If we consider the past behaviors of an individual as a best predictor of future outcomes, then we can say that the latest behavioral assessment tools are the optimum analytical gears for HR professionals and recruiters. These behavioral assessments are assisting recruiters and employers to sort out candidates with favorable characteristics and temperament that can best suit the job role. Also, it identifies the distinctive talent that a candidate possesses. Plus, the newest technology also let the organizations to tailor the tools using analytical data about their own best performers.
Defining Behavioral Assessments!
A human capital research and advisory firm in Delray Beach, Fla.. named Brandon Hall Group has a talent procurement expert named Kyle Lagunas who defines behavioral assessment as “a methodical assessment of the candidate’s personality profiles utilized to measure the feasibility of a candidate constructed on aspects like work style, culture fit and potential”.
Behavioral assessments were not much popular conventionally as compared to the approaches which compute hard competencies and particular job knowledge in an individual. In 2013, Kyle Lagunas conducted a research survey in USA of about 237 organizations ranging from small companies to large organizations. The report showed that about half of the organizations, about 52% were using knowledge and skills tests in their recruitment processes and 38% were using analytical behavioral assessments.
Behavioral Assessments – The Insights!
Behavioral tests are sometimes referred as Personality tests or Predictive tests. These assessments have proved to be one of the most reliable tools for recruiters to assess personality traits of an individual. Dr.Todd Haris who is the Director of Research at PI worldwide says “Good tests today are not particularly about qualifying an individual for a slot but they are more than that”.
Harris has outlined behavioral assessments as multi-level match tests. Because he thinks that when a candidate is hired for a job, it’s not only about his particular skills to perform his job duties but also, there’s an organizational culture where he has to fit, the association between that individual and his supervisor plus the surrounding community.
Four Tips For Behavioral Assessments!
The secret for picking the right behavioral assessment tool and augment its advantages. Recruiters must initiate by extending the process they think to use in the assessment. Following are five tips to consider while deciding whether to use behavioral assessments or not.
1. Executives can play a recruiter’s role? Not all of them!
It’s quite unnecessary that we consider all good executives as good recruiters. Researches elaborate that different human resource experts have concluded that it’s not essential that great executives will be great at hiring.
For example, small business owners and organizations often have greater confidence in themselves and they tend to allot recruitment duties to their executives and managers. Though, it can never be termed as smart hiring. It doesn’t mean that those small organizations are incompetent but recruitment is something that requires specific tricks, techniques and tools to make quality hiring. Small businesses also lack in the setup of professional recruitment process, thus they face issues in good hiring.Consequently, a behavioral assessment test must be constructed in a way that it furnishes a viewpoint, stability and objectivity. If an organization uses a persistent, well-researched tools against a decision based on gut feelings, they can make better recruitment and employee turnover rate will be higher.
2.Recruitment Must Base upon requirements:
Recruitment and selection must be based upon needs and requirements and not on favoritism. A renowned author named Stephen Shapiro quoted in his book “Personality Poker” that executives try to incline people who think like them and this causes brassiness which is a problem in every organization largely.An entrepreneurial organization must approach for people who possess diverse and broad range of styles. So, it will be a smart approach to recognize people’s aptitude and behavior then make them fit on a job role that best fits their characteristics.
3.Behavioral Assessments provide great ROI
Recruiters are well-aware that employee turnover cost is quite high so it’s likely for the companies to adjust that same cost in testing and similar services for quality hiring rather spending money on employee turnover.Today employers receive thousands for CV’s for a single job post which is a challenge in itself. But, latest testing tools have solved the concern. They let the recruiters sort the candidates based on their abilities, skills, job knowledge as well as behaviors. So, with testing, the candidates who appear equal as per their CV’s as identified as the best, better and good scales. Then, the recruiter can make the decision of hire based on the result of tests.
4.Behavioral Assessments also needs expert assistance
Its universally accepted that managers are good at judgments and they can determine an individual’s personality using the behavioral assessment results. But it’s not always a good idea specially when there are legal concerns.