Spark Hire’s Predictive Talent Assessment helps you evaluate candidates based on key behavioral competencies and job fit. It provides data-driven insights to support hiring decisions, going beyond traditional assessments to measure behavioral traits and motivations tied to job performance. Easy to set up and use, the assessment delivers clear results for your hiring team and a shareable report for candidates.

Before getting started

Make sure your team is familiar with the feature. Share our overview article for a quick introduction.

Start working with Predictive Talent Assessment

1. Identify 2-3 jobs to start with

Start with two to three roles where assessments will add the most value. This helps you get familiar with the process before expanding further.

If you’re not sure which jobs to start with, consider roles that:

• Receive a high volume of applications.
• Have high turnover rates where better hiring could improve retention.
• Are critical to your organization’s success.

2. Select a predictive profile

A predictive profile defines the behavioral competencies and characteristics ideal for specific roles.

To select a predictive profile:

1. In Meet, navigate to the job where you want to define a predictive profile.
2. Go to the Assessments tab and scroll down to Predictive Talent Assessment.
3. Select a profile from the dropdown. Start typing the role name or similar common job titles to filter options and find your profile faster.

4. Review the behavioral competencies included in the profile by clicking View ↗️.

   • Further expand individual behavioral competencies to see detailed descriptions.

5. Click Save.

3. Invite candidates to take the assessment

To invite candidates to take the Predictive Talent Assessment:

1. In Meet, go to the job that you are assessing candidates for.

2. Click Invite at the top right and select Predictive Talent Assessment.

   

3. Select the relevant job. The assessment type will be pre-populated.

4. Enter the candidate’s name, email, and phone number if relevant.

   • Add up to 100 candidates in bulk by uploading a CSV file. To do this, click CSV upload, download the template, fill the columns with the relevant candidates, and re-upload the file.
   • You also have the option to send candidates updates via SMS text messages.

5. Optionally, customize your email invitation.

   • If you have set up default email templates for one-way interview invites in your email template library, they will automatically be used as the default content for your invitations.
   • If you want to edit the email invitation content or choose another template, select Yes under Do you want to modify the email invitation that will be sent to your candidate(s)? Customize the content or choose a new email template by clicking Select Email Template and selecting one from the list.

6. Set a completion deadline and click Send invites.

Candidates will receive an email invite to complete the assessment, which takes under 20 minutes on any device.

4. Interpret the assessment results

What the assessment measures

The assessment measures natural behavioral tendencies—the ways candidates are most likely to think, respond, and interact in a work setting.

• A high score indicates that the candidate possesses the highest potential to successfully demonstrate a behavioral competency.
• A low score does not mean the candidate is incapable of performing the role. It just means it may be harder for them than it is for people with a high score. People with low scores may still perform successfully, depending on their motivation to succeed, available tools, and other support mechanisms.

While some behaviors may be more challenging for a candidate, success depends on motivation, resources, and support. The assessment highlights where someone is most likely to excel and where they may need additional development, mentoring and coaching.

What’s included in the results

Once candidates complete the assessment, the system ranks them and provides a detailed breakdown of their strengths and areas for development.

Each assessment includes:

• Overall fit score – Indicates the candidate’s capacity to succeed in the role. This score predicts natural potential, not demonstrated performance. Results indicate how likely someone is to excel in a job, not necessarily how they are doing it now.

• Behavioral competency scores – Shown in both categories and percentiles:

  • Clear strength – Indicates that the candidate possesses the highest potential to successfully demonstrate a behavioral competency. Associated behaviors will be natural to the individual, and they are likely to excel in this area.
  • Emerging strength – Indicates that the candidate possesses the potential to successfully demonstrate this behavioral competency. It is likely that they can achieve (or have achieved) excellence in this area with deliberate learning and practice.
  • Area for development – Indicates that the candidate possesses the potential to successfully demonstrate this behavioral competency. However, in order to develop, they will likely benefit from focused training and must be willing to accept coaching.
  • Not a natural strength – Indicates that the candidate doesn’t possess the natural tendency to demonstrate this behavioral competency. This doesn’t mean they can’t or aren’t performing. More likely, ongoing support and coaching will be required along with workarounds in order to maximize effectiveness in this area.

  📝 Note: These scores are not a reflection of correct/incorrect responses and are not a measure of observed performance. They compare a respondent to a group of other people in our normative sample. They are an indicator of the possibility that the person will exhibit the desired work behavior.

• Workplace motivation – This score may impact how successful candidates are in a role by identifying how likely they are to engage with the organization, their coworkers, and customers. This is not something that an individual can be trained or coached on.

• Top behavioral competencies – This list provides a snapshot of the behavioral competencies that are naturally strongest for a candidate. Not all of these would be relevant for the specific job they are applying for, but they give insight into the areas in which they may naturally excel. These behaviors can be used to help a candidate identify unique ways to be successful within a job or organization.

• Personal characteristics – These characteristics represent an individual’s distinct motivations and habits. It does not indicate that they necessarily have the skills to satisfy these motivations or make the most of particular habits in the workplace, but provide an indication of how this individual may fit into the organization’s culture or can be used to help motivate them in their job.

• Accuracy concern statement – statement will appear in a report if there are signs that responses may not fully reflect the assessment taker’s true answers. This could happen if someone consistently selects answers that seem overly favorable or if their responses suggest difficulty understanding the questions or answering thoughtfully. If the accuracy concerns statement is shown it is recommended to evaluate the candidate using other assessment methods.

Differences in scores between candidates and current employees

When someone applies for a job, they are typically trying to put their best foot forward. That often means they will respond to a behavioral assessment with a mindset of “How do I want to be seen?” or “What do I think this company is looking for?” In other words, candidates may emphasize qualities and behaviors that they believe will make them appear most suitable for the role—even if it’s not entirely reflective of how they usually behave.

In contrast, when current employees take a behavioral assessment, they’re already part of the organization. They have a clearer understanding of the company’s expectations and culture, and they often feel more comfortable being candid. They’re less likely to be in “impress mode.” They’re simply being themselves, guided by first-hand knowledge of how they fit and perform in their day-to-day roles.

Our research shows that the difference in motivation and mindset between candidates and employees is both real and measurable. In an analysis of average score differences across more than 10,000 assessment takers, we found that while the overall averages across all competencies were similar, there were significant differences at the individual competency level. In some areas, candidates scored higher; in others, employees did. Understanding these differences enables us to interpret results more accurately—accounting for the “best-foot-forward” mindset of job seekers while also recognizing the more authentic responses of tenured employees.

Our recommendation

The assessment is designed to rank real candidates for a role. When getting started with Predictive Talent Assessment, we recommend using the assessment in real hiring workflows. Use it with actual applicants to evaluate how scores align with job requirements and compare results across multiple candidates for the same role. This will allow you to see how the system differentiates between stronger and weaker matches.

6. Download reports

To download the Predictive Talen Assessment report:

1. Navigate to the candidate profile and look for the assessment you’d like to download.

2. Scroll down to the bottom of the report and click Download report.

   

3. Choose the relevant report and click Download:

   • Hiring Report (see example ✍️) – Assess the candidate’s behavioral competencies, strengths, and potential fit for the role. Share this report with recruiters and managers to help guide informed hiring decisions and make the selection process more effective.
   • Coaching Report (see example✍️ ) – This report is identical to the Hiring report but does not include percentile scores. Share this report with managers to help them guide coaching conversations and support the candidate’s growth.
   • Individual report (see example✍️) – This report focuses on the candidate’s personal characteristics, just like what you see in the in-app report. Explore the candidate’s motivations and habits to understand their behavioral traits and work habits. Share this report with the candidate to offer personalized growth recommendations and insights into their alignment with the role.