Thomas Edison may well be the most famous inventor of all time. Edison invented or played a role in inventing many of the technologies that now define human civilization, including light bulbs, batteries, and motion pictures. But did you know that Edison also invented the modern job interview?
Edison wasn't a solitary mad genius who toiled away in some secret laboratory. Indeed, he employed more than 10,000 people spread across dozens of companies. Given the complexity of his work and the nature of his cutting-edge technologies, Edison had to find the right people for rather complex roles. To do that, he put together extensive questionnaires, so-called Edison Tests.
Today, job interviews often involve questions that fall outside the narrow confines of a job position. Edison was one of the first people to integrate more holistic considerations into his interviews. For example, he might serve a candidate soup and see if they salted it before trying it. If the person did so, it suggested that they were quick to jump to conclusions, making them a bad fit for work as researchers.
Back then, many employers paid scant attention to personality fits for given jobs. The written Edison Test contained 140 questions and prospective employees had to score 90 percent or higher to pass. When the test was administered in 1921 to 718 people, only 32 people passed (about 2 percent). Even Albert Einstein failed the test at one point.
These days, tech news websites are often filled with leaks. Interestingly enough, Edison might have accidentally invented news leaks as well. A copy of the Edison Test was leaked to the New York Times, forcing Edison to rewrite the test once it hit print.
