FROM MARCH 2014's RECRUITER MAGAZINE

The availability of a new application programming interface (API) is allowing employers to build pre-employment behavioural assessments into their applicant tracking systems (ATSs) at the start of the recruitment process for use on every job applicant. 

Vic Gaffin, chief executive officer of MatchingPeople2Jobs (MP2J), which has released the API, told Recruiter that for positions which attract a high volume of candidates, the assessments are being welcomed by clients as an early screening tool. 

“There is a debate at the moment as to whether this would put people off applying for jobs but a lot of our clients are pleased if it does,” he said. “It’s so easy to apply for a job these days and undertaking the assessment shows people are serious about the application.” The drop-out figure for those deciding not to take the test is around 20%, Gaffin claimed. 

MP2J has been involved in developing assessment products for more than 10 years. The functionality provided by the API includes a performance matrix to establish the behavioural performance standards for any given role, the behavioural assessments that predict every applicant’s performance against the new job role, job match technology which provides a list of the top job applicants to interview and a talent search facility that analyses thousands of existing profiles to identify suitable candidates before advertising a vacancy. The software can also generate a candidate profile, personal development plan and personal profile reports. 

Traditionally, testing every applicant would be cost-prohibitive or seen as a waste of time and money, but MP2J’s licence fee is based on number of candidates processed rather than each person who takes the test (processed means those who apply, take the test, get a percentage ranking and progress to the job offer stage or the talent pool). The fee varies based on the volumes used. 

Whether a candidate progresses in the role or not, they receive a personal profile with advice on how they could improve their performance in the world of work. “This creates a good recruitment brand for the employer,” said Gaffin. “It also helps a line manager at the interview stage to maybe probe further in some areas and could help induct or integrate the person in the company if they are successful.” 

The release of the API is in line with Gaffin’s vision for the ATSs of the future, which he believes won’t be provided by one supplier but rather created from a collection of best-of-breed software solutions. “We’ll see lots of different APIs talking to each other,” he explained. “A client will, for example, want job posting software from one provider, matching from another and onboarding from someone else. The end user is much more educated in terms of what they want.”