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In the war for talent, making sure that new hires will closely align with your company’s values, culture, and DEI practice is critical. Over the years we have found that a robust Selection Assessment process, including an in-depth interview, a battery of diagnostic assessments, verbal feedback, a comprehensive written report, and onboarding feedback once hired, is the most effective way to ensure hiring the right candidate. And, as we know, at the executive levels the stakes are especially high. By using a blend of qualitative and quantitative analysis, the process focuses not only on whether the candidate can do the job but also how they will lead and assimilate into the organization. We immediately see the tangible benefits of this approach, including dramatically reducing the cost of a mis-hire as well as increasing new hire retention. Across the board, Selection Assessment is a win-win, time and time again.

But there is another benefit, one that isn’t always in the spotlight – one that can make all the difference. During the stressed-filled first 90-days of a new hire, a candidate is expected to meld seamlessly with the team, to gain traction, to impress, to inspire. Over the years I have noticed that candidates who have entered roles after going through Selection Assessment have assimilated more quickly and effectively than those who have not.

As with all things, I have to ask myself, why? Is it that specific strengths are uncovered and new hires feel more confident and prepared than those who enter with just a backlog of successes? Yes. Is it that new areas of growth are revealed for the candidate to focus on and be aware of out of the gate? Again, yes – and I think there is something more. When an organization looks at an individual from multiple vantage points, it creates 3D transparency around the individual’s strengths and weaknesses. This transparency creates a subtext of radical acceptance and trust.

There is power when a company sees all sides of a candidate and chooses them in spite of their developmental opportunities. People who are hired through a Selection Assessment process enter into their new roles with less to prove, with less bravado. Rather, the new hire enters the role ready—to take chances, to step into a risk zone, to jump into the fray. The focus is not on proving themselves, the focus is on the work. When talent is set up for success, the benefits ripple across the organization. At the end of the day, we can’t ask for much more.