Giving potential employees a behavioral profile, sometimes called a personality assessment, is an important part of the hiring process. One thing hiring managers fail to realize, is that the assessment is not the only piece of criteria you should consider. This is to aid you in the hiring process. However, if it is not administered with the right mindset, it could potentially damage your business. Behavioral Profile Assessments Can Help Your Business The purpose of these types of assessments is to give you an idea of the kind of behavior you can expect out of an individual in the role you are hiring for. Certain personality types do better in different job environments. Not everyone will make a good salesperson or office person. The same could be said about any job. To figure out who will best suit your position, an assessment can give you a good indication of the best personality/behavior. When you administer this assessment and use it as an aid, it can be very beneficial to you. It will help you make a wiser decision when hiring someone to complete your team. Behavioral Profile Assessments in the Workplace Can Harm Your Company Unfortunately, these assessments can harm your company if you are not careful. It is important that you remind yourself that this is only one part of the hiring process. You should still look at other characteristics and abilities of the individual to make the best decision. Some businesses put themselves at risk for disparate impact on potential employees. This is where you unintentionally discriminate against someone. Administering assessments is a fair practice. However, the business needs to make certain they are using a company to provide the assessment. Particularly one that has conducted adverse impact studies. These studies should have complied with federal mandates and regulations. Not sure if your assessment company did their research? Ask them about it. Those that have done their research will be able to provide you with a copy of their findings. Make sure you take a good look over what was discovered. You do not want to put your business at risk of disparate impact when hiring employees or awarding advancements. There is no doubt that workplace assessments are vital to running a business. Be sure that you use it as a resource and not the deciding factor to decisions. Also, use a company that has done their research. Be sure you keep your company from being held liable in disparate impact cases. t If you have any questions about this article, or how to utilize assessments in your organization, contact us today! ~ Written by our associate Gary Sorrell, Sorrell Associates, LLC. All rights reserved worldwide. |