ITV leaders get psychometric testing

Personal development / 03 September 2010

With pressure mounting, large organisations are embracing psychometric testing for their top teams to ensure they’ve got the best talent on board, says Pepi Sappal

Just a few weeks ago, the news that ITV boss Adam Crozier is putting senior staff through psychometric testing made headlines. It was reported that he wanted to check that he has the right leaders capable of achieving a five-year turnaround plan. According to an ITV insider, the decision was announced by Crozier at a meeting of the top 150 staff last month. He allegedly said he would expect them all to undergo testing as part of a ‘leadership development programme’. 

An ITV HR Spokesperson said that; “as part of an ongoing programme of investment and development designed to improve the performance of ITV’s leadership team, the company’s senior managers will take part in a review process designed to understand the ongoing development needs of each member of the team.” The programme, which is said to include elements of psychometric testing, was designed to “identify and assess the needs of the senior management team and put in place development programmes to enable them to meet the ongoing needs of the business.”

With psychometric testing seen by many as a valid part of the development process, why the outcry in the press? “Some people may have had a bad past psychometric testing experience,” says Krishnan Doyle, director and founder of COREcruitment. “It can also be daunting for senior executives if they feel that direct comparisons are made between them and their colleagues, and if wrong perceptions are created as a result.”

That said, psychometric testing – whether it’s used for personality profiling or for testing ability – is now common practice across all levels. According to Sean Howard, vice president of marketing at SHL, which provides such tests to 80 of the FT 100 companies, “these tools are not just used for selection and recruitment, but increasingly for career development, succession planning and putting boards/senior teams together.”

Testing teamwork

“It’s fairly common to use personality profiling to look at the way people in senior teams work together, both in the public and private sector, as things can often go wrong because they are not working together effectively,” says Paolo Moscuzza, a director at ER Consultants. “Personality profiling can be a way to understand why, for example, certain personalities invest more time in fighting rather than coming up with solutions. With the correct psychometric tools and interpretation a senior team can use the insights to work more effectively, both as a team and with others in the organisation.”

Such tests will also tell bosses like Crozier if they have the right people in the right jobs to achieve the turnaround they seek. “Historically, in many organisations, people were promoted based on their technical rather than leadership skills in order to retain them,” explains Howard. “Today, many firms use psychometric tools to identify what training/development they might need to succeed in positions of leadership, or whether they can still capitalise on technical expertise and be freed up to do what they are good at.”

Personality profiling can be a way to understand why, for example, certain personalities invest more time in fighting rather than coming up with solutions. With the correct psychometric tools and interpretation a senior team can use the insights to work more effectively, both as a team and with others in the organisation.

Paolo Moscuzza, Director, ER Consultants

They can also help to predict how leaders are likely to cope in unpredictable climates, though the attributes needed to succeed in a tougher recessionary market are different from those most valued in the past. “As a result of cutbacks, some individuals are having to wear lots of different hats, and manage in uncertainty. But just because current leaders have been successful in the past, does not mean they will continue to be successful in the current environment or in the future,” says Sally Duff, managing consultant Europe, at organisational development consultancy Caliper.

Crystal ball

When used with other tools like 360-degree feedback, psychometric testing is an excellent way to predict how employees are likely to behave in the future. “It is an objective, diagnostic tool to help individuals understand where they are at and offers them the opportunity to reflect on the results so they can be developed to succeed in their role,” says Duff. “It can also make individuals aware of how their style or behaviour impacts on others. For example, you might consider yourself as a good listener, but do other people see you that way? For leaders, it’s a luxury to stop and give themselves time to reflect on what they are good at and how they can grow.”

If such benefits are communicated to leaders, any reluctance to take such tests will be short-lived. “However, managers that administer these tests need to prove the value of them and ensure the test is of good quality, that it’s administered properly and always benchmarked against those at a similar level and industry,” says Doyle.

Psychometric tests have come a long way, and the general consensus is that when administered properly they are quite accurate. “But, of course, there are always exceptions. People have good days and bad days, and therefore these tests must never be used in isolation, and only as a probing or diagnostic tool,” adds Doyle.

The results must also be treated with sensitivity. “Ideally, the results should be given on a one-to-one basis, but if sharing the results in a group it’s important not to name people, and refer to trends instead, i.e. this was the trend rather than x tends to do this compared to y. Also in times of economic hardship, it is vital to stress the fact that it is an individual development tool and not used to target non-performers,” says Doyle.

Costing between £20 and £2,000 per person, is it worth the investment? “When these tools are used in the right way, you can maximise the effectiveness of your top team. And when your leaders are working together effectively, the bottom line benefits become obvious,” says Moscuzza.

Of course, it’s not only the company that benefits, but the individual too, says Duff; “Because hopefully, they’ll not only be in a job/role that they are good at, but one that they are more likely to succeed in, and that’s great news for their career progression.”