Debunking 7 Harmful Pre-Employment Assessment Myths

The job market is more competitive than ever. With so many people vying for the same positions, employers are looking for any edge they can get to help them identify the best candidates. One tool they're increasingly turning to is pre-employment assessments.

Pre-employment assessments are tests that measure a job candidate's skills, abilities, and knowledge in a specific area. They can be used to screen candidates, identify training needs, and predict job performance. While pre-employment assessments can be a valuable tool, there are some misconceptions about them that can lead to their misuse.

Here are seven myths about pre-employment assessments that need to be debunked:

1. Pre-Employment Assessments are Only for Entry-Level Positions

This is one of the most common myths about pre-employment assessments. While it's true that entry-level positions may be more likely to use them, pre-employment assessments can be used for candidates at any level. In fact, they can be especially useful for more experienced candidates, as they can help employers identify specific areas where candidates need improvement.

2. Pre-Employment Assessments are Only for Certain Types of Jobs

Pre-employment assessments can be used for any type of job. Whether it's a manual labor position or a highly technical one, there's an assessment out there that can help you identify the best candidates.

3. All Pre-Employment Assessments are the Same

This is simply not true. There are a wide variety of pre-employment assessments available, and each one is designed to measure different skills and abilities. It's important to choose the right assessment for the job you're hiring for.

4. Pre-Employment Assessments Take a Long Time to Administer

Again, this depends on the assessment you choose. Some assessments can be administered in a matter of minutes, while others may take an hour or more. It's important to choose an assessment that's appropriate for the time you have available.

5. All Pre-Employment Assessments Lead to Bias

There is always the potential for bias in any assessment, but there are steps you can take to minimize it. For example, you can use a blind scoring system, in which the person scoring the assessment doesn't know the candidate's identity. You can also use multiple raters to score the assessment, which can help to average out any individual biases.

6. It's Easy for Candidates to Cheat on Assessments

Nothing is perfect, but cheaters are the exception rather than the rule when it comes to pre-employment assessments. Most assessments are difficult to cheat on, and the ones that are easy to cheat on are also easy to catch. For example, an assessment that asks candidates to describe how they would handle a specific situation is easy to cheat on, but if two candidates have the same answer, it's pretty clear that they either cheated or they've had the same experience.

7. It's Easy to Implement Pre-Employment Assessments

Implementing pre-employment assessments is usually pretty simple, especially if you use an online assessment. You can usually have an assessment up and running in a matter of minutes, and you can start using it to screen candidates right away.

If you're using a paper-and-pencil assessment, you'll need to print out the assessment and have it administered by someone in your organization. This can take a little longer, but it's still a relatively simple process.

Implementing an assessment can help you to save time and money in the hiring process, and it can help you to find the best candidates for your organization.

Conclusion

Pre-employment assessments can be a great way to screen candidates and predict job performance, but there are some common myths about them that can lead organizations astray. Assessments should be job-related, validated, and used as part of a holistic hiring process, not as a replacement for it. When used correctly, assessments can be a powerful tool for making better hiring decisions.

Kandio offers professionally-made assessment tests to help companies hire the perfect talents. Check out the tests we have available for you to use today to find the right talents to work with!