What are assessments really all about ?

November 22, 2011 at 10:42 AM

What are assessments really all about?

There is no right and wrong when doing any form of psychometric assessment and they should never be used to hire or fire.They are simply a tool to give a more detailed understanding of the person you are dealing with.

Rather like buying a car, you may like the appearance and performance of the car but you would also take a little time to check the engine out before you buy.

The psychometrics we use work to show two things:

The personality profile shows how a person sees themself, how they may be adapting to fit into their current work situation and can give indicators for behaviours and signs to look for when they are under stress.

The more interesting part is when you combine this analysis with EI and Ability testing,These are the more static traits within a person which support or fuel their surface behaviours.

Many senior candidates are extremely hard workimg.Things that a full assessment may help indicate are what is driving the behavior- is it driven by a sense of insecurity or a need to work harder than average because their ability to process at speed is at the lower end of the spectrum?

What about those with superfast processing powers? This is not always the strength people perceive it to be. It is all relative to the role being carried out and other unique personality traits.

Would you want your fast thinking accountant to have a strong streak of empathy or might you prefer them to be more emotionally detached when weighing up business decisions?

Some people's personality traits may suggest that they are not naturally dominant but if their EI feedback show them to be strongly assertive with good emotional expression you will ascertain that they are not a walkover.

Feedback should involve the exploration of what the results means to the individual and their interpretation in the round of all available knowledge.The person being tested should take centre stage and the assessor is there to guide through well posed questions. That is why psychometric testing makes an excellent grounding for coaching work as people discover snd explore their natural abilities and make-up.

I would emphasise again there is never a right or wrong answer when being assessed and all assessments are just a tool to use alongside many others at the interviewer's disposal. Psychometric Assessments need careful analysis by a trained profesional- to suggest otherwise is not doing justice to the person who has completed the assessment. In general I find them a good tool, that can add balance and pertinent information to the interview process.