Wheat From ChaffWheat From Chaff

More companies are looking to hire contract workers from places outside the United States for pure technical work, such as application development, to cut labor costs from the IT budget. Some are turning to online tools to make sure those workers' skills live up to their billing.

"Companies are looking for workers in places like India, Bulgaria, Montreal, and Ireland," says John Chaisson, an analyst at the Talent Market Group. "You have hiring managers trying to do skills assessment across the globe, and it's infinitely more complex."

Most online tests assess a limited number of programming or software skills, meaning companies looking for someone with a unique set of skills have the added complexity of distributing multiple tests. A new service from eSkill Corp. lets hiring managers and human-resources personnel quickly develop tests by drawing on a repository of 13,000 questions on 65 IT subject areas. So if a manager is looking for someone with advanced C++ skills and basic knowledge of Java, he or she would type in that request at the eSkill ExpressTest site, which would then generate a custom test.

ESkill developed its test content through a partnership with the University of Massachusetts in Lowell. One of ExpressTest's biggest advantages is that it doesn't require technical knowledge to develop customized tests, Chaisson says. ExpressTest--which is priced at $199 a month or $1,699 a year--faces competition from companies such as Bookman Testing Services, Brainbench, and Kenexa. ExpressTest's easy customization gives it a distinguishing feature today, but the other vendors are working toward a similar model, says Charles Handler, a consultant for online testing companies. "Most IT jobs aren't just one type of programming," Handler says.

Online skills tests can also be helpful for hiring permanent staff. They're most appropriate for use early in the screening process, and companies still must take the time to investigate whether a candidate is the right fit for their IT teams. "They don't measure personality, values, and motives--all of those things that make people tick," Handler says. Hiring a temporary employee is another story, he says. "The premium isn't on how well the person fits into the organization, it's more, can we plug this person in and [have him] writing Java code tomorrow?"