The world has gone digital, and basic computer skills have become essential life skills when the National Skills Coalition compiled data from 43 million job postings, 92% of the positions required at least basic computer skills.
Industries that did not traditionally recruit employees with digital knowledge now require that candidates have basic computer skills. For example, retail cashiers use point-of-sale systems to ring up customers’ purchases and restock shelves; warehouse workers use iPads to check inventory, and commercial drivers use handheld devices to document proof of delivery.
Many organizations are implementing industry-leading assessment solutions like the eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM and use computer assessment tests to evaluate skills such as typing speed and accuracy, MS Office® proficiency, knowledge of specific computer applications, and expertise with in-demand technologies. By identifying top candidates, assessment tests eliminate unqualified candidates from consideration, which decreases time-to-hire and ultimately reduces turnover.
What is a Computer Assessment Test?
Many HR professionals ask, “How do you test someone’s computer skills?” The answer differs for every organization because it depends on the types of positions they need to fill. A computer skills test for a job interview can refer to a skills test to recruit candidates with strong Word®, Excel®, and PowerPoint® abilities, an assessment to evaluate applicants’ Java or C# programming abilities, or a skills test to assess IT expertise in specialized areas.
How to Assess Typing and Basic Computer Skills
HR teams commonly use computer assessment tests to evaluate applicants for entry- and mid-level positions. Organizations often receive hundreds of applications and cannot review all of them manually.
When they use computer skills tests for job interviews and recruiting, they can eliminate unqualified candidates so they can concentrate on the ones who are best qualified.
HR professionals can choose from hundreds of validated job- and subject-based computer assessment tests or build customized skills tests with questions from multiple assessments. Popular eSkill tests for entry- and mid-level positions include General Typing, Data Entry Operator, Form Fill Data, and MS Office.
The results of applicants’ computer skills tests during the job interview process may indicate they can do a job. However, they may be unable to apply the knowledge on the job. So, HR professionals include simulations in assessments and observe candidates’ performance in job-related situations. The eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM offers a Digital Literacy simulation to assess computer, Internet, and social media expertise, Multitasking and Chat simulations, and simulations for all MS Office applications.
HR teams can use computer assessment tests as-is or build custom skills tests using questions from multiple assessments. For instance, if you want to hire an administrative assistant with excellent Word®, Excel®, and PowerPoint® abilities and good typing skills, create an assessment with questions from the eSkill General Typing, Data Entry Operator, and MS Office skills tests.
Online Basic Computer Tests to Assess Programming Skills
Business leaders also ask about how to test someone’s computer skills when recruiting programmers and software engineers. Accomplishing this is easy with the eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM because the eSkill Assessment Library includes assessments such as JavaScript, Python, C#, and PHP Developer to measure developers’ programming skills.
Software developers and computer programmers must also understand basic testing and QC/QA methods. So, hiring teams also require the Software Testing and Quality Assurance skills tests to verify applicants understand software and QA/QC best practices, troubleshooting and fixing bugs, and alpha/beta testing.
Online Basic Computer Tests to Assess Specialized Technology Skills
When companies implement new technologies, they need employees who know how to manage and support them. These abilities quickly become in-demand skills. Skill areas for which there will be high demand for the foreseeable future are networking/DevOps, artificial intelligence (AI), cyber security, and business intelligence/data science.
Demand for networking and DevOps engineers increased by around 40-45% during the past decade because many organizations have implemented digital transformation initiatives. HR teams that recruit networking and DevOps candidates should use eSkill’s Network Engineer, Routing Fundamentals, and TCP/IP assessments and add questions from the General IT Infrastructure and Networking Essentials skills tests.
Only 10% of all workers have artificial intelligence expertise. So, competition to recruit top applicants is intense. Hiring teams can use the Basic Artificial Intelligence Knowledge Assessment and include questions from the Machine Learning and Data Analytics skills tests to find top candidates.
Demand for cybersecurity professionals has steadily increased during the past few years because all organizations are vulnerable to identity theft and fraud threats. You need eSkill’s Application Security, Information System Security Engineer, and Application Security Engineer skills tests to recruit cybersecurity experts. You should also consider including questions from the Public Key Infrastructure and PKI Administrator assessments.
The demand for business intelligence and data science professionals will grow to over $322.9 billion by 2026. The Data Science and Machine Learning Engineer computer skills tests for job interviews will help you recruit qualified candidates. You can also add questions from the Data Analytics and Quantitative Analysis skills tests.
Get Started with Computer Assessment Tests
Organizations that implement the eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM can immediately improve hiring outcomes and reduce recruiting costs and time-to-hire. Many eSkill clients have reduced hiring costs by around 70% and decreased time-to-hire by about 60%.
Do you want to learn how computer assessment tests can help you hire top candidates with the right computer skills? Contact us to request a demo.