As a recruitment consultant, who graduated in Psychology, I notice an increased use of assessments by companies to help them make choices in their recruitment process. Not only capacity tests are being used, but these tests are also frequently combined with personality tests. There are a lot of different personality tests being used by companies to assess their candidates. For example, tests based on the theory of Carl Jung like the de MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) and Insights Discovery are quite popular. Despite scientifically sound, negative evaluations these tests are still popular. How come? And is there a better choice?
Recently I was reading an interesting article written by Patrick Vermeren (2013) where he discussed the issues and the (lack of) reliability of personality tests based on the ideas of Carl Jung. One issue he states is that there is no scientific evidence for the reliability of these tests. Another issue is that these tests classify people into a limited amount of personality types. This categorization is something our brain loves to do. It’s a survival skill that allows us to make sense of the world around us. Without it, we would have to analyse every person and object individually rather than assigning someone or something to a category. This is also the main reason these personality tests are still popular, it preys upon or evolutionary instinct to categorize and simplify.
Unfortunately, this ability can also have a downside as it can lead to prejudices, in-group versus out-group thinking and racism. It could also have problematic recruitment consequences. In the selection process, this could result in someone not getting hired because he has a certain personality type. But what a typological test doesn’t take into account is that personality isn’t a choice between two opposites, someone is not just introverted or extraverted. Between these opposites are a lot more variations, therefore there are a lot more possibilities in personality than you can describe by using types. Personality differences are not dichotomous but fall on a continuum scale.
One personality model that uses these continuum scales is the Five Factor Model (Big Five Model). The Big Five personality traits are Openness to experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism (also referred to as OCEAN). Each trait represents a continuum and individuals can fall anywhere on the continuum for each trait. The literature review by Patrick Vermeer shows there is more scientific evidence for the use of a continuum model instead of a dichotomous model for developing personality tests. This is also why we included a personality test based on the Five Factor Model in our Treasurer Test.
There will always be new personality models trying to make an abstract topic like personality more simplistic and understandable. But to make sure the right decisions are being made, I believe it’s important we only use evidence-based tests when using them for something as crucial as the recruitment of new employees.
by Kim Vercoulen
We also see that some candidates have a hard time in weighing their options, sometimes focusing too much on the salary aspect. And although negotiating a fair financial compensation is of course important, there are other factors that should definitely not be overlooked when choosing your next challenge.
Something that is not easily visible, is that Treasurer Search always manages a portfolio of interim treasurers.
As treasury recruiters, we should know enough about corporate treasury to do intakes and screen candidates.
The tight labour market is a hot topic these days, the changes in the market bring challenges for both employers and recruiters. Research done by the Intelligence Group shows that a third of corporates are expanding their recruitment budget to deal with these challenges. Remarkably enough the research also shows that corporates are planning to invest less in external recruitment agencies and spend more on labour market communication and recruitment systems. Will external recruiters become less needed in the future? In this article, I will discuss the pros and cons of using an external recruiter.
One of the reasons why corporates are hesitant to use an external bureau is the costs. External recruiters ask a fee. A thing that hiring managers underestimate is the time-consuming task of searching a matching candidate. The recruitment process takes time for everyone involved. The longer a search takes, the more expensive it gets.. Interesting to read in the described research is that those external recruitment agencies are (on average) 20 days quicker than the corporates themselves in finding the right candidate.. As mentioned, a quicker search period means less cost of time and money for everyone that’s involved. This is an important reason to decide for hiring an external recruiter.
A reason external agencies finish the search quicker is that they have a large database of candidates. However, there is a difference between general and specialized external recruiters. General recruiters need to know candidates in all areas, this often leads to the less personal contact with candidates. Specialized bureaus can focus on a smaller pool of candidates and can therefore have close contact with them. On top of these warm networks niche recruiters also have more specialized market knowledge and a visible track record.
A challenge that external recruiters have is that they don’t know the company culture as well as the internal recruiter or HR manager. The latter has a better view of what personality will fit best into the company and more specifically the department the candidate will be working in. For most job openings, the personality profile of the candidate is an important topic to discuss.
There is no one answer to the choice between keeping the recruitment process internally or hiring an external agency. There are pros and cons for both and I have not been comprehensive in my reasoning. I believe the decision should strongly depend on the kind of function you are recruiting for. When a marketing bureau is looking for a candidate in their own field of expertise, the choice of an external recruitment agency seems less attractive. In this case, the company should know candidates within the target group they are looking for. When a company is recruiting for a vacancy that lies outside its expertise, it might be more interesting to hire a specialized recruiter that knows the market
When in doubt, call me,
Kim
We also see that some candidates have a hard time in weighing their options, sometimes focusing too much on the salary aspect. And although negotiating a fair financial compensation is of course important, there are other factors that should definitely not be overlooked when choosing your next challenge.
Something that is not easily visible, is that Treasurer Search always manages a portfolio of interim treasurers.
As treasury recruiters, we should know enough about corporate treasury to do intakes and screen candidates.
The job market is getting increasingly tight. For the first time in 50 years there are more vacancies than unemployed people in the Netherlands, according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS). In line with these statistics we notice that more companies are coming to us for support in their recruitment process. In a tight labour market like this it is sometimes necessary to think about alternatives and, for example, consider looking for talent abroad. Sometimes even outside of the EU.
We have clients who are not open for recruiting candidates from abroad. Reasons mentioned for this are “risk of failure higher”, “expect higher cost” and “too much hassle”. In many cases they are right but we are in a situation choices have to be made. Do you want to wait and how long? Can you train a junior? Will you abandon some requirements? In this article we want to inform you about the possibilities and requirements for hiring candidates from abroad. Many employers already found this solution works well for them.
In the Netherlands we have the opportunity to hire a so called “highly skilled migrant”. There are certain requirements for such an application, for both you as an employer and for the candidate you want to hire. You can find the full list of requirements at the IND (Immigration and Naturalisation service) website, below I will discuss the most prominent ones in short.
There needs to be an employment contract between the candidate and the employer in the Netherlands AND this employer is a recognised sponsor by the IND. Recognised employers are listed in the Public Register of Recognised Sponsors. (There is an exception for highly skilled migrants with the Turkish nationality. Candidates with the Turkish nationality can submit an application themselves. Note that when a recognised sponsor submits an application, the application is completed sooner.)
There is are certain salary criteria you need to meet. (Click this link for more information on these salary criteria).
If you are considering sponsoring work permits for candidates in the future, it might be useful to make sure you are listed as a recognised sponsor before starting your recruitment process. As this process will take time (up to 90 days).
The IND handles your applications quicker : a complete application is usually decided on within 2 weeks.
You need to provide fewer supporting documents with an application.
You can use the online Business Portal of the IND to submit digital applications and notify changes.
Click this link to go to the IND website for more information about the procedure, application forms and costs.
Although the process of becoming a recognised sponsor will take some time, it does give you access to a bigger candidate pool. In a tight labour market like the one we have at the moment, it can offer you great possibilities. It can help hire talent that you might not find locally and having a bigger candidate pool can speed up your recruitment process.
Note that we do not by any way imply to have all the information regarding this topic. For complete and up to date information, we refer you to the IND website. Hiring from abroad is not the solution for all of your job openings. It might be for some. For questions regarding support in treasury recruitment processes, we are always available!
Kim Vercoulen
Recruitment Consultant
M: +31 (0)6 2467 9339 | T: +31 (0)85 086 67 98 | kv@treasurersearch.com
We also see that some candidates have a hard time in weighing their options, sometimes focusing too much on the salary aspect. And although negotiating a fair financial compensation is of course important, there are other factors that should definitely not be overlooked when choosing your next challenge.
Something that is not easily visible, is that Treasurer Search always manages a portfolio of interim treasurers.
As treasury recruiters, we should know enough about corporate treasury to do intakes and screen candidates.
So you are ready to change jobs and see many options in this tight labor market. What path shall you take to land your new position? I thought you might benefit from my thoughts on why working with a recruiter might make sense.
Not all recruitment agencies are specific in what they hire for, but sometimes, like with us at Treasurer Search, the recruiter is also an expert in Treasury. We will use this expertise in providing you, the candidate, with valuable insights into the market status, what the best match might be and what to focus on if you’re planning a change in your career.
We, at Treasurer Search, are happy to give you tips and advice throughout the whole process. Starting from reviewing your resume, perhaps helping you improve when necessary. And will, as well, prep you for interviews and advise you on what and how to act and react during your meetings. Of course for your consideration, you are in the lead. We have our candidates’ best interests at heart, of course also after the offer is signed.
As specialized recruiters we are experts in our fields, we work closely with our clients and provide opportunities that might not be available for you on job boards. Another advantage of working closely with clients is that the clients trust us to find TOP TALENTS for exclusive searches.
Working full-time and looking for another job as well? then you might not have enough time to do it efficiently. That’s why we are here, we will do the search for you, find you the best job available, help you throughout the whole process and keep things confidential.
When you’re at the last stage of landing a job, you won’t be alone! We know that negotiating the offer is not an easy conversation for you to have. This is why we will be there and help negotiate terms, salary, and benefits for you with our client. Be aware that we have a professional standard we will not deviate from. At the end of the day, employers and employees have to be satisfied with the end result. Of course, it is not a secret that the employer pays the bill for our services.
I hope this helps you find your new position. And if you want to brainstorm, don’t hesitate in contacting us. We are here for you.
On behalf of my colleagues,
Haia
We also see that some candidates have a hard time in weighing their options, sometimes focusing too much on the salary aspect. And although negotiating a fair financial compensation is of course important, there are other factors that should definitely not be overlooked when choosing your next challenge.
Something that is not easily visible, is that Treasurer Search always manages a portfolio of interim treasurers.
As treasury recruiters, we should know enough about corporate treasury to do intakes and screen candidates.
Over the last decades, most employers were able to almost always choose from multiple candidates when recruiting. Being nice and professional towards potential employees was appreciated, not showing that kind of behaviour was not always penalized. Now it is. Normally we always focus on the positive, we thought to change things up to the negative. So, as a team we compiled a list of low-hanging fruit in don’ts when finding new staff:
So, this is our list. It is most definitely not comprehensive, we can write bibles on the topic. What do you want to add to the list?
We also see that some candidates have a hard time in weighing their options, sometimes focusing too much on the salary aspect. And although negotiating a fair financial compensation is of course important, there are other factors that should definitely not be overlooked when choosing your next challenge.
Something that is not easily visible, is that Treasurer Search always manages a portfolio of interim treasurers.
As treasury recruiters, we should know enough about corporate treasury to do intakes and screen candidates.
Using personality tests has become very common in the hiring process. Hundreds of different tests have been developed, one with even more beautiful diagrams than the other. Unfortunately, a lot of these tests have never been proven to be reliable. Perhaps they are, perhaps they are not. Making valid statements can only be done when your methods are sound. When choosing a personality test for your hiring process, I believe it’s important to use a scientifically supported test. I wrote about this topic in an earlier blog,.
One personality test that has been proven to be reliable is the Five Factor Model (aka Big Five Test). But even when a personality test is proven to be scientifically sound, you should still think long and hard about the way you are going to use these tests (and especially their results) to help you prevent poor hiring decisions.
One of the reasons using a personality test can be tricky, is that it is very easy to get carried away in looking at the results. This can lead to putting the candidate in a narrowly defined box and not seeing the candidate as a whole person. This way you could miss out on star-quality candidates. That’s why it is unwise to use single test results as a make-or-break hurdle. But how should you use them then?
To start, you should decide what competences a future employee should have to excel in a certain function. By looking at key competences in advance, you can check how each candidate has scored on these competences in the personality test report. And use those results to structure your (competency-based) interview, to help you explore the candidate’s behaviour in more depth.
A good personality test also gives you information about the honesty and social desirability with which the applicant has completed the personality test. This gives you vital information about the usefulness of the results in the personality report. When a candidate is not consequent in his/hers answers and probably is trying to manipulate the results, the results won’t reflect the candidate’s true self. Therefore the results should be disregarded.
In conclusion, a well-designed personality test, if used properly, can be a useful and accurate way to determine if someone will be a good fit for the job and the company. What you should never do, is rely solely on personality test results when making a hiring decision. There are many more variables that should be taken into account when hiring someone, such as the candidate’s motivation, presentation, education, experience and references. As a recruiter, I always look if different sources of information paint the same picture and ask myself: are the test results confirming that picture?
As treasury recruiters, we are hired to find candidates with treasury skills, and that remains. What we see in the labour market in general is that new positions are created quicker than before. That also applies to the treasury labour market. As a consequence, the personality, competences and behaviour of candidates are more important than before. We pay more attention to the value of assessments. What do you think? Looking forward to speaking with you about this,
Kim Vercoulen
We also see that some candidates have a hard time in weighing their options, sometimes focusing too much on the salary aspect. And although negotiating a fair financial compensation is of course important, there are other factors that should definitely not be overlooked when choosing your next challenge.
Something that is not easily visible, is that Treasurer Search always manages a portfolio of interim treasurers.
As treasury recruiters, we should know enough about corporate treasury to do intakes and screen candidates.
