Posted by Patrick van Loon
Let me start with good news; far-reaching decisions about people in organisations are increasingly and better substantiated. Management is spending more and more time and money to arrive at careful decisions. Decisions that have a major impact on the people involved, but also on the success of organisations. The difference between an under-, average- or out-performer is very significant for an organisation. It is even said of sales people that the difference in performance between an average performer and an out performer is factor 5 to 7! So decisions about people have a very big impact on the success of organisations. So let’s do it the best we can.
The help of assessment agencies is widely used. Not only in selection issues, but also in other important decisions about people in the employment lifecycle.
The penetration rate of assessment is therefore increasing. You would expect things to go crescendo for assessment agencies, but the opposite is true. The economic climate is not cooperating, limiting volumes. But that is not the only thing.
For years, conducting an assessment was a black box for clients. You sent a candidate to an assessment agency without knowing exactly what happened there. The result was a report on the candidate with or without a suitability recommendation. The results were taken seriously. For decades, a stable business model for many agencies. Success assured, as long as streams of candidates could be assessed by the agency. But these days are long gone.
Knowledge about assessment and the use of assessment tools in organisations have increased. But so has the complexity in their application and capabilities. For instance, the internet now allows organisations easier access to online tests and integrated testing systems. A growing market of providers whose turnover is increasing on average by 20% to 30% a year. All kinds of things are on offer; useful and not so useful, appropriate and not appropriate, cheap and (much too) expensive. The marketing machines are running at full speed. HR departments are swamped. For organisations, it is almost impossible to make a suitable choice that makes sense for the business from the enormous range on offer. The successful implementation of assessment tools is therefore no mean feat and requires expert knowledge (in terms of content and process). Moreover, the possibilities in the field are increasing: full assessment, online assessment, capability test, development centres, personality assessment, 360° feedback, (strategic) leadership assessment, recruitment games, performance management, competency meeting, pre-assessment, feedback apps, professional assessment, stepped procedures, practice assessment, etc. All in all, things are not getting any easier and the chances of making wrong decisions are high. A clear need is emerging for assessment experts to help organisations make really good decisions about people. This requires more than general HR knowledge and is also very different from the black box of the traditional assessment agency.