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Read the following article about the problems small companies may have in recruiting staff, and the questions on the opposite pa

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问题    Read the following article about the problems small companies may have in recruiting staff, and the questions on the opposite page.
   For each question (15-20), mark one letter (A, B, C or D) on your Answer Sheet.
Small companies often struggle in a crucial area - the recruitment of additional staff. With little time or budget for recruitment and training, mistakes are made all too easily.
Last year, Sally Thomas, managing director of a small software company, thought she had found the ideal project co-ordinator to handle long-term client relationships, after a two-year search. ’We had already tried a couple of internal people, but they were not suited to the role,’ she says. "The role does not require a detailed knowledge of information technology, but does demand enough expertise to understand current and future projects and the ability to talk about them meaningfully and sensitively to customers.’ Ms Thomas and her technical director gave several short-listed candidates in-depth interviews and psychometric tests. They then decided to follow their instinct and pick the individual who had performed least well in the tests but felt like the right person for the job. The new project co-ordinator lasted just six weeks. ’It was very disappointing,’ says Ms Thomas. ’In the end the psychometric test proved to be more accurate than our own belief in who was best.’ Luckily the candidate who scored most highly in the tests was still available and is now doing well in the job.
Tony Jones used personal contacts when setting up his electronic repair services company, recruiting four people he already knew for the top management team. This worked well, but on technical staff he has been less successful, with a 50% drop-out rate in just four months. ’It’s easy to make snap judgements because you’re so busy running the business,’ Mr Jones says. ’Instead of a thorough testing process you tend to do it too fast. Someone seems like a nice person who knows what they’re doing, so you give them the job but eventually you come to regret your decision.’
Mr Jones has tried employment agencies, but finds them expensive and lacking in knowledge of sectors such as electronics. ’Finding electronic engineers is not like looking for bankers for example,’ he says. ’The right people for us tend to have been stuck in the bedroom with a soldering iron in their youth, rather than having done particularly well academically. We could be talking about the dark side of the moon as far as most agencies are concerned.’
Recruitment from outside is a huge problem for small companies, but according to Louise Punter, chief executive of the Surrey Chamber of Commerce, ’People who have moved from other firms bring a fresh look and a big injection of new ideas.’ Those who have worked for medium-sized or large companies are particularly valuable, because they are familiar with processes and systems that can be just as effective in a company of ten people as in a company of thousands. ’Small companies tend to deal only with the immediate problem, whereas a larger organisation would put in place a process that would prevent the same thing going wrong again. People who know how to do this can be very valuable.’
On the other hand, given the current skills shortage, low unemployment and the expense involved in recruitment, it makes sense to promote from within where possible. ’A classic mistake is that companies overlook the skills their existing staff have: for example, a marketing person might have good financial skills,’ says Mrs Punter. She recommends conducting a skills audit to identify staff expertise, in particular what is transferable or not being fully exploited. In larger companies, these issues often come out in appraisals, but in small ones they are easily missed.
Not surprisingly, finding the right staff can present small companies with their biggest challenge.
What criticism does Tony Jones make of agencies?
选项 A、They do not hold enough discussions with employers.
B、They fail to focus on the appropriate skills.
C、They underestimate the demand for electronic engineers.
D、They do not react quickly enough to technical developments.
答案B
解析
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