Dive Brief:

• Indeed is expanding its Indeed Assessments tool, allowing employers to add two skills tests to their job postings, the company announced Jan. 16. The feature is rolling out to U.S. employers and is currently free to use.
• Both recruiters and job seekers believe skills are a better indication of a candidate's ability than credentials, according to an Indeed survey released with the announcement. In the poll of more than 500 employers and 500 job seekers, Indeed found that 41% of job-seekers said their education isn't directly tied to the field in which they work or are conducting their job search.
• Survey results also showed that 55% of respondents with recruiting responsibilities think resumes fall short of allowing candidates to be effectively evaluated, and even more (58%) are more likely to advance candidates when they can show they have the desired skills. Among job seekers, nearly three-quarters want to prove they have the skills required for a job, and more than half would be more confident about applying for a job if they could prove they have the skills to do it.

Dive Insight:

Skills-testing platforms are not only emerging, they're also evolving to make recruiting and job-hunting faster and more comprehensive. For example, when Indeed Assessments debuted in 2018, it initially allowed recruiters to send evaluations to candidates to test their skill sets. The platform has since evolved so that anyone with an Indeed account, particularly job seekers, can access more than 50 pre-formatted skills assessments, take the test and include the results in their resume.

LinkedIn launched a skills-testing platform in September that validates job seekers' abilities and links their assessment results to LinkedIn Jobs, LinkedIn Recruiter and their personal profiles. LinkedIn said that the test results' visibility on job seekers' profiles lets them stand out to recruiters.

Employers must be careful to keep any assessments relevant, however. Research from ThriveMap showed that although most applicants don't object to pre-hiring assessments, half find the process too long, its purpose unclear and its relation to the job at hand non-existent. To avoid candidates being turned off by skills assessments, employers should explain to candidates why they are taking the evaluation and keep them short, ThriveMap CEO Chris Platts explained in a press statement.