This is not a test: Psychometric Assessment

Psychometric assessment provides an opportunity for employers to form an overall profile of an employee but the instruments used should not be considered as tests. They are simply designed to explore aspects of workplace behaviour, preference and motivation, as opposed to just ability. Most people will inevitably undergo psychometric assessment at some point in their career.

As one of the topics covered in our second issue of the Hays Journal, we found that while psychometric instruments are becoming ubiquitous there remain some misconceptions surrounding psychometric assessments – from both employers and those job seekers taking such assessments - including that it involves purely testing.

The principle of assessments is to gain insight into individuals’ personalities, skills and competencies, which is why many employers use these assessments when making decisions about promotion, training and development.

For example, a test may imply that while you boast all of the competencies needed to be a successful salesperson, you lack the attributes that would put you first in the queue for senior management training.

There are a range of tools available that organisations can use to explore numeracy, strategic thinking and the ability to deal with complex verbal challenges, as well as off-the-shelf and bespoke questionnaires. The resulting data is used to build a picture of your overall strengths and aptitude, motivations, aspirations, preferred way of working and cultural fit.

For employers considering using such assessments, it's important to remember that they are not a cure-all solution to recruitment challenges. A person's track record remains one of the best predictors of their future performance, and face-to-face behavioural based interviewing is still recommended.

Tips for employers

For employers considering the use of psychometric assessments for existing staff, we have this advice:

• Ensure that only properly trained and qualified staff are responsible for conducting, analysing and reporting on psychometric tests and questionnaires. Make sure that the tests you are using are reliable and valid.
• Assess people in their own language to give all candidates the same chance. When you are assessing executives in numerous countries, look for a test with parallel language versions.
• Monitor ongoing performance. Keep a record of an individual’s assessment results and compare it with their subsequent performance in the job to assess how useful psychometric testing has been for your organisation.

Tips for job seekers

For candidates undertaking a psychometric assessment, we advise you to:

• Approach the assessment as an opportunity to further demonstrate your strengths.
• Be aware that most assessments involve multiple-choice questions with right and wrong responses. This means they are an objective assessment of you and all other candidates. 
• When it comes time to take the test, read the instructions clearly and ask for clarification if anything is not clear.
• If the test is timed, note how many questions there are so you know approximately how long to spend on each one. Work as quickly as you can while still reading the questions thoroughly.

If you are unsure of an answer, do not make a random guess. Instead, eliminate those answers you know to be wrong and try to make an educated guess from there.

Contributed by:

Ashleigh Russell

Business Director

Hays Singapore