Skill Assessments for Hiring vs. Employee Evaluation

October 14, 2022

Introduction

When it comes to skill-assessment tests, there are different approaches depending on what stage of the employee lifecycle you are in. If you are hiring candidates, you will want to focus on skills assessment to identify which candidates have the right skills for the job. In order to appropriately identify which employees are not meeting expectations, performance assessment must be the primary focus when evaluating your existing workforce.  Here is a closer look at the difference between skill assessments for hiring and employee evaluation. 

Assessments can be used for hiring drives and evaluating existing employees  

 

1. Skill Assessment tests for hiring
The goal of skill assessment is to identify which candidates have the right skills for the job. To do this, you will need to create a list of required and desired skills for the role. Once you have your list, you can start developing assessments that test those skills.
There are a variety of assessment types you can use, including aptitude tests, work samples, and simulations. Aptitude tests measure a candidate’s ability to learn and perform new tasks. Work samples assess a candidate’s ability to perform specific tasks that are relevant to the job. And simulations assess a candidate’s ability to perform in a realistic work environment.  

2. Skill-assessment tests for employee evaluation
The purpose of employee evaluation is to establish which workers are succeeding (or not meeting) standards. To do this, you will need to create a list of expectations for each role in your organization. Once you have your list, you can start developing assessments that measure whether employees are meeting those expectations. 

How to find the right solution? 

The most efficient solution is to use an assessment platform like Yaksha which helps you curate hyper-personalised reports to suit your organisation’s needs. Yaksha can help HRs and L&D managers to curate assessments based on specific needs, so you can administer them to employees on a regular basis (typically once per year). The modern workforce has been evolving for years, but with modern technologies and industries emerging every day it’s more important than ever to make sure that employees have the skills necessary in today’s economy. A comprehensive skill-gap analysis can help you gain actionable insights about the skill-levels of your employees. To learn more about skill-gap analysis, read our detailed blog on the same topic.  

Differences between using assessments to hire new employees and evaluate existing employees 

Many organizations use skill-assessment tests as part of their hiring process. However, skill-assessment tests can also be used to evaluate the performance of your existing employees. While there are some similarities between the two uses, there are also some significant differences to keep in mind.

1. The purpose of the assessment

When you are using a skill assessment for hiring, the purpose is to identify whether a candidate has the necessary skills for the job. When you are using a skill assessment to evaluate an employee, the purpose is to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses so that you can provide targeted training and development.

2. The focus of the assessment

When you are using a skill assessment for hiring, the focus is on identifying which candidates have the potential to be successful in the role. When you are using a skill-assessment tests to evaluate an employee, the focus is on understanding how well they are currently performing in their role and where they have room for improvement.

3. The timeframe of the assessment

When you are using a skill assessment for hiring, the timeframe is typically much shorter because you are only interested in assessing a small number of candidates. When you are using a skill-assessment tests to evaluate an employee, the timeframe is usually much longer because you are interested in assessing all employees in a certain department or job function.

4. The format of the assessment

When you are using a skill assessment for hiring, the format is typically more structured because you want to compare all candidates against each other. When you are using a skill assessment to evaluate an employee, the format is typically more flexible because you are more interested in understanding an individual’s strengths and weaknesses.

5. The scoring of the assessment

When you are using a skill assessment for hiring, the scoring is often more cut-and-dried because you are looking for candidates who meet a certain threshold. When you are using a skill assessment to evaluate an employee, the scoring is often more subjective because you are trying to find areas of improvement rather than pass/fail criteria.    

Skill-assessment tests can be a valuable tool for both hiring and evaluating employees. However, it is important to understand the differences between these two uses so that you can select the right type of assessment for your needs. Keep these five key points in mind when deciding whether to use a skill-assessment tests for hiring or evaluating your existing employees. To learn more about the statistics that prove the value of assessments in employee training, read out blog about the same topic, here.   

 

Conclusion

Skill-assessment tests are important for hiring because they allow you to identify which candidates have the right skills for the job. Employee evaluation is important for identifying which employees are meeting (or not meeting) expectations so that you can take corrective action as needed. Both skill-assessment tests and employee evaluation play a significant role in ensuring that your workforce has the skills and competencies necessary to meet your organization’s goals and objectives.  

Get started today with Yaksha – Yaksha is a platform that helps recruiters, tech managers and L&D professionals build the best teams by offering fully customisable assessments for hiring drives and accurately measuring the skill level of your existing employees. 

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