecutives at Baoviet Life

CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORITICAL

FRAMEWORK 1.1 Recruitment, selection, and socialization

www.businessdictionary.com, recruitment is the process of identifyingand hiring best-qualified candidate (from within or outside of

an organization) for a job vacancy, in a most timely and cost

effective manner There are still tons of definitions, if they are counted, but tosum up, the narrow meaning of recruitment is the process of an organization

or an enterprise letting people knowing about its job vacancies and attractingpotentially suitable ones to apply for the jobs As for the broad sense of theword, recruitment can be understood as “hiring”, which includes bothrecruitment and selection processes

According Gomez-Mejia, David Balkin and Robert Cardy in their

“Managing human resources”, once the firm has determinded its staffingneeds, it needs to hire the best employees to fill the available positions (page153) As shown in the firure below, the hiring process has three components:recruitment, selection, and socialization

Figure 1.1: Hiring process

Source: Human resource management - Gomez-Mejia, David Balkin and

The staffing process is not, and should not be, complete once applicantsare hired or promoted To retain and maximize the human resources who were

so carefully selected, organizations should pay careful attention to socializethem Socialization orients new employees to the organization and to the units

in which they will be working Socialization can make the difference between

a new worker’s feeling like an outsider and feeling like a member of the team

1.1.2 The purpose and importance of recruitment

Recruitment

Selection

Socialization

Each and every organization seeks for its own ultimate goals: Someaim at financial goals, some others seek for non-financial ones, such as socialvalues, charity, fame etc Goals might vary, but the main sources to helporganizations to achieve them are humans Organizations with strong humanresources can attain whatever goal they want, but in contrary, organizationwithout strong human resources can hardly do it Recruitment is the key fororganization to attract and retain strong human resources.

Recruitment has effects on almost every field of human resourcesmanagement activities Good recruitment practices may attract more suitablycapable candidates That more suitable capable candidates apply allows anemployer to have more choices Highly qualified candidates perform better,and more effectively, not to mention highly qualified candidates need lesstraining or coaching to get familiar with new jobs Right people recruited maylead to a lower turnover rate in comparison with that of not-so-right people

So, it is very easy to see that recruitment may bring about a lot of benefits to

an organization if it is done properly

1.1.3 Marketing executive recruitment

An organization is composed of various departments: HR, accounting, R&D, Business Development, Marketing, etc, and each of them is

Finance-an indispensable part of the whole The Marketing department, with its owncharacteristics and functions, plays an important role in the general operation

of an organization The marketing department acts as a guide and lead thecompany's other departments in developing, producing, fulfilling, andservicing products or services for their customers Communication is vital.The marketing department typically has a better understanding of the marketand customer needs The Marketing department helps connect people:between customers and the organization and among people within theorganization

Due to the department’s particular characteristics and functions,Marketing executives as well as Marketing executive recruitment have somedifferences Communication, creativity, and market sensitiveness are the mostrelated to marketing executives People with those qualities are usually open-minded, optimistic, sensitive before changes, and have tons of ideas.Therefore, when doing recruitment for marketing positions, recruiters mustpivot on those elements to employ appropriate practices Sources ofcandidates, methods to attract candidates, measures to choose the right peoplefor marketing position should be carefully considered

1.2 Factors affecting the recruitment practices

Recruitment practices are affected by a variety of factors:

1.2.1 Organizational factors (Internal factors)

+ The organization’s prestige: An organization’s prestige is the weight

or influence derived from past success; expectation of future achievementsfounded on those already accomplished of that organization The prestige of

an organization may have great effects on recruitment practices since itaffects candidates’ decision of applying or not Prestige reflects the image of

an organization in the eyes of the society Organizations with good prestigebuild a better belief in people, and thus people would prefer to work for themrather than other ones That is the reason why big organizations with goodprestige have some advantages over the others on attracting candidates.Hence, recruiters in those organizations would have somewhat better chanceswhen selecting

+ Advertisement and social relations: Advertisement and socialrelations can also actively contribute to the attractiveness of an organization

to candidates Organizations doing well with their advertisement and socialrelations can deliver their information to a larger network The more peopletheir information reach, the more people know about their posts The more

people know about their posts, the bigger chance of attracting candidates theyhave.

+ HR policies and working atmosphere: Candidates, who are futureemployees of the organization, are humans, so they need to be satisfied inboth terms of physical and metal ways HR policies and working atmosphereare important factors affecting candidates’ decision of joining theorganization or not, affecting employees’ decision of staying in theorganization or not Good HR policies with friendly, helping atmosphere mayhelp an organization attract potential candidates from the labor market, andmaintain talented employees

+ Costs: Costs are of the key factors affecting recruitment decisions.Recruiters have to balances their recruitment needs and the costs they have topay for those needs In some cases, recruiters have to make a decision tochoose a candidate instead of a better one just to ensure they do not exceedthe available costs

1.2.2 Environmental factors (External factors)

+ Labor market: Recruitment practices are also affected by the law ofdemand and supply In some time, when the demand for a position is highwhile the supply is contrary, recruiters have to spend more to have a goodcandidate Nevertheless, in some other, recruiter can much easier recruit aqualified candidate for the same position

+ Competitiveness: Competitiveness in labor market is also a factoraffecting recruitment activities that cannot be crossed out Oncecompetitiveness is high, organizations have to fight for the candidate theywant The situation then refers to the case of high demand and low supply Onthe contrary, candidates are the one who have to come to recruiters for jobs

+ Economic trends: Economics status has somewhat similar effects onrecruitment practices as those of competitiveness During periods of

economic crises, employers can attract more candidates because opportunitiesfor employees are few.

+ Attitude of society towards some certain jobs: Attitude of societytowards some certain jobs defines the number of candidates wanting to applyfor those jobs A job that is highly attractive from the view of society canmuch easier attract candidates when it is posted than less attractive ones Forexample, there was a time when IT engineers are highly appreciated Peoplejust wanted to be IT engineers And when a post for IT engineer wasannounced, tons of people applied for it

In order to achieve success, recruitment practices should beimplemented with a clear plan and strategy

1.3 Literature review and theoretical framework

1.3.1 Literature review

Referring to recruitment, there are many books, journals, magazines,and other materials having mentioned models, solutions to form a standardframework for recruitment activities

As for the topic of how to conduct effective interviews, Charles Mak,Michael Hackney, Brian H Kleiner, and Ju Chuel Min raised many ideas intheir works According to Charles Mak, as stated in his article “Successfulpeople selection in action” (1995), causes for bad hire may refer to four mainsources: poor analysis of job function; poor analysis of necessary personality-skill profile; inadequate interviewing techniques; inadequate questioningtechniques In order to find out how to make good preparation for interviews,

Ju Chuel Min and Brian H Kleiner shared some ideas in their article titled

“How to hire employees effectively” (2001) Michael Hackney and Brian H Kleiner also gave some suggestions in their “Conducting an effective

selection interview” (1994)

In their book titled “Human resources management textbook” (2007),M.A Nguyen Van Diem and Ass Prof Nguyen Ngoc Quan have shared afull range of models for better human resources management activities Theirideas of human resources planning, recruitment, and selection will be used asthe main part of the framework of this research.

Inheriting the fruits of others, Dr Nguyen Huu Than has also come upwith many ideas and findings for better human resources management

practices, as illustrated it in his book titled “Quản trị nhân sự (Human

Resources Management)” which was published in 2006 by the Statistics

Publisher Nguyen Huu Than’s sharing about “Orientation” will be used inthe “Socialization” part of the theoretical framework of this research

Basing on the ideas and models of Nguyen Van Diem, Nguyen NgocQuan, and Nguyen Huu Than, Pham Vu Thai Ha, a student of BusinessSchool under National Economics University of Viet Nam, has carried out her

research on recruitment at Siemens Vietnam titled “Improving recruitment

and selection at Siemens Vietnam” In the research, Pham Vu Thai Ha studied

the current situation of recruitment and selection at Siemens Vietnam Based

on the ideas mentions above, she has succeeded in coming up with solutions

to improve recruitment and selection practices at Siemens Vietnam

1.3.2 Theoretical framework

1.3.2.1 Recruitment process

Figure 1.2: Recruitment process

Source: “Quản trị Nhân sự” – Nguyễn Hữu Thân(2006) – P.155

The figure above proclaims that recruitment is an entirely sophisticatedprocess When doing HR planning, the planner sees the need for new recruits.First of all, the planner may seek for some alternatives to satisfy that need Ifthe alternatives cannot satisfy the need, the recruitment process gets started

Ordinarily, the recruitment process begins when a manager submits his

or her recruitment proposal to the HR Department The proposal wouldindicate various pieces of information, including job title, department/divisionname, when they need the new recruits… After receiving recruitmentproposals from departments/divisions, the HR Department will compare theinformation given with the job descriptions to find out what requirements forthe position(s) are The next step of the process is to look up in the entire staff

to find people who may meet the requirements If no one does, the recruiterthen will look out for external sources of candidates Since recruitment

activities do cost, managers must be sure that they are using the mosteffective and efficient methods and sources.

as has proven his or her loyalty The biggest win when using this type ofsources is that the organization can save time of getting employees used towork, help prevent the work flow from interruption, cut down unwisedecisions in promotions and transfer However, internal human source alsohas its disadvantages First, employees who were potential candidates but notpromoted may have negative thoughts and/or behaviors towards organization.This, hence, may lead to disunity within the organization Second, as forsmall and medium organization, using internal source only may not bringabout positive changes in performance

External human source consists of candidates from the outside,including: (1) Fresh graduates from universities, colleges, technicalschools…, (2) People who are unemployed and/or people who have quit theirjobs, (3) People working in other organizations This type of source itselfhas some advantages First, people from this source are usually equipped withsystematic and advanced knowledge Second, people from the outside tend tohave new ideas or new points of view on every matter Third, the outsiderrecruited may change the operating manner of the organization without facingnegative responses from the current employees But, together with

advantages, this source also shows some disadvantages too Firstly, it takestime to instruct new recruits to their new jobs Secondly, if the organizationusually looks for external candidates, especially for high positions, the currentstaff would be dissatisfied since they may think that there is no opportunity ofpromotion for them, and hence many problems could arise Thirdly, if anorganization recruits employees from competitors, it may confront the risk ofbeing sued due to secret disclosure Fourthly, other risk may come sincecandidates’ capabilities have just been proven in terms of potentials.

- Attract referrals from current employees: Current employees may play

as an information channel Through this channel, the organization can easilyand quickly find the appropriate candidates Studies have shown thatemployees who were hired through referrals from current employees tended

to stay with the organization longer and displayed greater loyalty and jobsatisfaction than employees who were recruited by other means Someorganization even reward employees whose referral results in successfulmanagerial hire Some other organizations that are facing labor shortage areusing employee referral incentives as a cost-effective recruiting tool.Employee referrals can be an effective recruitment tool, because employeeshave a good sense of what it takes to be a successful worker and member of

the organization However, to the extent current employees tend to referpeople, who are demographically similar to themselves, it can create equalemployment opportunity problems.

Together with the internal sources, the external one should also be putinto consideration of the organization Some organizations prefer the internalhuman source, some prefer the external one, and some other even deploy theirrecruitment methods for both sources at the same time Approaching theexternal source, organization can consider the following methods:

- Referrals from current employees: Just like the recruitment methodfor internal sources, referrals from current employees may bring about overexpected results External referrals have advantages of new perspectives andapproaches and good loyalty Sometimes, candidate accept to join a neworganization mostly because their trust in the current employees of thatorganization

- Attracting candidates via advertisements: Advertising is a popularattracting method used in modern recruitment An advertisement should aim

at three main goals: attracting attention, creating and maintaining interest, andstimulating actions The first and foremost goal of an advertisement is toattract attention of potential candidates Once candidates pay attention to thecompany’s advertisement, it gains the advantage over other competitors inhiring most appropriate candidates After the attraction has been made, theadvertisement’s mission is to make candidates interested in the vacancies.Thus, information such as job descriptions, company profile, employmentterms and conditions and qualifications required should be mention in the bestpossible manner The last goal of an advertisement is to make candidates’interest become actions Information provided must motivate candidates whoread them come to a real action, apply for the vacancies

- Attracting candidate via recruitment agencies: This is one of the mostpreferable methods for organizations which have no HR department/division.Normally, organizations use this method when they want to hire a seniorposition Senior candidates, for some reasons, rarely seek for jobadvertisement on public media, but they often do it via some recruitmentagencies When an organization wants to do recruitment via a recruitmentagency, the two parties will come to an recruitment agreement Thereby, theorganization will provide a list of positions needed to the agency, and theagency will find suitable candidates following the descriptions provided.Recruitment will charge a fee on each position successfully hired, which isusually equal to 25 to 30 percent of the candidate’s salary in the first year.This method has been proven to be quite effective especially for senior orspecial positions, but it costs, however.

- Attracting candidates via career fairs: A career fair is

a fair or exposition for employers, recruiters and schools to meet withprospective job seekers Expos usually include company

or organization tables or booths where resumes can be collected and businesscards can be exchanged In the college setting, job fairs are commonly usedfor entry level job recruiting Often sponsored by career centers, job fairsprovide a convenient location for students to meet employers and performfirst interviews Online job fairs offer the same convenience online

Job fairs are good places to meet many company representatives fromcorporations of all industries and sizes during a short period of time Everyjob fair has a set of similar, basic elements or processes that require yourattention Job fair networking can be generally described as the process ofinteracting with, obtaining contact details of, and getting to know corporaterecruiters

1.3.2.2 Selection process

Figure 1.3: Selection process

Source: Human Resource Management – R.Mondy, R Noe, S Premeaux

(1999) – p.181

Recruitment is the process of attracting and collecting candidates, whileselection is the process of defining who among those candidates are the mostappropriate ones to work in the organization

The figure above brings about an overview of the entire selectionprocess This is the process applied to foreign organizations in Vietnam Thisprocess is influenced by a variety of internal and external elements.Therefore, when being applied in reality, some steps might be dismissed orreordered

background check

Employment interviewsReference and background check

Physical examinationsSelection decisionEmployed individual

This is the first step in the selection process, the first meeting betweenthe employer and candidates This step is to establish the relationshipsbetween the employers and candidates and help the employers have anoverview evaluation of the candidate This first meeting should go in an openand comfortable atmosphere It helps build a good relationship between thetwo sides, and it also contributes to maximizing recruitment efficiency.

During the preliminary interview, if a candidate is defined asinappropriate, he or she should be rejected at once However, to haveinterviewers come to this kind of decision, there should be clear criteria sincethe decision is usually affected by the interviewer’s subjective judgments.Such anthropology characteristics as age, sex, ethnic, religious, nationality,innate defects must not be put in criteria field Instead, such criteria aseducation, experience, skills, qualifications, should be put into consideration

In order to build a good initial relationship, interviewers should keepsome rules for their own Interviewers have to be people who have generalknowledge of all activities of the organization and have good communicationskill During the interview, the interviewer should welcome and explainclearly to candidates about their questions Neat and polite clothing is a must

Review of application forms and resumes

Each and every candidate applying for a job must send his/herapplication form and resume to the employers to attract and impress them Aresume contains a lot of information about the candidate Application formsand resumes can tell a lot about candidate, and application forms and resumesreview is, therefore, an important step in the selection process In this step,employers can evaluate candidates through two factors: (1) information in theapplication and (2) diplomas certificates

Application forms usually follow the organization’s format, andcandidates have to fill in the standard form Application forms’ logical and

appropriate format is a significant tool that helps employers find the rightpeople since they provide a pool of trustworthy information about behaviors

of candidates in the past as well as their current experience, knowledge, andskills Personal traits, expectations, wishes, and capabilities are clearly shown

in application forms

When designing an application form, employers should prudentiallyconsider the information, contents that need to be shown Those informationand contents must help employer maximize their evaluation of candidates.Normally, a typical application form is made up of four groups ofinformation:

- Essential information: Name, date of birth, address, etc…

- Information related to education and training history, qualificationsattained …

- Service record, field of expertise, salary record, reason for leaving…

- Experience, hobbies, habits, personal characteristics, other personaland social interests…

Together with advantages, application forms have also disadvantages.Application forms cannot replace face-to-face interviews/meetings Besides,since application forms can only reflect a limited range of information, theyeliminate the abundance of information In application forms, candidate onlyshows their good points, and what are good for them Employer can only havethe answer for the question “What”, but not that for the question “How”, or

“Why”… Through application forms, employers have their base to decidewhether a candidate is moved to the next step or not After this step,candidates can be classified into three groups: (1) not suitable, (2) there aresome doubts, and (3) acceptable

Selection tests

In order to help recruiters identify psychological characteristics, specialabilities, skills of candidates while the necessary information is deficient,selection tests are deployed Selection tests bring about subjective results of aperson’s personal traits such as innate abilities, habits, and individualities.Tests make it easier to figure out special traits in one’s carrying out his/herjobs, especially particular jobs

There are quite a few test methods applied in selection Recruitersshould consider when choosing an appropriate one for the best result In order

to achieve the best result, when designing tests, people with good insight intothe job or profound experience in the same field should be involved.Ordinarily, selection test can be divided into 10 types as follows:

- General knowledge tests: This type of test is to evaluate onecandidate’s general knowledge The test may cover a wide range ofknowledge, including: economics, mathematics, geography, literature,history, biology, education, management, philosophy, sciences, and suchother fields as music, arts, films, sports… This type of test is used applied tomanagerial level only

- Psychological tests: This type of test takes, nowadays, an importantrole in selecting, staffing, transferring employees Psychological tests helpemployers find out one’s tend of attitude: introvert, extrovert, shy, timid,selfish, reticent…

- Intelligence tests: This is one of the oldest types as it has been used inhigh-schools and universities since long before The purpose of these tests is

to identify the logical thinking ability of candidates The results may implythe abilities of candidates in wording, calculating, understanding…

- Personality tests: After carrying out a study on typical cases,researchers have come to the conclusion that most employees fails in doing

their jobs not because they are incapable, but because their personalities are tosophisticated and disordered

- Job knowledge tests: This type of test is conducted in order to helprecruiters identify experience and understanding of a candidate about the jobthat he or she is applying for

- Psychomotor abilities tests: Psychomotor abilities test aim atmeasuring strength, cooperative ability, and cleverness of candidates Thistype of test might include finger dexterity test, manual dexterity test, wrist-finger speed test, and aiming test

- Cognitive aptitude tests: This is a measure to evaluate the ability of acandidate to learn and carry out a job This type of tests is particularly suitablefor selecting inexperienced candidates, including: speaking speed, numericalcalculation, conscious, and reasoning sense

- Vocational interest tests: Vocational interest tests imply the job theone show most interest in and the level of success when he or she takes thatjob This type of test compares personal interests of an individual with those

of successful predecessors

- Drug testing: This is used in some developed countries in order to findout whether a candidate is infected by some particular diseases However, theapplicable range of this type is rather narrow

- Work-sample tests: In order to get exact, effective results, particularwork-sample test are made and conducted Work-sample tests are customized

in harmony with different jobs This type of test is usually applied to workers

of employees of low levels

Employment interviews

An employment interview is a process of verbal communication (viaquestions and answers, between the employer and applicants This is one ofthe methods used by employers to collect information from applicants before

they make selection decisions Employment interviews can help employersfind out more things about applicants that CVs or qualifications cannot tell

An employment interview aims at:

- Collecting more information about applicant;

- Heightening the organization;

- Providing applicants with necessarily relevant information;

- Reinforce the relationship and enhance mutual understanding

* Types of employment interviews: Scientists have given out various

types of interviews, but basically, they can be referred to the two types: (1)the patterned interview, and (2) the non-patterned interview

Patterned interviews: This is the type of interviews based on prepared

set of questions which is applied to all applicants This is typically handywhen the employer needs many applicants for one position, especially when

he has limited time This type of interview has its own advantages as follows:

- Helping employers anticipate what field an applicant can besuccessful in;

- Simply based on existing sets of questions

- Helping employers know what applicants can and shall do

- Helping employers reduce the level of faults in evaluating anapplicant

Unpatternted interviews: Ordinarily, interviewers may ask prepared

questions as mentioned above However, if the interviewer wants to knowmore about an issue or wants to make clear of something, and it is not easy toget what he wants if he uses the direct way of asking, the interviewer mightwant to use the indirect asking method, i.e he would drive the story intoanother direction, but still around the things he wants to know In this kind ofindirect interview, applicants might apparently provide the neededinformation or data After that, the interviewer might combine the information

from the answers to get a better understanding about the applicants in somefields.

This is a kind of very sophisticated, still delicate interviews, whichrequire interviewers to be very skillful, subtle, and deeply experienced It alsotakes rather long time, so it is only deployed when selecting candidates forsenior positions

* Interview methods:

Board/Panel interview: This is the method of many interviewers

interviewing one applicant Some staff members are assigned to do theinterview This method is usually used when recruiting top managers onlybecause of its high cost

Stress interview: In most interviews, tensions are reduced to the lowest

level However, companies, sometimes, intendedly putting pressure onapplicants to see their reactions This is only applied when recruiting highlytechnical positions

Behavioral description interview: This is the method based on the

argument that previous behaviors may predict next behaviors as well as jobaccomplishing ability This method requires candidates to give out specificexamples of how they have solved their problems

One-to-one/Group interview: One-to-one interview is the method of

interview that only one interviewer does the interview with onecandidate/applicant This is the most popular method In the contrary, groupinterview is the method in which one interviewer does the interview withmore than one applicant Applicants are seated around a round table to discuss

a certain issue, and the interviewer will evaluate them from that

Reference and background checks

In order to define the reliability of the information provided byapplicants, the employer must do the reference check This is not to

investigate, but only to make sure all the information is correct Informationverifications aim at two goal: (1) To check the accuracy of the applicants’information and (2) To help organizations know about the successes orfailures, strengths and weaknesses of candidates Some companies send reportforms to applicants’ last employers or people who know them to getfeedbacks All they have to do is just fill in the form and send it back to thecompany Some other companies verify information by making phone call toreference persons This is the easiest and fastest way

Physical Examinations

After candidates pass the entire steps above, the employer will do thephysical examinations to candidates to know whether they meet the physicalrequirements of the job or not This step help employers know whether acandidate is physically suitable to work long for the organization and get rid

of inappropriate demands from him/her

Selection decision

This is the last step of the selection process After all steps above havebeen finished, the board of employment will come to the selection decision.The decision is made based on subjective evaluations of employers Once thedecision has been made, the HR department must follow the procedure:

- Sending approval/denial to applicants;

- Preparing labor contracts in accordance with the particular businessand law in general to employed applicants (if any);

- Finishing documents recording selection results

1.3.2.3 Socialization process

Socialization is the process of orientating new employees to theorganization or the unit in which they will be working (Gomez-Mejia, DavidBalkin and Robert Cardy Managing Human Resource)

The purpose and benefits of socialization

Socialization is the final stage of the recruitment process, a step toensure that new employees will start working well Therefore, socializationaims to help new employees feel welcomed and appreciated, and engage inbusiness activities quickly.

Through socialization, new employees also understand the business andthe work undertaken A good socialization provides new recruits withinformation related to work opportunities, relationships and other issuesrelated to them in a new organization, as well as helps new employees feelconfident, willing to work and use work time more efficiently

The content of socialization

In order to fully achieves its goals and provides best benefits toemployees, socialization should be composed of two parts: familiarization

Familiarization is the process in which new employees are offered fullgeneral information about the enterprise: The formation and development,regulatory policies, information and business relationships at work.Familiarization can be made in many different ways: through employeehandbooks, orientation/induction programs, or through the help of colleagues

Integration is the process in which the organization helps employeesget to know about their responsibilities and rights at work, know how toexploit the relationships involved, and the introduce to them the currentbusiness activities and industrial parts

Socialization implementation

Socialization requires a combination of both HR department anddepartments in which new employees will start their jobs Before the firstworking day of the new employee, the HR department must prepare all therelevant procedure to get things ready On the first day, when new employees

go to work, in order to create a friendly atmosphere, the line manager should

introduce them to all co-workers in the department/division, and thenintroduce them to relevant people and/or need-to-know things.

In the first week of work, new employees should get used to their newworking environment: people, regulations, traditions…, as well as learn abouttheir working procedures, responsibilities, and their duties at work In the nextperiod, line managers must directly monitor and support them when theyencounter difficulties

CHAPTER 2: CURRENT SITUATION OF RECRUITMENT FOR MARKETING EXECUTIVES AT THE HEAD OFFICE OF BAOVIET

LIFE 2.1 Introduction to Baoviet Life

2.1.1 Background of Baoviet Life

In 1996, Baoviet Life was the first corporation to start a business in lifeinsurance in Vietnam In 2004, Baoviet Life was separated from VietnamInsurance Corporation and became an independent cost accounting enterprise

In November 2007, Baoviet Life became a limited company – Baoviet LifeCorporation which Baoviet Holdinds owned 100% of its chartered capital

Baoviet Life’s businesses includes Life insurance (whole life, pureendownment, term life, endowment, annuity, healthcare, personal accidentriders and other types of life insurance); receive or cede reinsurance in life,healthcare insurance and personal accident; Fund management andinvestment activities in some areas (government bonds, corporate bonds,stocks, real estates, private equities and lending as permitted by law)

After nearly 15 years, Baoviet Life has robustly developed theorganization with 60 branches and more than 200 customer-service offices,with more than 1,500 staff members and 18,000 young, dynamic, anddedicated agents across the country In 1996, Baoviet Life generated onlyVND 1 billion premium revenues with 1,300 policies sold However, in 2009,its total premium revenue reached VND 3,704 billion (an 8.89% growth from2008) with 1.5 million policies in-force Baoviet Life is currently the secondleading life insurer with 32% market share in terms of premium revenuescollected

The year 2009 was a highly successful year for Baoviet Life in terms ofachieving its business goals It also marks a considerable shift in its corporatemanagement, business direction and business operation and management

model Baoviet Life has re-structured the branches’ organizational model to

be more focused, efficient and relevant, in-line with its customer-orientedpolicy; at the same time, improved its human resources capabilities andagency development through quality activities in terms of the development,management and training of agents, which are crucial factors in increasingrevenues and business effectiveness Baoviet Life has cooperated with itsstrategic partner, HSBC, to carry out projects in IT implementation, newproduct development and actuarial project to name a few New products such

as Universal Life products, An Phat Hung Gia and An Phat Tron Doi, weredeveloped in 2009 and brought satisfactory results The two medical riderswere approved by the Ministry of Finance and planned to be implemented in2010

With the effectiveness strategic implementations in 2009, Baoviet Lifehas seen remarkable increases in its business performance Its total revenueshit more than VND 5,323 billion, an increase of 8.02% compared with 2008,

in which new business premiums accounted for an estimated amount of VND

730 billion, an increase of 46% over the previous year Revenues from theinvestment activities were VND 1,614 billion, a growth of 5.96% from 2008.Profit before tax reached VND 456 billion, an increase of 358% incomparison with 2008

In 2010, with the potential growth in life insurance market and possiblejoined-up opportunities, Baoviet Life continued to focus on improving thequality of its customer services, its distribution channels via the agencynetworks by enhancing its training activities and perfecting its agencypolicies; implementing and completing its centralized management model;improving financial and accounting activities and mobilizing its resources toimplement the IT software in supporting the business activities

Bao Viet Life’s 2010 annual results have been positive with total