More organisations are actively working on sustainability, making it a central part of their activities. This change is not just a passing trend, but reflects changes in society, employee values and stakeholder demands. Sustainability is not only an obligation for companies, but also a strategic advantage if well implemented. By investing in sustainability, organisations reduce risk and build value in the long term.
Sustainability activities are therefore not only limited to environmental and social initiatives, but also extend to the organisation’s human resources and recruitment processes. In a nutshell, responsible recruitment means providing equal opportunities to all applicants and treating them fairly and lawfully at every stage of the process. In turn, a responsible employer ensures that the recruitment decision is thoroughly implemented.
For this reason, personal assessment is an excellent tool for implementing responsible recruitment, as it allows for an objective and fair assessment of each candidate using the same assessment methods. They help to ensure that the selected employees are not only qualified for their tasks, but also fit in with the culture and values of the organisation. This allows the organisation to build a diverse, motivated and competent workforce, while avoiding recruitment errors.
Criteria provide the basis for harmonised recruitment
The importance of suitability assessment in responsible recruitment is underlined by the need for objectivity and equality. This requires clear, pre-defined criteria to guide the assessment process and support decision-making in recruitment. The criteria define the qualities and expectations that a suitable candidate should meet. Understanding and following these criteria is essential for all stakeholders involved in the process.
While most of us recognise that clear criteria and objectivity provide a solid basis for recruitment, our own prejudices or biases can disrupt the process. We all have different biases and it is common that during the recruitment process, our own preferences and assumptions inevitably influence how we interpret candidates, their answers, their speaking styles, their appearance or even their looks. Different perceptions and interpretations of the desired characteristics by the candidates may lead to different assessments, which may compromise equity and consistency in the recruitment process.
By identifying and being aware of potential biases, we can aim to minimise their impact on recruitment decisions. However, this can be challenging for the most experienced recruiters, which is why psychological personality assessments are a useful tool for responsible recruitment. They provide objective measures to help ensure that decisions are based on fair and objective assessments.
Objectivity and psychology of suitability assessments to support accountability
Personal assessment is an enabler of transparency, honesty and fair recruitment. It is usually carried out towards the end of the recruitment process and helps the recruiter to objectively review candidates who have progressed in the recruitment process. The same criteria also guide the assessment process, against which candidates’ motivation, problem-solving skills, working styles and work personality in the context of the job are compared.
The assessment will be carried out in the same way for each participant, using pre-assignments and a structured interview. After the assessment, the candidate will receive an assessment report with exactly the same content as the sponsoring company, bringing transparency to the recruitment decision and its background. In this way, even candidates who are not the subject of a hiring decision will have a better understanding of the factors and rationale behind their selection.
Avila’s personal assessments are carried out by a licensed and methodologically certified psychologist, and all assessments for the assignment are carried out by the same psychologist. The results will be interpreted in a professional manner, taking into account the overall assessment and applying the principles of psychometrics to ensure an objective and balanced interpretation of the results.
It should also be remembered that psychologists in Finland are regulated and bound by certain professional ethical principles that guide their activities, such as confidentiality, professional independence and respect for the parties involved. In other words, psychologists are trained in objectivity and equality, and their assessments are therefore not affected by possible biases or other cognitive biases.
Multi-method and coaching interviews to ensure quality
Quality assessment uses certified assessment tasks that have undergone scientific peer review. The conclusions drawn from them are always based on several methods. For example, if one of the criteria set is high stress tolerance, this characteristic can be assessed by means of different tasks and the specific approaches and practices associated with it can be identified in more detail during an interview. The multi-method approach provides a solid basis for quality assessment, as the results of a single method may not be reliable or generalisable.
The evaluation interview takes a coaching approach, focusing on the participant’s experiences and ideas about working life. The suitability assessment ensures that the recruitment decision is therefore not influenced by non-work-related issues, as it focuses only on work and work behaviour. In addition, to ensure an equal experience, participants can take the tests in their mother tongue.
The aptitude test is therefore an effective and quick way to ensure the quality and success of recruitment. At the same time, they bring consistency and equity to the organisation’s practices and, in the big picture, ensure that the organisation acts as a responsible employer.
Avainsanat
- psychological assessment
Julkaistu
Ota yhteyttä

Matias Saarni
040 359 0156
matias.saarni[at]avila.fi