What is an Assessment Programme?

A typical programme consists of a number of activities that could include structured interviews, presentations, role plays utilising professional actors, in-tray exercises and group situations. It would also include a number of aptitude and personality tests to evaluate numeracy, literacy, accuracy and personality characteristics.

Professionally qualified Observers monitor the candidates in each activity and record their performance against a "Model of Behaviours". Some activities are individual and some are group based but each has a specific objective and contributes to the overall Assessment of a candidate's suitability.

Such programmes are equally effective for assessing candidates for recruitment as they are for determining their development needs or suitability for promotion. In essence, an Assessment Programme provides the opportunity for individual peformances to be measured in job related circumstances.