Interviewing, in general, is kind of ridiculous.
You meet someone. Ask a few questions back and forth. Maybe meet again. Or a few times.
And then you enter into a contract to work together.
A little wild.
As someone who goes on vibe and overthinks everything, I’m still baffled by how casually high-stakes hiring decisions are made.
We’re human. We’re performers. We are wired for tribe acceptance. We’re trained—consciously or not—to show up as who we think you want us to be. Which means most interviews are based on very little quantifiable truth.
And most people aren’t self-aware enough to even give their full picture. They know how they want to be, not how they actually are. So what’s a hiring manager to do?
We test.
Where Skills Tests Fit
Skills tests are simple: put your money where your mouth is. They’re about bringing what’s real, with all of its context, into the room. And they offer so much more than just a technical answer.
But first, a foundational truth:
Skills are secondary to behaviors and fit.
I wish I could tattoo this onto every person who is a decision maker in hiring. All the technical talent in the world won’t matter if someone is misaligned with your strategy, pace, or values. In a mismatch of behaviors and fit, their worst traits will come to the surface, and their best work will get buried.
So skills testing never comes first. You assess fit first. You assess behavior first. Then you move to skills.
What You’re Really Testing For
When I use a skills test, I’m not just looking for “can they do the job.” I’m trying to answer three key questions:
1. How do their skills align with the way we work? Top performer at their last job? That’s great. But every environment is different. Just like a high school quarterback doesn’t automatically thrive in the NFL, someone who crushed it elsewhere might struggle—or be bored—with you.
A test gives you critical insight:
- Can they hit the ground running?
- Will they need support?
- Are they overqualified and likely to disengage?
Sure, testing can disqualify, but that’s not usually the point. You really want to understand where and how they will work the best if invited into your business.
2. How does their real skill level compare to what they say? This is a perfect exercise for assessing self-awareness. Do they have an accurate read on themselves? Do they oversell? Underplay? How limited is their view of the industry or the role?
It’s a valuable peek into their sense of self.
3. What else do they bring that we didn’t even ask about? Skills tests often surface surprises.
I’ve seen candidates crush a test and reveal deep strengths in analysis, reasoning, and creativity that far exceeded the role I was hiring for.
That unlocks all kinds of potential:
- Fast-track opportunities
- Amended roles
- Newly imagined positions
It’s a gift—for them and the business.
Skills Testing Assess Ability and Behavior
Watching someone perform a task gives you a window into how they’ll actually work.
- How do they operate under pressure?
- How do they handle observation?
- Do they ask clarifying questions or stay stuck?
- Are they curious? Calm? Resistant?
Remember all that behavioral stuff they told you about in the interview? This is where you see if it’s actually true.
How to Craft a Good Skills Test
Don’t overcomplicate this. A good test reflects the real work they’d be doing.
- “Here’s the key—show me how you operate this equipment.”
- “Here’s a 4-part prompt: build a hypothesis, analyze this data, present a plan, and defend your thinking.”
- or something in-between
A skills test doesn’t need to be perfect or complicated. It only needs to be relevant. You’re not grading. You’re observing. I can’t stress this enough. You’re seeing who they are in motion.
The Bottom Line
You don’t test to weed people out. You test to understand what’s really there.
Your interviews are a first date. Skills tests are where you get a glimpse of the actual marriage. Don’t skip the part where the fantasy meets the real world. That’s where the smartest hiring decisions are made.
If you want a hiring process that goes beyond the interview and actually shows you who someone is—Hiring, Simplified gives you the full framework, from first filter to final decision. A digital download. Start today.
About the Author
Lauren Michele Fields led teams in sales and marketing, managed P&L, and opened new markets before she ever wrote a playbook. Then she did that too—sales processes, hiring frameworks, onboarding systems, leadership development, people operations, new product development, and training programs across every function of a growing company. Not as an HR professional. As the operator who needed it to scale.
She built The Modern Small Business Platform because the tools she used in corporate don’t exist at small business scale—and they should. Hiring, Simplified and Align Your Business are the systems she wishes someone had handed her earlier.
She writes about hiring, leadership, and what it actually takes for a business to thrive at laurenmichelefields.com/blog.
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