Our Assessments

Combine self-reflection with an outside perspective

We see assessments as a necessary part of our programs. It is important to know where you stand when beginning the training. At what level are you personally and what do you have to learn around the subject of the training? In fact, we always use assessments at the beginning of every development program to objectify the baseline of development. Otherwise, only the participants’ own opinions form the baseline. Whereas, the moment you add an assessment, you get a much broader and objectified picture of what is really needed. That’s why we often use 360° assessments. Because then you also have the opinion of others. You combine the self-reflection with an outside view. You look at what you want to develop yourself and if your environment agrees with that.

“It’s the interplay between an assessment and in-depth interview that can
provide significant insights in a professional development program”

The assessments we use

There are various options for using assessments. In career programs or major changes in someone’s life we use other assessments. For example, we use an IQ test or a capability test. You can also focus assessments on where someone’s drivers are. For career guidance we also have other assessments.

We prefer to use the tests of HR Organizer because they are proven to be trustworthy. This is because their assessments are always internationally validated. There are two important metrics for assessments; test reliability and validity. On both parts, HR Organizer makes high-quality tests. They are also deliverable in various languages, so we can use them for very different and distinctive populations. In addition, it is a fairly intuitive system that also takes care of the whole workflow.

For personality assessments, we can use various options. That depends on what the client wants and whether there is a preference there or not. That ranges from DISC, Facet Five, to Lumina. Wherever the client’s preference lies, we are flexible and can work with that. But we always use the Shapes & Views assessment in leadership programs as well. Because not only your skills are important, but your profile and preferences as well and they come to the fore in that test.

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The value of assessments

In our opinion, it is important to emphasize that using psychometric assessments is never an end in itself. It is the start of the conversation. You should always have the test done by a qualified trainer. They can look at what the outcomes of the report mean and signify, with the participant. Together they dive into whether the participant recognizes the results of the report and in which situations that may or may not be. We never do a stand-alone assessment, but it is always accompanied by an interview.

“Not only your skills are important, but your profile and preferences as well”

Never overestimate the value of the results, but never underestimate them either. Don’t overestimate what you can measure with assessments. Some companies over-value assessments in their selection process. They conduct them through a structured interview. That has a very low validity. However, the validity of the assessments we use is quite high. Still, they are only psychometric instruments that have a certain value. You shouldn’t exaggerate that value either. But assessments can be a very sensible and fitting solution to measure human behavior and views. Only when combined with an interview does it come alive and offer value though. It remains a snapshot and yet it really does say something about the participant, you have to balance those two aspects of assessments as an organization. It matters how you are feeling that day and how you drove to the appointment. And yet certain patterns really do come to light. So it’s the interplay between an assessment and in-depth interview that can provide significant insights in a professional development program.