A job recruiter has sent social media up in arms after putting a Gen Z job applicant on blast on social media platform X for refusing to take a hiring test after they claimed that it “looks like a lot of work.”
Me: really enjoyed the call. Please see attached financial modeling test
Gen Z applicant: this looks like a lot of work. Without knowing where I stand in the process, I’m not comfortable spending 90 minutes in Excel
Me:…well…I can tell you where you stand now
— m. stanfield (@mu2myoc) April 23, 2024
In a few follow-up tweets, the recruiter claimed that the position he was hiring for was for an investment analyst position, and that taking the test was “one of the first things” discussed in the interview, and it shouldn’t have come as a surprise to the applicant. He also claimed that if an analyst can’t complete the test in 90 minutes, then they are not the right person for the job.
The tweet so far has gained almost 8 million views, and many users are divided on whether or not the job applicant had a valid reason for refusing to take the test.
Why would someone accept spending 90 mins of their time jumping through hoops when they might not even get the job?
If you are interviewing this person they presumably already have sufficient education/experience, yes?
— Alexander’s Cartographer (@cartographer_s) April 24, 2024
What you were looking for is someone who would do whatever you want and be at your Beck and call.
Why should they spend 90 minutes of their day in Excel, when you can even take 30 seconds to explain to them where they stand in the process. They’re an employee, not a slave.
— Builder Of Arks (@thecavedaddy) April 25, 2024
I don’t mind doing work for free to show what I can do. But last time I did this, the company ghosted me after I spent a weekend on a take home. So I don’t mind this stance. If you don’t like me protecting my time now, you’re not going to like me working for you anyways.
— Nathan Drake (@nathandrake) April 23, 2024
I’ll do the test if you pay me for 90 minutes of my time.
— Bullshit (@Bullcrapwork) April 23, 2024
In another follow-up tweet, the recruiter claimed that he would have “gladly paid” and “probably hired” the applicant if they explained to him that they would like to be compensated for completing the test.
The use of skill assessment tests in hiring have grown to become a trend amongst most employers, and they are often used to raise the bar and determine which applicants make it to the final round of the hiring process.
A 2022 survey from the Society for Human Resource Management, which polled over 1,000 HR professionals, found that 79% of the respondents view the scores on skill assessment tests as “just as or more important” than other criteria in hiring decisions. Also, 36% of the HR professionals said that a candidate is “very likely” to make it to the final round of the hiring process if they score high on an assessment test but fail to meet the minimum years of experience required for the job.
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It is no surprise that many companies are adopting the use of skill assessment tests in their hiring process as many employers have reported that they find it hard to determine whether or not an applicant is exaggerating the truth on their resume.
A recent report from software company TestGorilla found that 51% of employers struggle to determine the accuracy of resumes. It also found that 43% of employers find it “hard” to rank applicants using their resumes, and that they find it “difficult” to use resumes to determine an applicants’ skills.
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