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WHAT’S NEXT?
Guide to assessment centres A driving test allows an instructor to observe and assess how you navigate real roads and traffic before you get your license. Assessment centres can be in the same way: simulate a typical workplace environment along with individual and group tasks aligned with specific job roles to allow employers to assess the capabilities and aptitude of multiple candidates at once. Assessment centres have become a favoured part of the recruitment process of many mid-size and large firms, particularly for graduate or internship placement programs.
Generally, though, the average is a half- or full-day assessment. During the course of an assessment, assessors rate participants on a range of competencies as they carry out several different tasks. After the assessment is completed, assessors will consolidate their results and come to a consensus on each applicant’s suitability for the role. As a participant, you may be able to see the assessors while you go through your assigned tasks and exercises. You may be told that you are being filmed, so assessors can play back your performance and review it at a later time.
Assessment centres usually fall somewhere in the middle of a company’s recruitment strategy. Applicants invited to participate should already have successfully gone through an application, initial assessment and maybe even a phone or video interview. Be happy that you’ve come this far: it means the employer thinks you have potential and would now like to give you the opportunity to prove it.
THE PROS AND CONS OF ASSESSMENT CENTRES There are many advantages for you and your potential employer: ■ It gives an employer better insight into how a candidate will perform in a professional context, as well as practical examples of their soft and technical skills. ■ Assessment centres may be too expensive for smaller companies but will be cost- and time-efficient for larger firms with many applicants to assess. ■ As a candidate, you will be given more time and opportunities to prove yourself during a full day of tasks rather than during a one-hour interview.
WHO WILL BE ASSESSING ME AND HOW WILL THEY DO IT? Specialist recruiters or the employer’s HR staff may conduct the assessment. The process could take from half a day to as many as three days.
