Having enough of the right type of leaders have been top of the agenda for most organizations for years. This has largely been necessitated by economic recession since 2008, innovations in technology, global competitiveness, customer demands, and recently by Covid-19.
The same question that seems to remain throughout all of this is, how do we identify the type of leaders we need to cope with ever-increasing change and complexity? My answer: Psychometric testing is the most objective and rigorous way to address this need.
To gain an understanding of good-fit for any type of role, psychologists would normally focus on at least two types of tests – personality questionnaires (which tell us what a person is all about) and reasoning or cognitive ability (providing information on what a person is capable of doing intellectually).
The best predictor of work success
Research tells us that a measure of general reasoning ability is the best predictor of work success. However, the degree of reasoning, i.e. the strength of the results, would indicate whether the person being assessed will be able to cope with the intellectual demands of the level of the role, i.e. first-line, middle or senior management, as well as the typical problems associated with the degree of complexity with which the successful incumbent needs to deal with.
What about other factors that determine leadership potential?
Yet, while the person may have passed that first hurdle, there could be other factors that inhibit optimal functioning. These could be the person’s social inclination and interpersonal style, his/her preferred way of dealing with information or problems, the person’s work ethic and likelihood of meeting and following-through on responsibilities. It could also be the prospective incumbent’s emotional disposition and means of coping with pressure and stress, or the degree of energy and drive the person exhibits. All of these aspects can be inferred from an assessment of personality.
In addition to this ‘standard’ type of battery consisting of personality and reasoning ability, that would be a desirable source of information for most roles, there are more tools available that can add further information to determine the suitability of a candidate for a leadership role.
Levels of leadership complexity
A locally developed tool, the Cognitive Processing Profile or CPP, provides information about a person’s degree of problem solving and the level of complexity a candidate is likely to handle. Drawing levels of complexity in terms of thinking and processing through to broad organizational levels and the type of decisions required at each, the CPP helps us to correctly match a candidate to the most appropriate leadership level. For example, candidates who process information associated with a ‘tactical’ work environment are likely to be well-suited to leadership roles at middle-management level, whereas candidates who show an ease in dealing with the type of complexities associated with ‘parallel processing’, are likely to be best suited to a senior management role at E-grade level. See how this will correspond to the levels associated with The Leadership Pipeline.
Should a candidate, who is considered for a certain level of leadership, not show the information processing capability required at that level, the candidate may tend to resort to counter-productive problem-solving strategies when he/she is promoted to such a role.
What about leadership simulations?
Another assessment tool often used by psychologists when trying to determine the suitability of a candidate for a leadership role, is an in-basket exercise. An in-basket is one of the measures associated with Assessment Centre technology. First developed in the 60’s, an assessment centre creates an environment that simulates the type of setting, challenges and tasks that managers would come across in the day-to-day performance of the role.
Different assessment centres can be developed and administered at different leadership levels. However, due to its time consuming and expensive nature, psychologists often use just one or a few of the typical tools to complement the psychometric battery. Tools, in addition to in-baskets, are analysis exercises, fact-finding exercises, leaderless group discussions and presentations. Whereas psychometric testing relies on questionnaires or time-based tests, these tools rely on real-life ‘observation’ and analysing ‘evidence’ in a systematic way. Evidence is sought in relation to clearly defined competencies or ‘dimensions’ that are described by behaviourally-anchored rating scales (BARS) to enable evaluation. The usefulness of an in-basket exercise, for example lies with its face-validity as it simulates one of the most used means of written communications, namely an in-box in Outlook. It also enables observation of actual responses (i.e. behaviour).
Yet another tool often used in the assessment of leadership potential, is Situational Judgement Tests or SJT’s, which provide a visual scenario that can be likened to the type of work setting a manager would have to perform in, coupled with options for the candidate to choose from in having to handle the situation contained in the visual clip.
Where to start?
Basing psychometric assessment on the inherent requirements of the role is the starting point. Not only to comply with labour legislation, but also to enable the choice of the most suitable psychometric test or tool, the selection of most appropriate comparison (norm) group, as well as the cut-off points of acceptability/recommendation. When assessing leaders or prospective leaders, knowledge of job grade as an indication of decision-making scope, etc. or leadership level will add further sophistication to the accurate and meaningful identification of leadership potential.
Action points for HR managers
- Determine the different levels or layers of leadership in your organization.
- Develop clarity across all business units on what the unique responsibilities and behaviours are at each level of leadership. This will enable you to know what you need to be looking for when recruiting and selecting external candidates or wanting to promote someone from within the organization. Don’t get caught by the Peter Principle by assuming that an excellent middle manager will, automatically, be a successful senior manager.
- Identify where your greatest talent gaps
- Procure the services of an experienced and reputable psychologist/psychometrist, who is registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa, to assist you in accurately identifying the leadership potential you need.
Critical questions
- Given the type of business that you run, what type of leadership do you need to take your performance, culture and the way you do things, to the next level?
- What is the next level?
- What are the differences in complexity or problem-solving and decision-making at the different levels of leadership in your organization?
- Do you have the right people in place?
Want to find out more about psychometric testing and how it can help your organization? Download our e-book on 9 Ways In Which Psychometric Testing Can Help You Achieve World Class Talent Management by clicking here.
Not getting Competence SA’s Newsletter regularly? Click here to subscribe.
