Asking what is an assessment centre is a little like asking what is coaching? We here at Assessments Now are in no way qualified call ourselves an Assessments Centre. Here is the opening of what the HR Guide to the Internet says:

An Assessment Center consists of a standardized evaluation of behavior based on multiple evaluations including: job-related simulations, interviews, and/or psychological tests. Job Simulations are used to evaluate candidates on behaviors relevant to the most critical aspects (or competencies) of the job. Several trained observers and techniques are used. Judgments about behavior are made and recorded. These judgments are pooled in a meeting among the assessors or by an averaging process. In discussion among assessors, comprehensive accounts of behavior, often including ratings, are pooled. The discussion results in evaluations of the performance of the assesses on the dimensions or other variables.

By definition this is a costly process and procedure. Below is my own summary from personal experience over the past 20 years. A terrific lay person’s document you should read is from an IPMAAC Workshop in 1994. Introduction to Assessment Centers 101. It is the best I have seen on the subject for readability and simplicity.

The purpose of going to an Assessment Centre

There are two primary services offered. First to help determine career interests and vocations as used in the educational system (career development). The second, to assist in determining the suitability of a candidate for a specific role or position (recruitment and selection).

Who operates a reputable Assessment Centre?

Psychologists, often Industrial Psychologists, who are trained and qualified to use sophisticated, validated tests – not just personality and behavioral assessments – but real tests. Practitioners possess an advanced degree in a profession that provides specialized training in the interpretation of psychometric assessments. Although tests may be administered by others who are trained, it should be under the auspices and interpretation of registered psychologists. The reports from these organizations should stand the test of the legal system if challenged.

What a “candidate” can expect if for recruitment and selection purposes?

This is a grueling and tiring process that lasts one half to a full day. The individual may or may not interact with more than one person , although they should technically see more than one assessor. Little can be done to prepare UNLESS you know of someone who has been through the same Assessment Centre. There are and can be three parts depending on the scope of the assessment process and purpose:

1. a battery of psychometric tests (usually at level “C”)

2. structured interviews perhaps using case studies

3. simulations – the most popular and respected are “in-basket” activities.

The key administrator will then be responsible for pulling together the material, interpreting the results and creating a report that is usually not shared with the candidate but given to the paying organization. If the assessment center is being used for developmental purposes, the candidate will get a debriefing. Rarely are the specific details of the tools given out to anyone.

How it is evolving and buyer beware

Many on-line assessment providers are now calling themselves Assessments Centres. This is particularly true with the growth of 360 degree feedback tools. While good 360 tools are valuable in their own right, they are a single touch point They do not cover various observable techniques that are statistically integrated from different sources. they may make up part of the Assessment Centre’s program but should not be the entirety.