Better Evidence = Better Hires.
White Cube Consulting designs and runs assessment centres that produce objective evidence for every candidate being assessed. We build practical exercises and assessments around the competencies that matter to each role, and use relevant psychometric reports to support effective and objective selection. We brief and support assessors, and can manage the whole process on the day so your managers can concentrate on assessing, not organising.
An interview measures how well someone performs at interview.
An assessment centre measures how well they are likely to perform in the role.
The difference often shows up very quickly after they start.
A typical assessment centre puts several candidates through a series of exercises and assessments, observed by trained assessors and scored against defined competencies that are agreed in advance. Every candidate undertakes the same exercises and is objectively marked against the same standards and competencies. The resulting output provides the ability to compare candidate performance against the actual competencies required. Not relying on the impression they give at interview.
An example assessment centre might combine a group exercise, an individual exercise such as an in-tray or case study, a structured interview and, where it adds value, psychometrics such as ability or behavioural assessments.
Half-day formats are well suited to volume recruitment, less critical roles and assessing a single competency set.
Full-day formats work well with graduate recruitment, technical, management and supervisory appointments, or executive and leadership roles where decisions can carry more risk.
Assessment centres are used to select. If your aim is to develop the people you already employ rather than choose between candidates, a development centre takes a very similar approach but with a different purpose and outcome. We design and deliver those too.
We can design, develop and deliver the whole assessment centre process for you on an outsourced or insourced basis.
Or just provide the content and support you need on a case by case basis.
We help define the required competencies for each role and turn this into a technical and behavioural framework an assessor can readily observe, measure and score.
We can design bespoke group exercises, in-tray, case study exercises, role plays, written exercises and presentations around each role. We have a ready made bank of tested exercises we can provide and customise to suit.
We are accredited in a range of assessments including Belbin, DiSC, Psytech and SHL, helping select the most relevant and useful reports each time. This includes technical test batteries for apprentices, general ability reasoning assessment for graduates and personality or behavioural profiling when team fit matters.
Many managers have never been properly trained in how to assess effectively. And that can show up in the scoring. We brief assessors on the exercises to be used, competencies being assessed, their role on the day and how to review, measure and score objectively, fairly and consistently. Typically delivered through a two hour briefing session.
We can manage the whole of the assessment centre or elements of it to suit. From schedules and timings, room booking, checking assessment materials, candidate management, logistics and assessor support. Our facilitators ensure every assessment centre runs smoothly, enabling your managers to assess, not administer.
We can chair / co-ordinate the consensus meeting where assessors reconcile evidence, provide feedback for each candidate, review the data and reach a conclusion.
We help define exactly what the role actually requires and turn this into clear technical and behavioural competencies which can be observed and objectively scored. We always start with the end in mind - understanding what success will look like and the outcome you are looking to achieve.
We design exercises, scoring matrices, assessor guidance notes and candidate assessment packs, then brief assessors to ensure everyone is aligned and scores to the same standard.
We manage the process on the day, keeping track of timings, materials needed, candidate and assessor movements, so your assessors can concentrate on observing and scoring.
We chair the consensus meeting, pulling all the evidence together into a clear summary with any recommendations, and provide written feedback for every candidate who attends.
The majority of candidates attending may not be offered a job. However, what they may say about the experience afterwards might impact your employer brand. Positively or negatively.
Shortlisting twelve candidates and hiring two, leaves ten people walking away disappointed, without a job offer.
Having given up a significant amount of time to attend, it is imperative to provide them with honest, fair and useful feedback, and to ensure it doesn’t knock their confidence.
An assessment centre provides a selection process opportunity where you always have something to feed back. Many regular applications receive rejection feedback which is limited, vague or even non-existent, even after attending interview.
Having gathered in-depth evidence in multiple ways makes it easy to provide effective, constructive and useful feedback.
We always provide written feedback for every candidate as a standard approach. Not only for the appointed candidates. Once the scoring is completed and feedback gathered, it doesn’t take long to provide a candidate feedback report and candidate versions of any psychometric reports undertaken.
Every attendee then leaves with something useful and practical, even if they leave without a job offer.
Over time, this can strengthen your employer brand, and make it easier to attract new talent in the future.
The way you treat people can be remembered long after the assessment process finishes.
Many of the principles of good assessment centre design and delivery hold up well across multiple sectors, company size and type. What typically changes each time is the specific competencies being measured and the relative assessments required.
Our experience and track record as an Aberdeen based consultancy extends across a wide range of sectors including;
Assessment Centres are a core service capability.
Our Managing Director, Campbell Urquhart, has personally designed, developed and facilitated a wide range of assessment centres. He has overseen the management and delivery of several hundred assessment centres over his career.
He is the Licensed Distributor for Belbin in Scotland, DiSC / Discflow accredited, holds British Psychological Society Membership and is qualified to EFPA Level 1 / 2 standard.
It depends on the purpose, format and the number of assessors available. A typical centre commonly handles between four and twelve candidates. We have also managed larger volume centres with 50+ attendees. The candidate limit is usually due to assessor numbers and capacity: each candidate should be observed by more than one assessor across more than one exercise for the evidence to be more reliable. Ideally, each assessor would observe a maximum of two candidates for any one exercise. We will always be honest if we think the numbers of assessors available are insufficient for what is needed. We would rather suggest running a second centre than compromise on the quality of the selection process.
Both, depending on what the role needs. We have a range of individual and group exercises that have been used and refined over many years, and these can be amended and aligned to your competency framework with tailored scoring indicators. Where a role has specific technical or situational demands, we can design new exercises around it. We do not publish our exercise content, because an exercise that candidates can prepare for in advance is effectively meaningless.
Yes, and we normally recommend it. Your managers know the role and the organisation better than us, and involving them means they also take part in and own the final decision rather than being handed it. What does matter is that they are briefed properly beforehand, understand the competencies they are marking against and score based on evidence not their impression. We can deliver assessment briefing sessions, support them during the day and chair the consensus meeting afterwards.
We’d recommend allowing several weeks in advance, especially where exercises need designing from scratch. Timelines may shorten when we are adapting existing material to fit your competencies. The parts that often take most time can be agreeing the competency framework, briefing assessors and organising everything. Not the actual day itself. If you are working to a tighter deadline, let us know and we will give you an honest view of what is achievable, and will never promise something we can’t deliver on or if we think it could compromise the assessment process.
Whether you need a full assessment centre designed and delivered, a single exercise to slot into your own process, or a briefing to get your managers assessing consistently, we can help. The first conversation is free and carries no obligation.