The number of candidates competing for jobs is shrinking. At the height of the recession there were more than 6 unemployed people for each job opening, today there are only 1.7. Employers then had their choice of many high quality candidates. The job market is shifting, so is the way candidates are being selected. In the Wall Street Journal article, To Get a Job, New Hires are Put to the Test, (4/14/15) Lauren Weber she shares a few interesting facts:Eight of the top 10 U.S. private employers now utilize pre-hire tests in their job applications for some positions.In 2001, 26% of large U.S. employers used pre-hire assessments. By 2013, 57% were utilizing this tool.A University of Chicago economist studied labor market churn, the annual sum of hires and separations and learned it has declined by more than 25% since 2000, suggesting that as employers intensify their front end screening, among other factors, more of those hires are working out.Researchers at the University of Toronto, Yale and Harvard in one of the first academic studies of pre-hire testing found that managers who ignored test results picked workers who were more likely to quit or be fired.Several organizations highlighted how their turnover rates have fallen and are now below industry average. This is important when you consider how disruptive it is to your organization when operating short staffed, training new employees, not to mention the hard costs of recruitment, training and possibly severance pay. For some organizations this amounts to millions of dollars annually. What's it worth to positively impact retention via quality hiring?This was intriguing, so I conducted an informal survey of healthcare recruiters, HR and senior organizational leaders to see if and how they were using pre-hire assessments. The results:Internal recruiter said they assess values for organizational fit, values are essential, skills can be learned.External recruiter said less than half their clients requested assessments or used their ownMidsize healthcare organization uses a values assessment for physicians and will not bring the physician on board if there is not a values alignment.One large healthcare system uses an assessment for physicians; they don't deny med staff privileges based on the result, but may provide coaching to create better alignment.Three large, healthcare systems use assessments consistently for senior level positions. One stated, "Senior executives felt the assessments were not accurate predictors of an individuals' success. An agreement was reached where HR executives agreed that they were just one part of the entire interviewing process, one tool, and not to be relied on as the total solution as to hire or not to hire."My experience affirms the above statement to use assessment as a tool, in combination with the resume, interviews, background check, simulations, etc. It's also important to use an assessment that has proven reliability and validity for legal purposes.Let us know at www.RisingStarsCoach.com/blog what pre-hire process you are using to determine if your candidate is right for you.Quote"People are not your most important asset. The right people are."Jim Collins, Author of Good to GreatSpeaking, Events and TravelApr. 23 - Mentoring and Coaching Panel, Arizona Healthcare Executives, Phoenix, AZApr. 28-29 - Improving Communication and Leveraging Your Strengths, Phoenix, AZApr. 29 - S.O.A.R analysis, Board of Directors, Phoenix, AZMay 8 - Strategic Thinking for Healthcare Leaders, Phoenix, AZ
