Pre-Employment Testing – Hiring the ‘Purple Squirrel’

For all practical purposes, there is no purple squirrel, not in nature and not in the job market.

For those who don’t know what purple squirrel is; Purple Squirrel is a term used for an extraordinary candidate, with exactly the right qualifications and experience. It is a metaphor used by recruiters to identify the unrealistic expectations of a client company.

So now you must be thinking, “where the hell should I bring purple squirrels from to satisfy the client?” And sometimes, if you think you are successful in finding a purple squirrel, even your purple squirrel can be just another disqualified candidate to the client company.

What if I say you can find a purple squirrel? Let me tell you how?

Using pre-employment skills testing you can surely find a purple squirrel. Pre-employment skills testing software enables the recruiter or hiring manager to evaluate the candidates’ behavioral aptitude and core abilities, helping to determine if they are a good fit for the position and their company.

Is Pre-employment Testing new?

Pre-employment testing is not new. A pre-employment test is a test administered to job applicants by a potential employer before they are hired. Such pre-employment assessments date back to the 90s. With today’s technological models and computing power, companies can obtain inexpensive, effective, and customized assessments that measure everything from technical and communication skills to personality traits.

In a nutshell, they assist companies in gaining a better understanding of prospective candidates before making a hiring decision.

Hiring managers, HR departments, and organizations use pre-employment exams to screen candidates and test for a variety of topics, including:

• Characteristics of personality
• Capabilities and skills
• Knowledge of the job (i.e.., technical or theoretical expertise in a particular field)
• Knowledge of software or a foreign language
• Emotional intelligence is a term that refers to the ability to (i.e., how well someone builds relationships and understands emotions)
• Drug or alcohol use
• Integrity 

Employers have become more Selective

Making poor decisions of hiring can be very costly. Hiring managers are responsible for bringing on employees who will make their team better. Today, employers are not just hiring on their gut feeling, though it comes from experience but has become more particular about the candidates being domain experts. The utilization of pre-employment assessments is growing. However, employers are using pre-employment assessments as a part of a smart and accurate hiring process.

Benefits of using Pre-employment Testing

For all of the reasons indicated above, if you decide to use pre-employment assessments, it's far better to use an established hiring and pre-employment testing system that provides verified, trustworthy tests produced by specialists.

• It helps employers to save time and money in screening, ultimately finding people with a strong fit for the job. 
• Online pre-employment testing can eliminate up to 50% of unqualified applicants easily and on the spot.
• It also helps in reducing unnecessary elements in the hiring process, which ultimately increase the productivity of your HR department.
• Pre-Employment assessments can help you ask the right questions at the time of the interview and find your next great employee.

Hiring a purple squirrel is a challenging process that demands significant inputs from the employer. 

Pre-employment testing software is a significant input that will reap the benefits. Pre-employment assessments could benefit your company whether you’re a large or small employer. Hiring right has long been known as a key element of successful businesses.

And software like iMocha allows you to customize exams — for example, on math, language, or software programs like Excel or Word – as well as construct your own personalized aptitude tests on any subject.

Plus, online pre-employment assessments systems also help you:

• Organize all of your hiring information in one convenient location.
• Tests and results are accessible from any device with an Internet connection.
• Make a central location for you and your team to look over, post, and share job information.
• Link to the system directly from your website, post job descriptions and requirements and provide testing links as soon as an application is accepted.

Does your company use pre-employment testing software? And if you have still not implemented pre-employment assessment in your recruitment process you should it right away. iMocha is here to help you find that purple squirrel.