Stang Decision Systems

What Stang Decision Systems does

Stang Decision Systems (SDS) is a privately held talent analytics firm founded in 2001 by Industrial and Organizational Psychologist Spencer Stang, PhD, and headquartered in Marquette, Michigan. The company designs customized employee selection and development systems for organizations across industries including oil and gas, manufacturing, transportation, and utilities. SDS originally launched as SportLab to apply advanced analytics to NFL player selection before pivoting in 2001 to apply the same approach to employee hiring and development, signaling an early data-led, science-based product philosophy.

The company's core technology centers on proprietary assessment algorithms originally developed for professional sports team selection and subsequently adapted for workforce applications. Its primary product suite includes the HireScore Talent Portal (a job-posting and applicant-ranking platform that distributes listings across 100+ job boards and proprietary JobOdds.com), the HireScore Assessment Platform (featuring tools such as the Big Five Inventory and Situational Judgement Tests), TestPrep, and the SDS SkillBuilder Gap Analysis for workforce development. SDS also offers domain-specialized services, notably the PetroSelect process for petrochemical hiring developed with Associate Kenneth Wexley, PhD. Sub-brands include HireScore, JobOdds.com, and client-branded SDS Jobs microsites (e.g., lasernorth.sdsjobs.com).

SDS monetizes through a hybrid of subscription-based SaaS (HireScore Talent Portal and Assessment Platform, billed annually) and professional services including custom assessment design, validation, and consulting. The firm employs a lean, multi-disciplinary team spanning I/O psychology, project management, software development, marketing, and communications, and serves clients ranging from large multinational enterprises—such as Marathon Petroleum (since 2005) and BP Alaska—to mid-market and smaller companies such as Laser North, Inc. Go-to-market is consultative and sales-led, anchored by free consultations and reinforced through content marketing (HireScore Blog, newsletter, social channels, SEO) and direct client engagement by senior staff. Pricing is custom and not publicly disclosed.

Name

Stang Decision Systems

Legal name

Stang Decision Systems

Website

https://stangds.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stang Decision Systems is a privately held talent analytics firm that designs customized employee selection and development systems for enterprises across industries, leveraging proprietary HireScore assessment platforms and consultative services to improve hiring outcomes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Talent Analytics & HR Software

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Personality & Behavioral Assessments (BPACAMAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Talent Management & Workforce Planning Consulting (BPAHAGAA), Professional & Technical Direct Hire (IT, Engineering, Finance, Healthcare) (BPACAFAC)

Keywords

• Talent analytics software
• Employee assessment platform
• Applicant ranking system
• Workforce development tools
• Customized hiring services

Headquarters

HQ city

Marquette

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Talent Analytics and Assessment Services: Revenue generated from providing customized hiring and employee development processes, assessment platforms, and talent analytics consulting services to organizations of all sizes.
2. Software Platform (HireScore): SaaS-style platform providing job posting, applicant tracking, and assessment services through the HireScore Talent Portal.
3. Custom Assessment Design and Validation: Custom assessment design and validation services for specific client needs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Stang Decision Systems designs and delivers customized employee selection systems and workforce development processes for organizations. Its core product suite is the HireScore platform — comprising a Talent Portal that ranks applicants via a customized, job-specific algorithm (distributing postings to 100+ job boards including the proprietary JobOdds.com) and an Assessment Platform that administers Big Five and Situational Judgement assessments. The firm also provides Custom Assessment Design and Validation consulting, the SDS SkillBuilder Gap Analysis tool for workforce development, and the PetroSelect specialized process for petrochemical hiring.

Product overview

Stang Decision Systems offers a unified talent acquisition and workforce development ecosystem centered on the HireScore platform. The core HireScore Talent Portal and HireScore Assessment Platform work together to provide end-to-end candidate ranking and evaluation, while add-on services like TestPrep and SkillBuilder Gap Analysis extend functionality into candidate preparation and employee development. Custom Assessment Design and Validation provides bespoke consulting to organizations with specialized hiring needs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HireScore Talent Portal: Online platform for job posting and applicant tracking, posting to over 100 job boards and generating HireScores for candidates.
• HireScore Assessment Platform
• TestPrep
• SDS SkillBuilder Gap Analysis

Products and services

• HireScore Talent Portal Online talent acquisition platform for employers that posts open positions to the company's custom SDS job board, the proprietary JobOdds.com board, and 100+ popular job boards, then ranks applicants with a customized, job-specific algorithm to surface the best candidates.
• HireScore Assessment Platform Customized assessment platform that administers job-specific behavioral and competency assessments — including a Big Five Inventory and a Situational Judgement Test — to measure applicant fit for particular jobs.
• TestPrep Test preparation offering that helps candidates prepare for SDS hiring assessments, available as a distinct service on the SDS website.
• SDS SkillBuilder Gap Analysis Workforce development tool that identifies employee skill gaps and helps organizations build targeted training programs to close them.
• Custom Assessment Design and Validation Bespoke consulting service that designs and validates customized employee selection systems tailored to specific job requirements and organizational needs, leveraging the firm's I/O psychology expertise and proprietary algorithms.

Quantifiable outcome

• Improved hiring ROI through better candidate selection
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Workday (Talent/Recruiting): Major enterprise HCM and talent management suite with built-in recruiting and skills assessment modules. Not a direct competitor on custom psychometrics, but represents the broader platform ecosystem SDS must integrate with or compete against at enterprise buyers.
• Korn Ferry (Talent Assessment): Global organizational consulting firm with a substantial talent assessment and selection practice. Comparable to SDS in custom assessment design and I/O psychology-driven selection, but embedded in a much broader consulting platform.
• SHL (Exponent, formerly CEB SHL): Global leader in psychometric assessment and talent measurement for hiring. Comparable to SDS in offering custom, validated assessments at enterprise scale, but with a much larger global footprint and broader product portfolio.

Direct peers

• Prevue HR: Provider of online assessments, personality profiling, and skills testing for pre-hire screening. Comparable to SDS in the customized online assessment and pre-hire psychometric space, particularly for mid-market employers.
• Hogan Assessments: Provider of personality-based assessments for employee selection and development. Directly comparable to SDS's Big Five / personality and behavioral assessment stack, with a similar I/O psychology foundation and enterprise focus.
• Criteria Corp (eSkill): Provider of pre-employment testing including personality, cognitive, and skills assessments. Comparable to SDS on the customizable assessment and applicant scoring workflow, targeting similar enterprise and mid-market buyers.

Emerging players

• Harver: Volume hiring and assessment platform used by enterprises to screen applicants. Comparable to SDS on the high-volume, customized-applicant-ranking use case, especially for hourly and safety-sensitive roles.
• Pymetrics: AI-based behavioral assessment platform using gamified cognitive and personality tests. Comparable to SDS's behavioral / personality assessment offering, with a more technology-forward and bias-auditing orientation.
• HireVue: Video interview and AI-driven assessment platform used in enterprise hiring. Comparable to SDS at the assessment-and-ranking stage, but with a stronger focus on video-based and AI-structured interviews.
• TestGorilla: Pre-hire assessment platform offering customizable skills and psychometric tests. Comparable to SDS HireScore Assessment Platform in modernizing pre-hire testing, though with a self-serve rather than bespoke-delivery model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/stangds
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stangds
• Instagraminstagram.com/job.odds

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Stang Decision Systems