Effective Talent Identification and Selection - the benefits and uses of assessment centres

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1 Effective Talent Identification and Selection - the benefits and uses of assessment centres Benefits of Assessment Centres Extensive research has shown that well designed and delivered selection Assessment Centres (ACs) have a greater success in identifying suitable candidates than interviewing alone. Candidates selected through ACs tend to have higher levels of retention and more rapidly begin to perform at optimum levels than those appointed through other methods ACs provide a number of benefits, including: More objective and broader opportunities to observe candidates in situations that elicit evidence of a candidate s level of competence for key aspects of the role requirements Fairness from multiple observations and assessments Providing an enhanced professional image of the organisation to candidates Presents an ideal opportunity for the candidates to preview the role and the organisation Activities designed are some of the most effective ways to predict performance in the work environment A more defensible selection process In addition to this, internal team members supporting and participating in the AC process will develop their assessment and observation skills. Assessment centre uses Assessment Centres are valuable where any analysis and identification of talent is required. Uses can include: Promotions Recruitment Talent inventory Leadership assessment and development Selection for development This document outlines the approach we take to designing and delivering an AC for recruitment and selection. The methods suggested are tried and tested, significantly increasing the validity of selection decisions, and are very likely to save costs associated with selection errors, as well as reduce the risks associated with discriminatory selection practices. The Greenread Partnership have recently been involved with a project supported by the British Psychological Society to formalise standards for the design and delivery of assessment and development centres.

2 Our Approach At the initial stages we focus on the role(s) to be filled and the skills, knowledge and experience required by successful candidates. Alignment with organisational competencies, as well as the technical capabilities and experience that are specific to the role, are identified and clearly articulated. We often find that most managers are very clear about the technical capabilities that are required in the vacant role but do not always consider the behaviours that are essential for success. Where organisational competencies do not exist we take time to support the manager in developing clear descriptors of these behavioural requirements. Understanding the key competencies to be assessed will impact upon the design of the AC and the activities to be undertaken. Pre-assessment Ability tests We advocate the use of ability tests in many circumstances where a clearly identifiable level of intellectual ability is a critical factor for success in the role. These can be carefully selected to test key capabilities required in the role. Ability tests measure a person s ability to perform or carry out different tasks and have been found to be one of the strongest predictors of future job performance where intellectual ability is important. The tests most commonly used are: Verbal these are designed to measure a person s ability to interpret verbal information and reach correct conclusions. Verbal reasoning ability is important for any work involving the communication of ideas or the understanding of written information. It can also be important for work requiring analytical thinking. Numerical these are designed to measure a person s ability to analyse and draw inferences from numerical information and data. Numerical reasoning ability is important for a variety of roles where working with data is key. Logical these are designed to test a person s ability to analyse abstract information and apply this in determining outcomes and patterns. Logical reasoning ability is important for a variety of roles requiring complex problem solving. Ability testing can be used at any stage of the assessment process. For high volume recruitment where it is clear that certain abilities are a role requirement they can be used at the first sift. Often they are used at the second sift stage once applicants CVs or application forms has been reviewed, or perhaps a short telephone interview has been conducted. The use of a robust and valid assessment of ability in the early stages of a recruitment process, especially where there are high volumes of applicants, can be an extremely cost effective method for screening out those who represent a high risk in terms of lacking the basic abilities required for the role.

3 Psychometrics As attitude and personal fit are so important to the success of the selection process, the use of a suitable personality assessment can also be extremely useful. The assessment that Greenread recommends focuses on work-based preferences and can be mapped against organisational competencies that are predictive of successful work behavior. The assessments are administered on-line and can be completed remotely prior to the AC allowing us to integrate the findings into the assessment on the day. If required, the interface and the reports produced can be branded with the recruiting organisation s colours and logos. From this assessment, interview questions can be designed that will specifically probe around any preferences that fall within a pre-identified danger zone. More information on the validity and reliability of the tools that we use, and the nature and security of the administration process, is available on request. The administration and interpretation of psychometric tools must be undertaken by individuals qualified to BPS Test User standards. The Greenread Partnership will only deploy consultants with at least this qualification, with our Chartered Occupational Psychologists being consulted during the design phase as required. Activities on the Day The following is an indication of the type of activities that could be undertaken, based on previous experiences of designing and delivering ACs. Up to 3 activities will be designed and selected to provide candidates with more than one opportunity to display each of the identified key competencies. These could include: Role-play or case study Designed to assess individual s problem solving, technical capability and/or business acumen in real time. A suitable scenario for this exercise would be designed in collaboration with members of the recruiting team to ensure the scenario fairly reflected the demands and culture of the role, function and organisation Group exercise Designed to measure a range of competence, including communication, team working, management of pressure, professional behavior and leadership skills. Group exercises are particularly effective at eliciting evidence of an individual s natural behavior in a group under pressure. Candidates will be provided with a scenario and be required to come to a conclusion and present back.

4 Presentation Requiring candidates to prepare and deliver a presentation on a pertinent topic will enable them to display their communication and presentational competencies as well as their strategic, analytical and/or technical capabilities dependent upon the presentation theme. Candidates are either asked to prepare the presentation in advance of the AC or given the topic on arrival and provided with adequate time and facilities to develop their response. Competency based interview The Competency Based Interview (CBI) is designed to accurately probe for evidence of the key competencies. Each candidate s interview for the same role consists of exactly the same competency questions but with the addition of some individual questions generated from the analysis of the result of the personality questionnaire. These individual questions tend to be designed to understand cultural fit and helps the assessor ascertain whether personality factors may represent a particular risk for success in the role. Wash-up, Evaluation and Feedback We facilitate a wash-up session at the end of the AC which generates agreed final scores for each candidate. Assessors take time individually to conclude their scoring on the scoring grid. The facilitated evaluation session gathers assessor scores and compiles the overall score and ranking, with the major strengths and weaknesses described for each candidate. This is used to support final decision making by the management about which candidate will be appointed. In order to ensure that this wash-up practice is robust and fair, weightings and cut off scores can be defined prior to the assessment centre as part of the design. Evidence suggests that wash-ups with a robust mathematical approach have higher predictive validity. In addition, it is important from an ethical standpoint that each candidate is offered the opportunity to receive one-to-one feedback on the psychometric assessment whether they are successful or not. This can be done face to face, by phone or by depending upon the numbers of applicants, whether they are internal or external candidates, and the job level. We are also able to provide candidates with a short written report summarising their performance at the AC. This would be beneficial both to the successful candidate, who could use it to focus their personal development plan, and to unsuccessful candidates who may gain substantial learning from the process for their future careers.

5 Setting up the Assessment Centre Assessor, Role Player and Administrator Briefing Whilst we are able to provide assessors, we always prefer to work with an internal assessment team to ensure robustness and validity of the assessments and commitment and ownership to the final selection. We work closely with our clients to support them in the identification and development of internal assessors. It is key that assessors are capable of taking an objective view and assess capabilities against the key competencies. We therefore design and deliver training and briefing sessions to ensure all assessors understand the AC purpose, process and schedule and are clear about their role. We highlight the importance of impartial assessment and decision making. Where role playing is required, internal actors can be used or we can supply role players. We brief role players regarding their role and how they interact with candidates. Administration of the AC will play a key part in the efficiency of the day. We work closely with the internal team to ensure they understand the timetable and process and are supported throughout the assessment day(s). Conclusion Research has found that assessment centres are one of the most reliable methods of assessing candidates against the requirements to be successful as employees. Interviews, or any other method, taken alone, may be as low as 15% accurate. However, when scores from a number of different selection exercises are combined, their accuracy can rise to over 60%. In addition to this, when correctly designed and run with a professional approach, assessment centres are generally accepted as a fair method of selection, providing equal opportunities for all candidates and selection based on merit. In addition to this a typical assessment centre provides much more information about fit, skills, competencies and future potential than virtually any other method of recruitment. This all combines to reduce the risk of claims on discrimination, raise the profile of the recruiting organisation and ultimately means that new recruits are far more likely to stay with the organisation and begin to deliver high performance much earlier than those recruited through interview alone. We are happy to meet with you to explain our approach in more detail and talk through how we would develop a tailored approach to delivering effective assessment centres for your organisation. Please contact Sue Green at: E: sue@greenread.co.uk T: M: