Just as you wouldn’t buy a car without getting in for a test drive, why would you hire someone for a technical or professional role without giving their skills a thorough appraisal. More and more recruiters and employers are waking up to the idea of skills assessments being a crucial and unmissable part of any recruitment or onboarding process, and with good reason. In this blog, we’ll break down the three big reasons why no business should be without a practical component during the recruitment process. Get the confidence that comes from knowing that someone will be a great fit for your organisation from day one. Read on and make a more informed decision for your company.

An unvarnished look at their working style

It’s not just what they can do, but how they do it. Try to make your skills assessment as realistic as possible – involving other employees and real equipment where reasonable. A person may say they work well in a team, but when working with people who are already in the role may flounder or bully or make mistakes that they probably shouldn’t. Even if they do succeed at the task, if they were unpleasant or domineering with other team members, is that someone you really want as part of your company? A ‘good’ employee – one that accomplishes the tasks set for them – can still be a net loss for the company’s productivity if they drag down team morale or interfere with the work of other people. A skills assessment that’s grounded in the real world can reveal if your potential hire is going to be an asset that supports the growth of the whole business, or if they are going to take a more self-centred approach to their work.

A more objective approach to recruitment

Every human being has biases, and as hard as we try to address them, you’ll never fully be able to account for them. Biases don’t have to be prejudices, but can be simple things like assuming someone who has expertise in one area has expertise in another. Skills assessment can help you push past those biases, putting everyone on a level playing field, allowing you to pick the person who simply performs the best. You’ll be able to assess the applicant against each aspect of the role, ensuring that they have a broad area of expertise that extends across the responsibilities of the job.