6 things every online coding assessment tool should have
A version of this article is published on The HackerEarth Blog.
Two years of the world adapting to new ways of working and the tech industry has pretty much seen it all. From working fully remote to transitioning to hybrid work models, recruiters know what kind of technology they need to streamline their hiring processes. Be it virtual coding assessment tools or online coding interview tools, the recruitment tech stack has vastly been improved to keep up with the ever-changing hiring landscape.
Consequently, there has been an explosion of tech interview tools that claim to help you at every step of the recruiting life cycle.
You, as recruiters know what you need but how would you separate the wheat from the chaff — a good marketing pitch versus a functional tool that does what it claims to do?
And this is where we step in! Allow us to point out the most important elements of coding assessment tools that you need to watch out for.
6 things to look for in your coding assessment tool
Choosing the right coding assessment tool may make or break your recruitment process. It is important that whatever tool you decide to run with meets all your requirements and helps simplify finding the best candidate for the job.
We did our research and here are some of the features that constitute a capable and reliable coding interview tool:
- Easy integration with your existing ATS
The modern recruiter cannot manage or sift through large volumes of candidate data on a spreadsheet. That’s a recipe for disaster right there.
An applicant tracking system (ATS) is built to solve just that. Work with a tool that offers effortless integration with an ATS, where you can sync all candidate data in one place. It acts as a centralized repository of candidate data — keeps track of resumes and saves all received applications even if they were not hired.
Your ATS helps you effectively screen applications by setting filters instead of doing it manually. It can also ensure that the candidates are all on the same page by sending them real-time updates about their progress at each stage of the interview. Your hiring team can easily check the status of any selected candidate directly from the ATS.
You can create and send assessment invites from the ATS itself and do away with switching between multiple platforms.
- Rich library of questions
Any good online assessment tool will offer a wide array of programming languages, and frameworks as well as tests for both modern and legacy coding skills. You should be able to test for all developer roles whether it is frontend or backend. It should consist of a range of programming languages and frameworks for all coding job roles such as iOS developer, Android developer, web developer, data scientist, and so on.
- Automated invigilation with proctor settings
When hiring remotely, it is not possible to closely monitor candidates during the tests. This is where automation takes over. A capable coding assessment tool provides automated invigilation with proctor settings. Proctoring allows you to observe candidates through video during the test and protect the quality of the assessment.
The automated assessment tool should also report tab switching, prevent copy-pasting code, and eliminate candidate impersonation with the help of image processing.
- Assessments created for individual roles
What a hiring manager looks for in a candidate varies from role to role. The platform should enable you to build your custom coding assessments as per your requirements. You should have the choice of creating different types of questions like MCQs, project-type, or subjective questions that simulate on-the-job problems with the help of custom data sets and test cases.
- Grading based on standard evaluation parameters
It’s always advisable to conduct structured interviews to ensure that the hiring process is fair and impartial. One way to do this is by evaluating every candidate against standardized parameters to keep the assessment objective. Scoring reports that are automatically generated at the end of the assessment make it simple and quick for you to identify who goes on to the next round and who doesn’t.
Not only does it cut bias out of the equation but also lets you update the candidate in real-time and ensure that they are kept in the loop at every step of the hiring lifecycle.
- Automated performance reports
Any coding test platform supplies in-depth analytics and insights into a candidate’s capabilities with summarized, auto-generated performance reports. You can identify top performers in an instant and screen them further based on work experience and other relevant criteria. This helps you make data-driven decisions in collaboration with your team as all candidate performance data is available on the dashboard.
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