As an HR recruiter, you've pretty much seen and heard it all! You've probably conducted scores of interviews and interviewed hundreds of candidates. But have you ever wondered whether the candidates you've selected are the right choice? If you're like most of us…you have…

Recruitment is a tough business and making the right hiring choice for your organization is even tougher. 

So, why shouldn't you opt for additional help when hiring? And is this help available? Yes…it is…in the form of psychometric assessments…

You may have heard about psychometric assessments and may have even considered using them. Or you may have used psychometric assessments when hiring but may have always wondered what is the best way to interpret them. Or…the questions continue…So, is there an introductory, one-stop guide to psychometric assessments? Well…that's what we'll talk about in this article…

Psychometric Assessments: An Introduction

The word, Psychometric, has been derived from the Greek words for mental and measurement. 

Psychometric Assessments are automated, structured frameworks that ensure an unbiased evaluation of a candidate's psychological characteristics. These psychometric assessments have become the de facto method to hire the right candidates. They can not only help you mass hire but can also help you choose the right candidate from among hundreds of similar applicants. 

So, what are psychometric assessments? They are tests that objectively measure a candidate's abilities, intelligence, personality traits, aptitude, skill set, and behavioral style. 

What's more, psychometric assessments provide an all-round view of a candidate and also let you know whether and how they can fit into your existing team. The right psychometric assessments can also help you know whether your favorite candidate will stay with your organization for a long time or not. In other words, it can predict your attrition rate.

This is important, because the recruitment process wherein you choose the right candidates costs both time and money. And nothing can be more frustrating than choosing a candidate and then having her/him leave the organization in the short-term.

For a test to be psychometric, it must be reliable, valid, and standardized. It must also be consistent in its administration, scoring, and content. All of these characteristics ensure that the psychometric tests measure what it is supposed to measure. 

Psychometric Assessments can be used throughout your recruitment life-cycle. 

So, they can be used at the early stages of selection to eliminate unsuitable candidates; prior to an interview to explore a candidate's profile in-depth, and at a later stage after the first or second interview, to reassess candidates. 

Psychometric assessment tests can also be used as part of an assessment center screening of candidates.

What makes psychometric assessments even more interesting is that they can also be used to assess the training and development needs of your employees after hiring them. They can be used to help you know which of your employees are suitable for managerial and leadership roles within your organization. So, you see, there is very little you cannot do with a psychometric assessment! It comes with several advantages, which we'll discuss in the next section…

Advantages of Psychometric Assessments

The right psychometric assessments have several advantages if used appropriately. Some of them are:

They provide a comparison of candidates and employees:

Psychometric tests provide measured results, which help you weed out candidates that are not a good fit for the job role. You can tell which candidates or employees have low scores and can filter them out quickly and efficiently. You can also compare different candidates.

They provide additional information:

Psychometric assessments provide you with information regarding a candidate's emotional intelligence (EQ), personality, and communication style. This is something that you cannot tell through applications, resumes, and interviews, alone. Understanding the candidate's personality profile in this way, helps you understand whether the candidate can perform well in a team, perform well under pressure, or perform well while taking risks.

They provide information to show if there is a culture-fit:

Psychometric tests can identify whether the candidate's values are a good fit with your organizational values and culture. While this may sound difficult, it can be measured with personality tests, as well as with situational judgment tests. 

They provide an insight into the progress of your candidates in your organization:

Psychometric assessments can help you chart out a progression plan for your candidates and employees, based on their personality profile, ethics, and values. The results obtained through psychometric assessments can help HR recruiters, managers, and team leaders, gain valuable insight into how to maintain job satisfaction for your employees.

They provide you with enough data to make an informed hiring decision:

Psychometric tests can give you enough data to help you choose the right candidates. When you select candidates that fit in well within the culture and fabric of your organization, it means less money is spent on re-recruiting due to increased attrition. 

However, if you choose the wrong psychometric assessment tests, they also come with certain disadvantages…

Disadvantages of Picking the Wrong Psychometric Assessment

What works well most of the time, comes with certain caveats, and psychometric tests are no exception. If you choose the wrong psychometric assessment tests they have certain disadvantages. Some of the disadvantages of the wrong psychometric assessments are:

Tests can prompt candidates to lie:

This can especially be the case for high-powered positions, with candidates lying while appearing for the psychometric test. So, you need a psychometric assessment that can tell you if your candidates are lying. To know more about candidates lying during the job and interview process, read our blog – Spot the imposter candidate in a job interview through Body Language.
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Tests can be poorly planned:

This is especially important when hiring en masse. It is important that you know what you want to measure, so that you can use the right psychometric assessments in the right way. This is why you may need a professional, psychometric testing company to ensure that the tests are well-planned and well-structured.

Tests can add to the recruitment pressure:

This can take place because the recruiting process can be stressful enough without adding to the pressure with a psychometric test. Excess pressure can result when candidates take aptitude tests that are too long, under timed conditions. This is why when you partner with the right company for your psychometric assessment, you can opt for a test that is not too long or stressful, yet reliable.

Tests alone may not be enough:

While psychometric assessments are useful indicators when hiring, they are better used in combination with other recruitment processes and strategies, such as interviews. It is important to remember that psychometric tests are not standalone indicators. When you partner with the right company to provide you with the psychometric assessment of your choice, you can also combine your assessment with other methods of evaluation provided by the same partner such as having behavioral interview questions for verifying the test scores.

Tests can be expensive:

While psychometric assessments can help you save both time and money in the long-term, by selecting the right candidate, there can be a certain cost associated with the process. This is why you should select the right psychometric assessment vendor that is both economical and accurate, for your organization.

If you want to partner with the right vendor when choosing psychometric assessments for your organization, you should consider partnering with PMaps! 

Why PMaps

PMaps (for People Mapping) is a company that specializes in providing psychometric assessments throughout the employee hiring cycle. We, at PMaps, can provide you with pre-hiring, as well as post-hiring psychometric assessments, and much, much more…

So, whether you need a psychometric assessment to hire the right customer service executives, or then, to hire the right sales managers, you can comfortably opt for a PMaps psychometric assessment and know that you have made the right choice.

PMaps's psychometric tests have certain unique characteristics, some of which are:

Is Quick:

PMaps' psychometric assessments can typically be completed within 20 mins or less. This ensures that candidates do not suffer from test-taker fatigue and can complete the test without undue strain and stress.

Is Fun and Social:

PMaps' psychometric assessments are fun to take and social. This appeals to all candidates but is especially appealing to Gen Z candidates.

Provides a superior assessment experience:

The PMaps psychometric assessments provide your candidates with a superior testing experience, with questions that are in the form of audio, picture, SJTs, and simulations. This means that your candidates come away with a very positive impression of your company.

Can be taken On-the-go:

Psychometric assessments from PMaps can be completed on your candidates' laptops, tablets, or then, on their mobile. This means that candidates can complete the test at a convenient time and place.

Suitable for all generations of candidates:

PMaps' psychometric assessments are suitable for all generations of candidates, including Baby Boomers, Gen X candidates, Millennials, Gen Y candidates, and especially Gen Z candidates.

Is Visual-based and Language-agnostic:

PMaps' psychometric tests are visual-based with pictures, as well as language-agnostic, which means they are relatively free of bias. 

Is Fully secure:

Your data is completely secure and safe when you opt for a PMaps psychometric assessment. Your data is stored on a secure cloud platform, which ensures that only you and the people you want to access your data, do so.

Can be integrated with your company's HRM:

The PMaps psychometric assessment platform can be integrated with your company's Human Resource Management (HRM) system, thereby providing you and your candidates with an easy and seamless testing experience.

Is Customizable:

PMaps psychometric tests are available off-the-rack, or then, available as bespoke assessments, completely tailored to your industry and your company. This ensures that you are using these psychometric assessments to measure what you intend to measure.

Is Economical:

PMaps psychometric assessments are affordable and can be used as a standalone assessment, or then, in combination with different assessments and modules.

This may sound too good to be true, but it really isn't! You can avail of an enjoyable, objective, and accurate testing experience, when you use the right psychometric test…So, here's to effective recruiting…and Happy Testing!