We like to work in partnership with our clients so that we have a full and accurate understanding of their needs and can advise on the most appropriate solutions that will best meet their requirements.
Although we have access to all the main test publishers we are not aligned to any of them and can therefore offer completely independent advice. Whether designing measures ourselves or recommending off the shelf tools and instruments, we are mindful of diversity and the potential for adverse impact and ensure we adhere to best practice at all times.
We offer a full range of assessment options including psychological profiling using various different instruments depending on the requirements of the role and the clients’ competency framework. If there is no framework in place then we can design one. We also offer a full assessment design and development process but are flexible enough to work with our clients to utilise some of their existing processes if this is appropriate. We use both bespoke and off-the-shelf exercises or a combination of both and will always advise on the most appropriate methods following consultation.
Psychological profiling
Some candidates at a senior level are experts in ‘being interviewed’ and although one may feel fairly certain of their technical ability/track record, other aspects such as their interpersonal style, negotiating and influencing skills and ability to handle conflict, remain difficult, yet essential elements to assess.
Psychometric profiling helps to get past this by providing an informed and objective judgement on the candidates:
- Intellectual abilities
- Interpersonal style/skills (this includes leadership and team work)
- Personal motivation and ‘fit’ with the organisation
We always ensure that tests and profiles we recommend are suitable for all sectors of society. All our psychologists are trained and qualified to use and interpret the tests and profiles which we use in our assessments.
Benefits of this type of assessment include:
- Clear, transparent and fair processes.
- Reduces the risk in recruitment decisions by providing additional insights into an individual’s likely work style and how they will fit within the organisation.
- Small investment for large potential gain, e.g. the reduction of the costs involved in making the wrong decision and managing poor performers.
- An independent perspective that provides a rounded view of an individual’s core strengths and areas for development.
- Candidates gain developmental insight during the process and feel they have gained something from it whatever the final outcome – thereby leaving them with a positive impression of your organisation.
The following are two examples of the profiles that we can produce.
Executive Profile
For certain senior roles we would strongly recommend our one-to-one executive profiling process. This would involve candidates completing a mixture of psychometric measures and having an in-depth interview and feedback session with one of our senior psychologists. The in-depth interview gives the psychologist the opportunity to probe candidates on specific behavioural issues which are relevant to the role and the organisation. During the feedback session candidates are informed of their results and performance on the measures of ability. Additionally, the personality measures are discussed with each candidate to ensure that any areas of interest or concern are probed further.
We ensure that all candidates are assessed against the same measures and that they are therefore treated equally. In order to minimise the impact on candidates’ time many of the measures that we select can be completed on line in advance of the assessment day.
Our process is based on what is most appropriate for these roles and will be assessed against the most appropriate behavioural framework, which we will discuss and agree with you. At the end of the process the psychologist integrates the data gathered from the psychometric measures, the interview and the feedback session and produces an individual report for each candidate against agreed criteria.
Smart Profile
Alternatively we offer a one-to-one smart profiling service. As part of this process candidates also complete a series of questionnaires and ability tests. This process involves a feedback session with candidates, thus the information gained is more general and provides an overview of candidates, rather than specific behavioural information provided by executive profiling. The smart profile reports are more descriptive and cover more generic points about the person in terms of behaviour, ability and motivation.