Hello All,
My company has rolled out competency-based L&D interventions. Behavioral competencies across all levels have already been identified. We also have training modules created based on the competencies.
Now, I have been given the responsibility to design activities for the assessment center. We plan to use assessment center activities in recruitment as well as to assess training effectiveness.
I know that there are many activities that can be used in an assessment center like in-basket exercises, role-plays, group discussions, simulations, etc. However, what I want to know is 'how to design these activities?'
Can more experienced OD consultants or professionals help me in this regard?
Thank you in advance!
From India, Mumbai
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My company has rolled out competency-based L&D interventions. Behavioral competencies across all levels have already been identified. We also have training modules created based on the competencies.
Now, I have been given the responsibility to design activities for the assessment center. We plan to use assessment center activities in recruitment as well as to assess training effectiveness.
I know that there are many activities that can be used in an assessment center like in-basket exercises, role-plays, group discussions, simulations, etc. However, what I want to know is 'how to design these activities?'
Can more experienced OD consultants or professionals help me in this regard?
Thank you in advance!
From India, Mumbai
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A simple test for English needs experts. Check the British Council; they are forerunners. If the person who administers the test is not excellent in English, it will be a fiasco. The same goes for other tests like PSI, TAT, RSI, Belbin, Watson & Glaser, etc. You either need to be certified or must have worked with highly experienced people.
From India, Delhi
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45From India, Delhi
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Hello Surya Vrat I did not understand the connection between my query and your reply. I would appreciate if you post something relevant to my query otherwise don’t. Manasi
From India, Mumbai
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From India, Mumbai
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Hi Manasi,
Kindly read your question once again.
I will just repeat the last line, "how to design activities like in basket/role plays......"
Now read my answer again or let me try to explain again.
There are different kinds of tests employed in an assessment center. Let's take the case of a person who doesn't know about MBTI. One route is the person gets certified, has access to the right materials, and then administers. Another is he may not be certified but has worked on the same for long/coupled with materials. In the absence of both, it will be difficult to design the test and understand the results.
Example 2:
We can conduct "Belbin's team roles" purely through a written test, or we can conduct the same as a group exercise outdoors.
Example 3:
To identify different kinds of listening, we can Y-jack or listen to recorded calls or role plays or even as an instance during in-person interviews or "bubble drawing."
Alternate: You may need to split your question into several smaller ones so that everyone can share experiences based on different tests employed.
I have been exposed to assessment centres since May 2001.
A brief on the tests which I have used are MBTI/RSI/TAT/Firo B/OPQ/Watson & Glaser/Belbin Team roles/several ability tests (IQ/abstract & numerical reasoning/motor abilities) etc.
From India, Delhi
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Kindly read your question once again.
I will just repeat the last line, "how to design activities like in basket/role plays......"
Now read my answer again or let me try to explain again.
There are different kinds of tests employed in an assessment center. Let's take the case of a person who doesn't know about MBTI. One route is the person gets certified, has access to the right materials, and then administers. Another is he may not be certified but has worked on the same for long/coupled with materials. In the absence of both, it will be difficult to design the test and understand the results.
Example 2:
We can conduct "Belbin's team roles" purely through a written test, or we can conduct the same as a group exercise outdoors.
Example 3:
To identify different kinds of listening, we can Y-jack or listen to recorded calls or role plays or even as an instance during in-person interviews or "bubble drawing."
Alternate: You may need to split your question into several smaller ones so that everyone can share experiences based on different tests employed.
I have been exposed to assessment centres since May 2001.
A brief on the tests which I have used are MBTI/RSI/TAT/Firo B/OPQ/Watson & Glaser/Belbin Team roles/several ability tests (IQ/abstract & numerical reasoning/motor abilities) etc.
From India, Delhi
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Hello Surya Vrat,
Thank you for the detailed response.
The examples that you have provided discuss standardized psychometric tests. I am certain that they are one of the effective tools to be used in an assessment center. However, as far as I know, any psychometric tool cannot be administered to the same person twice. Therefore, when we intend to use an assessment center to evaluate training effectiveness (our training modules are based on behavioral competency BARS), it is evident that a single participant will undergo training until they reach the desired level of BARS in the competencies relevant to their role. Consequently, as they progress up the ladder of BARS, they will need to participate in the assessment center exercises more than once (though the frequency will be once per year).
Hence, in such scenarios, various case studies (arranged in increasing order of difficulty/analysis), in-basket exercises, etc., need to be designed.
When I initially asked the question 'how to design these activities,' I was referring to how to create in-basket exercises, case studies, and role-play scenarios. I did not mean psychometric tools, as I understand that designing a standardized psychometric tool is not a task that can be accomplished by a single person over a period of a few weeks or months.
Could you recommend some useful books or websites that could guide me on how to design these tools? I can then modify them to align with our competency framework.
Thank you!
Regards,
Manasi
From India, Mumbai
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Thank you for the detailed response.
The examples that you have provided discuss standardized psychometric tests. I am certain that they are one of the effective tools to be used in an assessment center. However, as far as I know, any psychometric tool cannot be administered to the same person twice. Therefore, when we intend to use an assessment center to evaluate training effectiveness (our training modules are based on behavioral competency BARS), it is evident that a single participant will undergo training until they reach the desired level of BARS in the competencies relevant to their role. Consequently, as they progress up the ladder of BARS, they will need to participate in the assessment center exercises more than once (though the frequency will be once per year).
Hence, in such scenarios, various case studies (arranged in increasing order of difficulty/analysis), in-basket exercises, etc., need to be designed.
When I initially asked the question 'how to design these activities,' I was referring to how to create in-basket exercises, case studies, and role-play scenarios. I did not mean psychometric tools, as I understand that designing a standardized psychometric tool is not a task that can be accomplished by a single person over a period of a few weeks or months.
Could you recommend some useful books or websites that could guide me on how to design these tools? I can then modify them to align with our competency framework.
Thank you!
Regards,
Manasi
From India, Mumbai
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Manasi, Greetings,
I think I understand what you are looking for; however, it seems that we need to "entangle" a couple of ideas.
Yes, it is advantageous to do some assessment-related activities to gauge where different people (at different levels) stand relative to your competencies.
Hopefully, in establishing competencies, you have articulated indicators that identify what level someone is performing at in any given competency.
To create assessment exercises that are relevant, valid, and reliable takes a lot of experience and work. I can recommend a couple of books that are good at helping someone to understand the how-to-do-its:
The Assessment and Selection Handbook by Ian Taylor ISBN 978-0-7494-5054-0
It has a good section on activities.
Development and Assessment Centres: Identifying and developing competence by Charles Woodruffe ISBN 978-0-9554488-0-5
Developing Organizational Simulation, A Guide for Practitioners and Students by George C. Thornton, III and Rose A. Mueller-Hanson ISBN 0-8058-4412-0
The last one has a more "academic" feel, but it does go through the issues related to "how-to" create exercises.
All of that said, your organization may want to consider the value of products available on the market that have proven reliability:
The OPC - Occupational Psychology - Tests & Exercises: http://www.theopc.co.uk/tests
A&DC | Talent Management Consultancy | HR Assessment, Development & Engagement Tools & Solutions: http://www.adc.uk.com/
http://www.sr-associates.com/documents/D17.pdf
Those three websites should help you a lot.
For ongoing assessment of competencies, your performance management system should be linked to the competencies as well.
You would only re-test people in an assessment center if they were eligible for promotion or new assignments. Generally, one doesn't reassess an employee more than once a year.
Regards,
Bruncha
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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I think I understand what you are looking for; however, it seems that we need to "entangle" a couple of ideas.
Yes, it is advantageous to do some assessment-related activities to gauge where different people (at different levels) stand relative to your competencies.
Hopefully, in establishing competencies, you have articulated indicators that identify what level someone is performing at in any given competency.
To create assessment exercises that are relevant, valid, and reliable takes a lot of experience and work. I can recommend a couple of books that are good at helping someone to understand the how-to-do-its:
The Assessment and Selection Handbook by Ian Taylor ISBN 978-0-7494-5054-0
It has a good section on activities.
Development and Assessment Centres: Identifying and developing competence by Charles Woodruffe ISBN 978-0-9554488-0-5
Developing Organizational Simulation, A Guide for Practitioners and Students by George C. Thornton, III and Rose A. Mueller-Hanson ISBN 0-8058-4412-0
The last one has a more "academic" feel, but it does go through the issues related to "how-to" create exercises.
All of that said, your organization may want to consider the value of products available on the market that have proven reliability:
The OPC - Occupational Psychology - Tests & Exercises: http://www.theopc.co.uk/tests
A&DC | Talent Management Consultancy | HR Assessment, Development & Engagement Tools & Solutions: http://www.adc.uk.com/
http://www.sr-associates.com/documents/D17.pdf
Those three websites should help you a lot.
For ongoing assessment of competencies, your performance management system should be linked to the competencies as well.
You would only re-test people in an assessment center if they were eligible for promotion or new assignments. Generally, one doesn't reassess an employee more than once a year.
Regards,
Bruncha
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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Good day,
Certainly, many of us on this site offer fee-for-service consulting. I can design and deliver assessment center services as well. I have considerable expertise in HR, workforce development, psychometrics, and learning and development.
However, I think that the question was more about a learning need - how can I learn to do this for my organization, than it was a search for consulting services.
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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Certainly, many of us on this site offer fee-for-service consulting. I can design and deliver assessment center services as well. I have considerable expertise in HR, workforce development, psychometrics, and learning and development.
However, I think that the question was more about a learning need - how can I learn to do this for my organization, than it was a search for consulting services.
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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You are right, Bruncha. This problem of soliciting for business is not encouraged on several forums on LinkedIn.
From India, Delhi
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From India, Delhi
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Hello Bruncha and Surya Vrat,
Thank you so much for the detailed answers.
Bruncha: You have understood my question quite well. Yes, while designing competencies, we have articulated the indicators to determine at what level one is performing in a given competency. I will definitely look into the books you have recommended.
Secondly, we have just completed the process of defining KRAs and KPIs that are linked to the competency framework. However, integrating competency assessment into the Performance Management System (PMS) is a crucial task as it involves training the appraisers on how to conduct appraisal interviews based on competency. And yes, we will not assess an employee more than once a year. We plan to conduct these assessment centers once a year, which is in sync with our PMS cycle.
Surya Vrat: I agree with your interpretation of Bruncha's 2nd post. My question revolves more around "how can I learn so that I can implement it for my organization?"
Again, many thanks to both of you!
After researching the suggested lines, if I come across any more questions or require guidance, I may need to reach out to you again.
Regards,
Manasi
From India, Mumbai
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Thank you so much for the detailed answers.
Bruncha: You have understood my question quite well. Yes, while designing competencies, we have articulated the indicators to determine at what level one is performing in a given competency. I will definitely look into the books you have recommended.
Secondly, we have just completed the process of defining KRAs and KPIs that are linked to the competency framework. However, integrating competency assessment into the Performance Management System (PMS) is a crucial task as it involves training the appraisers on how to conduct appraisal interviews based on competency. And yes, we will not assess an employee more than once a year. We plan to conduct these assessment centers once a year, which is in sync with our PMS cycle.
Surya Vrat: I agree with your interpretation of Bruncha's 2nd post. My question revolves more around "how can I learn so that I can implement it for my organization?"
Again, many thanks to both of you!
After researching the suggested lines, if I come across any more questions or require guidance, I may need to reach out to you again.
Regards,
Manasi
From India, Mumbai
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I am making a partial reply:
PSI, this is actually better than MBTI though lesser known. The difference lies in PS measuring "how a person would have behaved if it were not a moderated or highly controlled environment."
RSI: there are 9 career anchors - wealth, control, meaning for life, expertise, autonomy, security, status, social affiliation, creativity (I didn't know I had such a good memory, lol). After running a test, we get to know which are the top 3 priorities in an individual. We design compensation to suit individual needs, and there is an important lesson to be learned here. If a person doesn't have expertise in the top 3 priorities, any expense spent on training will be zero.
These 2 tests can be sourced from Middle Earth. They run a course on psychometric testing.
Next comes Belbin Team roles. It's a wonderful test identifying where a person would naturally settle down in a team. The roles are Plant, Resource Investigator, Coordinator, Shaper, Monitor, Evaluator, Teamworker, Implementer, Completer Finisher, Specialist. This is very easy to discern. We just need to consider 1-2 real-life experiences. In your life also, you can easily place your buddies, boss, juniors, or whomever you have worked with even once in one of these roles. So, it's all the more important we run a check prior to hiring.
I will continue this post in a day or two since I am running late now.
From India, Delhi
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PSI, this is actually better than MBTI though lesser known. The difference lies in PS measuring "how a person would have behaved if it were not a moderated or highly controlled environment."
RSI: there are 9 career anchors - wealth, control, meaning for life, expertise, autonomy, security, status, social affiliation, creativity (I didn't know I had such a good memory, lol). After running a test, we get to know which are the top 3 priorities in an individual. We design compensation to suit individual needs, and there is an important lesson to be learned here. If a person doesn't have expertise in the top 3 priorities, any expense spent on training will be zero.
These 2 tests can be sourced from Middle Earth. They run a course on psychometric testing.
Next comes Belbin Team roles. It's a wonderful test identifying where a person would naturally settle down in a team. The roles are Plant, Resource Investigator, Coordinator, Shaper, Monitor, Evaluator, Teamworker, Implementer, Completer Finisher, Specialist. This is very easy to discern. We just need to consider 1-2 real-life experiences. In your life also, you can easily place your buddies, boss, juniors, or whomever you have worked with even once in one of these roles. So, it's all the more important we run a check prior to hiring.
I will continue this post in a day or two since I am running late now.
From India, Delhi
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Remember "case studies" in MBA. Watson and Glaser's critical thinking tool measures just that "assumption/arguments/conclusion."
[ThinkWatson.com - Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Test](http://www.thinkwatson.com/assessments/watson-glaser)
From India, Delhi
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[ThinkWatson.com - Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Test](http://www.thinkwatson.com/assessments/watson-glaser)
From India, Delhi
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Psychometrics and other personality profiles are great tools when used by appropriately trained professionals. I recommend that you receive your training in psychometrics from a program that leads you to being certified by the British Psychological Society. The training is generally conducted by organizational psychologists, and your portfolio is scored by the same. The training provides you with a strong foundation for understanding how to evaluate and use other instruments.
Psychometrics are useful for understanding personality impacts on performance, i.e., what an individual will naturally gravitate toward, and how they may be inclined to think, communicate, and analyze. Ability tests measure crystallized and/or fluid intelligence.
However, it is not ethical to make a judgment in a high-stakes environment with just one tool. Furthermore, the predictive value of psychometrics on future performance is significantly less than with other behavior-based activities.
There are many fine tools out there - success in working with them is related to a thorough understanding of the tool, intended use, its reliability, appropriateness of norm groups, and its degree of freedom from cultural bias. Testing is best done in the language in which the person tends to "think". The tendency to want to use cheap and quick tests sometimes only muddies the water.
Many organizations use a combination of tools in an assessment center, in addition to conducting a background check.
Creating an assessment process that is fair, yet robust, effective, efficient, and within budget takes review and planning.
Bruncha M Milaszewski, MA CMF, CGTP
Career and Workforce Development Consultant
Certified Level A/B workplace assessor
Certified PRISM Brainmapping Practitioner
General Manager, Capita - Global FZE
LinkedIn Profile: Bruncha Milaszewski, MA CMF CGTP | LinkedIn
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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Psychometrics are useful for understanding personality impacts on performance, i.e., what an individual will naturally gravitate toward, and how they may be inclined to think, communicate, and analyze. Ability tests measure crystallized and/or fluid intelligence.
However, it is not ethical to make a judgment in a high-stakes environment with just one tool. Furthermore, the predictive value of psychometrics on future performance is significantly less than with other behavior-based activities.
There are many fine tools out there - success in working with them is related to a thorough understanding of the tool, intended use, its reliability, appropriateness of norm groups, and its degree of freedom from cultural bias. Testing is best done in the language in which the person tends to "think". The tendency to want to use cheap and quick tests sometimes only muddies the water.
Many organizations use a combination of tools in an assessment center, in addition to conducting a background check.
Creating an assessment process that is fair, yet robust, effective, efficient, and within budget takes review and planning.
Bruncha M Milaszewski, MA CMF, CGTP
Career and Workforce Development Consultant
Certified Level A/B workplace assessor
Certified PRISM Brainmapping Practitioner
General Manager, Capita - Global FZE
LinkedIn Profile: Bruncha Milaszewski, MA CMF CGTP | LinkedIn
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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A note to check on your selection of traits/BARS definition.
Below mentioned is one single trait, i.e., "adaptability," but of 6 different types:
1. Adaptability to change
2. Adaptability to repetition
3. Adaptability to pressure
4. Adaptability to isolation
5. Adaptability to discomfort
6. Adaptability to hazards
Several years back, IGNOU received an award for the best courseware in Asia. They have a program on MA (psychology); try reading their courseware (theory but good). The major drawback is distance learning.
Indian Society for Applied Behavioural Science is another good place but requires full-time efforts.
From India, Delhi
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Below mentioned is one single trait, i.e., "adaptability," but of 6 different types:
1. Adaptability to change
2. Adaptability to repetition
3. Adaptability to pressure
4. Adaptability to isolation
5. Adaptability to discomfort
6. Adaptability to hazards
Several years back, IGNOU received an award for the best courseware in Asia. They have a program on MA (psychology); try reading their courseware (theory but good). The major drawback is distance learning.
Indian Society for Applied Behavioural Science is another good place but requires full-time efforts.
From India, Delhi
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Hello Bruncha Thanks again for informative post. I am a clinical psychologist by education. I practise psychology as well as in the field of L & D and OD for past 6 years. Now moving to AC/DC. :)
From India, Mumbai
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From India, Mumbai
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Most of the instruments used in these tests, like FIRO-B, MBTI, etc., were designed based on Western culture and language. Sometimes, it becomes difficult to understand the intent behind the question, and often the ideal self emerges rather than the actual self. How can these issues be overcome?
From India, Hyderabad
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From India, Hyderabad
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Kishore,
One way to address your concerns is to use normative tests and check to see if the vendor has norms that were created for your population.
Tests are always subject to the language understanding of the test taker, even in Western environments. However, reliable test creators do make a solid effort to make their questions less ambiguous.
Regarding ideal self-results, a reliable and valid instrument should have some checks and balances built into it for handling "fake good, fake bad" or any skewing of the results.
Remember that in recruitment and selection, as well as promotion, ethical practice suggests that you never use one tool as the deciding factor in high-stakes situations. If what you see in the interview and other assessments doesn't match the test - ask the candidate and question the outcome of the test.
Personality testing should add value and another dimension to the evaluation of best fit, but behavioral assessments and a history of past performance (validated) are of higher value in my judgment.
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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One way to address your concerns is to use normative tests and check to see if the vendor has norms that were created for your population.
Tests are always subject to the language understanding of the test taker, even in Western environments. However, reliable test creators do make a solid effort to make their questions less ambiguous.
Regarding ideal self-results, a reliable and valid instrument should have some checks and balances built into it for handling "fake good, fake bad" or any skewing of the results.
Remember that in recruitment and selection, as well as promotion, ethical practice suggests that you never use one tool as the deciding factor in high-stakes situations. If what you see in the interview and other assessments doesn't match the test - ask the candidate and question the outcome of the test.
Personality testing should add value and another dimension to the evaluation of best fit, but behavioral assessments and a history of past performance (validated) are of higher value in my judgment.
From United Arab Emirates, Dubai
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