Data-Driven Hiring: Building a Smarter Web Application for Psychometric Insights

Project Details

TRAITS is a psychometric testing tool designed to enhance hiring and people management processes. It helps organizations align the right people into the right seats, build effective teams, and manage conflict constructively.

The platform’s primary feature is an in-depth survey, which allows job applicants and employees to identify core personality traits. Employers and managers can then view survey results and have specific training to translate findings into how the employee/applicant may perform in specific roles. The individual can be compared to a “job model” based on ideal traits for a position or integrated into group comparisons to predict team dynamics.

Multiple privacy features ensure companies only access applicants who have granted them permission. Robust super admin functions within the platform support extensive reporting, test adjustments, and automated background testing to maintain calculation accuracy amid updates.

Problem Statement

This project was a rebuild of an already existing application built with a different agency. Concord Consulting was looking to improve the framework and streamline features updated with robust functionality. Key goals included enhanced usability, minimizing friction in app usage, and maintaining extreme accuracy of the information being generated. A key challenge in the project was ensuring the accuracy of graphical representations of survey results, especially with the need for fully responsive design. Achieving precise proportions in the visualizations was essential. Furthermore, given the application was actively being used, the transition to the new system needed to be seamless and thoroughly tested before rollout.

What We Did

Discovery Phase

The original application was complex, with numerous technical intricacies. Our discovery phase was focused on understanding the current state and creating a precise roadmap to improve usability. With significant amounts of data to migrate and the importance of feature parity, the discovery focused on creating an extremely detailed plan of what needed to be done in the build phase. Key discovery tasks included:

• Top Task Tree Testing Survey, identifying major areas needing improvement.
• Feature Parity Analysis, looking at both surveys within the system and how the results were reported. 
• User Interviews, to gain insight on current usage patterns and friction points.
• Prototype Reviews, where we shared a newly developed prototype with users to get their feedback and determine if they could find information easily.
• Content Audit, specifically of the reports, to understand user experience, readability,  and comprehension.
• Comparative Assessment, analyzing similar tools, such as Predictive Index, for system insights.

Overall, our discovery found that the system was cumbersome and difficult for users to complete their tasks, and reports were challenging to interpret.

Design and Build

The new application, built in Laravel, features a modular design that modernizes the interface and makes navigation intuitive, requiring minimal user training. Building a modular system allows Concord to incorporate future enhancements more effectively. 

A main focus of the design and build was streamlining navigation, tasks, and content. Substantial time was spent creating accurate and digestible graph representations, as these were central to the application’s functionality. The information needed to not only be extremely accurate but also displayed in a way that was easy for managers to digest. Utilizing a Laravel Dashboard framework called Filament, we implemented tables, widgets, and forms to ensure a clean user experience for both users and administrators.

We collaborated closely with Concord to simplify language and refine workflows, ensuring an exceptionally user-friendly application.

Outcomes

Through ongoing collaboration with Concord, we tailored the application to meet their exact needs. Our work continues today, with ongoing enhancements and new feature development that expand the platform’s capabilities.