That One Thing

As a student, there is one word you hear quite often, possibly more than any other word throughout your educational career; resume. From the time you nervously step foot through the doors of high school, to the day you hang your degree or diploma on the wall, teachers, administrators, and leaders of all sorts pitch their class, degree, or program as, “something that looks good on your resume.”

They pitch this for good reason. Some employers spend just 11 seconds looking at a resume, so the more experience, relevant skills, and education you can cram in the better chance you are hired. For your employer, the more you see on a resume, the better chance that candidate is hanging on your “employee of the month,” wall next month.

Right?

The issues with this method of hiring could fill a book, but the main three reasons boil down to;

1. 84% of people have lied or embellished a resume. This is invisible to the hiring manager during the interview but will be clear as day when they show up for the first day of work.
2. Experience doesn’t mean someone is naturally fit for a job.

And the biggest of all,

3. Some great candidates can’t break into the market, and thus can’t get hired on a “resume-only,” model, no matter how great they could be.

This last one is key. With 5.75 million jobs currently open, why is it that companies can’t seem to find qualified employees, but young adults can’t seem to find work? The gap exists as an invisible barrier between employer and candidate, a barrier of experience that could provide the employer with the confidence they need to be confident in hiring the amazing candidate they have before them. That’s essentially all resumes provide to employers; confidence that someone can do a job.

The Fix

The Predictive Index System™, offered by the Predictive Success Corporation, gives hiring managers a snapshot of who someone is in their DNA.

In 2019 however, there is a better way to provide the same reinforcement hiring staff need to have faith in a candidate’s ability to do what they say they can do. Behavioural assessments provide insights into someone’s genetic capabilities, allowing employers to determine a candidate fit for a role, regardless of their experience. On average, companies who use behavioural assessments see a 22% decrease in bad hires.

Take, for example, a programming student applying to a software firm right out of school. Maybe they have never worked on enterprise software as a job, however, they have a natural orientation towards being detail-oriented and patient. Education? Check. Natural abilities that fit with the job? Check. Hiring on the skinny resume.

The major argument an employer may make to this is, “yes they may naturally be good for a job, but there are industry skills they need to have.” This is the easier aspect to teach. When you are confident you have hired someone who is naturally fit for their job, you can teach the industry skills. You can’t teach detail orientation or patience. Ask any manager, teacher, or parent.

The Predictive Index Behavioural Assessment™, offered by Predictive Success, allows companies to see a candidate’s true self on a scale of four factors. Based on these four factors, employers can look beyond the resume to see how a candidate fits with behavioural factor combinations the employer would like the next employee to have.

Summary

Hiring based on resumes opens managers up to being duped by those who interview well, or who lie and embellish their resume. Behavioural assessments allow companies to see past the resume and have a sense of trust in the abilities of their hire, no matter what their experience is. This allows companies to craft the ideal candidate, who’s industry-specific skills can be built up in the job.

To learn how your organization can leverage the Predictive Index Behavioural Assesment™ in your hiring, click here, or contact Hannah Harrison at hharrison@predictivesuccess.com.

Sources

https://www.inc.com/jt-odonnell/staggering-85-of-job-applicants-lying-on-resumes-.html

https://www.inc.com/suzanne-lucas/when-no-resumes-makes-for-better-hiring.html

https://www.predictiveindex.com/blog/identifying-and-closing-skills-gaps/