I understand if some candidates feel frustrated about psychological testing for employment. I get it, even though we’ve helped tens of thousands of candidates find jobs and given a push to hundreds who otherwise wouldn’t have been hired due to a lack of work experience. Unfortunately, many candidates remain unemployed.
To those who are unemployed, I want to send a message: keep trying, because these tests could be the reason you get hired.
I’ll share several examples of specific individuals (with their consent!) whom we hired despite having no experience, and who quickly advanced in their careers just because of the tests!
If psychological tests suggest you’re not suited for one position, you might actually be the perfect candidate for another role or job. For instance, if the tests indicate you’re not a great fit for sales, they might show you’re ideal for accounting or administration.
Psychometric testing doesn’t assess “how crazy someone is”; it predicts how proactive, dynamic, people-oriented, conscientious, or stress-resistant a candidate will be. Since I don’t like to write too much without concrete examples, here’s the first example:
A Diamond in the Rough
Oliver P. accidentally accompanied his wife to a testing session. From his wife, I learned that he was a programmer but was working as a delivery driver for a bakery.
I asked her if he had any specific knowledge (e.g., PHP), and she confidently nodded. I invited Oliver into the testing room and asked why he wasn’t working as a programmer. He told me he’d spent 1.5 years applying to IT companies, and no one hired him! No one. Perhaps it was because he wasn’t wearing a Darth Vader or Batman T-shirt!
At that time (2015), Oliver was satisfied with his low-paid bakery delivery job, and mentioned that he had established a good relationship with his manager, which made it a bit tricky for him to leave his “secure job.” The delivery job was better than his previous one, where he literally “guarded a forest” in a rundown van, miles away from the nearest trace of civilization.
He had given up on programming. When I asked if he knew PHP, he nodded, though not with much confidence. Despite the poor first impression he left, I gave him the tests, on which he performed exceptionally well, and I decided to hire him!
Oliver proved himself on the job, and the following year (2016), he became a 30% co-owner of Scouthem—ONLY BECAUSE OF THE TESTS!
Later, along with our amazing colleagues—psychologists Amelia (especially Amelia!), Sophia, and now Peter, Charlotte, Thomas, Lucy, and Mia—we built a system, with a lot of fun, hard work, and enthusiasm, that’s used by numerous companies.
We’ve also started expanding with the brand Recruiter.hr into Italy, Spain, Chile, Mexico, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Slovenia. Over time, I realized that Oliver never claims anything unless he’s at least 99% certain, which is why he left a poor impression during initial meetings. Together, we achieved a small miracle, and we’ve just learned that investors are watching us with interest.