It Is in Your Head
Predictably, people who give the tests say it doesn't pay to try to game them by giving what you think are the right answers. Coaches and outplacement experts who advise job seekers also say honesty is the best policy. For one thing, the tests are structured to detect possible cheating. "For any given character trait, say independence, there's an optimal amount," Valdes explains. "If a person seems to be really extreme, well, most people aren't that extreme, so it suggests they tried to answer all the questions in a positive but not very realistic way."
More important, the tests aren't about aptitude or intelligence so much as fit. If the test steers the company away from you, it might be for the best. "If you are a Type B and they really want Type A's, then getting that job could be all headaches," says Deborah Brown-Volkman, a career coach based in East Moriches, N.Y.
Kenneth Honeycutt, 55, former CEO of a division of Acuity Brands in Atlanta, took a personality assessment two years ago when he was vying to be CEO of the parent company. "I didn't get a whole lot of what I would consider to be new information about myself," he says. Still, the test and the discussion he had with the test's administrator afterward helped him to understand what the job would be and what type of person the company was looking for, and Honeycutt decided he wasn't it. "I wanted a role where I could be more engaged in the business and operations than this job would allow," he says. So he took himself out of the running and remained in his division chief role until retiring this January.
His advice for someone facing a similar battery of tests: "Before you go in, spend a bit of time thinking about yourself. What are your talents, your interests, what do you love doing, and what do you not like doing? Think back over your career and experiences and what you learned about yourself from them." Then, he says, "don't try to anticipate what they want to hear-the value comes in being transparent."
Gerry Crispin, a human resources consultant in Kendall Park, N.J., and coauthor of CareerXroads, suggests asking questions about the test itself, too. "You're sharing personal information about yourself, so you want to know where, how, and how long it's kept, who uses it, and, especially, will you be able to see the results and have them explained to you?"
If the company can't or won't explain how the test results are kept and used, he says, it could be a warning sign. "If they're defensive or too casual about how they use and store this personal information when you're a candidate, then how are they going to treat you as an employee?"
It's also worthwhile to ask for a practice test, or a sample of the test, so you have an idea of what's coming, says Crispin. If the company doesn't have that, find out the name of the test or which classic test, such as the PF16 (which measures personality factors), it is based on. You might be able to find a sample, or the test itself, online.
"If you're honest with yourself, and know your strengths and weaknesses, this test isn't going to tell you anything you don't already know," says Carlton. And if you've handled the rest of the interview properly (and honestly), it should only confirm your prospective employer's good impression of you.
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