POWAY, Calif., Aug. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The March 2009 Aberdeen Group research report, "Assessments in Talent Management: Strategies to Improve Pre- and Post-hire Performance," found that the use of assessments enabled best-in-class companies (the top 20 percent of performers among all organizations studied) to achieve greater than 30 percent average year-over-year growth in three distinct key performance indicators: quality of hire, employee performance and employee productivity. In a recently published research brief on the report, Aberdeen revealed that, among the more than 500 organizations it surveyed for its assessments research, companies using First Advantage Corporation (Nasdaq: FADV) for pre-hire assessments were more than twice as likely as those using other organizations' services to have achieved Aberdeen's Best-in-Class designation.

"While the focus on sourcing and job advertising has decreased, screening and selection efforts have been stepped up to align with an organization's most important goal of acquiring quality hires," said Jayson Saba, senior research associate at the Aberdeen Group. "First Advantage clients recognize this imperative and have capitalized on assessments to achieve substantially better performance gains across each of our Best-in-Class indicators."

Aberdeen Vice President and Group Director Kevin Martin added that, "Our research has found that structured and consistent use of assessments for pre-hire purposes also lends to strong performance gains in post-hire performance-and this is pronounced with the First Advantage clients represented in our survey data."

Aberdeen used year-over-year improvement across three key performance indicators to determine Best-in-Class performance, including:

    --  Quality of hire
        --  First Advantage: 27 percent
        --  Others: 14 percent
    --  Employee performance
        --  First Advantage: 22 percent

        --  Others: 13 percent

    --  Employee productivity
        --  First Advantage: 21 percent

        --  Others: 16 percent

According to the Aberdeen Group, Best-in-Class organizations are also focused on:

    --  Consistency: 87 percent of First Advantage clients have a process to
        consistently assess candidates for targeted positions and incorporate
        scores into hiring decisions, as compared to 56 percent of all others.
    --  Knowledge Management: First Advantage clients are 83 percent more likely
        to integrate assessment data with other talent management applications.
        They are also 38 percent more likely than others to establish a baseline
        by defining core competencies required for each job, which is a critical
        recruiting component to ensure hiring managers identify the gap that
        exists between a candidate's profile and the skill set required to
        perform the job competently.

    --  Performance Management: 80 percent of First Advantage clients have
        clearly defined the metrics to measure the impact of assessments,
        compared to just 47 percent of all others. Additionally, 70 percent of
        these companies have a process in place to regularly review the impact
        of assessments on key business metrics, as compared to only 38 percent
        of their peers.

"As companies continue to face an uncertain economic environment, the microscope is focused on human resource managers' abilities to reduce the cost, time and risk associated with hiring," said Todd Mavis, executive vice president - operations of First Advantage. "Organizations are in a position to capitalize on the current expansion in the talent market and strengthen their workforces by utilizing assessments that are proven to improve the quality of hiring decisions and, according to Aberdeen, achieve year-over-year improvements in all best-in-class metrics."

The report states that these best-in-class organizations most commonly choose First Advantage for the ability to select assessments to meet their specific needs, reduce cost of recruitment and to leverage the seamless integration with existing talent management software. The Aberdeen report also pointed out that First Advantage's best-in-class clients use multiple assessment types, with 77 percent of clients using behavior-based assessments, 77 percent using skill-based assessments and 63 percent using cognitive ability/critical thinking assessments.

To view a full copy of the report, please visit www.FADV.com/Aberdeen. For more information about First Advantage, please visit: http://www.FADV.com/Employer

About First Advantage

First Advantage's Employer Services segment provides a comprehensive suite of global talent acquisition solutions specifically designed to reduce the time, cost and risk associated with candidate recruiting, applicant tracking, screening, assessments and ongoing retention processes. First Advantage's talent acquisition and applicant tracking systems provide a total solution for managing the hiring process. Powering both salaried and hourly hiring, First Advantage integrates all critical hiring related services on a single platform. Built on flexible technology, the system adapts and grows as needs change.

First Advantage Corporation (Nasdaq: FADV) provides innovative products and services that mitigate risk by helping businesses, non-profit organizations and government agencies make more informed decisions. Headquartered in Poway, Calif., the company has employees in 12 countries that support over 90,000 clients globally. More information about First Advantage is available at www.fadv.com.

SOURCE First Advantage Corporation