The Value of Pre-Employment Assessments

Need higher quality new hires? Consider pre-employment assessments.

Today’s job applicants are more accessible than ever thanks to social media. Not only is it easier to find a potential recruit, it’s also easier to find out more about the candidates you already have. Recruiters no longer have to rely solely on a resume or face-to-face interview to get to know potential candidates.

Just a quick online search of a job applicant’s name can take a employers directly to a Facebook page, Twitter account, LinkedIn profile, personal blog, an interview that ran in their college paper, an online dating profile - our social media presence is so vast these days that you may even be able to find out what an interviewee ate for breakfast that day just by searching through Instagram. There’s so much information readily available that it can sometimes be downright overwhelming.

But while a job candidate’s social media and online presence certainly provides a more personal (and interesting) glimpse into their lives than a formal resume or application, it still won’t provide a concrete answer to the one question all hiring managers and recruiters have: Does this candidate have the skills and abilities necessary to perform this job successfully?

In today’s tough job market, gut instincts simply aren’t enough when it comes to making smart hiring decisions. Employers want to know that they’ve hired someone who is really capable of doing the job they’ve been hired for. Enter talent or pre-employment assessments.

What are pre-employment assessments?

Pre-employment assessments are a series of online tests that allow employers to objectively measure an applicant’s aptitude, abilities, attitude and competency and compare them to predefined standards.

There are two main types of pre-hire assessments used today: personality/cognitive assessments and skills assessments.

• Personality & Cognitive Assessments

  These tests are designed to identify a candidate’s tendencies and preferences with regard to a variety of soft skills, including leadership ability, communication style and analytical thinking, and help build a personality profile of each candidate. Two of the more popular tests amongst employers today are the DISC (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, Conscientiousness) and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator assessments.

• Skills Assessments

  There is no shortage of possible skills assessment tests an employer may want potential new hires to complete. Everyone’s resume says they’re proficient in Excel. If you really need a spreadsheet master, require applicants to pass an online Excel skills course. Need someone who knows his or her way around a particular software program? Ask them to demonstrate their skill by completing an online test. Skills assessments like these provide employers with focused, concrete and easy-to-interpret results that allow them to easily distinguish qualified candidates from the rest.

Who uses pre-employment assessments?

Almost everyone. Employers across a wide variety of industries, including retail, health care, education, banking, professional services and technology are all using some sort pre-hire assessment tool. Online pre-employment screenings and assessments are particularly popular among many Fortune 500 companies who hire hundreds of new employees every year, but companies of all sizes can benefit from using an assessment tool as part of their hiring process.

When should pre-employment assessments be conducted?

There are two ideal points in the recruitment process to utilize pre-employment screenings: immediately after a candidate submits an application and immediately prior to deciding which applicants to interview. Assessments conducted at either of these junctures will help recruiters and hiring managers narrow the applicant pool to only those who possess the necessary skills and traits.

Why use pre-employment assessments?

Pre-hire assessments provide employers with the objective feedback they need to ensure they’re hiring the best candidates, shortening and streamlining the recruitment process. Assessment results can also be used as reasonable rationale to justify hiring decisions in the event that a jilted candidate decides to sue for unfair hiring practices.

What criteria should employers look for when selecting a pre-employment assessment tool?

There are three main factors employers should consider when selecting a pre-hire assessment tool:

• Does this tool provide assessments, tests and screenings that are relevant to my business?
• What are the delivery method options for assessments?
• Is the cost of this tool a justifiable expense?

Pre-employment assessments help companies optimize their hiring process by ensuring that only the best candidates make it through to the interview process. And while every company wants to make smarter hiring decisions, not every company may have the resources or expertise to improve their hiring processes on their own.

That’s where G&A Partners can help. As a leading national professional employer organization and HR outsourcing firm, G&A helps businesses of all sizes access the same sophisticated recruiting tools used by Fortune 500 companies. G&A Partners combines teams of experienced HR professionals with advanced technology to make the same sophisticated recruiting tools used by Fortune 500 companies available to businesses of all sizes.

Learn how G&A Partners can help you improve your recruitment process by calling 866-634-6713 to speak with an expert or visiting gnapartners.com/contact to schedule a business consultation.