Moderators ThudMaker Posted September 27, 2007 Moderators Share Posted September 27, 2007 I've never taken a pen or pencil, I just throw them away when they run out of graphite or ink... I've never had a night on the town and shown up for work with a hangover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brother Mango Posted September 27, 2007 Members Share Posted September 27, 2007 I don't believe I've stated that I'm scared. Nor have I stated that the kind of "theivery and ne'er do wells" is the kind of personality testing I'm discussing. If you would like to post apples to apples you're more than welcome. I'll even buy your lunch sometime. Lunch? You near Chicago??? These tests do interest me. I didn't accuse you personally of being frightened. And I'm thinking that we all may agree more than we disagree, and we perhaps aren't comparing apples to apples. I think the schizm is between the exams and data that you must work with, and what many of us have experienced as job applicants for low-paying jobs. We've gotten the ones that ask what you'd do if you found $10 in a passenger's seat after the plane was empty. Then the exam offers 4 bad choices to pick from. At least twice you've stated that these exams are unreliable. So, what would you say are the differences between these exams and the ones that you trust? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators ThudMaker Posted September 27, 2007 Moderators Share Posted September 27, 2007 Lunch? You near Chicago??? These tests do interest me. I didn't accuse you personally of being frightened. And I'm thinking that we all may agree more than we disagree, and we perhaps aren't comparing apples to apples. I think the schizm is between the exams and data that you must work with, and what many of us have experienced as job applicants for low-paying jobs. We've gotten the ones that ask what you'd do if you found $10 in a passenger's seat after the plane was empty. Then the exam offers 4 bad choices to pick from. At least twice you've stated that these exams are unreliable. So, what would you say are the differences between these exams and the ones that you trust? That's not a true "personality test" IMHO. I agree on all levels with you that those particular types of tests are relatively meaningless. The tests I'm talking about have none of those questions. They are more akin to how one perceives themselves in the work environment and help them determine whether they are suited to be working in a cubicle by themselves, whether they will thrive better in a group setting, are they a tortoise or the hare, etc., whether a manager will need to publicly praise them regularly, can they handle constructive criticism or do they have strong defense mechanisms, etc. As another example, my wife years ago took a personality test for a customer service position. After testing the potential employer realized she would be wasted as a CSR and would probably make a great salesperson (even though she had no experience as one.) She ended up accepting a position with them as a Sales Rep and within one year became the company's Number 1 sales producer. This wasn't over the phone magazine sales either. This was telephony/data systems integration/cabling solutions, something she had zero prior experience with! When I was in high school and college I was subjected to several of those tests you're talking about. I suggest they are unreliable, because as BG stated . . . .just lie when you answer them. Yes I'm not too far from you, mang. Far enough it's tough to do lunch, but not far enough that the opportunity won't/can't ever happen. I've been to one Chicago GTG this year. If I get the opportunity to get to another one and you'll be there, I'll bring several examples of what I'm talking about. I think you'll see a significant difference from the ones over which you show great concern. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BeeTL Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 If that's some sort of jab, it's not really bright one. There are many employment/hr administrators who will stand behind the value of detailed personality testing. There are poor tests out there and good ones, from basic ones to intensely detailed tests. It was very unsporting of me to punt that then disappear. Brother Mango took the ball, ran with it and scored. What I neglected to follow up with is, ironically, I had just attended a Quality Improvement training class at work. My employer is a Fortune 50 company with significant operational process improvemet challenges and goals. In order to efficiently deploy resources, the company has focused on statistical analysis of measurable factual data versus anecdotal evidence and "real world experience" where the bias of the interpreter can not be measured or ruled out. While there may be data to support your intuition, it was clear you didn't have that data handy and were relying on your experience alone, a big "no-no" in the class I just attended. I really didn't mean to compare you to LavaMan literally, the parallels just struck me as poignant in the moment... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators ThudMaker Posted September 28, 2007 Moderators Share Posted September 28, 2007 My employer is a Fortune 50 company with significant operational process improvemet challenges and goals. While there may be data to support your intuition, it was clear you didn't have that data handy and were relying on your experience alone, a big "no-no" in the class I just attended. No problem. The "no-no" is for a large corporation needing significant control over a very large workforce, which is quite understandable. In my corporation the buck stops no higher than my desk with the exception of the 2 people who brought me into this world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BeeTL Posted September 28, 2007 Members Share Posted September 28, 2007 No problem. The "no-no" is for a large corporation needing significant control over a very large workforce, which is quite understandable. In my corporation the buck stops no higher than my desk with the exception of the 2 people who brought me into this world. Amazing how contextual humor doesn't always translate well over these interwebs... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.