Combining Assessment for Shortlisting

Background
We undertake executive search or recruitment assignments for clients for time to time, often when they have been unsuccessful in finding a suitable person themselves.

In this example we were successful in securing a contract through competitive tender to search for and assess a team for four 2nd tier corporate positions in a local authority. All appointments were made successfully but we would like to describe the assessment process for the Head of Corporate Strategy.

The four positions had come about as a result of turnover and re-organisation and the corporate strategy role was new to the organisation. The function had been covered by a number of roles previously.

Our Approach
Our search, combined with press advertising, generated a field of 22 applicants from which we were able to propose a longlist of 8 candidates, expecting to reduce this through discussion with the client. The client however wished to interview all 8 and also chose to add a 9th candidate whose application had some defining strengths. They were interviewed by a panel that included one of our consultants and 2 candidates were shortlisted for assessment centre and a panel interview with members.

As with all recruitment assignments, we had a separate team involved in the assessment centre to assure absolute objectivity in the assessment evaluations.

The assessment centre comprised a range of specially designed events and a personality questionnaire

• Meeting a member role play simulation
• Managing performance role play simulation
• Strategic vision report writing exercise
• Analysis and problem solving exercise
• Competency base interview
• Personality questionnaire

Client Outcomes
One candidate emerged very strongly from the assessment centre. Our consultant who attended the panel interview later confirmed that the same candidate performed well in front of the member panel. This person was duly appointed.

We spoke to the Assistant Chief Executive who had just revisited the assessment report we provided one year after the person took up their position. She said “Every single point in the report is spot on”. The person who was appointed has been a great success in the job.

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