Hiring the right talents requires more than reviewing resumes and conducting interviews. Although these are necessary aspects of the process that can provide insight into a candidate’s experience and qualifications, they often fall short of revealing how a candidate will actually perform on the job.
Cognitive tests offer a deeper look. They uncover critical information about problem-solving abilities, decision-making skills, and adaptability. These assessments can also help predict how well a candidate will navigate day-to-day challenges and collaborate with the existing team.
In this article, we explore the benefits of cognitive tests for making smarter, more informed hiring decisions.
Cognitive tests—also referred to as cognitive ability tests—are pre-employment assessments used to measure a candidate’s mental abilities. These tests evaluate critical skills, such as problem-solving, spatial reasoning, numerical reasoning, reading comprehension, and critical thinking.
By assessing these abilities, cognitive tests provide insights into how well a candidate can handle the challenges of the role and make informed decisions.
Depending on the role, cognitive tests are delivered through short, multiple-choice questions, logic tests, math problems, or reading comprehension exercises. These tests can offer hiring teams a way to gain a better understanding of a candidate’s future job performance.
Cognitive tests offer a number of advantages for recruiters and hiring managers by making the selection process more objective, efficient, and insightful. Here are some of the top benefits of implementing cognitive tests into your hiring process:
By focusing on a candidate’s cognitive abilities rather than subjective factors, these assessments can help reduce unconscious bias for recruiters. This can lead to fairer evaluations and more diverse talent pools.
Cognitive tests can help spot candidates with high learning potential. Although they may not have all the required skills during the hiring process, they demonstrate an ability to quickly pick up new skills.
Fast-paced work environments require employees who can adapt quickly. Cognitive assessments help identify candidates who can quickly absorb new information and adjust to changing conditions.
Cognitive tests yield the best results when used alongside other assessments, such as behavioral and skills-based assessments. When used together, these assessments provide a more well-rounded view of a candidate’s suitability for the role.
By relying on objective, data-driven assessments, recruiters can streamline the hiring process, reduce time spent on less qualified candidates, and make more accurate hiring decisions.
When integrating cognitive tests into your hiring process, it’s important to do so strategically. Below are a few key tips to ensure these assessments are used effectively.
Not every type of cognitive assessment will be relevant to every position. For example, while numerical reasoning may be important for a data analyst, it might not be as important for a creative role.
Identify the specific mental abilities required for the role to ensure you’re evaluating the right skills.
Cognitive tests should be one part of assessing a candidate, not the sole factor. Decide in advance how much the assessment will influence your hiring decision. Be sure to balance it with other considerations, such as experience, interviews, and skills assessments.
To get the most out of pre-hiring assessments, work with an assessment provider that offers a full range of talent assessments. This ensures that you’re not only testing cognitive abilities but also getting insights into other important areas, such as behavior, skills, and culture fit.
You want the right people in the right seats. At Talevation, we provide the pre-hiring assessments to make this possible. Using our wide variety of assessments, you can leverage science and technology to maximize the potential of your company's greatest asset: its people.
Learn more about how our team at Talevation can help you find the right assessments to make the best hiring decisions possible.