Microsoft Word Foundations test

The hiring process consumes the valuable time recruiters have. Hiring recruiters must ensure the candidate exhibits the personality to help them get along with the team. Still, they also must make sure the candidate possesses the skills necessary for them to perform well on the team. 

When it comes to skills such as Microsoft Word prowess, recruiters must somehow test the candidate’s skills in a homemade assessment or a simple interview. However, most recruiters don't have the time to waste an interview on an unworthy candidate. Thankfully, Maki is here to help. 

Maki provides skill assessments for various skills or personalities hiring recruiters want to see in candidates. These skill assessments can be customized to fit the company’s needs. This article will discuss using skill assessments, particularly a Microsoft Word test for hiring. 

Use Microsoft Word tests when needing to assess the skill sets of candidates. These Microsoft Word tests can be tailored to find the best candidate for the company or team. 

How To Use Microsoft Word Tests in the Hiring Process?

Maki provides assessments to test candidates’ skills with Microsoft Word. These tests aid recruiters by being short and simple to set up. 

Why Are Microsoft Word Tests Important When Hiring?

Microsoft Word tests by Maki give hiring recruiters a chance to assess the Microsoft Word skills of each candidate without having to go through an interview. Recruiters can use these tests to sift through candidates to determine which ones should move on to the next phase. 

Maki’s assessments help recruiters decipher between the good candidates and the great candidates. Use Maki and their Microsoft Word test as a factor to determine who moves on in the hiring process and who will not be a good fit for the team or company. 

Microsoft Word tests provide recruiters with the information needed to make decisions about who to hire, but they also save recruiters time and money. Recruiters no longer need to subject every candidate to an interview as they can use results from the assessment to make that decision. Recruiters also save money and even make more by hiring adept candidates quickly.  

What’s in a Microsoft Word Test?

The Microsoft Word test by Maki tests candidates in six main areas needed for Microsoft Word skills. These areas include:

• General Knowledge 
• Editing
• Formatting
• Graphics
• Pages 
• Documents 

With Maki, recruiters can customize each Microsoft Word assessment. Hiring recruiters choose questions or create their own to best analyze each candidate’s skill needed to fit the job description. Maki gives you the platform to create an assessment tailored to your company’s needs, from multiple-choice questions to free answer questions. 

If recruiters don’t have the time or want to create their own assessment, they can easily use the questions Maki provides. Maki consults with Dan Gookin, an author and Microsoft Word expert, to curate ready-to-use questions and tasks. 

If recruiters want a candidate who not only fits the job description but also fits on the team, feel free to add the other assessments Maki offers. From personality tests to enneagram assessments, Maki helps recruiters find the perfect fit for the job and the company as a whole.

When To Administer a Microsoft Word Test for Hiring?

The hiring recruiter’s discretion remains the number one factor in deciding when exactly to administer the Microsoft Word test when hiring. Although various approaches exist, it remains the recruiter’s decision on which one to take. 

Sometimes, administering the test right off the bat works. This is particularly true when Microsoft Word is an integral qualification of the job description, like for a writer or an accountant. This way, recruiters can disqualify candidates based on a certain score threshold without having to crack open a single resume. Use Maki’s integration feature to provide a link to the test on your job posting. 

On the other hand, some companies prefer to administer the test mid-way through the process. They do this to filter out the great candidates from the good candidates. Use this test as a gateway to an interview so recruiters don’t waste time with someone who doesn’t possess the necessary skills. 

While either of these approaches works, keep in mind there are some drawbacks to each. Administering the test early may disqualify unworthy candidates and disqualify some candidates whose score was low but were perfect in every other way. Taking it too late has the opposite effect, as some candidates will have been taken through the entire process without their skills being checked first.

How To Assess and Use Microsoft Word Test for Hiring?

Maki’s Microsoft Word test can be created rather easily. Thankfully, seeing full results from candidates will be just as easy too. 

How Can Recruiters See Test Results?

Maki allows recruiters to see results in one of two ways: overview or single. With the overview function, recruiters can see candidates compared to one another, which makes this view a great way to decide which candidates “pass” and move on and which ones don’t. Using the single view function enables recruiters to deep dive into the profile of candidates they like. 

With Maki, recruiters can also decide based on the Microsoft Word test results by hiring, rejecting, silent rejecting, or moving candidates to the next stage. This streamlines the process and saves the recruiter some time. 

Additionally, recruiters have the power to give feedback to candidates. They can advise how to progress with their Microsoft Word skills and automatically send personalized emails with results. 

How To Use Results? 

A Microsoft Word test score may make or break a candidate’s case for some companies. Or it may be simply taken into consideration. Maki provides a chat room that allows recruiters to discuss certain profiles with staff or with the candidate themselves to help streamline the hiring process. 

As discussed above, recruiters can view candidates side by side or by using the whole database, to get a gauge of the skill available in the hiring pool. This helps keep the hiring process fair and simple for your company. Recruiters can decide based on the entire hiring pool, not on score standards set beforehand. 

Choosing the Best Candidate for You

Remember that a test score won’t always accurately reflect a candidate’s skill. Some people get nervous during test-taking, especially if the assessment is timed. Sometimes, recruiters prioritize skill but personality even more so. If a recruiter finds a perfect fit with a lower score, they may not hesitate to hire. 

Skills can be practiced and honed quite easily. A personality that fits in with the team or company cannot be practiced, so recruiters may have to decide what their company needs the most.

Microsoft Word skills can be practiced and honed easily, like other skills. Like the ones curated and created by Dan Gookin, many Youtube videos can be used to learn the more intricate features of Microsoft Word. Should a recruiter find a candidate needing these finer skills or a refresher, recruiters should recreate a small mini-course to aid such candidates.

Recruiting for Microsoft Word

If the job description requires adept Microsoft Word skills, the recruiter should do all they can to ensure only candidates with sound skills move forward in the hiring process. 

Jobs Requiring Microsoft Word Skills

A good amount of job postings require sound Microsoft Word Skills. While the list of these jobs won’t fit here, most include work in:

• Business
• Engineering
• Computer Science
• Food Science
• Math & Sciences
• Humanities & Arts 

Most jobs included in the areas above want to see familiarity with Microsoft Word and skill in the features Microsoft Word possesses. 

Microsoft Word Skills on Resumes

Many times, candidates list Microsoft Word skills as a part of their resume. Recruiters must determine the extent of these skills. Do they use Microsoft Word occasionally, thus assuming experience? Or do they see the job description requires Microsoft Word and add it in?

When a recruiter sees Microsoft Word skills listed on a resume, look to see if the candidate has any experience to match this claim, such as in a similar job or field. If there is none to be seen, administer the Microsoft Word test to assess their skills if the recruiter hasn’t already. 

It’s important to note that Microsoft Office skills don't necessarily mean experience with Microsoft Word. A skill assessment comes in handy as the recruiter can accurately measure skill. 

How To Advertise for Microsoft Word Skills?

If the job description requires Microsoft Word skills, advertising for these skills early on will help weed out candidates lacking such skills. Mention Microsoft Word in the job description and require previous experience with the application. 

One great way to advertise for Microsoft Word skills would be to create a Microsoft Word assessment. Candidates looking at the job description will be able to accurately test their skills without having to showcase them in an interview. 

Advertising for Microsoft Word skills will take the pressure and responsibility off of the recruiter, as they can devote their time and energy to deserving candidates who meet the Microsoft Word requirements for the company. Recruiters will be able to sift between good candidates and great candidates, and they can move potential hires on to the next stage. 

Microsoft Word Test: Considerations for Recruiters

When using a Microsoft Word test, recruiters should keep a few things in the back of their heads. 

Pros and Cons of Using a Microsoft Word Test When Hiring

As with all decisions, recruiters should weigh the pros and cons of using a Microsoft Word test to assess candidates when hiring. 

Pros of Using a Microsoft Word Test by Maki

• Allows recruiters to sift between candidates 
• Free and easy to use/ administer
• Customizable questions 
• Gauges the strength of each candidate’s skill

Cons of Using a Microsoft Word Test by Maki 

• The margin of error (as with any test)
• Candidates may not be strong test-takers

Margin of Error

No test exists that accurately measures a person’s strength, intelligence, or capabilities in today's world. Every recruiter should remember that a test score does not make a person into who they are and should not be the final determining factor in a decision. 

Some candidates may not be good test-takers. The pressure of taking an assessment or having a time limit could cause them to make mistakes they typically avoid making during their day-to-day work. Therefore, a score may not accurately reflect the skills of the candidate.

A company and its recruiters need to list their priorities when undergoing the hiring process. Some people may score low but have the personality and experience that fits in well with the team. A recruiter needs to assess what will be most important and helpful to the company. 

A test score doesn’t make a person who they are, and this needs to be considered by the recruiter when deciding which candidate to hire. The company should list its priorities to find the best-fit candidate for them.

Conclusion

A Microsoft Word test for hiring can assess the Microsoft Word skills of every candidate recruiters may wish to hire. These tests allow recruiters to test candidates before moving to the interview process. 

Recruiters and their companies also save time by only adding adept candidates to the hiring process. Expediting the hiring by only speaking to candidates who match the standards set by the company provides more revenue in a faster time frame for the company. 

A test score doesn’t showcase the talents of every candidate accurately. The Microsoft Word test can demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate, but recruiters should always rely on their own discretion for the final hiring decision. 

Nevertheless, every company ought to use the Microsoft Word test to assess every candidate’s skill set to help expedite the hiring process and produce revenue swiftly, compared to blindly adding every candidate who applies to the hiring process without knowing their skills.