Managers said a new test, administered online, has reduced turnover and allowed Delaware North Cos., a hospitality company, to more accurately select applicants who best fit the job.
“Now we understand better what makes a great reservation sales applicant,” said Andy Grinsfelder, vice president of sales and marketing for the Buffalo, N.Y.-based company’s parks and resorts division.
Pre-hire assessments have been used for years, but never have such tests been deployed so widely at companies across the U.S. The automation of the job application process, combined with powerful data tools and inexpensive online software, have led to falling costs, more accurate results and a surge in use.
Eight of the top 10 U.S. private employers now administer pre-hire tests in their job applications for some positions.
Companies aren’t settling for people with minimum skills; they want applicants who stand out in ability and workplace temperament, a new recruiting standard they say yields longer tenure and higher productivity.
A shift to online job applications in the early 2000s that allowed employers to streamline the recruiting process—historically labor-intensive. Taking stock of “candidates’ data now takes minutes.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, April 15, 2015
Job Applicants should take some online self assessments to improve their self-awareness as to their unique signature talents before taking a prospective employer's pre-hiring self assessment.
"Now, Discover Your Strengths" by Marcus Buckingham & Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. in 2001 helped you to identify your innate signature talents so that you can build them into leadership strengths. Now there is newer (2007) business bestseller book called "Strengthsfinder 2.0" that utilizes the same self assessment.
You can find these books at your local bookseller or purchase them online. On the inside of the book jacket cover there is a unique code number to take the online Strengthsfinder.com self-assessment.
When you receive your top five "signature talents" report, you need to keep them in front of you so when a situation arises, you may refer to your top five signature talents and decide which to put into action when facing your new leadership situation.