The Value of Assessments

How many times have you hired someone based on their skills, only to fire them because they were not the right fit for the position?

Behavior, attitude, and management styles cannot be accurately discerned simply through an interview. As one CEO told me recently, “I’ve been accurate at times, and I’ve been downright bamboozled at times.” Candidates know how to say the right things at the right time, so how do you know whether someone is really the right fit for the position?

Skill assessments are excellent at quantifying a person’s knowledge. And assessments that reveal a person’s attitude, motivations, and character help to predicate the likelihood of a person’s success in a particular position. Many of my clients use these assessments for every position they hire for. The value far outweighs the expense, which is typically just $300.

Companies that consistently use these assessments to hire, manage and develop their teams have a strong record of developing successful talent and reducing turnover. The assessments help senior management understand the personal characteristics of their current staff and managers, and provides insight into the company’s actual culture and environment. When making a hire, you can then use the results of the assessments to determine if the candidate has the overall right characteristics for the company and the position, as well as determine if the potential employee will work well with a specific manager.

Assessments are a critical part of the hiring process and they provide you with insightful information that can help you make an informed hiring decision and avoid costly hiring mistakes. Make sure you’re using assessments when you make a hire and when you seek to promote and develop from within.

 Jonathan Broder is the author and founder of Strategic Professional Staffing www.stratpros.com and his blog is at www.stratprose.com