“Why didn’t the person I interviewed have the same personality after they started on the job?”
Even executives with a keen eye for talent have found themselves asking this question when a promising new hire is fizzling. Adding to the frustration is when they have put in place effective behavioral interviewing practices designed to predict a candidate’s personality.
While behavioral interviewing is key to any good hiring process, we at Palladian West believe there is no replacement for validated psychometrics—specifically because future behavior is hard to predict without them.
A Certified Partner with The Predictive Index ® (“PI”), we consider psychometrics to be an invariable part of what we call Team Architecture. Just as we take a 360-degree approach when getting to understand your company, we take a similar approach with each candidate. PI calls this the Head-Heart-Briefcase Framework. Evaluating what a candidate has done on paper (their Briefcase) and what they value (their Heart) is more easily accomplished. Evaluating their Head—their natural drives and needs—is not.
If you’re thinking about integrating psychometrics into your hiring process, consider the following reasons why we include them in ours.
- Candidates are Good at Interviewing. Candidates can compile a wealth of information on your organization before interviewing: a job description, LinkedIn news and profiles, and Glassdoor reviews, to name a few. Most candidates are also used to responding to behavioral interview questions, relaying only desirable characteristics. By pursuing psychometric data—both behavioral and cognitive—you can get accurate insights on how candidates will work with you and your teams. We suggest collecting these insights before behavioral interviews, drilling into areas of misalignment.
- Because it’s 2020. Remote hiring is here to stay. So is remote working. At a minimum, investing in psychometrics will replace the in-person discoveries you make about a candidate. Zoom interviews can only reveal so much. Especially in 2020, psychometric assessments help take the guesswork out of who you’re hiring.
- Match with Job, Team and Company. A common misconception of psychometrics tests is that the most likeable or “intelligent” candidates emerge as frontrunners. We use PI because it gives us the opportunity to examine a 360-degree candidate fit. This includes fit with the job requirements, compatibility with your team dynamics, and how their drives mesh with the culture—or life cycle—of your organization. Sure, many assessments can share which personality you’re most likely to enjoy a coffee with. We think the best-used assessments extend beyond individual insights, instead looking at how that individual will perform in the job and in your environment.
