Have you recruited a person with the right qualifications, experience, and a can-do attitude, only to be disappointed by their performance. What went wrong? The word assessment or psychometric is often met with intrigue and angst. Intrigue at what one may learn, and angst at what one may uncover. We will be sharing our insights over four posts, to help demystify psychometric assessments.
Our pre-frontal cortex, the part responsible for cognitive processing, is like an elevator. It only has so much space. When overwhelmed or under pressure we focus on the items in the front of the queue, and so in a time-pressured decisions, we innately tend to focus on the data in front of us. Likewise, if the assessment battery and process you are using is limiting, your decisions will also be based on a limited view.
An individual is more than their test results; we are all colourful, complex and intricate beings. It is thus imperative to use an assessment battery and process that captures different and complementary perspectives. The non-negotiables to forming a holistic view in order to predict and understand current and future behaviour are;
· Personality/behaviours (an understanding of their preferences, what they are likely to be attracted to and good at)
· Thinking (assessing their skill set, ability to manage complexity and ambiguity)
· Emotional intelligence (which is key to unlocking growth and potential)
Technical skills and experience are a given, and should be reviewed on the CV, and explored in an interview. Other aspects such as integrity, values, judgement etc. are useful within specific contexts.
In addition to psychometrics, leaders should strive to have a real and meaningful conversation with any individual they are considering as future talent. One which goes beyond a discussion of job requirements and technical skill, to focus on what really matters to the individual e.g. their purpose, what really drives them and what disengages them. This is key to culture fit, ensuring performance, engagement and retention.
To learn more about our approach to assessments.