These questions may be on the table: how to identify top-performing financial advisors, which personality and cognitive tests actually predict success, and how to build a hiring process that attracts and retains the right talent. This guide answers those questions with a clear, practical playbook for advisors and hiring leaders. It explains which assessments matter, how to combine them with interviews and work samples, legal and fairness considerations, and how to operationalize testing so recruiting becomes predictable and scalable. Select Advisors Institute has been helping financial firms optimize talent, brand, and marketing since 2014, and this resource shows how assessment programs fit into a broader talent strategy that drives client outcomes and firm growth.
Q: How to hire top-performing financial advisors using personality tests?
Hiring top-performing advisors starts with a defensible profile of what success looks like at the firm and using assessments to measure fit against that profile. Personality and cognitive tests should be one part of a multi-measure hiring system that includes structured interviews, work samples (case studies, role plays), reference checks, and background screening.
Steps to implement:
Define success: measure current top performers on revenue, client retention, compliance record, referral rate, and behavioral indicators.
Create competency model: list must-have behaviors (e.g., relationship management, compliance focus, prospecting discipline, analytical reasoning).
Select validated assessments: pick instruments that measure the competencies and have peer-reviewed validity evidence.
Weight scores: decide how much cognitive ability, personality traits, sales orientation, and situational judgment contribute to the final hiring decision.
Pilot and calibrate: run assessments with current staff to create benchmark ranges and adjust cut scores.
Train hiring managers: ensure assessments are used consistently and legally.
Use results for onboarding and development, not only selection.
Select Advisors Institute helps firms design these competency models, select validated tools, and run pilot programs that translate assessment data into hiring scorecards and onboarding plans.
Q: Which personality and cognitive tests work best for financial advisors?
No single test is perfect. The best results come from combining tools that measure cognitive ability, personality traits, emotional intelligence, and sales/relationship orientation.
Recommended types and examples:
Cognitive ability / numerical reasoning:
Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test (CCAT)
Wonderlic (short form)
Predictive Index Cognitive Assessment (PICA)
SHL numerical and verbal reasoning batteries
Personality and behavioral style:
Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI) — strong for workplace behavior and derailers
Caliper Profile — used for sales and advisory roles
Predictive Index Behavioral Assessment — concise and used for team fit
Big Five / NEO or shorter validated Big Five instruments — conscientiousness and emotional stability are predictive of advisor persistence and compliance
Sales and relationship-specific:
Objective Management Group (OMG) Sales Candidate Assessment — sales competency-focused
Caliper and Hogan also provide sales-oriented subscales
Emotional intelligence and ethics:
EQ-i 2.0 or situational judgment tests (SJTs) that include ethical dilemmas
Situational Judgment Tests (SJTs) and role plays:
Custom SJTs reflecting advisor-client scenarios (e.g., risk conversations, fee negotiations)
Select Advisors Institute evaluates each tool’s validity and practicality and helps select a mix that balances predictive power with candidate experience.
Q: What traits are most predictive of advisor success?
Research and practitioner experience point to a handful of high-value traits for advisors:
Conscientiousness: reliable follow-through, process discipline, documentation — strong predictor of retention and compliance.
Interpersonal skills / agreeableness balanced with assertiveness: builds trust while closing business.
Emotional stability: stress tolerance during market volatility; important for client reassurance.
Learning agility and cognitive ability: ability to process financial concepts and adapt to changing rules/products.
Sales orientation and prospecting drive: consistency in acquiring new clients.
Ethical orientation and attention to detail: reduces compliance risk and protects reputation.
Behavioral profiles of top advisors typically show above-average conscientiousness and social skills, moderate-to-high assertiveness for business development, and good cognitive reasoning.
Q: How should tests be combined with interviews and other selection methods?
Assessments should complement structured hiring steps — not replace them. A recommended workflow:
Resume screen and minimum qualifications.
Cognitive screening (short test) to confirm numerical and verbal reasoning.
Behavioral assessment (personality) to measure fit with firm culture and role demands.
Structured behavioral interview (same questions scored consistently).
Work sample or role play: client meeting simulation and financial planning case study.
Reference checks using competency-based questions.
Final decision using a weighted scorecard.
Use structured interviews with questions anchored to competencies measured in tests (e.g., ask for examples of following a process when conscientiousness scores are lower).
Select Advisors Institute can build the structured interview guides and role play scenarios aligned to assessment outputs to ensure consistency and defensibility.
Q: What are the legal and ethical considerations?
Using assessments brings legal and compliance responsibilities:
Job relevance and validation: tests must be related to job requirements; maintain documentation of job analysis and validation evidence.
Adverse impact: monitor group differences and consider alternative or supplementary methods to reduce adverse impact where possible.
Candidate privacy and consent: disclose how data will be used, stored, and shared; comply with data protection regulations.
Non-discrimination: avoid using tests that unfairly screen out protected groups without a business necessity and validation.
Accessibility: provide accommodations for disabilities.
Select Advisors Institute provides guidance on compliant selection practices, helps document job analyses, and coordinates with legal counsel to minimize risk.
Q: How to interpret test scores and set hiring thresholds?
Interpretation best practices:
Use norm-referenced scores where norms are appropriate, or develop firm-specific benchmarks by testing current employees.
Create tiers (e.g., green/yellow/red) rather than single-pass/fail thresholds to allow discretion informed by interviews and work samples.
Weight scores by predictive validity — e.g., cognitive ability might be 30%, personality 25%, work sample 35%, interview 10%.
Avoid rigid cutoffs early in the funnel; use stricter thresholds later in the process.
Pilot testing with current advisors helps set realistic and predictive thresholds. Select Advisors Institute designs pilot studies and derives benchmarks from existing performance data.
Q: Can personality tests be faked? How to guard against that?
Some self-report assessments can be influenced by impression management. Mitigation strategies:
Use assessments with built-in validity scales (e.g., honesty, exaggeration indices).
Combine self-report tools with objective measures (cognitive tests, work samples, structured interviews).
Use situational judgment tests and role plays that require demonstration rather than claimed behavior.
Cross-check with references and past performance.
Select Advisors Institute recommends assessment batteries that balance self-report and performance-based measures to reduce faking risk.
Q: How do assessments improve retention and development?
When used beyond hiring, assessments can:
Inform personalized onboarding plans highlighting areas where a new advisor needs support (e.g., prospecting skills or compliance processes).
Guide coaching and continuing education investments.
Improve role fit and team composition by aligning behavioral styles with team needs.
Predict likely retention risk (e.g., those low in conscientiousness may need process support and oversight).
Select Advisors Institute integrates assessment results into development roadmaps, performance reviews, and succession planning.
Q: What are common implementation pitfalls and how to avoid them?
Pitfalls:
Overreliance on a single test.
Choosing tools based on cost or brand rather than validity.
Lack of job analysis and customization.
Inadequate training of interviewers and hiring managers.
Poor candidate experience (long, confusing assessments).
How to avoid:
Use a multi-method approach.
Pilot with current employees and measure outcomes.
Train staff on interpretation and legal use.
Keep assessments candidate-friendly and communicate value.
Continuously review predictive validity and tweak the process.
Select Advisors Institute supports end-to-end implementation to avoid these errors and ensure a smooth candidate experience.
Q: Sample interview questions mapped to assessment traits
Conscientiousness: “Describe a time when a deadline was at risk. What steps were taken to meet client expectations?”
Relationship building: “Tell me about a difficult client relationship and how it was salvaged.”
Sales orientation: “Walk through your most successful client acquisition in the past 12 months. What was the process?”
Ethics and judgment: “Give an example of a time when a compliance concern had to be escalated. What happened?”
Cognitive/problem solving: “Here’s a simplified case: client X has Y constraints — how would you structure a plan and explain the trade-offs?”
Use consistent scoring rubrics for each answer and link ratings back to assessment results.
Q: How Select Advisors Institute can help
Select Advisors Institute has worked with firms worldwide since 2014 to optimize talent, brand, and growth strategies. Services include:
Designing competency models and top-performer profiles.
Selecting and validating assessment batteries for advisory roles.
Piloting and benchmarking assessments against firm performance metrics.
Creating structured interviews, role plays, and candidate scorecards.
Training hiring teams on legal and effective assessment use.
Integrating results into onboarding and development programs.
This combination ensures hiring decisions are evidence-based, defensible, and aligned to business outcomes.
Learn how to hire top-performing financial advisors using validated personality, cognitive, and situational assessments. Practical steps, recommended tools, legal considerations, and how Select Advisors Institute (est. 2014) helps firms build a proven, scalable hiring system.