Having trouble finding good employees? Have candidates take an assessment

  Almost everyone in the Netherlands is feeling the effects of the labor shortage this summer: fewer trains are running, you have to wait in line for hours at Schiphol Airport, and in restaurants and bars, you have to wait a long time for your drink. In healthcare and education, too, many HR managers are at their wits’ end. How do you find qualified people to keep things running? Assessments help ensure you hire the right candidates. When Ajax won the national championship in May, the celebration didn’t take place at the Museumplein as is traditional. And it wasn’t even because of COVID-19 restrictions or a forecast of bad weather. No-the organizers simply couldn’t find enough security guards to ensure safety at such a large event. More than a month later, Schiphol Airport announced it was canceling flights due to that same staffing shortage. After all, all travelers must go through security screening, but there aren’t enough security personnel to oversee that process. There is also a shortage of staff at baggage handling. What is happening at Schiphol and at Ajax is indicative of the situation throughout the rest of the Netherlands: the labor market is bursting at the seams. “The Netherlands is grinding to a halt,” wrote NRC Handelsblad in June. While a few years ago it was mainly the healthcare, education, and technology sectors that struggled to find enough qualified staff, now there seems to be no sector that isn’t facing a severe labor shortage. “The shortages are affecting the entire labor market.”  

More Job Openings Than Unemployed People

For the first time since the CBS began tracking these figures, there are now more job openings than unemployed people. “An unprecedented turning point,” as de Volkskrant put it. The problem is particularly acute in the public sector. The numbers don’t lie: right now, there is a need for about 11,000 teachers, 50,000 healthcare workers, 1,400 police officers, and thousands of additional security guards. We all feel the consequences every day. There are too few teachers in the classroom, too few nurses and other healthcare staff at the bedside, too few police officers on the streets, and too few conductors and train operators to keep the trains running. Schools are calling on parents with teaching credentials to step in as teachers; otherwise, the children will have to stay home. The NS is forced to adjust its schedule. And anyone who needs medical or psychological help often faces long wait times.  

Job interviews aren’t enough

For HR managers, staff shortages are a problem that keeps them up at night. After all, how do you find the employees you so desperately need in this unprecedentedly tight labor market? If you think back to the last economic crisis, it’s almost impossible to imagine that just eight years ago, it was commonplace to receive dozens, if not hundreds, of responses to a job posting. Now, the opposite is often true: even if there are candidates to choose from, it’s highly doubtful that any of them will meet the job requirements. It takes time, money, and energy to find employees who are a good fit for your organization. It’s a real shame, of course, when it quickly becomes clear that someone isn’t the right fit for what you’re looking for. In the Netherlands, the job interview is still one of the decisive factors in hiring someone. But the problem is: in such an interview, you often don’t get enough information to assess a person’s qualities. “Job interviews are quagmires of misinformation,” wrote De Correspondent in 2019. The platform reports on a Harvard study in which researchers took a close look at job interviews. Their conclusion: such interviews say more about the employer than about the applicant. “In practice, they yield hardly any information. After all, can you really get to know someone in a half-hour conversation? No.”  

Assessments help you get ahead

Scientific studies have shown that structured interviews offer higher predictive value than “regular” job interviews. Such an interview follows a set pattern, with pre-determined questions that you don’t deviate from. Validated selection tools-such as intelligence tests and personality questionnaires-also provide a more reliable picture of a candidate than a typical job interview. It is therefore a good idea not only to conduct job interviews but also to have candidates take assessments. The word “assessment” literally means “evaluation.” It is a psychological evaluation that determines whether a candidate is suitable for a particular job. The content of the evaluation depends on the position. For example, an assessment may consist of a combination of aptitude, personality, and motivation tests. By having candidates take assessments, you increase the likelihood of a good match. You gain an objective picture of the applicant: what competencies, qualities, personality traits, communication styles, and areas for development do they possess? The results help you predict whether someone will thrive in a particular role.  

Scientific Research

A great deal of scientific research is being conducted on assessments. As a result, we’re gaining a better understanding of which types of assessments work best. For example, researchers have discovered that it’s not just personality and cognitive skills that are important predictors of future performance; a person’s motivation and interests also play a role. It’s also important to realize that “higher” scores on an assessment aren’t always better. What matters most is that a person’s strengths and weaknesses are in balance, and that you, as an HR professional, carefully evaluate the fit between the person and the requirements of a specific role.  

Better Job Interviews

If you conduct an assessment before a job interview, you can use the results to help structure the interview more effectively. The initial meeting with a candidate also becomes more relevant, as you can ask follow-up questions about the points that emerged from the tests. In addition, an assessment report helps prevent many discussions among members of the hiring committee. It can be extremely frustrating when one member of the committee isn’t convinced by a candidate, while the rest are convinced of his or her abilities. An assessment provides factual information, which makes the decision-making process run more smoothly.