In order to meet the challenges of skills shortage, war for talent and demographic change, you need to ensure a professional personnel selection. For this purpose, however, more and more methods and tools are available. We will present you several very useful selection tools and their advantages as well as their disadvantages! In the first part of our series, we’ll be talking about “Realistic Job Previews” and the “Situational Judgment Test”. The second part will be about online assessments and automated video interviews.The past years show that more and more companies are using tools for online recruitment. Today, there is a large variety of solutions that you can choose from.

One important premise for all of them is that they have to be economically viable, fair and deliver valid results.

What is especially important is the fact that the competency profile matches the method for checking if a candidates meets the requirements of a job profile.

Let's dig deeper. Here are some of the most valid selection tools!

Feel free to leave any comments about how useful you find them and what your experience is!

1. REALISTIC JOB PREVIEW

The Realistic Job Preview (RJP) is based upon the concept of “self-selection”: Candidates are expected to decide whether a job will fit their interests and expectations in the long term. Your mission is to provide them with information about their future tasks and the skills they would need for that job - beyond what is written in your job advert! Convenient formats for this would be video, blogs or other interactive items such as role plays where candidates can test their potential.

Pro’s:

• simple yet effective method to reduce the drop-out rates in traineeships/apprenticeships or the turnover rates of the company

Con’s:

• it is important to find the right balance between accurate information and representation as an attractive employer brand. If you exagerate, you run the risk of losing new employees quickly once they realize that reality does not reflect their expectation.

2. SITUATIONAL JUDGEMENT TEST (SJTs)

SJTs are an effective and valid alternative to the traditional assessment center (AC).Your candidates are confronted with a challenging job situation in text form or as a video clip. Their task is to decide how they would act in a particular situation. Response formats are available, depending on the version you decide to use, as multiple-choice or free answers via recording by webcam.

Pro’s:

• closer to the actual job requirements than abstract test formats (such as cognitive test) or personality inventories (eg, "I often feel inferior to others")

• less expensive than live simulations in an assessment center, especially when there is a high number of applicants

Con’s:

• Adaptation to specific job profiles necessary

• Free response formats are difficult and expensive to evaluate

In one of our next articles, we will present you the benefits of online assessment centers and automated video interviews. Stay tuned