Today we are going to take a look at the very definition of an assessment and how they are used in the hiring process. An assessment may have a different meaning for different people. In the context of recruiting, assessments use a variety of techniques to attempt to forecast a candidate’s potential to perform on the job. Job assessments are typically used to evaluate a person’s behavior, personality, and talents.

What exactly is a pre-employment assessment?

Pre-employment tests are simply assessments given to job candidates prior to their hiring. Pre-employment tests, often known as job assessments, refers to any technique or method used to consistently evaluate prospective candidates. They range from “hard” tests, such as on-demand assessments that include typing and math skills tests, to “softer” tests, such as personality batteries. They come in all shapes and sizes, and they can happen at any point in the hiring process. They might be the initial stage in the employment process (yes, before the application) or the final step before making an offer. However, they are usually employed somewhere in the middle. Pre-employment exams are used by employers to guarantee that the individuals they choose have the best possibility of success on the job – they are looking for quality. As you may expect, there are numerous types of assessments that can be used.

The following are the primary advantages of candidate testing:

• Improving Hiring Quality
• Using standardized, proven measures to reduce bias
• By casting a larger net, we can increase diversity.
• Time to hire is getting shorter.
• removing schedule and availability constraints
• Keeping prospects interested
• Improving Retention

Most pre-employment assessments, with the exception of the interview, take the form of a formal test with closed-ended questions. Assessment questions are intended to serve as a proxy for specific components of a profession. According to the 2018 Talent Board Candidate Experience Research Report, 91 percent of organizations use formal exams like these during the hiring process.

For example, extroversion personality tests frequently ask, “Agree or Disagree: I enjoy attending large social events.” While the profession may not necessitate frequent attendance at cocktail parties, a certain level of extroversion is advantageous in roles that frequently entail interpersonal communication.

The final test is built using questions that elicit the most predictive responses of job achievement during assessment design. Traditional pre-hire and employment assessments often necessitate at least 60 questions in order to achieve a useful degree of predictive validity.

What are the typical types of assessments?

Pre-employment examinations are classified into five groups based on where they sit on the hard skills-soft skills spectrum.

• Work values assessment
• Motivational orientation
• Social facilitation skills assessment
• Mental abilities assessment
• Personality assessments

Rather of depending on gut sense and a restricted ability to compare prospects, choosing the correct interview structure, questions, and answers will result in the greatest recruiting judgments. If your interviews are properly planned, they can even serve as a realistic job preview.

Tests an Applicants Cognitive Ability

Cognitive ability examinations examine candidates’ linguistic and numerical reasoning abilities, as well as their capacity to think abstractly. Consider these the inverse of work-sample tests. Work sample exams assess how applicants would perform in predictable conditions, whereas cognitive ability tests assess how they may perform in unexpected situations.

Game-based examinations can also assess cognitive capacity, and they often do so more quickly and in a more candidate-friendly manner than standard cognitive skills testing. These are typically on-demand assessments, allowing the candidate to complete them at a time that is convenient for them.

Individual Personality Assessments

Personality tests are intended to assess the intensity or lack thereof of specific personality traits such as openness to experience, persistence, extroversion, and tolerance. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is one of the most well-known personality tests, albeit it is not advised for use in hiring.

Measuring certain personality qualities is useful when attempting to identify candidates who are most likely to leave, as well as when matching those attributes to specific duties or job needs (for example, high extroversion may be beneficial for a customer-facing role).

Structured Interviews vs Unstructured Interviews

A structured interview consists of a predetermined series of questions that assures that each applicant is asked the same questions in the same order. Interviews with a structure:

• In order to foster a just and impartial interview process, they must maintain their rigidity.
• Produce consistent data that may be used to evaluate candidates using the same criteria, reducing bias and revealing the best prospects.
• Are ideal when the interviewing organization believes that hiring based on merit is more important than any other factor.
• Structured interviews, according to the US Office of Personnel Management, work effectively for both employers and job hopefuls.

Structured interviews may use behavioral interviewing techniques as well. Behavioral interviewing is a technique that uses previous behavior to predict future performance. An unstructured interview is the polar opposite of a structured interview because the questions are not rehearsed. These are based on rapport and relationship development between the interviewer and the candidate. They can be beneficial in exploring new areas of understanding.

Klein Assessments help hiring managers and decision makers take pre-employment testing to a whole new level and streamline their applicant selection process to make better hiring decisions.