Evalex

Using technology to scientifically and rigorously streamline your graduate recruitment process

In 1997, McKinsey coined the term “the war for talent” to depict the competitive and complex challenge of recruiting and retaining the best talent in the market. Over the past few years, it has been clear that this term is at least as relevant as it was at the turn of the century, especially when companies try to attract the best young talent into their graduate recruitment programmes.

This is because the graduate recruitment space is highly competitive, and is fraught with a unique set of challenges, including:

• Fierce competition for the best talent
• The need to quickly sift through large volumes of candidates who all have similar qualifications and levels of experience
• The need to ensure that the candidates who are successful have leadership potential, despite their young age and lack of experience
• The need to ensure that the candidates who are successful are a strong culture fit in the company

At Evalex we have developed an integrated assessment solution that addresses many of these key challenges in a unique way. This is because we can utilise the high volume, gamified assessment capability of our Odyssey Talent Management system, and combine this with the proven scientific rigour and advanced talent reporting of our Evalex psychometrics and business simulations.

Our approach is depicted in the below “funnel”, which demonstrates how we would use our sophisticated IT platforms to hurdle candidates through a well-researched, efficient and highly effective methodology.

The below approach also allows our clients to select different assessment types and tools with a strong research base that has robust South African and African norms. The methodology includes:  

• Customisable knock-out capability
• Choice of nine gamified and smartphone-enabled assessments
• Choice of five cognitive/ability assessments AND/OR two situational judgment tests
• Choice of four behavioural assessments (personality, styles, values and interests)
• Choice of nine simulations, which combine artificial intelligence (AI) enabled exercises with online day-in-the-life-of-a-leader inboxes and scenarios

We used this process to great success with a large client who approached us recently to assist with its graduate recruitment programme. Our client was facing significant inefficiencies and high costs with its ongoing graduate recruitment programme and asked us to provide an efficient, cost effective and scientific graduate assessment solution.

We used our process to significantly reduce a seven-month timeline to a three-month process (reducing the time of the recruitment process by 60%), which was also aligned to the unique challenges found in the African context. During the three-month project, we processed over 32 000 applicants across six countries (Nigeria, Tanzania, Ghana, Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia). Through the use of our scientific and rigorous sifting methodology, we were able to identify the top 1% of candidates. This was achieved at a per candidate cost usually associated with one cognitive assessment, through a combination of 32 000 candidates completing the knock-out questions, 15 000 Odyssey gamified assessments, 600 Evalex20 psychometric assessments and 240 online, AI-enabled business simulations.

The advantages of our approach

• The assessments become more sophisticated the further a candidate progresses through the process
• Our solution uses robust, reliable, valid, proven assessments, and incorporates extensive South African and African norms
• Our methodology is built on several coherent frameworks to assess job-relevant skills, based on detailed and scientific job analyses of what is required to succeed
• Our systems have proven scalability to handle the expected applicant volumes in a short timeframe and in low-bandwidth environments
• Using sophisticated IT infrastructure, AI-enabled assessments and online capabilities, our solution vastly reduces the time it takes to assess, sift and sort through the graduate applicants. It also reduces the need for human intervention, and the need for candidates and assessors to physically be in the same location
• Because all assessments are managed from one platform, it is easy for us to perform extensive data and trend analytics to assist with shortlisting high potential graduates and to help organisations identify talent for the future  
• Data analytics also include our ability to match graduates to different position types or roles, and to identify potential graduate performance inhibitors. This means our clients will have a clear understanding of the individual behaviours and characteristics that could impact the individual’s ability to effectively resolve problems, manage relationships, manage themselves and execute and deliver on their tasks and objectives. In essence it will lessen any behavioural surprises that could negatively impact the individual’s potential and performance

We present a tried-and-tested, robust, technology-enabled graduate recruitment process to enable organisations to select high-potential talent to help drive organisational growth and efficiency in a highly competitive environment. Please contact [email protected] or [email protected] for more information.