Using Competency
Assessment Techniques

As part of our leadership recruitment guide, we’ve been discussing various recruitment methods. Based on our knowledge as an HR consultancy, we know which methods and techniques can help businesses hire the right person for the role.

But what exactly are you assessing? Most recruitment methods revolve around an interview, but these tend to be woefully inadequate. Just ‘finding out about a person’ or chronologically working your way through their CV does little to differentiate between a potentially poor or indeed stellar performer. Such unstructured interviews may form a more generalised measurement of a candidate’s social skills, but little more.

Interviewers are also prone to consciously or subconsciously making their mind up about a candidate within the first few minutes of meeting them. Why? Because they’re likely to be influenced by one, some, or all of the following:

• Stereotyping
• Impression management (smiling, nodding etc.)
• Accents
• Age concerns (too young or too old)
• Racial concerns
• Looking favourably on their application form, CV and appearance (found to predict up to 88% of a candidate’s ratings!)
• Other cognitive biases (Halo and Contrast Effects, as well as a preference for those individuals who are ‘similar to me’)

Our LinkedIn article explores the implications of these cognitive biases further. Are unconscious biases sabotaging your recruitment process?

How Can We Improve the Predictive Validity of Hiring Top Performers?

It all starts with a thorough job analysis. This is a means of finding out what exactly the job you’re hiring for involves. It means identifying the skills, knowledge, behaviours and abilities required to perform a job competently. These areas are collectively known as competencies.  

“A competency is a combination of observable and measurable knowledge, skills, abilities and personal attributes that contribute to enhanced employee performance and ultimately result in organisational success.”

Specific competencies are then allocated as of being key to the success of an individual operating within your given role. Often, five or six might be considered critical and worth exploring further during your recruitment assessment process. This might be during a competency-based interview or across a variety of other exercises, specifically designed for the candidate to demonstrate — and you to assess — their ability across these competencies. You can read more about various competency exercises in our leadership recruitment methods guide.

Competency assessments are a great way of bringing rigour and objectivity to your recruitment process and thus enhance the likelihood of you selecting the best person for the role.

If you’re unsure about how best to plan or deliver competency assessments, consult business psychologists. They will have the expertise to help guide you on how to find the very best candidate.

Need help with your competency assessments? Contact Davis Associates for a FREE consultation with one of our business psychologists. Our experts have three decades of experience in guiding companies with their leadership recruitment strategy.