The importance of critical thinking in the workplace

Critical thinking is one of the most sought-after skill sets in modern businesses. Actively encouraging critical thinking fosters a culture of adaptability, problem-solving, and continuous improvement that makes your business a great place to work while improving your bottom line.

But, anyone can list critical thinking skills on their resumes. So how do you find candidates who truly possess these abilities? 

We can help. Below, we teach you everything you need to know about critical thinking skills, ways to assess critical thinking in the workplace, and common pitfalls to avoid when attempting to hire critical thinkers. 

What are critical thinking skills?

Critical thinking skills are soft skills that enable employees to analyze, evaluate, and solve problems, and make decisions. These soft skills include:

• Creativity

• Logical reasoning

• Open-mindedness

• Evaluation

• Strategizing

• Reflection

Critical thinking isn’t about being critical for the sake of it. It’s about separating fact from fiction, identifying biases, and discovering connections between ideas.

For example, say you're in a team meeting discussing a new project proposal. A colleague presents an idea that seems groundbreaking at first glance. They say it will significantly cut costs, improve efficiency, and revolutionize your approach. 

Rather than immediately jumping on the bandwagon, the critical thinkers in the room would take a step back, asking questions like:

• Has this been done before? If so, what happened?

• What are the drawbacks to this approach?

• Will this approach cost anything to implement?

• What impact will this have on the overall project cost?

Asking these questions ensures that the chosen path is logical, effective, and well-thought-out.

What you need to know about critical thinking in the workplace 

Here are the top three things you should know about critical thinking in the workplace.

1. It’s one of the most sought-after workplace skills

72% of managers believe critical thinking is key to an organization’s success – but only half believe their employees actually show this skill. This highlights the importance of fostering a workplace culture that actively encourages and nurtures critical thinking skills. 

2. Critical thinkers make great managers

Many critical thinking skills – like problem-solving and communication – are textbook signs of a great manager. These skills enable managers to solve challenging problems, think outside the box, and confidently help their teams succeed in uncertain environments. 

3. Critical thinking keeps employees on their toes

Critical thinking fosters flexibility and adaptability in a changing business market. This enables workers to navigate uncertainties and evolving situations with agility. They can think on their feet, make decisions on the fly, and ultimately keep your business moving through uncertainty.

When to hire critical thinkers

Critical thinking skills are universally valuable, making almost any time the right time to hire critical thinkers – regardless of the role or industry.  

To determine the best times to hire critical thinkers, consider doing the following: 

• Regularly evaluate your strategic goals and challenges. Times of change, growth, or adaptation are typically when you need critical thinking the most. For example, during market expansion, product launches, or complex challenges, critical thinkers can provide invaluable insights and innovative solutions.

• Read our guide on measuring critical thinking in the workplace. By measuring your current team’s critical thinking skills, you can determine if any important skills are missing from your company. Say your measurements reveal there’s a lack of creative decision-makers on your team. In that case, it might be a good time to look for candidates who demonstrate strong creativity and decision-making skills.

Why it’s important to foster critical thinking practices in the workplace 

Critical thinking supports overall business success. Here’s why:

1. Encourages continuous learning 

Critical thinking encourages employees to actively challenge information, question their colleagues, and seek a deeper understanding of business activities. This encourages a culture of continuous learning. 

This culture fosters a dynamic and engaging workplace where intellectual curiosity thrives and your team actively seeks new ways of working. This leads to innovation, adaptability, and sustained success for your organization. In fact, Deloitte’s Leading in Learning report found that businesses that encourage continuous learning have 37% higher productivity and are 92% more likely to innovate than those that don’t. 

2. Encourages creative problem-solving

Critical thinking skills encourage employees to look at information in different ways and not accept data at face value. This automatically shifts their perspectives, encouraging out-of-the-box thinking and creative problem-solving. 

Businesses that value creative problem-solving can streamline business operations and reduce costs easily. 

For example, a creative problem solver at a retail business might implement a novel inventory management system using AI, significantly reducing waste and lowering storage costs. This forward-thinking approach not only optimizes resource use but also enhances the company's ability to respond rapidly to demand fluctuations.

3. Improves conflict resolution

Critical thinking encourages employees to respectfully challenge ideas – and it transforms every conflict into an opportunity for team growth and innovation. It can empower your team to address and resolve conflicts using strong reasoning, consideration of diverse perspectives, and collaboration.

For instance, when a team faces a disagreement on project direction, critical thinking enables them to evaluate all options objectively, leading to a consensus that aligns with the team's overall goals and values.

4. Supports ethical decision-making

Encouraging critical thinking forces decision-makers to defend their ideas, consider alternative perspectives, and address their biases. Inviting other colleagues to critique their ideas will highlight any moral gray areas and identify potential biases that may influence one's judgment. This encourages self-awareness and ensures decisions are objective and ethical.

For example, in a team meeting where a new marketing strategy is proposed, inviting critiques and alternative viewpoints can reveal overlooked ethical considerations or unconscious biases, leading to a more ethical final decision.

How to find the best candidates with critical thinking skills

You can’t find candidates with critical thinking skills by scanning resumes. Instead, use these methods.

1. Use skills testing

Skills assessments are the best way to find candidates with demonstrable critical thinking skills. These tools reduce time-to-hire, remove bias from your recruitment process, and ensure that you're building a team with the proven ability to think critically in real-world scenarios.

For example, TestGorilla’s Critical Thinking skills test measures deductive reasoning, cause-and-effect thinking, and the ability to interpret sequences. 

2. Ask behavioral interview questions

After finding critically thinking candidates using skills assessments, you can use behavioral interview questions to validate candidates’ results and gain a broader understanding of their abilities.

Behavioral interview questions focus on uncovering a candidate's abilities, attitudes, and reactions in past scenarios. Ask a candidate to recall a time they exhibited a certain behavior or provide an example of a time they applied critical thinking skills in a challenging situation. 

Critical thinking interview questions might include:

• Give me an example of a time you received unclear data as part of a project. What steps did you take to overcome this?

• Describe a situation where you had to analyze complex information to develop a solution. How did you approach the problem, and what steps did you take to ensure your solution was effective?

• Describe a situation where you had to adapt to an unexpected challenge. What was the challenge, and how did you adapt?

These require candidates to draw on their past experiences and provide concrete examples. They’re an effective way to understand how a candidate has used critical thinking.

3. Ask for evidence of continuous learning

Since critical thinkers actively pursue new understandings, they tend to be lifelong learners. So asking for evidence of continuous learning is a good way to spot critical thinkers. 

Try asking questions like:

• I can see from your resume that you recently attended a course on managing conflict in the workplace. What did you learn in that course that you didn’t know before?

• How do you keep updated with the latest developments in this industry? For example, is there a book or podcast you enjoy listening to?

• Can you tell me about a challenging project where you needed to acquire new knowledge or skills? How did you go about this?

Answers to these questions can show that candidates actively participate in continuous learning while also demonstrating evidence of critical thinking. 

Common mistakes when assessing critical thinking skills

Here are some pitfalls to avoid when measuring candidates’ critical thinking skills. 

Relying on resumes

Candidates can lie on their resumes about their critical thinking abilities. Relying on resumes might lead you to hire someone who lacks the problem-solving abilities the role requires. 

Assuming technical skills equal critical thinking

Just because someone is good at their job doesn’t mean they’re a well-rounded critical thinker. For example, a skilled data scientist might be skilled at analyzing complex datasets, but they may be unable to see how this data fits into the bigger picture. Similarly, a great project manager might excel at hitting deadlines and managing budgets, but they may struggle with open-mindedness. 

Assuming someone’s technical abilities speak to their critical thinking abilities can lead you to hire someone lacking the critical thinking your company needs. 

Find your next critical thinker with TestGorilla

Critical thinking involves a unique set of soft skills. These enable employees to gain a deeper understanding of workplace situations and challenges to make well-reasoned and logical decisions. 

Critical thinking skills are some of the most sought-after skills in modern businesses. However, finding candidates who genuinely possess these skills can be tricky. 

Using a combination of TestGorilla’s skills tests and behavioral interview questions, you can assess candidates’ critical thinking skills effectively and accurately. 

Want to learn more? Watch a live demo. Or, sign up for a free TestGorilla account today and gain access to our extensive test library.