{"id":23343,"date":"2023-08-15T10:33:02","date_gmt":"2023-08-15T10:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clevry.com\/?page_id=23343"},"modified":"2024-02-12T10:44:07","modified_gmt":"2024-02-12T10:44:07","slug":"how-to-run-a-virtual-assessment-centre","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.clevry.com\/en\/platform\/assessments\/how-to-run-a-virtual-assessment-centre\/","title":{"rendered":"How to run a virtual assessment centre"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Resources<\/b><\/p>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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How to run a virtual assessment centre<\/b><\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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A guide to designing & delivering a virtual assessment centre<\/b><\/p>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Home<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Table of contents:<\/span><\/h2>

Introduction<\/a><\/p>

Planning your Virtual Assessment Centre<\/a><\/p>

Designing a Virtual Assessment Centre<\/a><\/p>

Preparing you candidates<\/a><\/p>

During the Assessment Centre<\/a><\/p>

After the Assessment Centre<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>

Conclusion<\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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When designing and delivering a virtual assessment centre, it\u2019s important to follow best practice guidance.<\/p>

This can help organisations increase the validity and effectiveness of their assessment process whilst ensuring that candidates have a fair and positive experience.<\/p>

The following guidelines have been adapted from the British Psychological Society\u2019s Standards on Assessment Centres, the International Taskforce on Assessment Centre Guidance (2015), and the International Test Commission\u2019s (2005) International Guidelines on Computer-Based and Internet Delivered Testing, combined with our own Clevry consultants\u2019 professional experience.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Planning your virtual assessment centre<\/strong><\/h2>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Choose a service provider<\/strong><\/h4>

The service provider will be responsible for designing and delivering your Virtual Assessment Centre. The service provider may be an internal employee or an external contractor (such as Clevry).<\/p>

When choosing a service provider it is important to consider their competence in designing and delivering assessment centres, and their compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Establish soft- and hardware requirements<\/strong><\/h4>

Ensure that the software and\/or hardware you wish to use are adequate for hosting the Virtual Assessment Centre so That it can be delivered consistently and smoothly.<\/p>

It must be sufficiently robust to deal with potential system failures. You should also take measures to minimise the risks of hacking (to avoid hackers gaining access to test materials\u00a0and candidate scores) and ensure that the data is backed up. Consider whether any additional software is needed for interactive activities, e.g. Google Hangouts or Zoom.<\/p>

A benefit of using a service provider such as Clevry is\u00a0that all assessment processes can be managed on a single platform with the option of adding your own branding.<\/p>

Clevry is a secure, ISO 27001 certified, and GDPR compliant platform that ensures your data is safe and secure. Consider integrating the Virtual Assessment Centre with your Applicant Tracking System (ATS)<\/p>

This can help provide a more seamless experience for your hiring managers and candidates. Clevry, for example, integrates easily with a range of ATS providers.<\/p>

Define the purpose of using a Virtual Assessment Centre Assessment centres can be used for a number of purposes, including assessment and selection, professional development, and succession planning.\u00a0Thus, it is important to consider whether a Virtual AC is an appropriate method for your particular purpose.<\/p>

The purpose will influence how the\u00a0Virtual Assessment Centre is designed and delivered, as well as how the personal data of candidates is used.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Clearly outline your assessment needs<\/strong><\/h4>

Understanding the assessment needs and the context in which the assessments take place is a crucial prerequisite for\u00a0designing a Virtual Assessment Centre.<\/p>

This information should be shared with your service provider as early as possible.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Decide between using your own, bespoke, or off-the-shelf content<\/strong><\/h4>

Your existing assessments can be adapted and hosted on a virtual platform. If you decide to move your existing assessment centre materials online, you need to ensure that you can demonstrate evidence of equivalence.<\/p>

This means that the online version correlates with your traditional pen-and-paper assessment, has comparable reliability, and can predict external criteria (such as job performance).<\/p>

If you decide to use an external service provider, like Clevry, you will also have the option of choosing between\u00a0off-the- shelf materials and or creating a bespoke Virtual Assessment Centre.<\/p>

There are advantages to either approach, so ensure that you choose the one that is the most suitable for your recruitment needs. Clevry\u2019s business Business Psychologists can help you with this.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Use psychometrics<\/strong><\/h4>

One of the benefits of Virtual Assessment Centres is that you can run them as often as you would like, even daily. However\u00a0this also means that you may receive a large volume of candidates who need to be assessed.<\/p>

Psychometrics (e.g. cognitive ability tests<\/a> and personality questionnaires<\/a>) and Situational Judgement Tests<\/a> (SJTs) can be used to sift candidates during the shortlisting stage to r educe the number of candidates participating in the Virtual Assessment Centre.<\/p>

Psychometrics<\/a> can also be used within the Virtual Assessment Centre<\/a> to uncover competencies that are more difficult to observe in other activities without the face-to-face elements.<\/p>

Additionally, our Personality Questionnaires have the option of generating a range of insightful reports, such as our interviewer report, which assessors can use to better structure their interviews with candidates.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Designing a virtual assessment centre<\/strong><\/h2>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Conduct a Job Analysis and Competency Modelling<\/strong><\/h4>

The job analysis helps you identify the responsibilities and duties of a specific role, and what knowledge, skills, abilities and other attributes are necessary to perform in the role.<\/p>

Competency modelling is useful for uncovering the assessment criteria; it will help you describe the competencies you wish to assess and create indicators for what good and poor performance looks like.<\/p>

It’s important that the assessment criteria are described as behaviours as these will be used to create the positive and negative performance indicators that will guide assessors in their evaluation.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Map the Competencies with Virtual Assessment Centre Activities:\u00a0<\/strong>Validity and Reliability<\/strong><\/h4>

The composition of the Virtual Assessment Centre will affect its overall validity. Firstly, ensure the competencies you have identified predict performance in the role. The job analysis will give an indication of this, however you may want to conduct your own statistical analyses and refer to research literature.<\/p>

For example, research suggests that some competencies (e.g. problem-solving) are generally better predictors of performance than others (e.g. drive).<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Secondly, ensure that the methods (i.e. the activities) you want to use to measure the competencies are valid and reliable by examining whether they a) capture the desired competencies, b) predict job performance, and c) accurately measure what they intend to.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Multiple Assessment Methods<\/strong><\/h4>

A Virtual Assessment Centre would not be an assessment centre unless it included multiple assessments.<\/p>

A variety of activities should be used to collect evidence about candidates\u2019 performance against the different competencies.<\/p>

At a minimum, this could include a structured interview
and simulation exercises. Simulation exercises allow assessors to observe candidates\u2019 behaviours as they would be performed in the role.<\/p>

Examples of these kinds of exercises include in-tray or fact-finding exercises, presentations, analysis exercises, or group discussions.<\/p>

The use of technology in the Virtual Assessment Centre can actually increase the perceived similarity between the assessments and the real work context.<\/p>

For example, tasks that would usually be performed online, such as responding to emails, can easily be simulated in the in-tray exercise.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Potential limitations<\/strong><\/h4>

Bear in mind that some competencies, especially those usually assessed in group discussions (e.g. social skills, influencing others), are more difficult to observe without face- to-face elements.<\/p>

In some cases adjustments can be made to traditional exercises to make them suitable for virtual assessment (please see the following section), but in other cases the competencies may need to be assessed outside the Virtual Assessment Centre, such as through psychometric assessments.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Reduce the time duration and group sizes<\/strong><\/h4>

Keep the event short to maximise engagement. Candidates may feel tired or restless after sitting down in front of a computer screen for a prolonged period of time.<\/p>

You should aim for maximum 3 hours of assessments, including breaks. Within this timescale it may be appropriate to aim for 2-3 activities.<\/p>

An advantage of running a Virtual Assessment Centre is that it is possible to spread out activities across several days to avoid lengthy sessions. This helps if candidates are required to complete a large number of assessments.<\/p>

Group discussions are a common assessment centre activity that may be difficult to deliver online without the\u00a0face-to-face elements. While we do not necessarily recommend that you avoid using them, you may have to make some adjustments. For example, you can reduce the group size from 6 candidates to 3 or 4 candidates.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Identify assessors and training needs<\/strong><\/h4>

The assessors will evaluate the candidates\u2019 performance against the competencies. Ideally they should be a diverse group both in terms of their personal characteristics (e.g. age, sex, and ethnicity) and experience. To ensure that the process is robust, assessors should be rotated across the candidates so that no single assessor evaluates one single candidate.<\/p>

All assessors need to be appropriately trained to use the assessment platform as well as the various methods within the assessment centre, including the Observe, Record, Classify and Evaluate (ORCE) process. You may also need to train the assessors or additional personnel to participate in role play exercises.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Prepare your Virtual Assessment Centre materials<\/strong><\/h4>

Using a Virtual Assessment Centre eliminates the need for paper forms. The materials used in the assessment activities should be built into the system and hosted within the platform itself.<\/p>

To protect the test materials, steps should be taken to ensure that materials cannot be downloaded, printed or copied\u00a0and pasted.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Timetabling and scheduling<\/strong><\/h4>

The timetables for Virtual Assessment Centres can be more flexible than for traditional assessment centres as candidates are not required to complete their assessments in allocated rooms at specific times.<\/p>

The timetable should outline the activities candidates are required to complete, and by when. For interactive exercises, such as interviews, assessors can indicate their availability on the platform, and candidates can then be invited to choose a time-slot that suits them.<\/p>

When using a mixture of unscheduled and scheduled activities, it is important to ensure that it is clear which activities are scheduled at a specific time to reduce the risk of candidates entering virtual exercises too early or late.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Standardise your process<\/strong><\/h4>

Try to ensure that your process is as standardised as possible. Candidates should be given the same information and practice materials, and complete the same exercises within the same timeframe.<\/p>

With Virtual Assessment Centres there are several factors to consider that may affect the standardisation of your process, including:<\/p>