9 March 2010

Psychometric test to spot CV cheats

A company that develops psychometric tests claims it can help employers to spot CV cheats by checking a candidate's attitude to personal integrity and reliability.

Developed in the USA by Profiles International - a world-leading assessment company - the Step One Survey, asks job applicants 103 cleverly-constructed, multiple-choice questions to identify candidates with questionable integrity.

While no psychometric test can check the factual accuracy of a CV, the Step One Survey flags up potential areas of concern, helping employers focus their resources on more detailed investigation and questioning of those candidates.

Recent research suggests that 20% of CVs submitted by candidates contain serious inaccuracies and many experts believe the figure could be much higher.

In the real world, employing someone who doesn't have either the qualifications or experience that they claim to have, particularly in senior positions, can be disastrous.

Martin Goodwill, Managing Director of Profiles GB, the UK arm of Profiles International, is hoping to bring the Step One Survey to the Britain in the near future. He said that adding false details to a CV is often seen in the same way as shoplifting, a victimless crime.

But the cost to UK business is enormous and it seems incongruous that when the tools are out there to help employers avoid these pitfalls, so many of them are willing to bet their companies on gut feel recruitment decisions.

 

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