I have a fair amount of skepticism associated with the common process of taking hiring assessments in order to evaluate talent, and I’ve always felt this way. A significant factor in my healthy level of skepticism is that I’ve dealt with many companies that utilize these assessments like they’re the hiring bible.
Despite this dissatisfaction with these assessments, there are some that appeal to me and my process. I don’t care for the ones that tell you to hire or not hire somebody. Instead, my favorite assessments are the type that tell you how somebody ticks. These seem to be less common, but in my opinion, they are a far more effective tool to use during the recruitment process.
If I conducted a side by side analysis of arguably the two best recruiters that I’ve ever hired the comparison might surprise you. They are both complete opposites of each other, however they were both extremely successful. There’s no right or wrong here, but rather two different processes that both lead to the same results.
When Barry Saltzman, founder of Saltzman Enterprise Group, approached me about the PREP Profile Assessment, I was skeptical. He kept explaining to me the value that he found in this assessment, and how strong his belief was in it. Despite the fact that my confidence in the assessment was rather low, I thought, “If Barry, who I trust, believes in it this much, I might as well humor him. However, my expectations are low.”
I completed the assessment within about 7 minutes, and found myself even more skeptical about its value. Afterwards I read through the results three times, and it was scary as it was 100% accurate.  The results didn’t state anything positive or negative, but rather described exactly how I tick, and what motivates me.
Barry then had me give the assessment to my new employee, and delivered a third report. This report showed me how to provide this employee with better management based on the results of his assessment. It was honestly a bit of a revelation within my business. It not only strengthened my relationship with this employee, but even resulted in clear workplace benefits that he didn’t hesitate to express.
It taught me management processes that were more tailored toward this particular employee’s style of work and learning. As an example, it showed me that I need to provide him things in lists (ie: step 1, step 2, step 3), and that he’s motivated by encouragement and showing him that I have his back. I read our “matching report,” and used it to manage every day. It reminded me of when you buy IKEA furniture, and are provided an instruction manual.  He told me repeatedly, “This is exactly the type of help I was looking for,” and shortly after, his numbers soared.  He’s now about 200% of his sales goal.
Steve Horwitz, is a General Partner of Morgan Hill Partners, which is a venture services firm that helps tech startups accelerate from startup to scale-up.  They are a firm that I highly recommend if you’re looking to scale your organization.  Like me, Steve is also somebody that strong believes in the PREP.
When asking him how it has influenced his business, Steve said, “PREP has changed the way Morgan Hill does business. As a venture services firm focused on helping companies scale, coachability is an absolute must-have. PREP has allowed us to both qualify whether an executive team is going to be receptive to the advice we give them, and if so, how best to work alongside them to drive towards the results we’re aiming to achieve!”
I found it extremely interesting to see that Steve not only uses the PREP to understand his employees but also his clients.
I hope that those of you reading this article will find as much value as I do in the PREP and try it.  It’s very affordable and If it can make a believer out of me, who was as skeptical as can be, I’m confident it will do the same for you.
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