Since the ‘war of talent’ there has been considerable interest in the development, validation and application of innovative standardized tools for quantifying human potential. The talent war combined with the current digital revolution means talent identification practices are rapidly becoming more high-tech surpassing traditional indicators of work-related potential.
Digital assessment is the term used to describe the use of technology to measure and identify skills, abilities and work-related potential. Digital assessment usually involves leveraging traditional selection methods combined with technological advancements. This method of measurement comprises a variety of forms which makes it applicable to existing technology platforms. Some of these platforms include; mobile, video-interviewing, gamification including virtual reality and social media profiling.
Gamified assessments are the digital equivalent of situational judgement tests, digital interviews are serving as the computerized version of traditional selection interviews and professional social media sites, such as LinkedIn are the modern comparable for resumes and references (Chamorro-Premuzic, 2016). Mobile internet and devices have advanced to the point where it is not only practical to deliver digital assessment through mobile devices, there is a growing demand to do so.
GSMA (2016) data indicates internet browsing via mobile phones accounts to 50% of global internet usage, and 20% of UK millennials do not own a computer or laptop relying solely on their mobile device for internet access. The changing landscape of assessment and technology over the past 15 years has meant there is greater acceptance toward unsupervised testing which now accounts for 99% of all delivery within the talent assessment space. These tools are used by consultants, recruiters and coaches to help organisations win the ‘war of talent’.
Although digital assessment methods are rapidly on the increase, traditional methods for talent identification remain reliable with conclusive evidence for the validity of job interviews, assessment centres (Thornton and Gibbons, 2009), cognitive ability tests(Schmitt, 2013), personality inventories (Hogan and Holland, 2003), biodata (Breaugh, 2009), situational judgement tests(Christian et al, 2010), 360-degree feedback ratings (Borman, 1997) resumes (Cole et al, 2005), letters of recommendation (Chamorro-Premuzic and Furnham, 2010) and supervisor ratings for performance (Viswesvaran et al, 2005). Best practice suggests using a combination of digital assessment and traditional selection methods for reliable and valid measures in talent selection.