Testing your candidates?  The fundamental ingredient you’ve been missing

Most employers recognise the value of digging a little deeper into the psyche of a potential employee with some form of screening test.  But which type of testing yields the best results in revealing your next great hire?

For years, behavioural testing has dominated the screening test market, with employers focused on finding the right personality fit for not only the role, but the organisation.  But there’s a new method that’s changing the way we think about candidate screening – cognitive testing.

Cognitive tests assess a candidate’s competence and role suitability and predict future job performance. In a psychometric assessment context, this usually means numerical reasoning, verbal reasoning, abstract reasoning and mechanical reasoning tests.

Paired with a behavioural or personality test, employers are able to determine the best role fit for a candidate before even meeting with them face to face.

While a personality test won’t demonstrate whether or not a person can think quickly or critically – a cognitive test will.

Employment Office Managing Director Tudor Marsden-Huggins says he suggests clients use cognitive tests for all senior positions and any role which involves managing people.

“While you can issue cognitive tests for any position, it’s not something that’s essential for all roles. But for any senior or complex roles, or any positions requiring high-level decision-making, it is absolutely essential to screen candidates with a robust cognitive test.

“These tests are all about mental aptitude rather than just behavioural attitude. It is essential to determine a candidate’s proficiency to perform according to their logical, numerical, verbal and mechanical abilities, depending on which skills are needed for the position.  This method gives you the strongest indication available as to whether a candidate can actually do the work. Combined with a behavioural test, a hiring manager is able to get the most complete picture of how well each candidate will stand up to the challenges of the role,” he says.

This type of testing is increasingly popular for employers due to it’s ease of availability, it’s affordability and it’s accuracy, Marsden-Huggins says.

“These tests aren’t just for multinational corporations with sophisticated recruitment processes, small and medium business owners often can’t afford to pay the cost of recruitment, only to realise the new hire doesn’t have the skills for the job just a few weeks or months later. A cognitive test will help select the right person for the job based on performance-driven data. The tests are not only accurate,  they are also affordable, so it’s good news for everyone,” he says.

If you’re interested in using cognitive testing as part of your next recruitment process, Employment Office can help. We offer a large range of logical, numerical, verbal and mechanical cognitive testing options priced at $75 per test per candidate.  Call 1300 366 573 or email amber.dique-bellette@employmentoffice.com.au today. 

Great candidates join community-minded companies. Here’s why.

It always feels good to help your fellow man, but did you know that increasing your organisation’s social impact also makes them more attractive to prospective employees?

A recent study by US non-profit Net Impact found that 53 per cent of workers said a job where they could make an impact was important to their happiness.  72 per cent of students about to enter the workforce agreed.  And most would even take a pay cut to achieve that goal.

As employers, of course we can’t ALL be working on a cure for cancer or  developing ways to end third world poverty, but we can initiate a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program into our workforce plans.

As Millennials continue to dominate emerging workforce trends, it’s important to consider that a large portion of this candidate demographic are preferring to align themselves with business and brands that support worthy causes and are socially aware. Organisations with a co-ordinated and purpose-driven corporate social responsibility program not only engage and retain existing employees, but also attract a younger, more community-minded, candidate pool.

Tudor Marsden-Huggins, Managing Director of Employment Office, established Tour de Office, a corporate charity event and workplace wellness initiative to satisfy the CSR needs of his own growing business.  Five years on, he credits the event with helping to attract socially motivated candidates, while also keeping existing employees motivated.

“Millennials want to feel a sense of purpose at work, and if you can clearly demonstrate how your organisation makes a positive contribution to society, you’ll be in a better position to attract engaged and motivated candidates who want to work for a brand that’s committed to social impact.”

When deciding on a CSR program, it’s important an organisation considers their options carefully, and settles on a program employees will be passionate about supporting, and perhaps incorporate a few synergies with your industry and the work you do.

“You also need to think about CSR initiatives as a long-term commitment.  These programs take a while to gain traction and grow within the employee base.  Pick something you can stick to and make sure you promote it throughout the organisation.  Whether it’s a video on your careers site or updates on social media, organisations must consistently highlight their CSR strategy and results in ways that are easily digestible for millennials,” he says.

When communicating information about CSR, organisations need to share stories of impact rather than drowning candidates in data-driven content, Marsden-Huggins says.

“Millennial candidates don’t want to look at statistics when it comes to CSR programs.  It’s the stories of genuine human impact they connect with. If you capture these stories well and make them easily shareable online, you’ll notice your CSR program can really take your employer brand to the next level,” he said.

Implementing a fun and rewarding CSR strategy has become an essential tool in securing top talent and engaging existing employees. With solutions like Tour de Office available for organisations of all sizes, today is the day to execute a CSR strategy the candidates of tomorrow will thank you for.

Tour de Office is an all-in-one workplace wellness and employee engagement tool which sets organisations up for success in a tried and tested corporate philanthropy event. A great way to boost your workplace culture, Tour de Office can cater to any business size and need, check out the website here or contact event manager Jessika Woolford at jessika@tourdeoffice.com to find out more today.