Bookkeeping Skills Evaluation

Knowledge and ability are key factors to assess when hiring bookkeeping personnel. If the company is primarily looking for a data entry person, that person's bookkeeping knowledge may be less important. However, if a company is seeking a full-charge bookkeeper, that individual must grasp all aspects of the bookkeeping function. Properly matching the company's needs with the applicant's skills will greatly improve the success of the hiring process.

Applicants are identified through various sources, including referrals from employees, customers, suppliers, and business associates; unsolicited applications; employment agencies; advertisements; and the Internet. The sources used depend on how quickly the position must be filled and the company's past success in attracting applicants.

Once applicants have been screened and interviewed, their past experience and skills, as presented on their resumes and disclosed during the interview process, should be verified. Two common techniques for verifying and evaluating skill levels include:

• Reference checking.
• Pre-employment testing.

Each technique is briefly discussed below.

Reference Checking
Applicants will typically provide a list of personal references and former employers that the company may contact. Although references may appear to be good sources of information about an applicant, the company should remember that:

• Personal references are hand-picked by the applicant. Thus, the company should expect to hear mainly positive comments about the applicant.
• Many federal and state employment laws have been enacted to protect the rights of present and former employees. Often, employers are hesitant to provide candid information about former employees because of fear of a possible employment lawsuit.

Information requested from former employers should concentrate on the applicant's work duties and performance, attendance record, dependability, cooperation, and other job-related matters. The information should confirm what has already been provided by the applicant.

Pre-employment Testing
To more objectively assess an applicant's abilities, some companies require applicants to take a skills test. If such tests are used, they should be given to all applicants and be relevant to the specific job. In other words, the skills tests should assess only those abilities that the applicants will need for the position.