Employers Taking Potential Workers For 'Test Drive'

BOSTON (CBS) - A car buyer usually wants to take a potential purchase out for a test drive. Now, more employers are saying the same thing about potential workers.

A growing number of companies are requiring a trial period before they will make a full time offer.

Christine Glandorf has been working at betterlesson.com in Cambridge for two years now. Actually, two years and three months if you include her trial period.

She loves her job today as a project manager, but admits the trial period was a bit nerve-wracking.

The Boston area is filled with startups looking to bolster their ranks.

Elaine Varelas, a human resource consultant at Keystone Partners, said those types of companies are more likely to require a so-called test drive.

"Small companies in particular, the entire dynamic of an organization changes with every person you bring in, so they are really trying to protect their culture," she told WBZ.

Better Lesson is one of those companies.

Co-founder and CEO Alex Grodd said the traditional hiring routine wasn't giving him enough information on how an employee would really work out.

"Conversations, resumes, performance tests are all fantastic, but in the end, because you are looking for all these intangible factors, you are looking for things like hustle, resourcefulness, flexibility," Grodd said.

The test drive concept can be a two-way street and help the employees figure out if a company is the fight fit.

Glandorf explained, "It is an opportunity to see whether or not it's a good fit for you and a good fit for your aspirations and goals."

Varelas believes there are more pluses for the employer, however.

For example, she is concerned mid-career professionals are going to be left out because they won't be able to take a risk like this.

A smaller pool of candidates can hurt a company, too.

"You might not necessarily find the best candidate for the job, but the best candidate who was willing to take these risks for that job," explained Varelas.

Some companies are now modifying the trial period in hopes of opening up the field of potential hires. Grodd said that might include some contract work that can be done over a three-month stretch of time.

"We don't have a one size fits all sort of approach to a trial period," he told WBZ.

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