Hiring the right person for the job is like finding the diamond in the rough. The tedious screening process requires a meticulous eye and keen observation. If you want to find the perfect person for the job, you’ll have to determine if the candidate’s skills and values match your company’s unique culture. You can accomplish this through pre-employment tests.
What are Pre-Employment Tests?
With hundreds of applicants vying for one job, the search isn’t always easy.
Traditional methods of getting to know candidates — interviews and resumes — often don’t guarantee the best insights. Interviews (especially unstructured ones) are subjective, while resumes can contain misleading statements or lies.
Fortunately, you can now easily access pre-employment tests.
Pre-employment tests allow you to have an objective and standardized way of gathering information on applicants during the hiring process. You can utilize them to filter and manage large applicant pools much easier.
Why are Pre-Assessment Employment Tests Good?
Well-validated and professionally developed pre-employment tests give businesses and employment screening companies better insight into the traits and skills of a prospective employee. Businesses that use pre-employment testing can avoid common hiring-related problems, such as:
- Spending too much time on hiring
- Still hiring the wrong people
Pre-employment tests address these concerns by drastically reducing the time spent on interviewing candidates and reading resumes, as well as reduce the costs associated with hiring. By providing objective and reliable data, companies can easily predict job performance and reduce the number of bad hires.
Here at Aptitude.ph, we recommend adding pre-employment tests to the hiring process to guarantee a more productive workforce and fewer turnovers. Businesses of all sizes will also get a better grasp of the vast pool of applicants.
For more information and inquiries about Pre-employment testing, don’t hesitate to contact Aptitude today.
What Are The Different Types of Pre-Employment Tests?
Pre-employment tests generally fall into the following categories:
Integrity tests are the foundation of pre-employment testing. Employee integrity testing steers employers away from undisciplined or dishonest applicants. If properly constructed, these tests can be good predictors of an individual’s job performance.
Common integrity exams ask direct questions about ethics and integrity. Other tests also assess personality traits linked with integrity, such as conscientiousness.
Integrity tests are commonly used:
- To sort out candidates for positions where employees will be working in customers’ homes (e.g., field service technicians, caregivers, and healthcare aides)
- To reduce the risk of employee theft
- To assess the risk of safety violations in manufacturing settings
Background checks are the traditional counterparts of integrity tests. While these checks are helpful, they can be expensive. Additionally, background checks only target individuals with previous criminal records while integrity tests focus more on weeding out people with unproductive behaviors.
One of the few concerns surrounding this pre-employment test is the reliability of the candidates’ answers. Potential applicants can always fake their responses.
You should consider how likely it is for a candidate to admit to stealing anything before. If they have, they would be paradoxically honest to tell you the truth. On your part, if the candidate ever admits to what they have done, you should at least commend their integrity at the moment. You should also consider the fact that people can change.
Pre employment skills testing doesn’t focus on a candidate’s knowledge or personality. This pre-employment test measures actual skills — both hard skills (e.g., computer programming, accounting, and writing) and soft skills (e.g., time management, attention to detail, and creative problem solving).
Skill tests measure the aptitudes candidates have learned through their education and career histories. These tests reflect acquired knowledge — aka what an applicant already knows based on their previous experience.
General skills tests determine a candidate’s readiness in taking the job. These tests measure their numeracy and literacy levels to predict an applicant’s job performance (particularly for entry-level positions).
Other skill tests, however, measure more specific acquired skills such as software application knowledge or typing speed. These “micro-skills” tests are designed to measure a candidate’s capacity to handle all of their future responsibilities, not to predict their long-term job performance.
The one thing you should consider about skills tests is that they can be time-consuming. Job applicants must give presentations or submit their written work within a given time. On the other hand, HR managers need more time to evaluate the results carefully.
To address this issue, you can use skills testing in the final stages of your hiring process. By this time, you will have a much smaller applicant pool, meaning you would not have to evaluate as many submissions and presentations.
Having a personality test for applicants can give you an idea of whether a candidate will suit the company’s culture or if their personality will translate into job success. For example, extroverted candidates who practice assertiveness will make great additions to your sales team.
The “Five Factor Model” (also known as the “Big Five”) is the most prominent personality framework HR personnel use to explore an individual’s personality. Employers can see how an applicant stacks up on five major dimensions of personality: agreeableness, conscientiousness, openness, neuroticism, and extraversion.
The Big Five traits are crucial in helping employers finding candidates perfect for the job. For example, conscientiousness measures how organized, reliable, and persistent an individual is. Candidates with low scores in conscientiousness may be unreliable and more impulsive. Determining an applicant’s level in this personality trait can moderately predict their success in jobs that value reliability more than creativity.
Similar to the other pre-employment tests, personality tests also have limitations. Some candidates tend to answer based on what they think a potential employer would want to hear. As a result, they misrepresent themselves. Prevent misrepresentations by choosing tests designed to catch them.
Some applicants might also find personality tests invasive, which could negatively impact their experience.
Apart from the initial employment tests mentioned above, employers and HR personnel may also learn more about the candidate with the following assessments:
- Job knowledge test. This assessment measures an applicant’s theoretical or technical knowledge in a particular field. For example, HR personnel can ask a potential nurse about the basic first aid techniques.
- Emotional intelligence test. Emotional intelligence (EI) tests determine how candidates understand their emotions and how well they build relationships with others. Emotional abilities are essential in jobs that require leadership and interpersonal relationships.
- Physical ability test. This test measures stamina and strength, which are critical for professions like first responders. Also, physical ability tests can reduce the likelihood of workplace accidents, which means fewer compensation claims. Candidates are unable to fake the results of this test.
- Employee health assessment. This test evaluates a candidate’s overall medical condition and general health state. You can use this assessment to find out if an applicant has any health issues that may affect their ability to perform their tasks.
- Cognitive testing. Cognitive tests measure an applicant’s memory, reasoning, perceptual accuracy and speed, and skills in reading comprehension and arithmetic.
- VR-Based Employee Assessment. The pre-employment VR assessment provides you with a multifunctional virtual platform that you can use to make key decisions in the hiring process. Through the innovative technologies involved in this assessment method, you will be able to have a complete view of candidates’ abilities and compatibility with your open positions.
Testing Simplifies the Hiring Process
Pre-employment tests do not just streamline the hiring process; they also strengthen the business by increasing the likelihood of employing productive individuals. Pre-employment testing also helps companies achieve their desired business outcomes, such as increased sales, lower turnover, and higher customer satisfaction.
The most significant benefits businesses can experience by implementing effective pre-employment test solutions include:
- Increased productivity. Tests can determine the extent to which an applicant has the talent, knowledge, and determination to perform well. If a candidate perfectly fits the job, they will certainly excel. When they excel, so will the company.
- Better employee retention. Hiring the right candidate is just as important as reducing turnover and retaining talent. Pre-employment testing enables businesses to screen applicants more efficiently, particularly in their personality and whether they will stay in a role for long.
- More efficient hiring process. Time is of the essence. You can’t get back every minute you spend sifting through resumes, interviewing, or phone screening. Pre-employment tests enable you to determine the applicants you wish to spend time with first.
- Increase legal defensibility. The use of pre-employment tests requires following hiring selection guidelines set by the government. These prove that all tests and assessments are legal to use as long as they are job-related. Pre-employment tests also provide businesses with objective predictors of job success. It allows employers to be legally equipped in case an applicant challenges the legality of the assessment.
Potential Issues with Pre-Employment Tests
While pre-testing guarantees plenty of benefits in the employee selection process, there are still challenges along the way.
Validity is the first issue, whether or not an assessment can accurately measure the specific criteria it’s supposed to measure, as well as its accuracy in predicting future performance. HR personnel and employers should be able to prove that candidates who did well on the test will do well on their job.
Reliability is another concern. For a test to be reliable, the candidate’s test results should be the same every time they undergo an assessment. If an applicant takes the test one day and scores high, then they take the same test a week later and receive a lower score, the test is not reliable.
To ensure employment tests deliver desired results, consider the following:
- Choose tests that are reliable and valid
- Learn more about potential pre-employment tests before you purchase them from other companies
- Refrain from adding questions that are too personal or offensive
- Don’t rely solely on the test results to determine if an employee is a perfect fit for the company
A pre-employment test is necessary to help you hire the best ASAP. But if you’re still struggling with finding the right test, worry not. Aptitude is at your service.
We offer exceptional pre-employment testing services. You can count on us to help you find the diamond in the rough by identifying candidates who possess values that match your company’s unique culture.
Streamline your hiring process with us today.
I’m In! What Do I Do Next?
Reach out to learn more about our pre-employment testing services today and take advantage of our introductory promo. You’ll get a full overview of the questions as well as a sample report.
We can provide online or on-site training on how to administer the test and interpret the data given.