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Like many fears, the FEAR that hiring managers have about using pre-employment tests is nothing more than False Experiences Appearing Real. In this column I respond to the top 10 fears I consistently hear from HR managers, executives and business owners. A few of the fears are real. Some are merely exaggerations. And others – they are simply not true. Beginning with number 10:

10. We don’t have a budget for testing. Fortunately the ROI on pre-employment tests is many-fold when you consider the cost of a bad hire, estimated to be 1 to 2 times annual salary for lower-wage employees and upwards of 10 times annual salary for managers, professionals and executive. In low-wage, high turnover industries like hospitality, studies indicate it costs roughly 300 to 700 times an hourly worker’s rate each time you have to fire and replace them when you take the effect of a bad hire on a guest’s first experience. Ranging in costs from as little as $25 for screening tools to several hundred for job fit assessments, the cost of the pre-employment tests will be a fraction of the cost spent on trying to save a bad hire. Pre-employment tests are an investment in productivity and innovation, not an HR line item.

9. I read my report and don’t agree with what it says about me. Face validity is very important. That means when you read the report it describes your to a “t.” But face validity isn’t a very good predictor of job fit. If it was every candidate who says he’d be a great fit would become your next super-performer. Tools like DISC and Myers-Briggs have very strong face validity but other psychometric tools that are normed against the population and used for job fit and potential are more sophisticated. Selection tests measure innate personality traits, or your core personality. With experience and training, you may have learned new skills that cover up potential shortcomings. That’s why it is very important to use both the pre-employment test and interview to discover the natural fit, learned fit, and potential for growth. If you don’t agree with a result, just ask your consultant for an interpretation. I can count on one hand how many times a candidate or employee doesn’t agree after they understand how to use the results properly.

8. We’re just a small business. We’re not sure why many managers feel they shouldn’t have the same tools at their fingertips as large companies. Online technology has leveled the playing field. Now small business owners as well as mid-managers have the same tools as senior level executives at Fortune 50 companies. And the best news is that technology has lowered the cost to a level affordable to any size business in any industry.

7. We don’t have the time to get certified. Online hiring assessments make this an easy one to overcome. Certifications and training are not required for most programs. Our reports are written so that even the most inexperienced manager can understand the results. And to make the report even more manager-friendly, all our pre-employment tests come with personalized behavior interview question guides based on responses given by the candidates. We can’t make it any easier. (Of course, for any managers wanting to become more skilled at reading the reports, we are always happy to oblige – and many managers take us up on the offer!)

6. It takes too long to get the results. This is the easiest fear to overcome. Results can be real-time. We can set up a client account at no cost to the business, many times at no charge. Reports can then be accessed in real time. In other words, as soon as a candidate hits the submit button, a manager can log into the system and retrieve the report. Unlike many of our competitors who require a 2 or 3 day (or more) delay in receiving results and then even longer to speak with a consultant, we are available when you need us the most. In today’s job market, when you have the good candidate waiting for a job offer, you can ill afford any delays.

5. We don’t want to upset the candidates. Our clients gave us the answer to this fear. “If a candidate balks at completing our hiring process and this is the time when he is supposed to be on his best behavior, what will happen the first time we ask him to do something he doesn’t think is part of his job?” It’s important to look at the assessment as equal to the interview and background checks. That’s how the EEOC looks at pre-employment testing. Resumes, application, interviews and even general observations are all on equal footing. If a candidate refused to submit his resume or give permission to check references, you certainly wouldn’t forego these steps. The pre-employment test is just another part of the employee selection process. So what more can I add except that when a candidate refuses to complete an assessment, it won’t cost you a dime for the assessment but think about the thousands of dollars and hours of aggravation you’ll save if you had hired him!

4. We heard candidates can fake the tests. Again, this fear is real – and true. Just like during the interview, people are more and more skilled at playing a role that can’t be delivered after they are hired. The advantage of our pre-employment tests is that each assessment has a “fake-ability” scale. Questions embedded in the assessments help managers assess how reliable the information is and if the candidate attempted to manipulate his responses. Unless you are a highly skilled interviewer, gut instinct is the only tool you have to determine if a candidate is the real thing.

3. We spoke with our attorney and he said stay away from testing. Another variation of this fear is: I heard that companies have gotten sued because a test was used. It is true that organizations that have used tests have been sued. But it’s also true that more businesses have been sued because they didn’t. Every hiring decision carries a risk. But you need to know the facts. The EEOC in 2007 heard 77,000 discrimination complaints. Of those 77,000 only 304 involved assessments. And of those 304 the decisions that ruled in favor of the employee were related to the improper use of the assessment, not the validity of the assessment itself. As long as the test is valid, reliable, non-discriminatory AND job-related, the use of pre-employment tests is a best practice that meets EEOC guidelines. If your attorney can’t substantiate why he/she believes pre-employment tests should be avoided with anything more than it’s his/her opinion, get a second opinion. We will be happy to refer you to employment law attorneys who support the use of employee testing as a best practice and view the decision to use testing as good business practice.

2. We can’t afford to turn away good candidates. The time is long-gone when you can afford to hire employees who can barely fog a mirror. For the same reason you wouldn’t accept an order from a vendor with the wrong parts, why would you hire an employee that doesn’t have the right skills or fit in your culture? But the big benefit for using assessments is that organizations actually expand their talent pool. Yes, you read that correctly. You can expand, not shrink, your talent pool with assessments. How is that possible? For the very same reason that managers make hiring mistakes based on the interview alone, they also miss high-potential candidates because they might interview poorly but have all the skills and attitude you need, if not more. Pre-employment tests can help find the diamonds in the rough. You can ill-afford to turn away a gifted employee when he presents. And let’s have a drum roll please. The number one reason why managers fear pre-employment tests is:

1. We don’t have the time to test candidates. It’s true. It does take time to test candidates (but not as much as you think). The irrefutable data however confirms the time it takes to test a candidate is a drop in the bucket compared to the time you will spend training, counseling and eventually terminating the wrong hire. With online hiring assessments, most of the time invested in the process is candidate time. All a manager needs to do is send out the instructions to the candidate and process the report. That’s it. And for businesses too short-staffed to manage even the administration of these functions, we can do all the “grunt” work. All we need is a name and email – and voila! The next time you hear from us you’ll have the candidate’s completed report sitting in your inbox. The time saved using online hiring assessments will be much better used recruiting for hard-to-fill positions and retaining the employees you have.

Copyright (c) 2009 Success Performance Solutions

A London Business School degree will give you the edge in today’s competitive world. Located in the heart of London, London Business School offers access to the world’s top recruiters and provides a head-start in forging a successful career in business. Strong relationships have been developed with major recruiters. London Business School’s Career Services team works in partnership with potential employers to identify candidates who are the best match for their job opportunities.

A dedicated team is on hand to support all Masters in Management students to enhance career prospects. The Masters in Management programme is taught by a range of the London Business School faculty, all of whom work at the forefront of global business and produce high-quality research that impacts positively on business all over the world. While a rate of 95% was recorded among last year’s class of 100, the 2011 class of 140 has achieved a rate of 96% – these figures are based on the full-time employment status of students three months after they originally graduate from the course.

Compared to the median salary among graduates in the UK as a whole, the wages of London Business School graduates of this year’s MiM course are around 9,500 higher at 35,000. Breaking down the statistics further, there was a total of 36 corporate sector recruiters, perhaps giving the strongest indication yet of the value of the MiM course across sectors outside of the normal consulting and finance fields. In addition, a grand sum of 22 different recruiters have hired from the programme consistently (i.e. at least one student from each of the last two years).

The release of the 2011 MiM job statistics follows the publication of the School’s MBA employment report last week. It found that within three months of leaving this course, 93% of MBA graduates had found a job. London Business School is consistently ranked as one of the world’s top business schools, and is currently ranked as number one in the world in the Financial Times (Global MBA rankings, 2011). Over 34,000 alumni lead big organisations, run governments, transform communities and start new businesses in over 120 countries. The Masters in Management is a one year programme for recent graduates who are looking to embark on a management-oriented career, but who have limited business knowledge and less than one year of full time, relevant work experience. This programme has been designed following extensive consultation with top graduate recruiters, and provides students with the skills and knowledge to perform in all areas of management across a number of core courses in both academic study and professional development.

In order to help better attract and retain global talent, Singapore has recently introduced the Personalised Employment Pass (PEP). PEP facilitates selected Employment Pass holders to continue working in Singapore. The PEP will be granted to suitable EP holders that have worked in Singapore for a period of time.

Currently an Employment Pass (EP) is tied to a specific employer. A fresh application is required for any change in employer. Unless an EP holder finds employment with a new company, the EP is immediately cancelled if an EP holder leaves the company and he must leave Singapore. However, in the new PEP, an EP holders individual merits are the basis for issuance f such PEP and it is not tied to any employer. A PEP holder is allowed to remain in Singapore to evaluate new employment opportunities for up to six months in between jobs.

If you meet any of the below requirements, you are eligible for this visa: The following are the requirements in order to be eligible for this visa:

1) You are earning at least S$7,000 monthly salary. The last drawn salary must not exceed six months from the time of application.

2) You are a former P1 category employment pass holder who is residing overseas. Also, you should not be unemployed for longer than a continuous period of six months at the point of application.

3) You are a current P1 category employment pass holder.

4) You are a current P2 category employment pass holder with at least two years’ of work experience on a P category employment pass. You annual income should be at least S$30,000.

5) You are a foreign graduate from institutions of higher learning in Singapore and have at least two years of working experience on a P or Q1 category employment pass. You annual income should be at least S$30,000.

Since an PEP is not tied to a company, the EP holder must be the one who applies for Personalized employment pass and not the employer.

Once approved, the applicant will be given 3 months to collect the PEP. A cancellation letter for the existing employment pass from the current employer will be required from the applicant.

Singapore companies will be able to hire personalized employment pass holders the same way they hire Singapore citizens and PRs. However, they will need to notify MOM whenever they hire or terminate the services of a PEP holder.

There are various advantages of owning a personalized employment pass. One of the perks of having one is the convenience as it does not require any sponsor or bank guarantee and it only take an average of about 3 weeks to process. Another benefit of PEP holders is the job flexibility, PEP holders are allowed to be employed in any sector and when changing jobs, PEP holders do not need to re-apply for a new pass. Also, PEP holders are given the flexibility of a continuous period of up to six months without a job to evaluate employment or work opportunities and are not required to leave Singapore during this time.

Can an employer choose not to hire you based on a bankruptcy filing? While you should certainly be sure you contact an attorney before filing Chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy, here is a concise overview.

No. Based on the Bankruptcy Act and Fair Credit Reporting Act, it is illegal for an employer not to hire you based on a past bankruptcy. However, many companies do pull a credit report in the later stages of the hiring process, and may use the information found there as part of their final decision. This is especially likely if you are applying for a job that can affect the company financially (accounting, payroll, etc.). While a bankruptcy alone is unlikely to prevent you from getting a job, poor credit preceding bankruptcy may be used as a determining factor that sets another candidate just a little bit ahead of you and helps the hiring company make a final decision to go with someone else.

How to Avoid This:

Honesty is the best policy: Before a company can pull your credit report, they need your permission. When presented with the waiver, ask the specifics of the background check. Will a credit report be included? If so, you should mention what a potential employer is likely to find there – late payments, past bankruptcy filing, etc.

Go on the offensive: Give your potential employer a brief explanation of your bankruptcy situation. Explain the extenuating circumstances that brought you to bankruptcy (illness, loss of employment due to current economic conditions, divorce, etc.) and what you have done to rectify the situation since. You don’t need to go into great detail, just acknowledge the bankruptcy and leave the employer knowing that you take it seriously and are on the right track again.

Redirect: If appropriate, follow up the explanation of your bankruptcy with an example of how you learned from it and how that lesson can help you in the potential job. Or, redirect the conversation to one of your much strength that makes you a perfect candidate for the position.

Focus on the positive: If you have reached the credit reporting stage of the interview, you are most likely being seriously considered for the position. Remind your potential employer why you are a great fit for the open position, regardless of your personal credit history.

Finding employment after bankruptcy can be quite a challenge! Applicants applying for work in banking, retail merchandising, government, security, and outside sales have always been routinely screened by prospective employers to verify clean credit records, clear criminal background checks, and negative drug tests. However in recent years, extensive screening, including credit checks, has become the norm for increasingly more occupations. An individual may possess all of the qualifications, but if a Chapter 7 or 13 proceeding appears on the credit report, they may be denied the job. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires consumer reporting agencies to divulge information (good or bad) about job applicants to business owners requesting it. Since Chapter 7 and 13 bankruptcies remain on a consumer’s report for as much as ten years, debtors with blemished financial records face real obstacles when seeking employment after bankruptcy. The best recourse is to inform interviewers regarding any discrepancies that might be found in credit reports or background checks before they discover them. Fortunately, some companies realize that bad things do happen to good people. They may choose to overlook negative financial histories and hire a bankrupt individual based on past work performance, experience, and professional qualifications.