I don't know about factoryrat's hiring methods. When I worked for local government here I was severely restricted by HR as to how to interview and hire people for technical positions. In the old days we would use comprehensive written and logic tests. But nowadays we can't ask more than a few questions that have to be pre-approved by HR. Made it extremely tough to find any diamonds in the rough. The fresh college graduates were poor interviews, and demanding more money than was offered. Young graduates are really dumbed down nowadays.
As a manager I expected HR to collect the resumes and pass them on, nothing more. Caused a bit of friction, as the larger the corporation the more grandiose (and worthless) the HR department is.
I picked the wheat from the chaff quite easily without any "professional" help, as I knew what was wanted. Not to say I didn't have brilliant help, just none of it came from "HR".
Testing is common in industry hiring practices. You don’t get an interview if you don’t pass the test. I’ve had to take the skilled trades battery test multiple times throughout the years, and the testing was pretty specific about what the employer was looking for in a person. One job I worked, two Electrical Engineers grilled me for over an hour before they decided to hire me. Judging by the people I worked with, they were really good at picking winners.