What Are Self Reflections?

Self reflections ask job candidates to complete a survey which measures their individual attributes (e.g., motivations, skills) in an objective and standardized manner. For instance, imagine you have 20 job candidates — who look similar in terms of past work experience and education — and you need to make decisions on who to advance in the recruitment process. Self reflections can be deployed to collect information about the job candidates not found in a resume or through a structured interview, such as values, interpersonal skills and technical knowledge. This provides another data point used to make decisions on which candidates are the best fit for the organization and role.

Self reflections can take different forms. For instance, self reflections may involve answering a series of questions (rate agreement with a statement), slider questions (answer a question by dragging a slider), or open-ended questions (write a few sentences in response to the question). The most effective self reflections use a mix of different question formats to ensure the specific question format does not influence the results.

Moreover, self reflections can measure different attributes of an individual. For instance, Searchlight’s Predictive Talent Platform uses self reflections to build a holistic, well-rounded image of candidates, capturing the candidate’s competencies, cultural alignment, soft skills and work motivations.