The State of Psychometric

Assessments in India
India’s stature in the global economic landscape is evidently Understanding psychometric assessments
on the rise. It is also equally evident that the next wave
At its most basic, psychometric assessment is the science
of growth will be driven by technology and people. An
of applied psychology which is intended to identify specific
organisation’s ability to identify compatible talent; segment
personality traits that could highlight the suitability for
and nurture critical skill and high potential employees; and
specific roles. These can be in the form of personality
drive sustainable engagement, will be a key determinant of
questionnaires, leadership tests, motivation tests and
high performance and profitable growth. Over the years,
situational judgement tests.
while several factors impacting human capital in India
like talent management, engagement, rewards, employee
Willis Towers Watson’s Reimagining Employee Engagement
wellbeing, communication and more recently technology
in India study finds that companies are increasingly
and analytics have been examined and discussed at length;
interested in identifying the fit between an employee’s
competency assessments through psychometrics and
personality and the culture and values of the company. If
its impact on human capital, remains largely unexplored.
we can reasonably assume that the greater such a fit, the
Willis Towers Watson’s State of Psychometric Assessments
more likely one is to be engaged, we have an extremely
in India aims to explore the awareness, acceptance and
powerful factor to add to our selection criteria. Imagine how
application of psychometric assessments in the country
valuable it would be to hire only those employees likely to be
and further examine how this is likely to evolve. The study
engaged at a company, given its unique culture and/or the
also uncovers opportunities to expand and deepen the use
ideal culture it is trying to build to help execute its strategic
of psychometric assessments.
goals. Psychometrics have a pivotal role to play here.
Multiple studies conducted by Willis Towers Watson in
Psychometrics add quantitative measures to qualitative
India over the past 12 to 24 months found that talent
assessments to present a holistic portrayal of a candidate’s
management and development, insufficient leadership
capabilities. These instruments can bring new depth to
bench strength and attraction / retention of critical talent
a company’s assessment of a new hire or an existing
consistently rank among the top challenges faced by
employee’s abilities, leadership potential, personality and
companies across size and sector (Figure 1). The question
culture fit. When combined with qualitative assessment,
that begs being asked is “Can psychometric assessments,
psychometrics can also help determine an employee’s
ranked high on credibility and validity, deliver the solution”?
potential to take on larger or more challenging roles.

Prevalence and application of psychometric

Figure 1: Top three most pressing HR challenges facing assessments in India
organisations
In India, more than one in three companies have never
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% explored psychometrics, almost half do not currently
use it and only 9% are unwilling to explore a new
Talent management and development
instrument (Figure 3). This clearly shows that while an
24 20 20
increasing number of Indian companies are keen to
Identification and development of high potentials
16 16 17 explore psychometrics, perhaps what is needed is greater
Leadership bench strength awareness, superior instruments high on reliability and
19 13 14 validity, and an improved user experience.
Retention of talent
9 13 17 Psychometric assessments can be applied across the
Workforce productivity talent cycle starting from hiring to talent development,
14 13 9
especially for high potential employees (Figure 2).
Attraction of talent
10 15 10
High attrition
5 9 4
Mergers and acquisitions
2/0/3
Other
1/1/1

Ranked 1 Ranked 2 Ranked 3

2 willistowerswatson.com
 Figure 2. Application of psychometric assessments in the employee life cycle

Recruitment and Selection Performance Management

ƒƒ
Job fit assessment ƒƒ
360 degree assessments

ƒƒ
Culture fit assessment

ƒƒ
Personality assessment

Potential Assessment and

Learning and Development Talent Segmentation

ƒƒ
Development need
ƒƒ
HiPo assessment

assessments ƒƒ
Succession planning

ƒƒ
Personality assessments

Figure 3. Current penetration level and openness to explore new psychometric assessment instruments

Companies using psychometric assessments MNCs Willingness to explore a new instrument

48% 52%

44% 56% Indian Domestic

47% 44%

38% 62%

9%

Yes No Undecided / Need more information

3 The State of Psychometric Assessments in India

Figure 4. Objectives of psychometric assessments 1. Candidate assessment: Recruitment and selection

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

Irrespective of the level, hiring the right talent is most critical
To assess quality of hire and so it comes as no surprise that assessing the quality
of hire is the top objective (Figure 4). 81% companies use
60
psychometrics for candidate assessment and selection at
To identify right job / culture fit entry level, 77% at senior management level, 74% at junior
58 management and 65% at middle level (Figure 5).
Assessment and development of high potentials
2. Talent assessment and development
50

Broad-based employee development Psychometrics aid organisations in establishing desired

25 behavioral traits and identifying individual development
gaps. While the survey found that the usage of
As an enabler
psychometrics for talent assessment and development
12 was around 50% for most management levels, surprisingly
Other at entry level it was a mere 7%; perhaps another indicator
2 of the need for improved awareness around its benefits
(Figure 5).

3. High potential assessment and development

Figure 5. Areas of psychometric assessments Organisations are realising the need to not only identify
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
high-potentials but also nurture them with focused
development interventions. The use of psychometrics for
Candidate assessment / Recruitment and selection high-potential identification and development increases
77 with the level with 19% using it at entry level, 29% at junior
65 management level and 52% at middle management level
74
(Figure 5).
81

Talent assessment and development 4. Succession planning

53
54 Worryingly, the survey finds that despite succession
49
planning being a key stated challenge for companies in
7
India, the application of psychometrics in addressing this
High potential identification and development is comparably low with only 28% using them at senior
38 management and 13% for middle management. These are
52 the very groups that form the source for building leadership
29
19 bench strength, one of the top challenges cited by surveyed
organisations (Figure 5).
Succession planning
28
13
9
3

Other
4
7
6
3

Senior Management
Middle Management
Junior Management
Entry Level / Individual Contributors

4 willistowerswatson.com
Raising the bar: The importance of Figure 6. Organisations using psychometric assessments
across levels
psychometric assessments
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Traditional HR hiring instruments like aptitude assessments,
assessment centers and interviews have, by and large,
Senior management
enabled organisations to select technically qualified and
experienced candidates in the required positions. So why is 90
the addition of a quantitative measurement important? Middle management
88
Simply put, in an increasingly competitive world, traditional
methods may not be enough. Identifying, retaining and Junior management
developing the right talent requires a precision that 67
psychometric assessments can provide. It brings objectivity
Entry-level/IC
and consistency to the assessment process. A major
advantage is also that it measures an individual’s ability 60
against a comparison group. This allows the assessors
to benchmark the candidate’s ability against the available
talent pool. Having said that, psychometrics combined with
qualitative assessments can help supplement and validate
the assessment results.

Employees at all levels are critical contributors who are Figure 7. Reasons psychometric assessments are not used
expected to be aligned with an organisation’s mission
and culture. However, the study shows that usage of 0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

psychometrics increases with the level, being highest at

Using instruments other than personality psychometrics
middle and senior levels (Figure 6), since stakes increase
37 22 5
with rising levels.
High investment
5 17 22
Barriers to success Low validity and reliability of the instruments
More than one-third of the companies who don’t deploy 12 7 20
psychometrics, said they have either never explored the Never explored the option
option, had low buy-in from the business or lacked training 19 10 10
opportunities. Low buy-in from business
17 12 5
Another reason may be low awareness around options with Lack of training opportunities on psychometrics
an established validity and reliability, leading organisations 10 10 12
to explore a multitude of locally designed instruments. Time consuming
7 3
Investment in training and developing a cadre of psychometric
Other
practitioners would lead to organisations understanding its
22
impact on the talent cycle, which in turn will lead to a wider
acceptance and right selection of instruments. Ranked 1 Ranked 2 Ranked 3

It is not surprising that almost half of the organisations

(44%) are willing to explore a new instrument if given a
choice (Figure 3) and more than 50% of those who would
be willing to explore a new instrument are already using
psychometric assessments.

However, other reasons for not using psychometrics also

need to be examined. For instance, deployment of in-house
instruments like interviews and assessment centers are
cited as the major reasons (Figure 7). Organisations may
want to re-think whether these are effectively addressing
their talent management challenges or not.

5 The State of Psychometric Assessments in India

Respondents also cite high investment as a factor for not
using psychometrics. But is the cost too narrowly defined?
The cost of even one wrong hire or improvident promotion About the survey
can greatly exceed the cost of deploying psychometrics.
Especially in economies where employee turnover is an Willis Towers Watson polled close to 100 of India’s top
issue, the cost of repeatedly filling the same jobs can hurt organisations and HR leaders across sectors during
an organisation’s competitive standing. March to June 2016 to explore levels of awareness,
acceptance and application of psychometric
It has been observed that hiring the right talent can save assessments in the country and further examine how
organisations approximately three times the cost of attrition / this is likely to evolve.
wrong hire. Also growing talent internally, especially for senior
level positions, is far more cost-efficient than hiring externally.

Conclusion
There is great opportunity for companies in India to
broaden their use of psychometric assessments. By
using psychometrics across levels, HR and business
leaders can ensure that no talent is overlooked and
that important workforce strategies like hi-potential
development and succession planning are suitably
managed. At the same time, to ensure the effectiveness
of assessments, HR leaders need to be sure that
leadership and line managers understand the benefits
of psychometrics, along with qualitatively-based
manager and leadership input.

In short, a holistic approach to psychometrics can be

a cost-effective way for companies to create a high
performing and engaged workforce.

6 willistowerswatson.com
 About Willis Towers Watson
Willis Towers Watson (NASDAQ: WLTW) is a leading global advisory, broking and
solutions company that helps clients around the world turn risk into a path for
growth. With roots dating to 1828, Willis Towers Watson has 39,000 employees
in more than 120 countries. We design and deliver solutions that manage risk,
optimize benefits, cultivate talent, and expand the power of capital to protect and
strengthen institutions and individuals. Our unique perspective allows us to see
the critical intersections between talent, assets and ideas — the dynamic formula
that drives business performance. Together, we unlock potential. Learn more at
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