By Doug McCann

When the job market is tight, desperation may drive recruiters to hire someone who might not be the first choice. With the high cost of turnover, most prefer to hold out for the ideal person.

“Our goal is to hire the right people for the right position, so we have a better retention rate over time,” says Maurice Paquette, president and CEO of Coast Wholesale Appliances, a major household appliance supplier based in Vancouver, BC. “The savings are huge.”

Getting the right person into the right job can be tricky. Companies need to understand where people’s strengths lie and how they will work with colleagues and managers. The fit with the corporate culture is also becoming increasingly important as labour shortages in Saskatchewan, Alberta and B.C. drive companies to cast their nets in the international pool.

To gain this understanding, smart businesses are beefing up their array of hiring tactics with scientific, data-driven solutions such as personality assessments. Coast Wholesale Appliances and more than 7,800 other organizations across the world use an assessment called the Predictive Index (PI). The tool is available in 65 languages, ideal for cross-cultural validation of candidates.

Developed in 1955, the PI measures a person’s underlying personality traits, such as extroversion, dominance and patience. Individuals check off a list of adjectives to describe themselves and the way others see them, and software calculates and analyzes the results. Companies can use the resulting two-page report on the inner drives of the individual to match applicants with current job opportunities.

“People can’t ‘game’ the system,” says Paquette, who has used the tool in several companies for more than 20 years. “It shows who people naturally are and if there’s a conflict in how they present themselves.”

“People know how to answer interview questions in the way you want,” agrees Laila Lee, recruitment specialist, Canada for commercial real estate services company Colliers International. “PI has given us an extra edge in identifying the behavioral fit from the start.”

She adds, “In terms of turnover, the issue for most companies tends to be around the manager/employee relationship. Using behavioral assessment lets us put the right people in the right role. We’re a fast-paced service company, and we need detail-oriented, organized people who can adapt quickly. Knowing that is someone’s natural style will help them stay in the role for the long term.”

Checking the fit between a potential employee and manager is effective for more than new hires. It also supports re-assigning hires placed in jobs for which they are not well suited, or to help when promoting employees.

Flynn Canada Ltd., a roofing, glazing and curtain wall services contractor, uses PI when an employee is up for promotion. Checking the individual’s natural tendencies against the requirements of the job allows the company to make faster, smarter staffing decisions. Additionally, insight into a person’s behaviour and workplace drives can help managers better motivate, drive performance and improve morale.

“We promote from within the organization, and a behavioral assessment is a good indicator of an employee’s potential for success in a future role or leadership position,” says Gerard Montocchio, Flynn’s vice president of HR. “For example, a person may be quite good at the technical aspects of the job, but may find it difficult to delegate responsibilities to others. Uncovering those behaviors or work styles leads to the right job fit.”

New managers at Microsoft Canada were early adopters of this data-driven approach to hiring.  “The managers loved it because they were able to get to know their teams quicker and better,” says Randy Lenaghan, Microsoft’s vice president of enterprise sales. “After seeing its value, they quickly became evangelists for it throughout the organization.”

Personality assessments can’t replace the standard job interview, but they do give companies a powerful tool to make better hiring decisions. And when faced with fierce competition for candidates in a tight job market, that can mean the difference between settling for second best and making the right hire.

Doug McCann is managing principal for the B.C. and Alberta branch of Predictive Success Corporation (predictivesuccess.com), the Canadian licensee of international management consulting firm PI Worldwide.

(PeopleTalk: Winter 2012)