Pre-tests can improve hiring decisions
You may want to fill a slot quickly--but pre-testing applicants could be time well spent.
GRACE F. MURPHY, Assistant Editor
With the telecommunications industry booming, high-tech companies are spending enormous sums on advertising, recruitment, and hiring bonuses to find new employees. Although companies may want to fill a job vacancy as quickly as possible, industrial psychologists say taking the time to conduct pre-employment testing can weed out poor matches and save time and money in the long run.
According to the American Psychological Association, qualified industrial psychologists are behavioral scientists specializing in human behavior in the workplace. They work with organizations in such areas as employee selection, placement, training, and development. Companies such as at&t and mci have industrial psychologists on board, but smaller companies may choose the services of a consultant instead.
According to industrial psychologist Jed Friend of Friend & Walker Inc. (Tampa, FL) companies face a tough time finding recruits. "There are nearly 200,000 or 300,000 jobs in the technical field--but each year, I think universities will only produce between 25,000 and 40,000 students trained in those areas, such as computer science majors. So there`s going to be a shortage for some time to come," he says.
After a company has gotten a candidate in the door, Friend says his firm is asked to step in with technical testing "because people can lie or stretch the truth about their skills." Friend says the tests will identify specific skill sets that a person with a technical background would have. "For example, before hiring a programmer who says he or she is competent in C++, the test sees if they are competent and if so, at what level--entry level, intermediate, or advanced," Friend says.
Companies that choose to test do so because time spent advertising, recruiting, and training someone is costly. "You just cannot afford to hire somebody that`s not going to work out, and discover that four months, eight months later," Friend says.
Lousig-Nont & Associates (Las Vegas, NV), publisher of written employment tests, says that not only can companies lose time and money by hiring the wrong employee, but stress is put on present employees every time they have to interrupt their work to answer questions and train someone new.
"The days of filling out a standard application form and hiring on a gut feeling are gone. In the past, most employment applications revealed very little about a candidate`s functional attitudes toward work. Now, having the right questions on your employment application, plus a candidate`s own answers from an integrity test, can give you valuable information about that person`s work values," industrial psychologist Gregory M. Lousig-Nont said in a statement.
Personality and integrity tests are frequently administered to candidates for middle- through senior-management jobs, according to Friend. For instance, when testing for a vice president of engineering job, technical expertise is less important than someone`s personal and management skills, he says.
Lousig-Nont & Associates offers an integrity test called Phase II Profile, which is designed to complement personal references, credit ratings, and interviews. After a candidate takes the test, a summary is printed out which can alert an employer to undesirable attitudes the candidate may hold. According to the statement, Lousig-Nont says the test can help distinguish between honest people who don`t have the ability to rationalize dishonesty, and dishonest people who see themselves as ordinary people in a dishonest world where everyone is stealing. Friend says tests can also help employers determine if an individual will fit in with the company culture.
According to Lousig-Nont, employers should be cautious when deciding what tests to use. He recommends that they question the testing firms as to the validity and reliability of the tests, and whether independent university-level validation studies have been conducted.
Friend cautions companies not to rely exclusively on the tests. Employers who use pre-employment tests usually base about 25% of their hiring decision on test results, he says.
"Testing is one piece--it`s an important piece, but it`s only one. The recruitment effort has to be there, and well-trained interviewers must be in place. Not only does the technical interview have to take place but also human resources should be involved," Friend says. q