Do you ever use testing or external assessments to help in the hiring process? If so, under what circumstances and with what results?

Somewhere along the way I did a Myers-Briggs test and got really enamoured with it. A few of my direct reports did it, too, and we were really intrigued by the scores. We thought that we had found the Holy Grail on how to hire. I started asking if we could administer it to candidates. Boy, did I freak out my HR department at the time with that request. They prevented me from using it, and I'm thankful they did. They claimed it had no scientific proof of job performance. I took the test a few more times, and I can now confidently say that I can put my score on that test wherever I want it to be. The first time you take it, you may get a fair score, but afterwards you know where questions are leading you and you can manipulate your results. I've grown quite perturbed by people who pigeonhole others based on their Myers-Briggs score.

If you don't use assessments, how do you determine whether a candidate has the needed skills and will be a good fit with the IT organization and the company?

As I've mentioned, I don't spend much time on the technical skills. I let individuals who work with those technologies day in and day out focus on that.

I do look for an indication of how bright the individuals are, how knowledgeable they are, but I certainly don't make decisions based on schools attended or degrees earned. However, those can indicate individuals' ability and ambition. I look to see if they speak confidently and knowledgably. Do they ask sharp questions? Do they weigh pros and cons?

In terms of cultural fit I'll have the individuals talk about their experiences. I'll ask them which jobs have been good for them and which haven't. How do they rate the importance of work? I'll ask them to give me an example of a project that didn't go well and what they did to address it. Their answer will show me whether they are analytical thinkers.

I also ask questions to give me insight into how they view users of IS. Do they see them as a necessary evil? Do they understand that we are here to support them?