Top Assessment Tools for Recruitment Leaders to Develop a Strong Talent Pipeline 

In our series on talent pipeline development, we first emphasised the significance of building a talent pipeline framework, followed by a step-by-step guide to developing a strong talent pipeline strategy. In this blog, we will highlight the importance of talent assessments in recruitment & pipeline development and how these assessments factor into your talent pipeline development. 

Introduction

Building a robust talent pipeline, supported by advanced talent pipeline or recruitment software and candidate pipeline tools, is an evergreen item on a company’s to-do list. In today’s competitive business landscape, organisations recognise talent pipeline development as a strategic imperative for long-term success. 

A tool for optimising your talent pipeline development is talent assessments. These assessments enable you to identify and nurture talent, minimise bias in the hiring process, and enhance the overall quality of your workforce. 

Importance of Talent Assessments in Talent Pipeline Development

Talent assessments, coupled with talent pipeline software and candidate pipeline tools, offer a systematic approach to evaluating candidate potential, reducing biases, and improving the quality of hires. By leveraging talent pipeline software and candidate pipeline tools, you can streamline your assessment processes and make data-driven decisions to support recruitment & selection along with talent management. 

Identifying high-potential candidates

Talent assessments offer valuable insights into your candidates’ potential, helping HR teams identify promising individuals for organisational growth and success. These assessments help to: 

• Uncover hidden talents 
• Identify factors such as preferences, motivators, strengths, and unique personality traits. 
• Nurture and develop promising individuals
• Foster a pipeline of future leaders and critical role successors
• Align these high-potential individuals with your organisation’s strategic goals 

In return, HR teams can place these high-potential individuals in the right development opportunities and match them to the appropriate roles. 

Reducing hiring bias

Traditional hiring methods are susceptible to unconscious biases, which can lead to unfair and unequal treatment of candidates . Talent assessments, however, counters this: 

• Providing objectivity that allows your HR teams to discover hidden gems of talent 
• Removing unconscious biases related to gender, race, age, and other characteristics 
• Offering an objective and standardised approach to evaluating candidates 
• Focusing solely on the candidates’ abilities and potential rather than subjective factors 

In doing so, you create an equal opportunity for all candidates to showcase their skills and qualifications. This promotes diversity, inclusion, and the discovery of talent that may have otherwise been missed. 

Improving the quality of hires

Despite investing significant time in the shortlisting process, hiring or recruitment mistakes still occur. To address this, talent assessments have emerged as an effective method to streamline the shortlisting process. Talent assessments help to fill in the gaps in recruitment by: 

• Capturing aspects that cannot be discerned from a resume alone
• Predicting future job performance to evaluate candidates
• Combining data with structured interviews to make informed hiring decisions

Talent assessments go beyond surface-level evaluations. They provide insights into a candidate’s abilities, strengths, and areas for development. Ultimately empowering you to make informed decisions when matching individuals to specific roles, thus improving the quality of hires. 

Key Components of Recruitment/Talent Pipeline Development

Talent pipeline development combines recruiting assessments tools and talent pipeline management software with the use of recruitment assessments, creating an efficient system to nurture and advance talent within companies. 

Talent identification

Recruitment assessments can help to uncover hidden talents when evaluating an individual’s skills, abilities, competencies, and potential for specific roles. Here are some ways how they contribute to talent identification: 

• Evaluate candidates by removing biases and personal preferences from the selection process.
• Identify candidates’ strengths and weaknesses in relation to specific competencies or job requirements.
• Predict performance in different roles and gauge a candidate’s fit for specific roles and their likelihood of success.
• Identify individuals who are ready for promotion or additional development opportunities.
• Tailor development plans that highlight areas for improvement, training, and support.
• Contribute to long-term talent management strategies by identifying HiPo individuals and assessing their progress over time.

Leveraging them properly can help organisations to identify, develop, and retain HiPo individuals who align with their strategic goals and contribute to long-term success.

Assessment

Recruitment assessments provide your organisation with a holistic understanding of a candidate’s strength, weaknesses, and potential. Different types of assessments are utilised to evaluate the various aspects of a candidate’s suitability for specific roles within your talent pipeline: 

• Cognitive assessments measure problem-solving skills, critical thinking abilities, and decision-making capabilities. 
• Behavioural and personality assessments assess behavioural and personality traits, work preferences, and cultural fit. (Bonus reading –  Top 20 Psychometric tools in 2023)
• Skills assessments evaluate technical competencies and proficiency in specific job-related skills. 

Essentially, recruitment assessments align candidates’ qualities with pipeline needs, improving selection, and development for successful talent pipeline outcomes. 

Development

Recruitment assessments serve as a foundation for personalised development plans by understanding individuals’ areas for improvement and aligning them with your organisational goals. 

Using recruitment assessments, you can identify and nurture candidates’ strengths, address weaknesses, and support their growth potential. These enable you to tailor individual development plans. 

This personalised approach facilitates the growth and development of individuals and provides targeted training, coaching, and mentoring opportunities. 

Succession planning

Recruitment assessments act as the guiding compass that identifies promising leaders prepared to excel in future leadership positions. With a keen eye on their potential and preparedness for advancement, you can craft bespoke succession plans that seamlessly transfer talent into pivotal roles. 

Recruitment assessments can also: 

• Empower HR teams to identify ideal candidates for crucial roles in the succession plan.
• Uncover talent gaps within your organisation’s talent pool.
• Enable the implementation of focused development programs to enhance the skills and competencies needed for seamless succession.
• Foster a transparent process that inspires trust and confidence among your employees.

This comprehensive approach ensures a seamless transfer of leadership, minimises disruptions and enhances the long-term success of your organisation. 

Types of Talent Assessments to Build a Strong Talent Pipeline

The evolution of talent pipeline development methods is apparent in the dynamic talent landscape. Whether your organisation is at the early stages of building a talent pipeline or has a well-established team, harnessing Accendo’s Talent Intelligence Platform, TalentPulse, and its talent assessments can yield significant advantages. 

TalentPulse, powered by state-of-the-art recruiting assessment software and talent management pipeline software, you can optimise your talent acquisition process and make informed decisions by leveraging valuable candidate insights. 

Cognitive assessments

These tests are designed to measure a person’s cognitive abilities, including processes such as memory, attention, perception, language, problem-solving, and reasoning. These assessments aim to provide objective and standardised measures for cognitive functioning. Here are a few common applications: 

You can use recruitment assessment tools like Ravens APM-III or Cognify by Criteria to gain insights into your candidates’ cognitive abilities. Both assessment tools are available on our TalentPulse platform. 

Ravens APM-III is designed to assess an individual’s capacity to analyse information, solve unfamiliar problems, learn new skills, and gain a holistic understanding of complex scenarios without relying on prior knowledge. Here’s why you should use Ravens APM-III: 

• Measure of fluid intelligence
  • Measures the ability to reason abstractly and solve problems independent of acquired knowledge
  • Assesses cognitive abilities such as pattern recognition, logical reasoning, and problem-solving skills 
• Power over speed
  • Comes with a wide range of item difficulties and a generous time limit
  • Focuses on measuring performance based on cognitive ability rather than speed 
• Balanced test items with various difficulty levels
  • Assesses cognitive abilities across multiple levels of difficulty
  • Provides a more accurate evaluation and differentiation of individuals with different cognitive abilities
  • An advanced algorithm ensures a balanced selection of items for each candidate 
• Culturally relevant
  • A fair and relevant assessment for individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds
  • Emphasises geometric and abstract shapes that are less likely to be influenced by cultural factors 

Cognify is a game-based psychometric assessment by Criteria that assesses attributes critical to every role – problem-solving, numerical reasoning, and verbal knowledge. This innovative assessment allows you to reliably predict how candidates perform on the job while providing a world-class candidate experience. Here’s why you should use Cognify: 

• Cognitive abilities assessment
  • Measures cognitive abilities such as problem-solving, logical reasoning, and critical thinking
  • Provides insights into an individual’s cognitive strengths and areas for improvement 
• Objective and standardised evaluation
  • Offers an objective and standardised evaluation of cognitive abilities
  • Minimises bias and ensures fairness in comparing individuals’ capabilities 
• Efficient, scalable, and scientifically validated
  • Convenient and scalable online assessment tool
  • Eliminates the need for physical assessment centres or on-site evaluations, saving time and resources
  • Rigorous research and validation processes ensure reliability and validity in measuring cognitive abilities 
• Talent identification and development
  • Identifies high-potential individuals with strong cognitive abilities
  • Used in talent recruitement, succession planning, and targeted development programs
  • Also used to promote personal growth, self-awareness, and career planning 

Behavioural and Personality Assessments

These recruitment assessments assess an individual’s behaviour, personality traits, and characteristics. They are designed to provide insights into how a person typically behaves in various situations and to predict their future behaviour based on past patterns. Some common types include: 

To gain insights into your candidates’ behaviours and personalities, you can use assessment tools like Hogan and Aon assessments. Both recruitment assessment tools are available on our TalentPulse platform. 

Hogan measures different aspects of an individual’s personality and work-related behaviour. It is widely utilised in talent selection, succession planning, HiPo identification, leadership and career development, and overall talent management strategies. Here’s why you should use Hogan: 

• Predictive power
  • Highly predictive of job performance and future success
  • Backed by extensive research
  • Provides insights into an individual’s potential, work style, and behaviour
  • Enables more accurate predictions about fit and performance in specific roles 
• Focus on personality
  • Measures personality traits and characteristics
  • Provides a deeper understanding of behavioural patterns, motivations, and values
  • Crucial for predicting workplace performance and cultural fit 
• Reputation and validity
  • Widely recognised for its scientific rigour, reliability, and validity
  • Continually refined and updated based on ongoing research
  • Ensures accurate and meaningful assessment results 
• Holistic assessment approach
  • Measures various aspects of an individual’s personality and work-related behaviour
  • Allows for a more nuanced understanding of strengths, weaknesses, and potential
  • Supports decision-making in talent selection, development, and succession planning 
• Integration with development 

• Provides insights for selection and placement decisions
• Seamlessly integrates into development programs
• Informs personalised coaching plans, targeted training initiatives, and career development strategies
• Fosters individual growth and maximises potential 

Aon offers recruitment assessments such as Numerical Reasoning (numerical ability), Verbal Reasoning (cognitive ability in dealing with written information), and Inductive Logical Reasoning (problem-solving skills through pattern recognition and logical decision-making). Here’s why you should use Aon: 

• Global expertise and presence
  • Global provider of talent assessment and management solutions
  • Multilingual and adaptable across cultures
  • Culturally appropriate and relevant 
• Flexible and configurable
  • Offers customisable options for its assessments
  • Ability to scale and configure end-to-end solutions to meet specific needs and requirements 
• Scientifically validated
  • Designed to be reliable, robust, and based on scientific research
  • Meet rigorous psychometric standards to ensure results are both reliable and valid 
• Advanced AI technology
  • Uses advanced technology to develop and deliver its assessments
  • Technology includes AI and machine learning algorithms to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the assessment process 

Skills Assessments

Skills assessments are designed to measure and evaluate an individual’s proficiency, knowledge, and abilities in specific areas or skill sets and provide insights into their strengths, weaknesses, and potential areas for improvement. Some of these purposes include: 

To gain insights into your candidates’ skills and technical abilities, you can use assessment tools like ExpertRating. This assessment tool is available on our TalentPulse platform. 

ExpertRating is an online skill-based assessment tool that evaluates individuals’ knowledge and competencies across various fields. This tool is built to assist HR teams in assessing and validating skills for candidates. Here’s why you should use Hogan: 

• Comprehensive, convenient, and cost-effective
  • Wide range of remote and flexible skill-based assessments
  • Evaluates across various domains and job-related competencies
  • Eliminates expenses related to logistics and physical centres 
• Standardised and objective evaluations
  • Consistent and fair evaluation of knowledge and skills
  • Elimination of biases and subjectivity
  • Informed decision-making for hiring, promotion, and training 
• Certification validity and recognition
  • Respected certifications in the industry
  • External validation of skills and competencies 
• Integration with HR systems
  • Seamless integration with existing HR systems
  • Streamlined data management and reporting for talent management 

Incorporating Recruitment Assessments in Recruitment & Selection

The talent pipeline encompasses multiple stages: sourcing, screening, selecting, hiring, and onboarding. Each stage plays a critical role in the talent acquisition process. Recruitment assessments can be integrated into each stage to enhance their effectiveness and optimise the overall hiring strategy. 

Sourcing

In the sourcing stage, recruitment assessments are employed to identify potential candidates who possess the desired skills, competencies, and cultural fit. Here, you can: 

• Efficiently narrow down the candidate pool  
• Identify individuals who meet the specific requirements 

Recruitment assessments can be conducted through virtual platforms to enable a seamless and remote completion of assessments. These assessments provide valuable insights into your candidates’ abilities, allowing you to make informed decisions and establish stronger relationships. 

Screening

In the screening stage, Recruitment assessments ensure the right candidates progress further in the hiring process. 

• Initial screening swiftly eliminates candidates who do not meet the minimum requirements 
• Objective evaluations ensure fairness and unbiased comparisons 
• Cultural fit assessments evaluate candidates’ alignment with your organisation’s values and work environment 

You can bolster objectivity, efficiency, and accuracy by integrating recruitment assessment tools, and handpicking candidates for further evaluation, development, and growth. 

Selecting

In the selection stage, recruitement assessments take centre stage in the decision-making process by providing clear guidelines, aligning with desired qualities, and offering a comprehensive evaluation of candidates. 

• Achieve fairness, objectivity, and clarity
• Feel empowered to make well-informed decisions and select candidates who best fit the role
• Identify the most suitable candidates for your organisational culture
• Contribute to the development of a strong and capable workforce 

Hiring

During the hiring stage, recruitment assessments continue to be indispensable. By identifying the required competencies, skills, and attributes, these assessments enable you to: 

• Identify the best fit for the role 
• Gain a multi-dimensional view of your candidate’s capabilities and problem-solving skills 

Establishing benchmarks and offering constructive feedback ensures objective evaluation and creates a positive experience for candidates. While a continuous refinement of assessments based on feedback can drive excellence in the hiring process, ultimately leading to the selection of top talent. 

Onboarding

Even after the hiring decision is made, recruitment assessments remain invaluable during the onboarding stage. Post-hiring evaluations serve as a compass for new employees’ progress and development by: 

• Highlighting the starting points
• Guiding the creation of tailored development plans
• Align individuals’ capabilities with their responsibilities 

Hence, recruitment assessments play a vital role in optimising the onboarding process. By tracking individual progress, identifying growth areas, and adapting strategies based on assessment data, you can fully unlock the potential of your new talents. 

Key Takeaways

Now that you understand the importance of incorporating recruitment assessments into your talent pipeline strategy, are you ready to take your talent pipeline development to the next level? Here are some key takeaways from our blog: 

• Recruitment assessments are a valuable tool for recruitment & selection also for optimising talent pipeline development.
• The benefits of recruitment assessments include: 

• Identifying high-potential candidates and uncovering hidden talents.
• Reduce hiring bias
• Improve the quality of hires

Discovering more about our recruitment assessment tools can be vital for unlocking your organisation’s full potential. Browse our Assessment Marketplace or download the factsheet to gain insights into innovative tools that align with your goals. Explore our offerings today and unleash the potential of your organisation. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Which are the top talent assessments for talent pipeline development?

The top talent assessment tools for talent pipeline development include KNOLSKAPE’s business simulations, Raven’s APM-III, ExpertRating’s skill-based assessments, Criteria’s game-based assessments, and psychometrics by Aon and Hogan. Each assessment is designed to evaluate and develop talent across different areas, providing practical learning experiences and measuring cognitive abilities.

Which types of talent assessments help build a strong talent pipeline?

Several types of talent assessments can help build a strong talent pipeline. Cognitive ability tests assess problem-solving, critical thinking, and learning potential. Behavioural and personality assessments evaluate past experiences and predict future behaviour while providing insights into behavioural traits and work styles. Job simulations allow candidates to showcase job-related skills. Performance assessments demonstrate specific job-related skills.

What is a talent assessment marketplace?

A talent assessment marketplace is an online platform that connects organisations with various assessment providers. It offers a centralised location where organisations can explore and access various vendor talent assessments. Organisations can compare and select assessments that align with their talent management goals and easily integrate them into their hiring and development processes.

What is TalentPulse?

TalentPulse is a cloud-based talent intelligence platform that helps businesses streamline candidate management, applicant tracking, skill development, talent mobility and other administrative processes. Managers can rate employees’ skills, analyse gaps and design individual development plans for upskilling.

Related Articles

The Blueprint for Talent Success: Developing a Strong Talent Pipeline – A Step-by-Step Guide  Top 20 Recruitment Assessment Tools for Graduate Hiring in 2023-2024  The Ultimate Guide to Succession Planning: Building a Strong Talent Pipeline for Smooth Leadership Transitions  Why You Should Acquire, Not Hire Talent