quote:

Originally posted by Scurvy:
Good ones can give you some good insight into yourself as well.

The Harrison Assessment I took is incredibly accurate. Accurate to the point it’s a little bit creepy.

quote:

Originally posted by Sig2392:
One company that created this test or a similar one is Predictive Index
There is lots of information on the test if you google it.
They do not release the math test results.

The PI is a test that is created in house off the PI template. There are so many different configurations that it would be very difficult to post results. As far as the math portion, that would have been more on the in house side and tacked on to the PI test. Finding results online would be impossible as that portion would be specific to that company.

quote:

Originally posted by Micropterus:
The gayer you are, the lesbanier you are, the transier you are, the LGBTQP'ier you are, the more likely you will get promoted. It's not about skill. It's about being in the right clubs.

My sarcastic answer is “sucks to work where you do”.
My legitimate answer is yeah, in some large corporations or some places that are run with no sense and all emotion, yes, that may be the case.
I managed a Distribution Center that moved almost a billion dollars of product a year. I had over a hundred employees that reported up to me. The company was run very well, and promotions had nothing to do with anything other than merit. The people who worked the hardest, and put the company’s needs before their own, were the ones that were promoted.
I now am the GM for a smaller operation. It is run very well, by a family that really cares about everyone. Again, no one cares what race, religion, or sexual identity you have. We promote on merit, and that’s it.
So while I will agree that there are some places that will promote a “token”, I think most companies still promote off of merit. If you don’t, it’ll show and it won’t take long. Having ineffective leaders and people who were promoted because of their sexual identity and not their ability, will get you a company that runs itself into the ground quickly. Most owners are in business to make money. Doing what you’re saying, doesn’t make you money.

The predictive validity of such tests is questionable. It is also concerning when amateurs begin using the measures in the corporate world. The best person to evaluate a new hire is someone who has been doing the job for many years.

Did you ever go to a movie that you thought your date would like because you wanted to get into her pants?

Zmichael, you are correct. That said, what do you do when you have 100 applications? Do you take the time to read and phone screen everyone?

These are tools that one can use.

As far as amateurs applying them in the corporate world, if you are paying for the services, there are professionals with a lot of experience to set up the tests, or in the case of the Harrison Assessment, a professional goes over the assessment with the manager first, then with the employee. It’s about an hour with each person, giving you insight to their personality traits.
It also doesn’t mean it’s hard fact and that is what the person will always do. It shows they have a tendency or preference toward a certain behavior.

Relying on these tools as the be all end all and not using common sense, or getting to know people, or interviewing in person, etc., won’t do you any good.
You don’t pick out a hammer and think, “this is the best tool ever. I’ll use it to drive screws, loosen and tighten bolts, etc”. You don’t do that, because the hammer is not the correct tool.

So yes, I like these tests. In the right situation and used correctly, they can be a useful tool.

Beancooker is correct. These types of assessments can be extremely helpful in developing a great culture within a team or company. I have experienced this type of stuff first hand. The value is entirely determined by how the company uses the information for the betterment of employees and teams. It's not all PC, socialist, LGBTQ, feel good bullshit.

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^^^ You don’t really know shit about them if they used their duckduckgo fu.

That is true, people can screw around and answer it anyway they like, problem being, say you get the job and your personality isn't one bit like what you answered, they'll know and if you don't fit, you are gone..


and it could just as easily backfire since the applicant doesn't know what the employer has decided the right result is for the job. You might just test yourself back on the street.


Most of these systems have a similar survey/test, it's for management to establish the type of person that will fit the job, usually an amalgamation of people who already have been good at that position and work in their climate.

I've taken the Predictive Index class as a former employer used the system and we were required to establish job standards. The PI is damn accurate on determining if a personality is a good fit or not, works for the company and the person, you don't want a job you'll hate and they don't want a person that hates the job...

Water Divination, Lie Detector Tests, and these silly things, three peas in a pod.

I've had them all, some a few times. Pop-science hogwash. Snake Oil. Malarkey.

People are way too smart for these types of tests to tell you anything. They are fun, though. I'll take any test that claims to be able to tell me something about myself.

quote:

Beancooker is correct. These types of assessments can be extremely helpful in developing a great culture within a team or company. I have experienced this type of stuff first hand. The value is entirely determined by how the company uses the information for the betterment of employees and teams. It's not all PC, socialist, LGBTQ, feel good bullshit.

^^^^^^^^^^^^
The tests are a tool, that is all. In the hands of a skilled interviewer they can be helpful. Again, there is no subsitute for the human mind. I would put up a good interviewer against any test,at any time.

As far as the number of applicants, many can be screened within 30 seconds.

I have had the pleasure of witnessing skilled interviewers with over 40 years of experience. No test can compare to intuition or what some analysts refer to as "listening with the third Ear."

Useless PC horse shit. All it is, is fuckin' with people, just plain old fuckin' with people, just because they can with their politically correct nonsense. Means nothing. Helps nothing. A waste of time. Someone needs to demonstrate to their boss that they are "doing something". Won't make one single thing more efficient for the employer nor more pleasant for the employee. Mental masturbation and busywork.

One company I worked for came up with a "situational exercise" to find the people best suited for managing a unionized workforce in a large factory. Some existing employees got to play act in the exercise and pretend to be obstinate employees. One of them told me that the initiative would fail because it favored those who were soft and collaborative and all behaved like the HR psycho babble said they should.

Guess what? The best rated candidates were the fastest to crash and burn when they got hired and had to deal with reality.

Nah, that stuff's got a bunch of acronyms associated with it, so it must be useful and effective. And, of course, we know that this kind of fertilizer is not favored by the PC crowd. They didn't invent it, they don't like it and they don't use it. Yep

Like a Home Owner Association in the workplace.

Oy...

I'm thankful I own my own business.
I'd be embarrassed to put another human through that shit in order to hire them. I do this really weird, archaic shit called "talking and getting to know them".

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:

quote:

^^^ You don’t really know shit about them if they used their duckduckgo fu.

That is true, people can screw around and answer it anyway they like, problem being, say you get the job and your personality isn't one...

But, they still got the job. If it doesn’t work out it was a HUGE waste of resources for the company when a good interviewer would’ve weeded this person out.

Don't walk away if you need a job/$ - but I would restart my job search if it were me in your shoes.

Good Luck.

quote:

That's what HR stands for - Horseshit Reclamation.

Anyone remember the good old days when HR was called the Personnel Dept. and the people who were in that department didn't exercise hardly any control over how the company was run?

I remember that, and I miss those days of not-so-overpaid people that handled mundane employee disputes and filling out W-4 forms... How times have changed.

HR = $$$

Edit:
I'm self-employed(a company of me), but every new company I pick up has their HR Dept. contact me asking for my safety training logs, drug testing policy/procedures and results, blah, blah, blah. To call these folks annoying would be a compliment.

quote:

Originally posted by PowerSurge:

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:

quote:

^^^ You don’t really know shit about them if they used their duckduckgo fu.

That is true, people can screw around and answer it anyway they like, problem being, say you get the job and your personality isn't one...

But, they still got the job. If it doesn’t work out it was a HUGE waste of resources for the company when a good interviewer would’ve weeded this person out.

nothing like cutting off the quote midway....

this was left off

quote:

bit like what you answered, they'll know and if you don't fit, you are gone..

So you may or may not get the job, and if you do you might not fit, so it wastes your time and the company time.

For these psychological personality tests there really isn't a set of correct answers for these tests that you can Bluto out of the trash can.....

Like them or not, it's there.

My dad who owned several companies always said when it changed from Personnel to HR it went straight down the shitter....

I've been hiring and firing people for 36 years.

We do not have a "culture". We are not a "team". I am not your "manager"

I hire people for their skill set. I give them the tools they need to do their job. I try to stay the hell out of their way so they can do it.

In return I pay them every week. I don't fret when they make reasonable requests. And I will burn anyone to the ground that lies about my employees.

I hate this shit employers have embraced.


For the past 4 years I've worked part time for my state's largest private EMS agency. I told them in the interview that I wasn't sure I'd be a great employee because I had been self employed for over 30 years. They hired me anyway.

I show up a half hour before my shift starts. I don't bitch if we get held over. I keep my professional education and license up to date. I do my job in an efficient and professional manner. My last review they said I was in the top 2% of employees in the company based on the criteria they set for performance. I do my job, they pay me well for our industry. Fair trade. If it was any other way or I had to put up with that 'corporate culture" horseshit, I'd tell them in a heartbeat to go fuck themselves.

quote:

I'm thankful I own my own business.
I'd be embarrassed to put another human through that shit in order to hire them. I do this really weird, archaic shit called "talking and getting to know them"

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I am self employed and do the same. I remember the Personnel Dept too. They just filed your application after you were hired. They were also the final stop when you left the company.