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by PreVisor - July 11, 2011

From Small Businesses to Global 1000, More Applicants Being Screened for Jobs Across Several Sectors

PreVisor reports significant increase in number of candidates assessed by employers

Atlanta, GA – While there have been few positive economic indicators reported recently, global employment assessment leader, PreVisor, has seen a significant increase in the use of candidate assessments year-to-date versus 2009. During the same time period covering January through August, candidates being assessed by their client base increased on average 54% year-over-year. Growth was measured across several market sectors including financial services, retail, telecommunications, healthcare, and insurance.

Sales, IT and Customer Service jobs respectively have seen the largest increase in jobs being screened for using online assessments, which for many companies reflects new job openings. In addition, candidate volumes are still very high and likely to remain so even with modest hiring increases.

Many companies report the use of online assessment is driven by the increase in job openings as well as the need to process very large candidate pools to find quality hires most effectively.

"Time Warner Cable assessment use is up significantly for the first six months of this year versus last year due primarily to two causes. First, we have seen a general increase in job openings across the company. Second, we are also getting more candidates for every position, which is directly related to the number of people seeking jobs," said Janet Manzullo, Vice President of Talent Acquisition at TWC.

Greg Donavan, President and CEO of Raleigh-based Alpheon Corporation, added, "This is the largest employment pool we've ever had to deal with since we've been in business. Historically we might get 3-4 qualified candidates per job opening. Now we see 20, 30, even 40 with the right skills – on paper. We don't have time to sort through all of that. Today we can put everyone through online assessments to narrow the field to the top candidates to bring in for interviews. This cuts a lot of wasted time and gets us the quality we're looking for."

Some retail organizations' growth opportunities increase in an economy when consumers are more likely to want to maintain their larger expense items, like homes and vehicles, than purchase new ones. One such company, Advance Auto Parts, plans to open 150 new stores in 2010.

Tonya Baker, Director of Talent Management Systems at Advance Auto Parts, explained, "We've experienced a large increase in the number of assessments used this year, not only because more jobs are being created as a result of new store openings, but also due to the increase in the number of candidates we are screening per job opening."

And the increase in assessment usage is not limited to the United States.

Richard Horton, CIO of New Zealand-based Fidelity Life Assurance Company, states, "Actually the increase in our testing comes from a combination of two different factors: First, we're currently running a large recruitment drive, resulting in a 33% growth in our department, to accommodate a large increase in demand for IT resources. Second, we've increased our screening and hence testing of candidates, to ensure we get high quality matches for the roles we have."

About PreVisor
PreVisor, the leading global provider of on demand employment assessments and talent measurement solutions, helps clients connect employment decisions to business results. Following the rigorous standards of industrial-organizational psychology, PreVisor's assessment content accurately predicts on-the-job performance and supports fair hiring practices. PreVisor's solutions help streamline hiring, reduce recruiting and training costs, and improve corporate performance for clients worldwide, including more than 100 of the Fortune 500. The company is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with offices in Washington D.C., Minneapolis, Tampa, London, and Sydney. www.previsor.com