Selections

Are All Assessments Alike?

The short answer is a resounding NO. There are many kinds of employee assessment tools available for use. The right assessments can greatly increase the accuracy and efficiency of your hiring decisions, but finding the right assessments can be a challenge of its own.

ASSESSMENT TYPES

Structured Interviews. You may not think of an interview as an assessment. But if you are asking specific competency-related questions and evaluating the responses, then it is. 

Biographical Data. Past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior, so asking questions about previous experiences through the use of biographical data is an important component.

Personality Inventories. Typically, personality is measured through a series of personal belief statements, and candidates are asked to rate their agreement.

Situational Judgment. These assessments present hypothetical scenarios to candidates, which would show hiring managers what that candidate would do in a specific situation.

Simulations. A simulation can take many forms, such as role playing or in-basket exercises. In a manufacturing organization, for example, candidates would demonstrate performance by doing a task they'd be required to do in the actual job.

Cognitive Ability. This measures a candidate's intelligence and ability to learn. To avoid adverse impact, it's important to build an assessment system that uses more than just cognitive ability.

Motivational Fit. While it's important to find out if candidates CAN do the job, it's equally important to find out if they WANT to do the job.

Technical Knowledge. These assessments focus on the very specific knowledge that candidates need to perform a certain job.

Here are 5 basic tips to help you build an effective assessment process:

1. Use Multiple Assessments. A strong hiring funnel will have multiple steps and will use well-developed assessment tools at each stage. The table below shows how these four steps actually use eight different types of assessments, increasing the accuracy, efficiency and utility of the assessment process.

2. Match the Competency to the Assessment. Each assessment type has its own strengths and weaknesses, so be sure you're using the appropriate tool for what you want to measure. For example, don't use a personality assessment to measure presentation skills. If that skill is important, a simulation would be more appropriate.

3. Be Efficient. Place assessments where they will add the most value to your organization. The most comprehensive assessment should be placed farther down the funnel where there are fewer candidates. If you're dealing with high-volumes, however, find a shorter assessment to screen out many of the less qualified candidates.

4. Use Pre-employment Assessments. Make sure you're using assessments developed for selection; many are meant for other purposes - usually clinical or informational. Find an assessment with clear information on validity and reliability. Be wary of one-size-fits-all assessments or those that are 'labeled.' These types of assessments were not developed for pre-employment testing.

5. Be Consistent and Relevant. Whatever assessments you use, use them consistently - establish standards and apply them to each candidate in the same way. And remember relevance - just because an assessment contains a measurement, doesn't mean you have to use it in your decision making. Don't use it if it's not important to success on the job.

So no, not all assessments are alike. If you would like any assistance in evaluating all the available options, contact the assessment experts who can help you find the best solutions for your target position(s).