Linking strategy with talent

Spencer Stuart’s Executive Assessment Services (EAS) Practice applies the latest findings from management science to offer the next generation assessment system that provides a dramatically higher level of accuracy than traditional assessment centres and other executive assessment services. Experienced search consultants assess and compare participant competence to the “best in market”, and this is combined with our proprietary Executive Intelligence (ExI™) evaluation to deliver a highly valuable service to clients.

A multi-dimensional assessment methodology is required to achieve a highly accurate assessment of each participant in relation to the client’s competency model. Spencer Stuart is the only professional services firm offering this three-part assessment methodology that generates the highest predictive validity and the highest interrater/judge consistency possible in the field of managerial assessment.

Part I — Competency-based, past-behavioural interview

In-depth, past-behavioural interviews are the gold standard in assessment, and we recommend that they are a core element of any assessment methodology. When conducted in a thorough and systematic way, competency-based, past-behavioural interviews produce highly accurate information about how an executive’s experience, knowledge of best practices and leadership style affect their performance across multiple competencies.

Experienced search consultants are in a unique position to benchmark the executive’s skill and experience against the best executives in the market. Experienced search consultants also have credibility with the participants and can provide a unique perspective when it comes to making recommendations on career development.

Part II — Executive Intelligence evaluation — ExI

ExI is a powerful, proprietary assessment methodology with unprecedented validity and reliability. No other methodology can match the Executive Intelligence evaluation, which nearly doubles the predictive validity of managerial assessment. It measures what even the best past-behaviour interviews cannot measure — skilled business judgment.

Past-behavioural interviews and self-reporting methodologies are only capable of explaining approximately 40 per cent of the variance in the performance of executives. While 40 per cent is quite good, it leaves significant, relevant information unmeasured.

Management science research has long established that maximum predictive validity is achieved through a combination of past behavioural assessments and an intelligence measure.

Past-behaviour interviews are not designed to measure executive intelligence. In part, this is because executive intelligence, the essential skilled judgment that managers must possess, cannot be measured using self-reporting methodologies — this kind of skilled judgment must be demonstrated through past behaviours.

The Executive Intelligence evaluation was created to bring this best practice to assessment at the executive level. Unlike IQ tests used in some assessment centres, the ExI evaluation assesses the kinds of intelligence (practical, social, and emotional intelligence) related to executive and managerial performance, rather than academic performance, which IQ tests are designed to measure.

In addition to the significant difference in predictive validity, ExI has superior face validity. It uses job-relevant scenarios, demonstrates no adverse impact, and is found to be a very interesting and engaging exercise for participants.

The interview is conducted by a skilled expert in an interview format in which the participant is presented with several business scenarios. The participant has a dialogue with the interviewer about their understanding of the situation and how they plan to address it.

Part III — Reference interviews

The reference interview is an extremely efficient way to learn how a participant’s leadership ability and style are perceived by colleagues (peers, subordinates, and managers), to assess the strength of their following, and to verify information the participant provided in the past-behavioural interview. We generally recommend that the manager, two subordinates, and at least two peers are interviewed. We work with the client to determine who the specific references should be for each participant. Where possible the references are conducted in-person, but they can be conducted by phone where necessary.

Understanding the predictive validity of assessment methodologies Figure 2 presents the predictive power of commonly used leadership assessment tools/methodologies. The best combination of approaches provides the maximum predictive validity and the minimum redundancy. The ExI evaluation has a very insignificant correlation with past-behavioural interviews and other common assessments. On the other hand, there is a very high correlation or overlap between personality tests, psychological interviews and past-behavioural interviews. This is mostly due to the fact that the personality factors that most contribute to executive success, for example drive, achievement, motivation and social confidence, are accurately assessed in a past-behavioural interview.

Conclusion

Executive work can be broken down into three areas:
accomplishing tasks, working with others and self-evaluation. Within each of these categories there are identifiable cognitive skills that determine how well an executive performs and play a profound role in determining an executive’s success. In partnership with Executive Intelligence Group, Spencer Stuart has developed — and has successfully started to apply — a revolutionary and compelling assessment system that allows clients to identify, develop and hire genuinely effective business leaders.

Related links

View case study on new approach to leadership assessment.

Note
This article forms part of the Switzerland Point of View: Summer 2007.