Evaluating Test Vendors

Evaluating Test Vendors

Competencies for an Accounting Job

Companies need to consider essential guides that point out a reliable and competent staff when hiring accounting staff. Pre-employment tests will help the company hire people with the right personality, aptitude, and the ability to quickly learn as they work (Phillips & Stanley Morris Gully, 2015). Companies hiring accounting staff prefer to hire from employment vendors since they are better placed to assess the best-qualified candidates for the job.

Some of the expected competencies to consider for accounting candidates are their personality, skills, and aptitude. Using web-based software, accountancy candidates ought to be tested for their inductive and deductive thinking, data analysis, and information processing competencies. These skills are crucial in the accounting profession to ensure candidates are effective at work. There is also a need to ensure successful candidates can pay attention to detail. The accounting profession needs that because it requires detailed recording and paying attention to errors. Additionally, there are requisite certifications that one needs before employment. For instance, one needs a certificate from the American Institute of Bookkeepers to qualify for a managerial position in the accounting department.

Accountants must also exhibit top-notch inter-communication skills before being hired. The accounting department is linked to all organizational departments, hence the need to employ people who can communicate effectively with other employees. There is also a need for effective communication among staff in the department within the organization.

Common Tests

Criteria Corp

One of the common tests used during pre-employment assessment by companies like Sigma Assessment Systems is the Criteria Corp. It is a library containing a range of acceptable skills and competencies for accounting professionals. Two web-based tests, criteria basic skills and criteria aptitude tests, are used to gauge potential employees’ skills, personality, and work capability (SIGMAtesting, n.d.).

Jackson Personality Inventory

Jackson’s personality test delves into a candidate’s personality traits that could play a major role in their day-to-day productivity at the workplace. Such a test contains 300 questions supposed to be answered in 45 minutes. The test also investigates the interpersonal abilities of the potential hire as it relates to organizational behavior. For instance, the workplace attitude towards marijuana use is concluded under this assessment. The test provides reliability and validity through peer rating, adjective checklist, and self-rating (Carrigan, 2007).

Personnel Assessment Form

Personnel Assessment Form (PAF) test delves into the candidates’ mental ability and intelligence to perform their job. It borrows heavily from the popular multidimensional aptitude battery-II that has been heavily used to hire NASA astronauts. Sigma Assessment Systems designed the latter. Although it only takes about 15 minutes, the test sufficiently assesses a candidate’s mental readiness for a job. A wide body of evidence justifies the use of general mental ability as a predictor of job performance (Phillips & Stanley Morris Gully, 2015).

Further, evidence across companies that have used mental ability testing single out the test as the most efficient predictor of future job performance in an organization. PAF tests go beyond showing one’s ability to perform a specific job; managers show higher promotability for individuals who score higher on PAF. Finally, high scorers on PAF are likely to possess better verbal and written communication skills (SIGMAtesting, n.d.).

 Ashland Interest Assessment

Ashland Interest Assessment (AIA) delves into helping special interest groups such as the chronically unemployed and people with limited English proficiency in career planning. AIA contains a list of 144 pairs of job-related activities, and a candidate is required to choose which activities they are comfortable with. Consequently, the results are printed in an easily understandable format. The test contains tasks relevant to particular occupations such as clerical work, salespeople, and healthcare providers. However, the testing approach includes general work roles as personal services or arts and crafts (United States. Congress. Office Of Technology Assessment, 1990).

Jobs that are Exempt from Pre-Employment Assessment

Despite the increasing importance of pre-employment tests, such tests are not useful for blue-collar jobs. Employers find little to no value in testing practical works remotely. It is sometimes impossible to evaluate the competence of performing practical tasks remotely. For instance, it is hard to determine the competence of construction workers from home (Phillips & Stanley Morris Gully, 2015).

Examples of Assessment Companies

One of the most successful pre-employment assessment services vendors is Wonderlic. As a creator of Wonscore, the vendor takes pride in knowing people. Wonderlic provides assessments relating to cognitive ability, motivation, and personality to help employers pick the best candidates for job openings. There is also Harver, which is a top pre-employment assessment vendor for employing at scale. The platform is used by some of the largest innovative companies in the world, which use it to filter the candidates to retain the very best talent. Also, Criteria Corp is responsible for developing and marketing web-based employment software. Hiring companies access and use the testing software to hire new recruits.

References

Carrigan, M. (2007). Pre-employment testing prediction of employee success and legal issues: A revisitation of Griggs v. Duke Power. Journal of Business & Economics Research (JBER), 5(8).

Phillips, J., & Stanley Morris Gully. (2015). Strategic staffing. Pearson Education.

SIGMAtesting. (n.d.). Assessments available through SIGMATesting.com. Sigmatesting.com. https://sigmatesting.com/information/assessments.htm

United States. Congress. Office Of Technology Assessment. (1990). The use of integrity tests for pre-employment screening. Congress Of The United States, Office Of Technology Assessment.

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Evaluating Test Vendors

Unit Learning Outcomes
Assess the practical significance of application forms, bio-data, and reference checks. (1)
Assess the practical significance of various ability tests. (6)
Appraise how ability tests can be more legally defensible. (6)
Assess the practical significance of integrity tests. (6)
Assess the practical significance of work sample tests. (7)
Select when situational judgment tests should be used. (1)
Evaluate personality testing (6)
Directions
Complete Chapter 9, Exercise Question # 3, Develop Your Staffing Skills: Evaluating Test Vendors.

Requirements
Minimum length: one page per question response
Address the problem and discuss relevance to the topic, using outside sources as support.
Include at least two scholarly sources and/or professional business periodicals, e.g., Harvard Business Review, Human Resource Management, etc.
Format: APA format, double space 12 pt font.

ISBN: 978-1-948426-86-2