ASSESSMENT DEVELOPMENT

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CENTRES
“No duty the Executive had
to perform was so trying as
to put the right man in the
right place.”
-Thomas Jefferson

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How did I do on the organizational wants?

1. Understand bench strength

2. Speed learning and development
3. Link assessment and development
4. Provide fair and reliable judgments
5. Decrease total assessment center costs
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 Summary
• What is an assessment centre?
• Benefits of Assessment Centres
• Brief Assessment Center History
• Who uses assessment centres?
• Uses of the Assessment Center Method
• Why do employers use assessment
centres?
• Types of Assessment Centre
• What happens at an assessment centre?
• How will you be assessed?
• What are assessors looking for?
• What happens after an assessment
centre?
• How can you prepare for assessment
centres?
• Further help and information

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 Assessment: Defining the Terms

• Personnel Assessment: a systematic approach to

gathering information about individuals
• Personnel Assessment Tool: any test or procedure (for
example, ability test, structured interview, work sample)
used to measure an individual’s employment or career-
related qualifications and interests

U.S. Department of Labor, Testing and Assessment: An Employer’s Guide to Good

Practices, 1999 5
 What is an assessment centre?

• Good news! Normally only 5% of the original

applicants will get this far
• A series of exercises, carried out individually or
in a small group over one or two days, designed
to measure the competencies needed in
graduate recruits
• The final stage in the selection process
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Assessment centres are about
Meeting people:
selectors, current
graduates, senior staff,
other candidates

Demonstrating your
Gathering information: potential:
about the organisation, tests and exercises
the job, and the working about your
culture competencies

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 Assessment Center Defined

An assessment center consists of a standardized

evaluation of behavior based on multiple inputs.
Multiple trained observers and techniques are
used. Judgments about behaviors are made, in major
part, from specifically developed assessment
simulations. These judgments are pooled in a
meeting among the assessors or by a statistical
integration process.
- International Taskforce, 2009
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 How do employers try to get it right?

1990s 2000s
• Interviews 99% 99%
• References 96% 96%
• Personality tests 35% 64%
• Cognitive tests 30% 70%
• Assessment centres 21% 59%

[Source :University of Liverpool - c. 2000]

Note: The AGR Graduate Recruitment Survey 2006 Summer Review

found that 83% of their members use final round assessment centres or
selection events.
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 The AC Big “10”…
1. Job analysis (behaviors)
2. Behavioral classification
(dimensions)
3. Links: behaviors  dimensions
 exercises
4. Multiple assessments
5. Simulations
6. Multiple assessors
7. Assessor training
8. Recording behavior
9. Reports
10. Data integration

Observation Rating Judgment 10

Assessment Center Scheme

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• Employer
• Provide a comprehensive overview of an
individual’s strengths and weaknesses;
• Are standardised, every candidate has the
same opportunity to demonstrate their
skills;
• Are more objective then interviews alone,
which may be biased by the interviewers’
interpretations;
• Allows applicants to demonstrate many
abilities in a variety of different situations;
• Can be tailored to suit the position and the
type of skills required;
• Provide information to place successful
candidate in the appropriate section of the
organisation.
• Graduate
• An opportunity to share your working
style and strengths;
• Success does not hinge on two
interviews;
• If you are successful in securing the
position the candidate can be more
confident that it will suit you and that
the employer feels you have potential
to advance;
• A fair and more equitable hiring
practice;
• Attendance at an assessment centre
gives you an opportunity to assess the
organisation and whether you’d like to
work for it;
• You have gained valuable experience
for next time
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Brief Assessment Center
History

• Used by Germans in 1st World

War to select officers

• Used by U.S. to select spies

(OSS)

• In Private Industry, 1st used by

AT&T to predict performance of
managers (Management
Progress Study)

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AT&T Manager Progress Study

• 1st application of AC method in

US industry (Douglas Bray)
• Longitudinal study of 400+
recently hired managers
• Inbasket, LGD, manufacturing
game, interview, personal history,
p&p tests (g & personality)
• Predicted progress over a 15 year
period
• Implemented throughout the
whole Bell system

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 From then to now…
• 1960s: AT&T shared…
– IBM, Sears, Standard Oil, GE, J.C. Penny
• 1966: Bray & Grant: Psych Monographs Paper
• 1969: Conferences being held on AC Method
• 1970: Byham article in Harvard Business Review
• 1973: 1st International Conference on Assessment Center Methods
(ICACM ) Meeting; DDI Established
• 1975: AC Guidelines Published
• Today: Hundreds of studies, Thousands of ACs conducted, Millions
Assessed!
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 Who uses assessment centres?

Most large graduate recruiters including:

• The Civil Service
• Local government; the NHS
• Manufacturing companies
• Banks, chartered accountants
• Advertising agencies
• Consultancies
• The armed forces, police etc

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 Why do employers use assessment centres?

• Selection and Promotion

• Diagnosis
– Identification of training & developmental needs
• Development
– Skill enhancement through simulations
– Not the same as diagnosis (Carrick & Williams, 1999)

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 Why do ‘The assessment centre is an
integrated process of simulations
employers use designed to generate behaviour
Assessment similar to that required for success
Centres? in a target job or job level. It
enables candidates’ performance
to be measured objectively against
specific key criteria’ Association
of Graduate Recruiters (2008)

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Why do we use assessment centres?

• Accuracy – right person, right

job
• Ability to observe ‘on the job’
performance
• Equity – fair for everyone
• Buy-in – for assessors and
candidates
• Cost of poor selection –
morale, retention, impact on
work
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 Types of Assessment Centre
What types of Assessment would you expect at an Assessment Centre?

Psychometric Assessment
• Numerical Reasoning
• Verbal Reasoning
• Comprehension
• Diagrammatic or abstract reasoning
• Analytical thinking
• Personality tests or profiles

Work-based Activities and Simulation Exercises

• Case Studies
• In-tray Exercises
• Group Discussions
• Group Exercises
• Presentations
• Role Plays
• Proposal
• Problem Solving Projects
• Social Events

Interviews
• One on one
• Panel
• Behavioural or Competency based
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 What happens at an assessment centre?

A number of different exercises, which are likely to include:

Individual exercises:
• Written tasks
• In-tray exercises
• Psychometric tests
• Presentations
• Interviews

Plus socialising with assessors, fellow-candidates and recent graduates

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 A typical 1-day assessment centre
• Introduction of participants and candidates
• Company presentation
• Individual presentations
• Coffee break, socialising informally
• Psychometric testing
• In-tray exercise
• Buffet lunch, socialising informally
• Group exercise, solving a work-related problem
• Interviews, ½ hour, skills-based
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 The most
frequently-
used exercises
at assessment
centres

• Interview 97%
• Psychometric test 91%
• Group discussion 89%
• Personality test 79%
• Case study 71%
• Presentation 61%
• In-tray exercise 48% 23
 Psychometric Tests

• Aptitude Tests - measure skills relevant to position

– Verbal comprehension - evaluate logic of text
– Numerical reasoning - interpret statistical data
– Diagrammatic reasoning - recognise patterns
– Watch timing – complete as many as possible

• Personality Questionnaires
– Look at personality style
– No right or wrong answers
– Be spontaneous, don’t try to second-guess
– Tests include built-in checks
– Employers may be looking for different personality profiles
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 How will you be
assessed?

• By people with clipboards!

• On a range of competencies that are
important in the job you are applying
for
• By more than one person
• On your own merits
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 What are
assessors
looking for?
• Evidence of the competencies
needed to perform well in the
job
• You have already been assessed
on these on paper and at first
interview…
• The assessment centre will look
particularly at your ability to
work with others, influence and
persuade – and how others
respond to you
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 Qualities and Competencies
• What employers are looking for
In general companies are looking for the following qualities:
Cognitive /Intellectual
Strategic thinking, analysis and judgement, planning and organising
Interpersonal
Managing others, assertiveness, oral and verbal communication
Adaptability
Versatility, resilience, creativity, dealing with ambiguity
Results Orientation
Energy and initiative, achievement motivation
Social
Persuasive, confidence, multicultural sensitivity, values and integrity
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 Dimensions By Exercise Grid
Leaderless
Interview Scheduling Business
Group
Simulation Exercise Game
Discussion

1. Decisiveness X (X) (X)

2. Leadership (X) (X) (X)

3. Management
Control X X X

4. Oral
Communication (X) X (X)

5. Planning and
Organization X (X) X

6. Problem
Analysis/Judgment (X) (X) (X) X

7. Resilience
(X) (X) X X

8. Sensitivity
(X) X X X

9.  Written
Communication X X X X
(Reaction Forms)

 To be measured in four Participant Reaction Forms

X Quality typically measurable in this particular exercise
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( ) Parentheses indicate an exercise that is a particularly strong measure of that quality
 Group exercises

• Discussions
• Practical tasks
• Role play

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 Group Discussions
• Discussion of a general topic, e.g.
– Should tolls be introduced on all motorways?
– What can be done to improve the NHS?
– How can the problems associated with excessive alcohol
consumption be tackled?

• Discussion of a scenario:
– Assessment of bids for lottery funding
– Shipwreck/desert survival
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 Group Exercises

Practical tasks, e.g.

• Constructing a Lego tower or paper
chain
• Creating an advertising campaign
for a specific product
• Crossing a “shark-infested river”
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Role Play
• Discussion of a given topic or
problem
• Each member of the group
allocated a role, e.g. Marketing
Manager/Finance Director
• You will have information that
other members of the group do
not
• Need to reach an agreement or
produce a recommendation

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 What are assessors looking for in group
activities?
• Interpersonal skills
• Persuasiveness
• Co-operation and teamwork
• Analysis, judgement and decision-making
• Initiative and creativity
• Time management
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 Case Studies
• May be one of the group exercises and discussions, often
involving role-play ..
• … or an individual task
• Will need to study the information you are presented with,
pick out the key points and reach decisions …
• … which you may need to write up in a report or to present
verbally

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Presentations
• You may be given a topic in
advance or allocated one on the
day
• Keep visual aids simple and
relevant
• You will be allowed to use notes –
small cards are best

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 In-Tray Exercises
• Simulates the work you will
be doing if selected
• You will be given a number
of messages – plus attached
documents – that you might
find in your inbox one
morning
• Need to sort, prioritise and
take or recommend action
• Time-limited: new emails
(and even phone
calls) may keep coming in!
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 Interviews
• Likely to be more challenging and probing than
previous interviews …
• … but will be with a different interviewer so be
prepared for some of the same points to be covered
…
• … especially anything that has emerged as a weak
point at previous interviews

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 The Social Side

• May include coffee breaks/lunch

with the assessors and/or meetings
with recent graduates
• Not part of the formal
assessment …
• … but anything you say
or do could be
remembered

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 Data Integration Options

• Group Discussion
– Administrator role is critical
– Leads to higher-quality assessor evidence—peer pressure
– Beware of process losses!
• Statistical/Mechanical
– May be more or less acceptable to organizational decision makers,
depending on particular circumstances
– Can be more effective than “clinical” model
– Requires research base to develop formula
• Combination of both
– Example: consensus on dimension profile, statistical rule to determine
overall assessment rating 39
Participant:______________
(Name)
Assessor: ______________
(Name)
Date: ____________

Assessor Report Form

Interview Simulation

1 – Very little or none of the quality was shown.

2 – A less than satisfactory degree was shown.
3 – A satisfactory amount was shown.
4 – A greater than satisfactory amount was shown.
5 – A great deal of the quality was shown.

(1) Decisiveness: ______

(Readiness to make decisions, render judgments,
take action or commit oneself.)

(2) Judgment: ______

(Ability to develop alternative solutions to
problems, to evaluate courses of action and
reach logical decisions.)

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 Assessor Discussion Form
Assessors:
_____________________________ Participant:_______________________
_____________________________ Date: ______________
_____________________________

Decisiveness:
Readiness to make decisions, render
judgments, take action or commit oneself.
Assessor Your
Business Game _____ _____
Interview Simulation _____ _____
Leaderless Group Discussion _____ _____
_____ _____

Overall _________

Initiative:
Actively influencing events rather than
passively accepting; self-starting. Takes
action beyond what is necessarily called
for. Originates actions rather than just
responding.
Assessor Your
Business Game _____ _____
Leaderless Group Discussion _____ _____

Overall _________
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Assessment Dimension Assessor #1 Assessor #2 Assessor #3 Final Rating

Center --- Decisiveness

Sample
Final Rating Initiative

Form
Judgment

Leadership

Management
Control

Oral
Communication

Planning &
Organization

Problem
Analysis

Resilience

Sensitivity

Written
Communication
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Overall Score
Sources of Rater Bias
• Halo effect– rate high or low due to irrelevant feature or global impression
• Leniency error– tendency to give everyone higher ratings
• Severity error– tendency to give everyone lower ratings
• Central tendency– avoid extreme ratings for specific or on all dimensions
• Contrast effect– rating of one person is affected by rating of another
• Hawthorne effect– rating distortion (usually high) due to being attended to in a study
• Self-fulfilling prophecy (experimenter effect)– selective attention given to what is expected or
desired
• Misplaced precision error– faults in the rating, design, or treatment may invalidate the precision of
the other
• Law of the instrument– a favorite instrument will probably find only what it’s designed to find
• Number magic– the use of numbers carries the impression of greater precision than may be
present
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 Key Steps to
Valid Assessments

Step 1: Identify job-relevant

competencies
Step 2: Design the assessment
strategy
Step 3: Identify assessment tools
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 Step 1: Identify Job-relevant Competencies

Do you have job analysis/competency data?

IF NO
• Conduct a job analysis – A study of what job holders do on the job,
what competencies must be employed to do it, what resources are
used in doing it, and the conditions under which it is done
• Why do a job analysis
– It forms the basis for applicant assessment tools
– It helps provide legal defensibility
– It makes good business sense
– It enhances the validity and utility of human resource products

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Step 1: Identify Job-relevant Competencies

Do you have job analysis/competency data?

IF YES
Proceed to the next step
Step 2: Design the assessment strategy

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 Step 2: Design the Assessment Strategy
• One or more assessment options can be used to
determine a person’s ability to successfully perform
a job

• The appropriate assessments for a given situation

will depend on a number of factors, such as:
– Number of applicants – Turnover
– Volume of hires – Diversity issues
– History of litigation – Job stress
– Degree of customer
contact
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 Step 2: Design the Assessment Strategy
Other considerations

• Resources

– Budget available for assessment

– Time available for development and implementation
– Staff available to administer assessment
• Job-relevant competencies to be assessed
• Tools used to assess these competencies
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Step 2: Design the Assessment Strategy

Questions to Address
1) Is the assessment tool reliable and valid?
2) How are the assessments scored?
– Formula to combine assessment scores
– Setting of passing scores
– Veterans’ preference
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 Step 2: Design the
Assessment Strategy

Questions to Address (cont.)

3. In what order will applicants take the assessments?
One common model:
• Hurdle 1: Screening
• Hurdle 2: Performance-based Assessment
• Hurdle 3: Interview 50
 Step 3: Identify Assessment Tools
Hurdle 1: Screening tools may be used to narrow large candidate
pools
Examples:
– Accomplishment Record
– Biographical Data Questionnaire (Biodata)
– Cognitive Ability Test
– Job Knowledge Test
– Personality Test
– Situational Judgment Test (SJT)
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 Step 3: Identify
Assessment Tools

Hurdle 2: Performance-based assessments measure an

applicant’s ability to perform job-related activities (best used when
a limited number of applicants is expected)
Examples:
• Assessment Center
• Work Sample
• Writing Assessment

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Step 3: Identify Assessment Tools

Hurdle 3: Structured interview should be

used as a final assessment method or when the
applicant pool is moderate or small in size

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 Training and Development

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54 © Development Dimensions Int’l, Inc., MMXI. All rights reserved.
Connect Assessment
Insights with
Development
Activities

• Provide a “fix” for things assessed

• Save money by not training people on what they know
or are good at
• Take advantage of Key Actions to speed training
• Provide multiple practice opportunities where Key
Actions overlap—most important Key Actions

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 Interaction Essentials
Influencing Others Decision Making

B B
B
Coaching B B B Delegating
B B B
B B
B B B B B
B
B B B B
B B B
B = Behaviorally-defined Key Actions
B = Behaviorally-defined Key Actions
B= Behaviorally-defined Key Actions which are
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Interaction Essentials
How Development Components Are Linked
Determination of focus Key Action
development needs based on assessment report and discussion with
manager

Training to learn and practice focus needs

Deliberate Practice with manager or others

Follow-up development and reinforcement to assure training sticks

Adoption of Key Actions into ongoing personal skill set
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Ongoing Practice and Measurement of Key Actions

• Reminders of key learnings and forms provided in training

• Additional simulations for more practice
• Games to build skills
• Ways to collect ongoing feedback (Social Media)

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Advantages of Linking Assessment
with Training and Development

• Focuses training and development efforts

• Guides deliberate practices
• Motivates learners (understand need)
• Speeds training and development
• Decreases training and development costs
• Makes assessment and training/ development into
an integrated system 59
Other Considerations

• To use assessment tools properly, you must be

aware of both the benefits and limitations of any
assessment strategy
• Agencies can develop and administer some of these
methods independently. However, some of the
options require a high level of technical expertise to
develop and implement
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One Final Thought

“Hiring decisions have long-term consequences for an

organization’s productivity and performance. Therefore,
quality—not speed—should be the primary measure of
the success of hiring decisions and the underlying hiring
process.”

Identifying Talent through Technology ─ Automated Hiring Systems in Federal

Agencies. U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, August 2004.
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Learning and Giving

For Better IndONEsia 62