Weighing the Pros and Cons of Online Assessments in Hiring

The success of an organization depends a lot on the efficiency of the workforce. That is why businesses must find the right people for the right job. In this case, the traditional recruiting process fails to provide the right picture of the candidate’s skills and expertise. 

Moreover, it also fails to verify the information candidates mention in their resumes. This is where online assessments fill the gap in recruiting the most suitable candidates. Online assessments are one of the best ways to find qualified candidates in today’s virtual hiring landscape.

These systematic assessments can help companies evaluate candidates based on various parameters like adaptability, behavior, cognitive ability, etc. In other words, online assessments help companies find out if a candidate possesses the specific skills required for the role and how well the candidate can handle the responsibilities that will come with the given role.

It ultimately leads to better job-candidate match. While online examination tests have many advantages, they also have some drawbacks. Continue reading the blog to learn about the pros and cons of online assessments for hiring and how to use them to their full potential. 

What are online interview assessments?

Online assessment tests are a simple and effective way to learn about job applicants. They provide crucial information to help hiring professionals hire the most qualified candidates for the role. The type of test depends on the position you are hiring for. For example, if you are hiring a developer, you will have the candidates take tests on programming languages. 

These assessments should be brief but detailed enough to give a clear picture of candidates’ abilities and how well they fit the job. These tests can reveal a lot about how a person would perform in the role, sometimes more than an interview or resume alone. However, some candidates may feel frustrated by the importance of these tests in the hiring process.

What are some common types of pre-employment tests?

• Cognitive tests: These tests measure different mental skills of a candidate, such as math skills, problem-solving, IQ and language ability. They help determine if someone is mentally suited for the job. 
• Personality tests: Personality tests are used to understand how a person acts and behaves.
• Integrity tests: These tests look at a person’s honesty and behavior, such as their truthfulness, use of alcohol or drugs and how they handle anger or violence. The goal is to identify behavior patterns that could harm them the most.
• Skills tests: These tests measure a candidate’s skills related to the job, like their knowledge of the industry, software skills and technical abilities. The best tests often use real-life situations to see how the person would perform on the job. 

What are the benefits of online interview assessments?

Online assessments offer many benefits and strong reasons to include them in your hiring process. Here are some of these advantages:

Restricted job opportunities by location

Losing skilled employees can be a challenge for any company. Online assessments help reduce this risk. A study by Aberdeen Group found that companies using pre-hire assessments saw a 39% drop in employee turnover.

Hiring takes a lot of time, resources and money, including the involvement of many team members. Lower turnover means less disruption, which allows the team to work smoothly with the right people in the right roles. 

A more impartial hiring process

Sometimes, interviews and resume reviews can be influenced by personal opinions or biases. Online assessments offer a more objective and structured approach to hiring by focusing on the specific skills and qualities needed for the role.

While setting up these tests may take some effort, they provide valuable information that is more directly related to the job.

Also Read: Role of Interview as A Service Platform in Eliminating Biases in Interviewing

Reduced hiring timelines

From posting jobs to reviewing resumes to interviews, the hiring process can be lengthy. Online assessments help gather information early. This way, they reduce the number of interview rounds and speed up decision-making. A quicker process keeps candidates engaged and prevents them from losing interest due to delays. 

Ensuring equal opportunity for all candidates

Online interview assessments provide equal opportunities for everyone by being consistent. Unlike interviews or informal screenings, where biases can affect decisions, these tests are clear and fair. The results are based on the same criteria for everyone. This ensures a level playing field.

In a nutshell, online assessments can speed up hiring but have some drawbacks. They may not give a complete picture of a candidate, as qualities like personality and problem-solving skills are better seen in interviews. Some candidates might cheat or exaggerate their abilities online, which can make assessment results unreliable.

In addition, online assessment results may be vague or too focused on surface-level knowledge. This might not always help make a final decision. To make online assessments more useful, they should be well-designed and cover a broad range of relevant skills, but should not be the sole factor in hiring.

How to streamline your hiring process?

In addition to online assessments, here are some extra tips to help you achieve great results in recruitment:

Double-check job descriptions before posting

Posing a job on multiple job sites can help you reach more candidates, but it is important to have clear and well-written job descriptions. A good job description attracts the right candidates, while a vague or poorly written one can delay the recruitment process. 

Related: Crafting Effective Job Descriptions: Best Practices to Attract Top Talent

Give and ask for feedback

Feedback is valuable for everyone involved in the hiring process. Give helpful feedback to candidates who were not selected and ask all candidates for their thoughts on your process. Their responses can help you improve how you recruit.

Customize the interviews

Do not just stick to work-related questions; ask about the person’s passions or how they would describe a friend or family member. These personal questions can give you a better understanding of them as individuals, not just as employees.

Final thoughts

Online assessments have changed the recruitment process by making it fair, efficient and objective for evaluating candidates. However, it is important to keep in mind that these assessments have both pros and cons and choosing the right tools depends on the hiring needs of your organization. Despite their disadvantages, online assessments can still lead to better hiring results when combined with other recruitment methods.

Using platforms like VProPle to streamline the process can help companies find top talent and make the hiring process easier. VProPle is an Interview-as-a-Service platform that helps companies quickly hire candidates for tech roles. Our platform offers customizable tests, detailed analytics and AI-powered reports to give recruiters clear and actionable insights.

This helps them make more accurate and quicker hiring decisions. So, are you ready to streamline your hiring process and find top talent faster? Contact us today to learn more!