Psychometric assessments can provide useful information when assessing the suitability of potential (and current) employees.
Some of the reasons that employers conduct assessments are to improve high turnover, recruit candidates that fit the company culture, avoid employing poor performers and help team members understand themselves and their relationships with others.
Most people leave organisations because of behavioural or personality differences – not because their education, skills and experience were inadequate. Candidates with excellent skills may not have the motivation to perform at their best regularly.
Workplace assessments can tell which employees exceed expectations and help organisations set goals to help underachieving employees to perform better.
Psychometric assessments include personality profiles, motivation surveys, ability questionnaires and reasoning activities. Some assessments focus on personality and motivation to get the job done, others tell the company if a current employee is at the right level in a role. Most assessments measure personality, interests, aptitude and potential. Cognitive and personality assessment assess knowledge and intelligence. Assessment results normally match personality traits with job requirements. The assessment will identify individual strengths and “development areas”. Motivational assessments assess what an individual wants – the candidate’s motivation should align with the organisational goals. When this fits, employees perform optimally.
Psychometric assessments should be:
Objective and impartial.
Able to provide fair and accurate results.
Standardised (based on results from a sample population representative of the people taking the test and administered in the same manner every time).
Reliable (the assessment must produce consistent results and not be influenced by external factors).
Valid (the test should measure what it is supposed to measure).
Easy to administer and score
Cost effective (make use of online tests, for example).
HR professionals use evaluations and assessments to develop job descriptions and analyse organisational structure.
Psychometric assessments should never be used in isolation but as part of a recruitment or performance process. Generally, when bringing a new candidate on board, a company should assess the organisation’s culture, align the job description with culture fit and get to know the potential employee’s personality and work style. Once there is a clear understanding of culture and how this person would fit into an organisation, assessments may be introduced.
