Every business owner or senior executive knows the greatest asset a company has is its staff. So when hiring mistakes happen, the repercussions are felt at all levels of the organisation and beyond. Whether this person is in a customer-facing role, or in charge of a department, if they’re the wrong fit, they’ll cost your company dearly.
These costs can be in the form of lost productivity, employee morale, reputation, or they can be financial costs. A recent survey published by Careerbuilder.com set out to measure the costs of a bad hire, and found that:
It’s not always easy to understand when somebody is a great fit or not. Studies have shown that standard recruitment processes aren’t always reliable when it comes to measuring when somebody is the right fit in terms of organisational culture, or if their attitudes and personality align with characteristics you consider highly desirable.
Given the potential costs associated with hiring the wrong person, most companies want to eliminate as much guesswork as they can. This is where psychometric testing comes in. There are two types of psychometric test used in recruitment, and they are designed to measure aptitude and personality.
The aptitude test assesses a candidate’s logical reasoning and thinking skills like verbal ability, numeric ability, abstract reasoning, spatial reasoning, and mechanical reasoning. These tests are generally multiple choice.
Personality tests are basically questionnaires designed to identify characteristics, attitudes, and motivations that may not be discovered during the standard interview process. According to the Institute of Psychometric Coaching, personality tests are designed to ‘measure candidates’ suitability for a role based on the required personality characteristics and aptitude (or cognitive abilities). They identify the extent to which candidates’ personality and cognitive abilities match those required to perform the role’. A great example of this is how well a person makes decisions. This can difficult to ascertain during a standard recruitment process, so if it‘s a crucial part of the role being filled, you need a reliable way to detect how good a candidate is at decision-making.
Well-designed tests are set up to pick up on inconsistencies, so it is difficult for a candidate to lie about what their strengths and weaknesses are.
When using psychometric tests, it’s important to remember that they are only as good as the person administering them. A good starting point is to have strong job descriptions, as well as a detailed profile of the type of person you are looking for, including competencies and personality traits. Training in how to administer and evaluate a test is crucial to making the most out of this tool. These tests are an investment, and in order to get the maximum ROI, they need to be carried out by staff who understand how to interpret results, and match them with the competencies and characteristics set out in the job description.
One great way to make sure you get the maximum ROI out of testing is to outsource it to a professional team. At Challenge Consulting we provide a professional testing service that offer customized solutions for testing of management, sales, technical, industrial, and graduate staff. With experienced psychologists on hand to manage the testing process from end to end, we help you achieve maximum ROI in the shortest time possible with written reports completed within one business day. Our expert solution is designed to save you time as well as money, while finding you the best candidates.
If you would like to learn more about how we can help you with psychometric testing, please call Steve Crowe on (02) 9221 6422.
