Individual Psychological Assessment for Selection

By John K. Allen, Ed.D.

You’re uncertain whether an outside candidate for a key position can really do the job.

You have your eye on two junior executives for an upcoming opportunity but you are uncertain about their strengths and interests.

You missed something in the selection of the last candidate and you don’t want to make another mistake.

An individual psychological assessment can be the answer to each of these dilemmas. Individual psychological assessment typically includes an interview, ability testing, aptitude testing, and personality testing. There may also be specialized tests or exercises depending on the situation. The assessment will usually last for between a half and a full day.

Individual assessment is typically used for higher-level positions involving managerial or professional duties because the stakes are high. For complex jobs like manager or professional the dollar value of output for “above average performers” or those at the 84th percentile versus “average performers” or those at the 50th percentile has been found to be at a minimum 40% of the average salary of the job (Schmidt & Hunter 1983; Schmidt et al. 1979). The difference between “below average” performers and “above average performers” is twice that. These are conservative estimates based on published studies and actual values are typically higher. In sales positions the difference between average and above average performers has been shown to be as high as 120% (Spenser & Spenser 1993).

So the economic difference between an “average” and an “above average” $120,000 executive will be roughly $48,000 per year. These estimates seem contrived until one thinks about the value added by an executive who stimulates sales growth or turns around the financial performance of a company. And this $48,000 difference accrues for each year the executive is with the organization.

An individual assessment for selection usually starts with an analysis of the job. The psychologist reviews job descriptions and typically talks with the hiring manager and others about the skills, abilities, and knowledge required for the job. There are also organizational climate factors and perhaps industry factors that need to be considered. Based on the job analysis the psychologist designs a customized assessment.

The reason individual psychological assessments work so well is that they are customized to each position and capture the incremental validity of combining selection techniques. A highly trained psychologist can integrate the data to help the hiring executive sift through all the information and arrive at a yes-no decision with confidence.

Neutralizing the candidate’s advantage

Executive candidates are all smart, well prepared, and good interviewers. One can buy an off the shelf test which some candidates will know how to answer to attain a favorable evaluation. Employers need professional help to avoid this problem. The individual psychological assessment neutralizes the candidate’s advantage. The assessment interview allows the psychologist to explore issues that may be revealed in the testing or history and probe issues of concern in ways that testing alone cannot. The psychologist can also look for consistency between interview, job history, testing, and other information the prospective employer may have about the candidate. With the abundance of information in the press and on the Internet about how to interview, present credentials, and even how to take employment tests, the extensive experience of the trained psychologist/assessor evens the odds for the employer in high stakes hiring.

Most candidates are a little nervous about the individual assessment process but find it interesting by the time it is over. Almost all are impressed that the hiring company would be so thorough in its selection approach. The questions on the tests and in the interview are job related and candidates do not find them intrusive.

Feedback is typically provided to the candidate and in the case of a hired candidate the assessment data becomes the basis for help in integrating the new hire and forming an ongoing development and coaching plan.

An Example

In the wake of three years of disappointing financial results a division general manager of a diversified holding company has left the company. The CEO has several internal and external candidates and calls West Falmouth Associates to assist in the selection decision. The psychologist meets with the CEO and CFO as well as several key managers and through a series of interviews details the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for the position as well as the “entrepreneurial” type climate the CEO hopes to develop in the division. The psychologist is able to clarify and add overlooked skills to the list based on CEO selection work completed in other companies. A structured interview targeted at the specific skills required for the position is prepared and a battery of personality, work styles, and problem solving tests is assembled. The CEO also has a number of areas of concern about each of the candidates that the psychologist will focus on in the assessment. The psychologist meets with each candidate for about half a day to review job histories and conduct the structured interview as well as administer the tests. Following the assessments the psychologist prepares reports describing and comparing the candidates on the key selection dimensions and meets with the CEO and CFO in a “data integration” session to compare the testing and integrate the testing information with what is known about the candidates from performance reviews, references, and internal interviews. The CEO decides to offer the position to an internal candidate who has significant strategy strengths but lacks a few of the financial skills and experiences that would be best. A plan is developed to rely on the CFO’s financial strengths until such time as the new general manager can develop the financial knowledge and confidence to operate independently. The psychologist meets with the new hire to provide developmental feedback based on the assessment and together with the CEO and new hire a long-term development plan is completed.

References

Schmidt, F.L., & Hunter, J.E. (1983) Individual differences in productivity: An empirical test of estimates derived from studies of selection procedure utility. Journal of Applied Psychology, 68, 407-415.

Schmidt, F.L., Hunter, J.E., McKenzie, R.C., & Muldrow, T.W. (1979). The impact of valid selection procedures on work-force productivity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 64, 609-626.

Spencer, L. M. & Spencer, S. M. Competence at work: Models of superior performance (1993), New York: John Wiley & Sons (pp13-15).

Return to Home Page