Better Pre-Employment Assessments Can Improve Hiring Success

As organizations face growing pressure to secure quality hires while minimizing costly hiring mistakes, McLean & Company urges companies to move beyond traditional interviewing techniques and adopt assessments that evaluate both candidates' skills and their fit within the organization.

"When organizations design pre-employment assessments thoughtfully and tailor them specifically to roles where they matter most, the benefits are significant," says Karen Mann, Senior Vice President of Human Resources Research, Learning, and Advisory Services, McLean & Company. 

The Design Pre-Employment Assessments That Improve Hiring Success report highlights the benefits of aligning assessments with core and functional competencies, which can help improve the quality of hires, reduce hiring bias, and ensure long-term talent success. McLean & Company emphasizes the importance of designing assessments tailored to a company’s culture and the specific requirements of each role. The report warns that poorly designed assessments can undermine the hiring process, leading to ineffective decisions and increased turnover costs. These costs, according to the research, can be substantial, particularly when a position requires specialized skills. According to data from Hays, a bad hire can cost a company between 1.8 and 2 times the employee’s annual salary.

Well-aligned assessments not only give candidates a clearer understanding of their future role but also enable hiring teams to make more confident, unbiased decisions. Mann also points out the value of selecting assessment methods based on actual organizational needs, rather than following industry trends, and suggests incorporating engaging elements like gamification to enhance the candidate experience.

McLean & Company recommends utilizing a variety of assessment methods, including interactive simulations, dynamic role-play scenarios, and realistic work samples. These tools provide deeper insight into a candidate’s suitability for a role and allow hiring teams to make more informed decisions. The firm also suggests that incorporating gamification techniques into the assessments can create a more engaging and positive candidate experience, which can be especially valuable in a competitive talent market.

“While traditional HR methods have been used for decades, the emergence of a new workforce is highlighting that approaches from the past 80 years are no longer sufficient,” says Alonso Mujica, Chief Revenue and People Officer, Kuali. ai, to MBN.