Best-in-class organizations are using assessments not only to understand the skills and traits employees have today, but also their capacity to grow.
As companies are required to do more with less, talent decisions take on greater complexity. The mandate for greater efficiency with fewer resources draws attention to the power of assessments. The data derived from these tools can help to maximize performance and productivity while reducing the cost and risk associated with bad hires. Assessments also can inform workforce and succession planning.
It’s the final day of HCI’s 2012 Strategy and Workforce Planning Conference in lovely Atlanta. This morning’s highlight so far has been Brian Ong, Head of Workforce Planning at the People Analytics Team at Google Inc. Brian shared how the People Analytics team is constantly looking for better ways to attract, develop, manage, and retain the right people. This was made crystal clear by one slide with the heading “All people decisions at Google are data-driven.”
Many job seekers have long suspected their online employment applications disappear into a black hole, never to be seen again. Their fears may not be far off the mark, as more companies rely on technology to winnow out less-qualified candidates.
photo courtesy of ToobyDoo
I’ve never felt better about the evolution of pre-employment assessment. In this coming year we’ll see some real progress toward new levels of assessment adoption that will be based more on results then on hype. But there are some significant challenges to be faced.
As we enter this exciting new year, here are the trends that I feel are going to define the future of pre-employment assessment.