Recruiting and Hiring Expert Dana Borowka: Stop Trying to Shortcut the Hiring Process
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Feb. 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Not to alarm you, but don't take choosing a personality test lightly. There are many services that boast a quick and easy way to profile a job candidate with personality testing. Taking these shortcuts can result in bad hires that have a negative impact on your bottom line and that won't benefit you or your workforce, says the author of a book on the new rules for succeeding in business.
"Some personality testing services simply deliver a test score and guidelines. Others provide a superficial level of analysis that is not much to go on," says Dana Borowka. "What hiring managers really need is an in-depth analysis of the test in the context of the job description and the candidate's resume."
Dana Borowka is co-author with his wife Ellen Borowka of the book "Cracking the Business Code" (CreateSpace, 2014). The book is an anthology of cutting-edge business advice from leading experts, including the Borowkas.
According to the research in their book, today there are around 2,500 cognitive and personality tests on the market.
"So how do you decide which one to use?" asks Dana Borowka. "An organization risks lawsuits if it fails to do proper due diligence in test selection. That's because there are a multitude of assessments available out there and the industry is totally unregulated."
To understand how to choose from the plethora of personality tests, it is helpful to understand the origins of these instruments. A Harvard University instructor and psychologist named Raymond Cattell working in the Adjutant General's office devised psychological tests for the military. After the war he accepts a research professorship at the University of Illinois where they were developing the first electronic computer, the Illiac I, which would make it possible for the first time to do large-scale factor analyses of his personality testing theories.
Cattell used an IBM sorter and the brand-new Illiac computer to perform factor analysis on 4,500 personality-related words. The result was a test to measure intelligence and to assess personality traits known as the Sixteen Personality Factor questionnaire (16PF). First published in 1949, the 16PF profiles individuals using 16 different personality traits. Cattell's research proved that while most people have surface personality traits that can be easily observed, we also have source traits that can be discovered only by the statistical processes of factor analysis.
In 1963 W.T. Norman verified Cattell's work but felt that only five factors really shape personality: extraversion, independence, self-control, anxiety and tough-mindedness. Dubbed the "Big Five" approach, this has become the basis of many of the modern personality tests on the market today. There have been hundreds and hundreds of studies validating the approach.
The five decades of research findings has served as the framework for constructing a number of derivative personality inventories. This is a topic that's been researched extensively by the field of industrial and organizational psychology. Some clear dictates of what to do and what not to do have emerged.
The Borowkas have developed some testing dos and don'ts when it comes to shortcuts:
- Don't use a basic personality screening that takes 20 minutes or less
- Don't skip a phone interview
- Don't try to shorten multiple face-to-face interviews
- Don't skip background and reference checks, and never skip financial background checks when appropriate for the position
- Don't skip giving someone homework during the interviewing process
- Do use in-depth work style and personality assessments
- Do look for red flags in the results concerning behavioral issues
- Do use testing to identify how team members are likely to interact
- Do use testing to ensure you have the right people in the right positions
- Do use a trained professional to review the testing results with you
"The testing procedure that a company follows can send a message to candidates that the company leaders are serious about who they hire," says Dana Borowka. "Successful people want to work with other successful people. In many cases, the candidate may accept a position from the organization they perceive to be more thoughtful during the hiring process.
For more ideas on running a successful business, check out Dana and Ellen Borowka's new book, "Cracking the Business Code" (www.lighthouseconsulting.com). The Borowka's firm, Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC, provides a variety of services, including in-depth work style assessments for new hires and staff development, team building, interpersonal and communication training, career guidance and transition, conflict management, workshops, and executive and employee coaching. Their first book is titled "Cracking the Personality Code."
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Henry DeVries
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SOURCE Lighthouse Consulting Services
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