A Big Five test for recruitment

One of the most used models to describe an individual’s personality is the Big Five personality model. A multitude of scientific research has been done conducted to validate the Big Five model, ensuring its validity and reliability. Due to the high reliability of the Big Five test, it has become an important tool for HR professionals to get a clearer picture of someone’s personality. It is widely used for the selection and development of employees.

This personality model was not simply made up by one person. Rather, the Big Five personality test rests on a solid foundation that brings together the work of Jung, Meyers-Briggs, and other researchers. A traditional Big Five test is a personality test that describes people on five dimensions, namely extroversion, friendliness, emotional stability, orderliness, and openness. The Big Five test that TestGroup used is called The Bridge Personality test. The beauty of this test is that the report offers a little more depth than a traditional personality test. As a result, you will learn a lot more with just one questionnaire.

How to order a Big Five personality test

At TestGroup, you can easily order a Big Five personality test to gain valuable insights into candidates' or employees' personality traits. You have the flexibility to choose between a single test for individual candidates, perfect for occasional assessments, or a cost-effective subscription for multiple tests.

Making choices is not easy. When it comes to determining whether an employee is suitable for a promotion, you can get a lot of information from the personnel file. But even then, you’ll only know how good someone was at their current job. It is by no means certain that the employee will also excel in another area or role. And if you want to hire an external candidate, you have even less knowledge to base your decision on.

TestGroup gives you the information you so desperately need. We work closely with several Dutch and international universities to guarantee the validity and reliability of our personality tests. This collaboration not only results in top-quality online tests, but also in published scientific articles. We have since become a recognized expert in online personality testing.

Big names such as BP, AirFrance/KLM, and Mercedes Benz have put their trust in us and rely on our reports for their HR decisions. The fact that they, together with more than 5000 recruiters, HR professionals, and coaches, test more than 250,000 employees and candidates every year, shows that our Big Five Test is not just a test, but a serious tool that every HR professional should have in their repertoire.

Although the Big 5 test provides a lot of insight into your own personality, the TestGroup personality test is only available for companies, organizations, and governments that want to use a personality test for recruitment and selection purposes, or for development interviews. The Big Five test is designed with practicality in mind. More than degrees, the report indicates how successful a candidate will be in a new role. You will not merely get abstract descriptions, but a real prediction of behavior.

You may think that a good personality test is only possible when you have a candidate examined by psychologists for an entire day (or longer). At the turn of the century, not so long ago, that was indeed the case. Nowadays, the Big Five test can be effectively administered online.

The test, developed in collaboration with reputable scientists, is available in more than 20 languages and can be performed anywhere in the world. Of course, it's also possible to opt for a 4 color personality test, a 16 personality test or a competency test.

TestGroup's online Big Five test has another major advantage. The well-thought-out questionnaire not only measures how the personality of the participant is built, but also checks for internal consistency. Sometimes, a candidate has a tendency to want to give the “correct” answer.

TestGroup's personality test uses Normative-Ipsative split technology, which refers to a smart technology to prevent cheating. The test presents candidates with statements that require an answer on a scale of 1 to 9 (normative statements) as well as questions in which terms are ranked (ipsative statements). Built-in algorithms analyze the answers and immediately recognize when your candidate tries to give socially desirable answers or tries to influence the test result to their own advantage.

The questions in the test are then adjusted so that the results are still reliable and valid. In the test report, it becomes clear which parts the candidate had doubts about or wanted to answer in socially desirable manner.

The Big Five test provides a wealth of information, but you may not necessarily need all those details. For example, when you try to select a sales employee, you mainly want to know whether the candidate is good at sales. If you are trying to set up a personal development plan (PDP) for an existing employee, you want to know completely different things.

That is why we offer various reports. The Big Five Report is a complete, but concise, source of information. An example of the concise Big Five test report can be viewed here. Do you want more details? Extend the reporting with Jung's 16 personality types.

You can also choose one of the reports that have been developed for a specific purpose, such as the online Sales Assessment or the Team Report. Do you have a very specific research question? Then a custom test can be made, with a report that perfectly matches your information needs.

Our consultants are always ready to support you by telephone in reading and interpreting the report.

To summarize, the online Big Five personality test is a reliable and valid test, which can be readily administered independently of time and place. It is an affordable personality test built to really work for you!