Part II Selection of Personnel

Text 1. The Selection Board

Task 1. Read and translate the text.

When Williams introduced his new policy designed to put Smallcrown back on its feet, there followed a number of resignations from men occupying key positions within the company.

The posts that are vacant at the time are those of personnel Manager, Transport Manager, Deputy Company Secretary and Deputy Head of Product Development.

Smallcrown advertises these posts and receives a great many applications. On the basis of the applicants’ curriculum vitae a short list of two candidates for each post is drawn up. Those selected are asked by a letter to attend an interview. For this purpose Williams forms a selection board to conduct the interviews. The board consists of himself, Robert Davis and Kevin Murphy. The problem is to select the most suitable applicants of the two applying for each post.

Williams is the Chairman of the Selection Board and therefore responsible for leading each interview. Of course he may be not very active in asking questions, but he must pay a great attention to the particular areas of each interview carried out by Davis or Murphy.

It is quite clear that Davis, the marketing Manager, should approach each applicant with his marketing requirements firmly in mind, while Murphy, the Production Development Manager should be especially interested in the candidate’s previous experience and his ideas about his future work at Smallcrown.

Before interviewing a candidate, each member of the selection board should think over a number of questions which will help to appreciate the essential qualities of the applicant. The points which may help the selection board to work out their attitude to this or that candidate can be the following:

• the salary which will be offered,

• the qualifications which are required for the job,

• the value of the candidate’s previous experience,

• the candidate’s attitude to the prospects that may be offered at Smallcrown.

Vocabulary Notes on the Text

a number of resignations – ряд заявлений об отставке

to occupy a key position – занимать ключевую должность

deputy Head – заместитель руководителя

Task 2. Translate the following words and learn their pronunciation:

advertise, application, applicant, apply, appreciate, attitude, candidate, curriculum vitae, experience, interview, position, particular, quality, qualification, requirement, resignation, selection, salary, value.

Task 3. Explain the meaning of the following terms and expressions in English:

An applicant, an application, a selection board, a curriculum vitae (a CV), an interview, a post, a qualification, a salary, a key position.

Task 4. Give English equivalents to the following words and expressions. Use them in the sentences of your own:

Отборочная комиссия, автобиография, оклад, ключевая должность, заместитель руководителя, заполнить анкету с заявлением о зачислении на работу.

Task 5. Reproduce the text on behalf of: a) an applicant, b) one of the managers, c) the secretary, who is present at the selection procedure.

Task 6. Complete the following sentences using the appropriate words from the box below:

interview, appointment, apply, references, curriculum vitae, candidates, selection list, selection board, application

1) When you see an advertisement for a job, and you want to _________ for this job, you send in an _________ .

2) You usually enclose a ______ with your letter.

3) If there are a great many ______ for a single job, the company usually draws up a ________.

4) Then the candidates are asked to come to an ________ which may take place before the ___________ or with a single person.

5) The ______ is made on the basis of the interview and the _________ from people who know the candidate.

Task 7. Translate the following words and expressions and learn them.

a vacancy, to apply for a post, to attend an interview, to write out a curriculum vitae, to choose the most suitable applicant, to make an appointment, a resignation, to fill in the application form, a reference, to attend an interview, to conduct an interview, to occupy a key position.

Task 8. Translate into English:

1) Чтобы получить приглашение на интервью, необходимо заполнить анкету и заявление о приеме на работу, а также написать автобиографию

2) Вам придется начать работу с должности секретаря, чтобы приобрести необходимый опыт и потом занять одну из ключевых должностей.

3) К сожалению, в настоящее время у нас нет вакантной должности заместителя менеджера по сбыту.

4) В результате политики Уильямса ряд сотрудников, занимающих ведущее положение, подали заявления об отставке и компания была вынуждена объявить через газету о наличии вакансий.

5) Назначение на должность осуществляется на основании данных персонального интервью и рекомендаций от людей, знающих претендента на пост.

Task 9. Answer the following questions:

1) What happened after Williams introduces his new policy?

2) What posts became vacant?

3) What does a company do when it wants to hire new employees?

4) What is the role of the Selection Board?

5) How should Davis and Murphy carry out the interview with the applicants?

6) Why should the members of the Selection Board work out the questions prior to the interview?