WPC

[raged1999]

Information for you.

What to Expect at your Interview/Assessment
You may be asked to sit a structured interview only, or you may be asked to sit a structured interview with additional assessment centre exercises. You will be notified of the assessment process before the day.
What Is An Assessment Centre?
The interview is the most commonly used method for assessing whether a person has the right kind of strengths to meet the needs of a job. Often called an Assessment Centre, the process is multiple in many ways. A group of participants take part in a variety of exercises observed by a team of trained assessors who evaluate each participant against a number of job-related behaviours. Decisions are made by pooling shared data.
Why Use This Process?
This approach predicts how well a person will do when their previous experience is less relevant to the new job. There are also benefits for you:
• Everything is standardised so everyone has the equal opportunity to show their ability
• The process is far more objective than an interview, which depends entirely on the interpretation of one person.
• It is fair. The centre allows you to show a range of abilities in various scenarios; your preference in all of these situations is taken into account in the final assessment.
What Do I Need To Do Before The Centre?
There is very little you need to do in advance (unless you are instructed otherwise). Make sure you have prepared any questions you have about the employer (or if internal the business unit/area) in advance.
Think about you, your strengths and your experiences in and out of work. Prepare examples of situations that illustrate your strengths and be sure you describe them fluently.
Don’t arrive feeling unprepared or tight for time on the day.
What Should I Expect To Happen?
During the course of the centre, you may be asked to participate in a number of exercises that simulate major parts of the job you are applying for:
• Group Exercises
• One-to-one exercises, eg Presentations, Fact finding exercises, interview simulations.
• Written (working alone) exercises
You will also have an interview and may be asked to complete psychometric tests. You may be interviewed or observed by more than one specially trained assessor in any particular exercise.
Group Exercises
Group Exercises are timed discussions in which your group will work together to make decisions about work-related situations. The discussions typically last 40-60 minutes and an assessor will observe you throughout. There are no right or wrong answers, the assessors are looking at how you interact with other people in a team environment.
One-to-one Exercises
One-to-one exercises with other people cover some quite different situations, depending on the nature of the job you are being assessed for. The main forms are:
• Oral Presentation or Briefing. These may be in a formal or informal format. In either case you will have to analyse and interpret information and present a case. Normally you will be questioned afterwards.
• Fact finding exercise. In this situation, you are asked to make a decision starting from limited information. The main point of the exercise is to find out more so you can be confident of making the best decision.
• Interview Simulations. These simulations replicate the kind of thing a manager may do behind closed doors, for example coaching or counselling an individual. The individual concerned is trained to play the role of team member, boss, colleague or even customer.
Written Exercises
Written exercises can take a variety of forms. The In-Basket (or In-Tray) exercise is the most popular form. This involves working through the contents of a manager’s in-tray which will contain memos, letters and other items. You will be asked to respond to the items and make decisions against a defined time deadline.
Another form is the Analysis Exercise which requires you to analyse and interpret a dossier of information and make a report on it and/or prepare a presentation for delivery to the assessors. Where the In-Basket has a number of discrete items, the Analysis Exercise is all about one complex situation.
Structured Interview
You will be asked to give examples of how you have behaved in particular past situations which are the most important for successful performance in this role. The questions are written to measure the indicators that sit below the six Royal Mail Leadership Behaviours. You will only be assessed against the indicators relevant for the role. Part of the interview will also assess the technical skills required for the role.
The interview will last about an hour. There will be two assessors present who will alternately ask you questions about different areas. Having two interviewers ensures that the evidence you provide is recorded accurately and that different standpoints are taken into account during decision making.
Interview Preparation
You will be asked to provide examples of what you have done in the past. It will be much easier for you to present yourself well if you have thought through what kinds of experiences you have that can demonstrate your ability to carry out this role.
Think about which Leadership Behaviour indicators and what technical skills will be most important. Think about past experiences you could talk about to demonstrate your abilities in these areas. Be prepared to tell the story of this experience – what the situation was, what you were trying to achieve, who you dealt with, what you actually did and the resulting outcome. You can’t anticipate what actual questions you will be asked but by thinking ahead about what relevant examples you can draw upon, you will find it much easier to respond to the questions asked. Bear in mind though that it is very important to answer the question you have been asked rather than the question you’ve prepared for!
There will also be time at the end of the interview for you to ask the interviewers questions about the role. Think in advance what you would like to know about the role in order to decide whether this is the job for you.
During the Centre
During the centre, listen carefully to instructions and ask if you are uncertain. Centres can be perplexing and you will not be judged for requesting clarification about procedures.
The most important advice is to be yourself. Trying to guess what assessors are looking for can damage your chances.
Take each exercise as it comes. Remember that it is a multiple process which will give you an opportunity to show what you can do.
Try also to remember that you are being assessed against a standard, not against other people who are there on the day.
The Assessment Centre process has been designed to enable you to demonstrate your full abilities and our best advice is to relax, be yourself, enjoy the process and most importantly ensure you get as much out of the event as you can.

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