Pre-employment skills assessment has been making recruiting the best applicant easier than ever before. No recruiter would rather spend more time cultivating relationships and assessing applicants than reading resumes. But there are certain terms to be followed when it comes to using candidate skills testing software.
Let’s explore what makes skills assessment successful and learn what to avoid doing.
The dos of employment skills testing
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Do use a variety of skills tests
Recruiters can avail of a wide selection of skills tests when they are in the applicant assessment stage. Literacy and numeracy skills tests are extremely popular. Microsoft Office skills testing is also commonly used because the MS Office suite – Excel, Word, PowerPoint – is integral for running any business today. Depending on the complexity of the role, a candidate can be asked to complete one or more skills tests to properly evaluate their skillset and experience.
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Do test for all roles and businesses
One of the biggest benefits of using skills assessment is that it can be applicable for a large number of roles and scenarios across industries. It is very helpful for checking candidate proficiency whether it is an admin role, for a retail job or checking knowledge on healthcare. Recruiters using employment skills testing software will find a suitable test or two which they can use to optimise their hiring. Even for niche roles, there is provision for custom skills testing where recruiters and employers can create their own skills tests to evaluate candidates better.
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Do utilise online skills testing
Online skills assessment software ramps up the efficiency and productivity factor by a huge margin. The online platform saves users a lot of time because it is easy to pick and send off the assessments quickly. It eliminates the process of organising a suitable time, date, and location. Instead, recruiters can set up an automated skills assessment process when candidates fill up a job application from within their recruitment CRM software. The online skills test will be part of the application process that can be taken from anywhere.
The don’ts of employment skills testing
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Don’t overload applicants with tests
Does this seem contradictory to the first point made above? This is certainly an important point to bear in mind. A selective, appropriate set of exercises is useful to decipher candidate talent. However, it is burdensome to applicants if they have to sit through numerous assessments. Recruiters and employers will lose a good candidate if they overload applicants with too many skills tests. The best job seekers do not lack opportunities and they will quickly move on to the next recruiting process that is better suited to them.
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Don’t replace interviews with skills tests
An online skills testing software is valuable. But recruiters shouldn’t rely only on skills tests when they are recruiting. There should be a balance with interviews and online skills assessments having equal weight when it comes to understanding each candidate better and evaluating their qualifications against the needs of the role. The human connection is invaluable when recruiting. So, while sending exercises to gauge candidate proficiency is necessary, recruiters should be mindful during the process.
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Don’t assume one size fits all
There’s a huge assortment of jobs in this world. A handful of tests will never be sufficient for all the different roles in different sectors. There are skills tests that evaluate technical abilities and there’s psychometric skills testing that checks critical thinking, communication skills, etc. Bespoke skills testing comes in really handy here. A single test will never work for every kind of role. A good skills assessment software will offer users the ability to design skills tests that are actually useful for highlighting abilities necessary for the role.
