Many companies go through the issue of hiring the wrong people. They become more reliant on background tests and pre-employment testing to ensure they are hiring the top qualified applicant for the job. They can screen applicants by using cognitive tests, personality tests, background tests, drug tests, emotional intelligence tests, and talent assessment tests. Employers create and administer tests that are associated with the certain job title. For example, if you are applying to an HR position, an employer would assign you a test based on the tools and skills you should know if you are applying to that position. This is completely different from a regular background test; because it goes beyond personality testing. The employer can then confirm that the applicant is paralleled to what they state on their resume. These are known as Talent assessment tests. All of these types of tests can be administered online or they can be given during the hiring process in the office.

These tests differ from applicant tracking systems. An applicant tracking system is a software application that allows businesses to manage resume data and all applicant information. The submitted information is accessed through both internal information and from information posted on job boards. They are typically cloud-based programs that can sort and align resumes accurately with job descriptions. The main benefit to ATS is that there is one primary database for a company’s hiring efforts. It allows them to organize and manage human capital.

The combination of having an applicant tracking system and pre-employment testing will help companies accurately hire the right candidate. The only downfall is that these systems can be costly and time consuming for companies that aren’t big enough to manage them. They make the the hiring process easier mostly for larger companies. The medium and smaller sized companies usually chose one of the two systems to help them with their hiring process; because they need to dedicate their time to growing the company.