Market Report

With references to your experiences in the module but more importantly, the literature, critically evaluate the key issues in designing and running an assessment centre.

There are two different purposes of assessment centres. They are mostly commonly known for the purpose of selecting and choosing suitable individuals for jobs. The literature supports the validity of this form of selection and recruiting, most notably a study undertaken by (Gaugler, Rosenthal, Thornton, and Bentson, 1987.) The second purpose for assessment centres is for developing managerial talent. This is where internal participants are developed through the use of assessment centres. Using assessment centres for this purpose was recently studied and supported by (Arthur, Day, McNelly, and Edens, 2003).(Hermelin et al, 2007). Therefore, when starting to design an assessment centre it is important to decide what its purpose is firstly. Throughout this discussion I will talk of assessment centres in general mostly, but at times will also define them individually based on the aim and purpose of the AC.

The first thing required to design and construct a competency based assessment centre is to decide upon the competencies to be observed. (Shippmann et al, 2000) refers to these competencies as the dimensions for assessment and these are usually identified through job analysis. (Thornton, 1992) states that the purpose of assessment centres is to assess performance or behaviour based competencies through the use of simulations and exercises. The job analysis identifies the competencies of the job which allows the designer to shape the exercises to the context of the job. (Kudisch et al. 1999). (Spychalski, 1997) found that 93% of assessment centres undertaken job analysis before the design of the exercises and centre itself. (Kudisch et al. 1999). Found that the more commonly used exercises can be leaderless group discussions, oral presentations to a group of people, fact finding games,

References: Arthur, W., Jr, Day, E.A., McNelly, T.L. and Edens, P.S. (2003) A Meta-Analysis of the Criterion-Related Validity of Assessment Center Dimensions. Personnel Psychology, 56, 125–154. Schollaert, E, 2012. Building Situational Stimuli in. Human Performance, [Online]. 1, 1. Available at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08959285.2012.683907 [Accessed 26 March 2013]. Chan, D. (1996), ‘Criterion and Construct Validation of an Assessment Centre,’ Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 69, 167–181 Shippmann, J. S., Ash, R. A., Pattista, M., Carr, L., Eyde, L. D., Hesketh, B., et al. (2000). The practice of competency modeling. Personnel Psychology, 53, 703-740. [Acessed 26 March 2013]. Thornton, G.C. III and Rupp, D.R. 2006. Assessment Centers in Human Resource Management: Strategies for Prediction, Diagnosis, and Development, Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. Spychalski, A.C., Quinones, M.A., Gaugler, B.B., and Pohley, K. (1997), ‘A Survey of Assessment Center Practices in Organizations in the United States,’ Personnel Psychology, 50, 71–90. Krause, D.E., and Gebert, D. (2003), ‘A Comparison of Assessment Center Practices in Organizations in German-Speaking Regions and the United States,’ International Journal of Lievens, F. (1998). Factors which improve the construct validity of assessment centers: A review Guenole, N, 2012. More than a mirage: A large-scale assessment. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, [Online]. 1, 1. Available at: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2044-8325.2012.02063.x/pdf [Accessed 27 March 2013]. Oudtshoorn, M, 2007. Assessment Centres: The uses of assessment centres. Industrial and Commercial Training, [Online]. 1, 1. Available at: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=1674666&show=html [Accessed 27 March 2013]. Thornton, G.C. III (1992), Assessment Centers in Human Resource Management, Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley. Gaugler, B.B., Rosenthal, D.B., Thornton, G.C. and Bentson, C. (1987) Meta-Analysis of Assessment Center Validity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 72, 493–511 Hermelin, E, Lievens, F, Robertson, I.T, 2007 Funder, D.C. and Colvin, C.R. (1991). Explorations in behavioral consistency: Properties of persons, situations, and behaviors. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60, 773±794. Thornton, G. C., III, Larsh, S., Layer, S., & Kaman, V. S. (1999, May). Reactions to attributeversus exercise-based feedback in developmental assessment centers