Hello,

For all IT recruiters - how do you test candidates to see where they stand in terms of skill & knowledge ?

Do you use any tools, if yes, could you share your opinion on them ?

thanks!

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Hello Skillmeter,

What I use to do was have them take some brain bench tests and send me the results. Also their are some other random tests out there as well since some of the agencies I worked through didnt have any testing in place. Now that I am starting my own agency I actually have some of my IT Colleagues in different diciplines come up with some questions and scenarios for different areas of IT that I will send to the candidate. Have him or her answer the questions and come up with solutions for the scenarios and return to me. Once I have them I send them over to one of my colleagues to review and find out if they have the skills they say they have. 

Then to make sure they dont google it all we bring em in for an interview. We ask them other questions and give them example scenarios to see if they really do know what they know. This is the plan I am putting in but this is subject to change and tweaking to make it more efficient.  

Thanks George for your answer.

That's exactly the process I followed until now so I decided to simplify by creating a tool called Skillmeter.  It is not yet open publicly but feel free to ask for an invite and I will let you know once it is open worldwide: http://skillmeter.com.  The whole idea behind Skillmeter is to offer all recruiters a testing platform (way simplified and easier to use compared with what exist on the market).  Of course, if you see any points that you would like to see in the solution , do not hesitate to tell me and I will try to have them implemented in case they are not yet.

WOW! I think that is awesome. I just requested an invite on your site.

We test candidates using http://codility.com/ 

You have access to many programming languages.  Cost effective, simple and quick.  I would highly recommend it.

When in a face to face interview on a white board for Dev role we have in the past used the "Fizz Buzz test (Write a program that prints the numbers from 1 to 100. But for multiples of three print "Fizz" instead of the number and for the multiples of five print "Buzz". For numbers which are multiples of both three and five print "FizzBuzz")   It helps to see how Dev/Programmers approach things and also accesses their communications skills and how they present, especially in an Agile working environment. 

We first do a 30 minute technical phone screen and then we have candidates do a pairing session with someone who is a lead.

Malia - What is a pairing session? How will that help?

Ryan - I used to work for a staffing firm, but now I'm recruiter for a consulting firm - hiring for our own teams.  The pairing session usually involves working together (candidate and a lead developer - each on their own lap tops) to build out a quick new feature, demo app or them showing something they have worked on which they can add a feature to. It's basically to get an idea of how well someone can work with tools and work on implementing a quick feature.  This takes about an hour and our leads give me good feedback on whether or not this person can do what they say they can do.  

I totally agree that pairing with a Lead for the interview is "a key" for success.

Being a lead myself for the last 7 years, I attended tons of interviews with my recruiters, in which I:

- challenged the candidates on their technical background / knoweldge / experience

- made sure the candidate is a good fit for the team I lead 

For those that are doing IT recruitment I strongly recommend pairing with a technical lead / team lead at one point during the interview.

Now based on the experience I had - I am launching Skillmeter to help you all during your recruitment process/candidates filtering, based on things that I've learned from the other side of the barricade.  

Feel free to ask questions, I will be very happy to answer/help.

 

Our IT recruitment process ensures that we deliver candidates able to make an immediate, positive impact on your business. It begins with a thorough Resource Request.

• Account Manager and client develop a Resource Request for Dallas IT jobs

• Account Manager briefs entire team on Resource Request

• Resource Request outlines position details, location requests, skill set, technical requirements and team environment

• Recruiters begin candidate identification

 

Stage Two — Candidate Screening

Our entire team of recruiters is deployed for each Resource Request, maximizing your results every time. Careful screening by recruiters and account managers ensures candidate fit.

• Candidates screened and selected by recruiters

• Account manager performs second screening of selected candidates

 

Stage Three — Client Review and Approval

Time is critical throughout the process. The InSource Group’s goal is 48 hours for resume delivery. Same-day client feedback is recommended. Once feedback is provided, the offer is extended immediately.

• Qualified candidates presented to client to interview

• Client provides feedback to account manager

• Account manager extends offer to candidate

• Consultant/Full-time employee starts

• Account manager maintains ongoing contact

Check

www.skillsign.com

Here you can create your own test center. Create your own assessments or buy readymade assessments. SkillSign is great tool for initial screening. You can link it to your website and give a seamless user experience to candidates. It is pretty cost effective too.

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