assessment centres - secrets uncovered

Eden Scott & Heriot Watt University Success in Assessment Centres| Graduates 2017

Today’sAgenda

· Introduction – Simone Thompson

· Technical elements of assessment centres, how to succeed and the pitfalls from Michelle and Chris

· Background· What is an Assessment Centre· Interviews · Presentations· In Tray Exercise · OPQ’s· SHL Testing· Case Study· Group Exercise· Assessment Centres

· Question and Answer

About Us

· Established in Edinburgh in 2003

· Excess of £15 million turnover

· Offices in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Belfast

· 70 discipline-specific recruitment consultants across the country

· Global reach – EMEA, North America, Asia Pacific

· Recruit from entry to executive level

· Permanent, contract and temporary solutions

· Leading Scottish recruitment brand on social media

· TalentSpark – our offering to the start-up and SME community

Why are wehere?

· To help you understand and succeed in Assessment Centres

· Wealth of recruitment knowledge in our Executive Team; Chris and Michelle

· Run a graduate programme

· Run Assessment Centres for number of large organisations,

· NHS· Glasgow City Council· Standard Life· LifeScan

What will youlearn?

· Get a better understanding of why companies use assessment centres

· Knowledge of the various elements included in an assessment centre

· Practical solutions to succeed in the various exercises.

· An insight into what the assessors are looking for

· How to avoid the main pitfalls that occur in assessment centres

Experience of Assessment Centres

· So, who has had experience of and assessment centre?

· How do people feel about attending an assessment centre?

Assessment Centres

· Assessment centres have origins in war time Britain

· Large number of unsuitable Officers being sent back

· Failing recruitment system – social standing & educational background

· Assessment centres introduced including leaderless group exercises, selection tests, individual interviews.

· Resulted in far less returned Officers and version of the system still used today.

Why Assessment Centres

· Validity, most reliable method of assessing candidates ability to perform

· They are fair and objective

· Provide a wealth of information on each candidate which forms the basis of a robust Personal Development Plan if appointed

· Skills are assessed over a number of exercises

· They assess what candidates can actually do

· Individual Exercises

· Interviews (CBI, Biographical)· Role play · Formal presentations· In tray exercise· OPQ’s/Psychometric testing

· Group Exercises

· Case study· Group consensus exercise· Group presentation

Interviews

· Biographical

· Traditional interviews based on experience, training and education, health, motivation.

· Relies on assumptions about candidate

· Competency Based Interviews (CBI) · Structured Interview

· Questions relating to specific competencies

· Examples from work, education, social in relation to required behaviours

· Stronger picture of strengths and weaknesses· What assessors are looking for

· Getting to know the candidate – Personality fit

· Assessing competencies - CBI

· Building rapport

· Dealing with stress

Role Play

· Usually business related tasks to assess suitability

· Call and sell product to potential client

· Negotiating a pay rise

· Business development call

· Dealing with angry customer call

· Assessing for:

· Initiative

· Ability to think on your feet

· Confidence

· Communication

· Tenacity

Presentation

· A pre-prepared and timed presentation on a chosen subject

· Showcasing knowledge on specific topic, usually industry related

· Usually provided with brief and timings prior

· Assessing for:

· Research skills

· Communication skills

· Presentation skills

· Working under pressure

· Ability to engage an audience

· Adaptability

· Handling objections

In-Tray Exercise

· Dealing with heavy workload

· Provided a list of tasks and challenged to manage time and workload

· Prioritising tasks

· Coping with unexpected additional demands

· Assessing for:

· To assess ability to cope under pressure

· Knowledge of requirements of the job


OPQ’s

· Occupational Personality Questionnaire

· Identifying an individuals preferences to see how they align with a job role

· Number of variations for the online questionnaire

· Four statements requiring choosing the most appropriate

· Four statements, choose one most like and one least like

· 32 questions on a scale and judging the level of relevance

· Requires honest answers

· Aim is to ensure the right personality is in the right job

· Assessing for:

· True reflection of personality

· To identify your real strengths


SHL Testing

· SHL Numerical Reasoning

· Online or offline testing

· Interpreting numerical data and answering related questions.

· Including a range of numerical operations, multiplication, fractions, percentage increases and decreases

· Could be supervised or unsupervised.

· SHL Verbal Reasoning

· Mostly Online

· Reading a passage in a book and answering either true/false or multiple choice questions on the understanding

· Completely based on the content in the book, not on any outside knowledge

· Could be supervised or unsupervised.

· Assessing for:

· Ability to interpret relevant, job related information

· Performance under pressure

· Decision making

· Attention to detail

Case Study

· Group or Individual

· Involves working through hypothetical data to present back.

· Scenario presented blind

· Either as a group or as individual

· Possible change in rules, information and timings to unsettle candidates

· Assessing for:

· Teamwork

· Leadership and influencing skills

· Initiative

· Creativity

· Presentation Skills

· Ability to assimilate info quickly


· Thinking Style

Group Exercise

· Discussion or consensus exercise

· Reaching agreement as a group and presenting

· Pitch presentation

· Desert island scenario

· Technical job related

· Assessing for:

· Teamwork

· Leadership and influencing skills

· Initiative

· Listening ability

· Presentation skills

· Ability to assimilate info quickly


Group Exercise

· Secrets to Success in Group Exercises

· Keep focused on the brief you have been given and achieve what is being asked

· Take on board every ones input, you don’t have to agree with it but it’s essential to deal with things appropriately

· Strike the balance of letting go of insignificant issues and pursing ones which will lead to results

· Timing is everything, don’t get involved in discussions and run out of time without coming up with the answer

· Don’t criticise others, just because their opinion isn’t yours

· Speak with conviction and confidence

· It’s not about how often you speak it’s about what you say. Is your contribution relevant to the exercise?

· Contemplate the problem and deliver the result don’t debate why the problem exists or talk about information you’ve not got

· Don’t think playing a part or a role is enough ie: Flip chart writer

· Be prepared to present and think on your feet and always reflect the agreement and findings of the group

Common Competencies

· Planning & Organising

· Adaptability & Flexibility

· Problem Solving

· Communication with Influence

· Decision Making

· Resistance to Stress

· Results Orientated

· Persuasiveness

· Quality Orientation

· Interpersonal Sensitivity

· Leadership

· Resilience

· Energy

· Commitment

· Creativity & Innovation

Assessment CentreMatrix

Competencies In Tray Customer Role Play

Group Exercise

Structured Interview

Overall Assessment

Organisational Awareness

3 3 4 3 3

Job Specifications 4 5 4 4

Customer Focus 4 5 5 5

Managing Staff 2 1 2 2

Relationships with Others

3 2 3

Focus on results 3 4 3 3

Personal Effectiveness 3 4 3

Manages Diversity 2 2

Assessment Centre

· Why do people fail at assessment centres?

· Lack of preparation

· Lack of research

· Lack of understanding of the role

· Nerves

· Focusing on a bad performance in one exercises letting this affect performance in all other exercises

· Focusing on other candidates in exercises rather than the required task in hand

· Lack of understanding of where the assessment centres fits in the recruitment process and the weighting it is given

Assessment Centre

· How to perform well

· Be assertive throughout all of the exercises

· Treat each exercise individually, don’t dwell on an exercise if you perceive you haven’t performed well

· Focus on showcasing your skill set and how it will be beneficial to the role and the company

· Don’t focus on other candidates

· Draw others into conversations in group exercise and during break periods

· Think about what you are saying and its relevance

· Relax

26 St. Andrew SquareEdinburgh, EH2 1AF

E [email protected] 0131 550 1100W www.edenscott.com

Questions

assessment centres - secrets uncovered

Career