If you are researching the OMG sales assessment, you have probably already discovered that Objective Management Group offers something more detailed than a typical personality test. It examines a wide range of factors related to selling, from motivation to sales execution.

That depth can be valuable. But it raises a reasonable question: How much diagnostic depth do you need, and what information matters most for the hiring decision you’re making?

That’s where the alternatives start to look very different.

I am Dr. Chris Croner, a clinical psychologist who has spent more than 20 years studying what separates productive salespeople from candidates who merely interview well. When I compare assessment tools, I do not start with the longest report or the most features. I start with the hiring problem – what are you trying to solve?

Let’s take a look at five OMG alternatives worth comparing as they relate to sales hiring.

What Does the OMG Sales Assessment Measure?

Objective Management Group (OMG) evaluates 21 sales-specific competencies organized into three categories:

• Will to Sell: The motivation, commitment, outlook and personal responsibility that influence whether someone will do the difficult work of selling.
• Sales DNA: Beliefs and behavioral tendencies, such as handling rejection, comfort discussing money and the need for approval, that can help or interfere with execution.
• Tactical Selling: Selling capabilities such as prospecting, reaching decision-makers, qualifying, consultative selling and closing.

This is an important distinction. OMG is not simply a generic personality test with a sales label attached. Its framework is explicitly sales-specific, and its products support both candidate assessment and evaluation of existing salespeople.

Where OMG is especially useful: You want a detailed view of a candidate’s potential weaknesses, or you need to diagnose what your existing team should improve through coaching.

Where an alternative may make sense: Your hiring process already assesses certain selling skills through structured interviews, role plays or observed results, and you need different information rather than another broad diagnosis.

Top 5 Objective Management Group Alternatives Compared

No one vendor is universally more valid or accurate than another. The most important thing is that the assessment tool you choose is relevant to the problem you are trying to solve in your hiring process.

1. The DriveTest® by SalesDrive — Best for Identifying Sales ‘Hunter’ Motivation

The DriveTest takes a much narrower approach than OMG. Its central question is whether a person has the underlying Drive to pursue difficult sales goals over time. Drive includes three characteristics:

• Need for Achievement: The desire to set and reach demanding goals.
• Competitiveness: The desire to win and outperform others.
• Optimism: The ability to recover psychologically from setbacks and keep pursuing opportunities.

The assessment also reports Confidence, Persuasiveness, Relationship Skills and Organization, along with indicators for hunter and farmer roles. It takes approximately 20 minutes and provides interview guidance and a complementary development report.

I consider this approach particularly relevant to companies that repeatedly hire personable candidates who later avoid prospecting. You may be able to see how a candidate handles a discovery call in a role play exercise. What is much harder to observe in an interview is whether that person will make the next call after a week of constant rejection.

Best for: If you’re hiring new business development roles where persistence, competition and self-directed prospecting matter most.

Trade-off: The DriveTest does not provide OMG’s detailed assessment of tactical selling competencies. Nor does it verify product knowledge, CRM proficiency or an applicant’s ability to execute a specific sales methodology. If those are your critical hiring unknowns, use another evaluation alongside it.

For a deeper analysis, see our head-to-head comparison: The DriveTest vs. Objective Management Group.

2. Criteria SalesAP — Best for Sales Disposition and Cold-Calling Initiative

Criteria’s Sales Achievement Predictor (SalesAP) is a particularly relevant OMG alternative because it was developed for sales-related work rather than general employment screening alone.

It examines characteristics such as achievement, cold-calling initiative, competitiveness, sales closing and sales disposition. Criteria also offers broader pre-employment assessments, making it possible to evaluate additional capabilities separately when justified by the job.

Imagine you are hiring a salesperson expected to prospect into unfamiliar accounts. A candidate may be articulate and understand a sales presentation, yet hesitate to make unsolicited calls or ask directly for the business. SalesAP addresses aspects of that distinction.

Best for: If you’re looking for a sales-oriented screening tool that explicitly considers prospecting initiative and sales disposition.

Trade-off: Although SalesAP covers important sales-related traits, it is not designed as an equivalent replacement for OMG’s complete competency diagnostic. Review its actual report and validation evidence for the type of sales position you are filling.

3. TestGorilla — Best for Customizing Sales Skills Screening

TestGorilla approaches the problem differently. Instead of providing one fixed sales competency model, it lets you assemble assessments from a library of tests and custom questions.

Its Sales Aptitude test covers communication, relationship building, selling techniques, problem-solving and adaptability. Additional testing options can address B2B selling, CRM knowledge and other practical skills.

This can help when your main hiring uncertainty is not motivation but whether applicants can actually handle the work. For example, a sales operations-heavy account executive may need to demonstrate sound qualification judgment, written follow-up and proficiency with sales software.

Best for: If your recruiting team wants configurable, skills-focused screening for several positions.

Trade-off: Flexibility shifts responsibility to you and your recruiting team. Adding five tests because five are available does not create a better selection process. You still need evidence that each test measures something consequential for the job.

4. The Predictive Index — Best for Workplace Behavior and Role Alignment

The Predictive Index (PI) measures behavioral drives associated with Dominance, Extraversion, Patience and Formality. Its broader assessment offering also includes cognitive ability.

PI can be useful when your concern is how a sales rep’s natural working style aligns with the environment you have created. Consider a salesperson who must manage long buying cycles, navigate internal approvals and coordinate multiple stakeholders. Behavioral preferences may matter to both satisfaction and effectiveness.

Best for: If your organization wants a common assessment framework across sales, management and other departments.

Trade-off: A behavioral profile does not, by itself, establish that a sales candidate will consistently generate new opportunities or demonstrate strong closing skills. For those questions, add a sales-specific tool.

5. Wonderlic Select — Best for Learning Ability and Broader Job Fit

Wonderlic Select combines cognitive ability, personality and motivation into job-specific hiring recommendations. In this context, motivation primarily includes a person’s work-related interests and preferences.

Suppose you are hiring someone to sell a technical product involving complex pricing, product configurations or regulatory requirements. The speed at which that person learns and adapts could be an important part of performance. That is where a measure of cognitive ability can contribute information your interview may not capture consistently.

Best for: If your organization seeks a multi-measure hiring system, particularly where learning demands are substantial.

Trade-off: Wonderlic Select does not offer OMG’s detailed map of prospecting, qualification and closing competencies. Its motivation measure is not identical to OMG’s Will to Sell or SalesDrive’s definition of Drive.

The Overlooked Question: What Does a New Assessment Tell You That You Do Not Already Know?

A mistake I see in assessment shopping is treating more information as automatically equivalent to better information.

Suppose your sales manager already conducts a structured discovery-call role play and checks candidates’ documented performance history. Both methods can provide evidence about learned selling skills. If you add an assessment that largely covers those same skills, you may gain confirmation—but not necessarily much new insight.

Now consider the opposite case. Your company has never assessed selling process knowledge or observed candidates handling a difficult buying objection. A focused motivation assessment will not fill that gap. OMG’s broader diagnostic framework, or a relevant practical exercise, could add more value.

This is the principle of incremental information: Look for evidence that changes your hiring decision, not simply more pages in the report.

Choose the depth you need. Choose the information you need. Then choose the assessment that fits the decision you’re trying to make.

How to Decide Whether OMG or an Alternative Is Right for You

Before requesting a demo, write down the particular problem you are trying to solve. Then ask each provider the same questions:

1. What does the assessment actually measure? Ask for the names and definitions of the constructs—not merely a statement that it predicts success.
2. Which sales roles were used in its validation? Evidence gathered from experienced account managers may not transfer neatly to entry-level outbound prospectors.
3. What is the candidate experience? Review completion time, accessibility, report turnaround and the practical effect on applicant drop-off.
4. What decision will the result change? Define how you will use scores in interviews and how you will investigate areas of concern.
5. What must still be evaluated elsewhere? No assessment can make hiring decisions for you. You will still need to evaluate technical selling, product knowledge, ethics, compensation, references and team and culture fit.
6. Can you review a real sample report? Ask someone unfamiliar with the tool to explain what action they would take after reading it. If they cannot, the report may not be operationally useful without additional training.

I would also distinguish between selection and development. An excellent coaching diagnostic is not automatically the most efficient first-round screen. Conversely, a concise hiring screen may be useful at the top of the recruiting funnel without offering the depth required for a comprehensive sales team development program.

Which OMG Alternative Is Best for Your Hiring Situation?

If your immediate concern is who will consistently prospect and create new revenue, shortlist The DriveTest and Criteria SalesAP. If you need to verify sales knowledge or combine several job-related skills tests, evaluate TestGorilla. If you need a behavioral framework used throughout the company, examine PI. If learning ability and broader job fit are major concerns, consider Wonderlic Select.

And if you want a comprehensive diagnosis of both a candidate’s sales capabilities and an existing team’s coaching needs, OMG may remain the right choice. There is no reason to replace a well-aligned assessment simply because another vendor has a shorter report or different terminology.

For a broader market comparison, see our Best Sales Assessment Tools guide. It compares assessment categories more generally than this article.

Final Takeaway

OMG is a serious option because of its comprehensive, sales-specific diagnostic framework. The right alternative is not necessarily the one with a similar-looking report. It is the one that gives you the most useful evidence for your particular hiring decision.

Start by identifying your biggest unknown: motivation, sales disposition, practical skills, behavioral alignment or learning ability. Then select an assessment that measures it directly.

If you are primarily hiring hunters and want to examine foundational Drive, you can request a free DriveTest and judge whether the information it provides would strengthen your own hiring process.

Frequently Asked Questions About OMG Sales Assessment Alternatives

About the Author: Dr. Chris Croner is a clinical psychologist and Principal at SalesDrive, LLC. He developed The DriveTest® sales assessment and is co-author of Never Hire a Bad Salesperson Again. He has helped more than 1,500 companies worldwide identify and hire top-performing salespeople. Connect with him on LinkedIn.