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DFID assessment centres : information for candidates

1.Background

An assessment centre is the next stage (after the paper sift) of the DFID selection process. This information sets out what you can expect to encounter at a DFID assessment centre.

All DFID roles are important in achieving the goal of poverty reduction. It is therefore critical to get people with the right mix of competency, skills, attitude and motivation. For this reason, DFID uses assessment centres to ensure:

• Firstly, that a comprehensive assessment of any vacancy related skills are gained, and;
• secondly, that we gather information in a manner that is fair to you and supports the DFID diversity agenda.

At the assessment centre we assess each short listed candidate’s technical capability against the technical criteria specified in the vacancy advert. Candidates will usually find more information on the technical criteria in the more comprehensive vacancy information, which will appear on our website until the advertised closing date for the vacancy has passed.

We will also assess each candidate’s personal qualities, skills and behaviours against the 5 key core competencies for the vacancy as detailed in the advert and vacancy information. Brief descriptions of all 9 competencies from our core competency framework are given in Appendix A below. Full descriptions of the behaviours appropriate to each competency are detailed in the separate ‘core competency framework’ document.

2. Assessment centres

Assessment Centres are extended selection procedures which include:

• Interviews assessing technical and core competencies;
• vacancy specific exercises;
• measures of people management style and leadership skills.

They aim to provide a full and fair assessment of capabilities.

Key features of DFID’s Assessment Centres are;

• multiple opportunities to demonstrate skills,
• vacancy related activities as well as interview,
• a number of assessors,
• a mix of behavioural and self report exercises.

Decisions are made based upon all the information gained, and all decisions are based on vacancy related criteria.

Typically a DFID assessment centre will comprise between 3 or more of the following:

Technical Interview

Core Competency Based Interview

Technical Written exercise

Group discussion

Presentation (to technical interview panel)

Management Scenarios exercise – this may be completed on line in advance.

• Psychometric tests – these may be completed on line in advance

More comprehensive details of each of these components are included at Appendix B

3. How to prepare

If you are invited to an assessment centre, to give your best you should consider the following beforehand:

• Look at the job and person specification in the vacancy information and think about how your specific skills, knowledge and competencies match the vacancy requirements.
• Review your application, your achievements, knowledge and skills. Think of examples where you have demonstrated the capabilities needed for the vacancy.
• Think about your work ‘style’, for example in working with others, in managing people or projects, and in coping with difficult situations. Be ready to talk about your strengths and development areas.
• You should think about how you would tackle a task with limited preparation time.
• Each of the vacancy related exercises such as group discussion exercise and written exercise will be preceded by instructions, and an opportunity to check your understanding of what you have to do.
• On the day, ensure you listen to, or read, the instructions thoroughly.

4. On the assessment day

There will be an introduction to explain what will happen. Typically there will be a group of 4 participants, and a number of DFID employees including a facilitator to help the day run smoothly.

To help your performance on the day:

• Arrive on time so that you can settle yourself.
• Listen carefully to the instructions given before each exercise, and note the time allowed.
• Ask the facilitator, or assessors, if you have any questions about specific exercises or the assessment centre as a whole.
• Be yourself - to have got this far, you are identified as potentially having the qualifications, competencies, knowledge and skills to do the job. This process simply helps us find out more about you.
• Remember that rarely will someone do equally well on all parts of the process.

You will complete a range of different exercises, and there will be several opportunities to show your strengths. It is performance over the whole day’s activities that we are interested in.

Participant feedback indicates that generally people find the day demanding, but a fair opportunity to show their capabilities.

Finally – We want all candidates to have the opportunity to demonstrate their vacancy-related skills, knowledge and competencies. If you have any special requirements, concerns, language issues, medical conditions or disabilities that could potentially impact on your performance on the day, please tell us in advance by completing the ‘Reasonable Adjustments Form’ so that we can do everything possible to accommodate your requirements.

Appendix A

Key core competencies

Each vacancy will have 5 key core competencies from the 9 in our Core Competency Framework. Candidates should check the advert for the 5 key core competencies which will be assessed for the vacancy. Brief descriptions of all 9 core competencies are below. Information on the behaviours expected for each competency is contained in the ‘Core Competency Framework’ document.

Planning And Delivery Of Work

Plans and organises work to meet individual, team and departmental objectives whilst achieving quality and value for money.

Analysis And Use Of Information

Assesses and interprets information in order to identify issues or problems.

Decision Making

Considers the information that is available, identifies options and makes timely decisions.

Working With Others

Takes responsibility to build and maintain positive relationships and value the opinion of others.

Communicating with others

Vary the way you communicate ideas and information ensuring your message is understood.

Influencing

Positively influences others, creating acceptance and support for ideas

Organisation Awareness

Understands how your job contributes and delivers DFID goals in accordance with DFID values.

Managing change

Supports opportunities for positive change and actively looks for ways to improve what you do.

Continual Improvement

Continually looks to improve your skills, knowledge and the way you work.

Appendix B

The assessment centre will include the most appropriate of the following exercises for assessing the skills, knowledge and expertise required for the vacancy:

Technical panel interview. This will be a traditional 45 minute interview with a panel of at least 2 assessors. They will explore your technical expertise if you have applied for a professional cadre or specialist vacancy, your career to date and interest in the advertised vacancy. There will be an opportunity at the end to ask any questions you have on the vacancy.

Presentation exercise. You may be asked to prepare and deliver to the technical interview panel a 5 -10 minute presentation on a given topic. You will either be given around 30 minutes to prepare the presentation immediately before your interview; or the topic will be sent to you around 7 days in advance depending on the assessment centre programme. The technical interview panel may ask you follow up questions at the end of your presentation. Normally only flipchart paper is provided to assist with making your presentation.

Technical written exercise. You may be asked to give a written response on a given topic that will be typical of the kind of written work required for the vacancy. For example you may be asked to provide a short written briefing for a minister on a current “hot topic” in your profession, or specialism, or international development generally. You will be expected to outline your appreciation of the issues involved in the presented situation and your recommendations on how to deal with that situation. You will usually be given an hour to complete the exercise. This exercise measures both your written communication skills and your technical skills. A laptop is normally provided to complete this exercise and pen and paper are also available. For certain vacancies you may be asked to complete the written exercise in advance of the centre.

Core competency based interview (CBI). The CBI will assess key core competencies as we believe that core competencies are as important as technical competencies. During the interview you will be asked to give examples of your team working, people management and leadership skills (for senior vacancies), as well as examples of some of the other advertised 5 key core competencies for the vacancy. Try to think of examples which demonstrate your skills, knowledge and expertise in these areas beforehand. The CBI usually lasts around 45 minutes and is conducted on a one-to-one basis with a trained HR Assessor.

Group exercise – vacancy specific. This provides you with an opportunity to show how you work with others in a team-working situation, trying to solve a common problem. You will be given brief background information on a situation related to the vacancy you have applied for and a short preparation period to think about the problem. You will be asked to discuss the issue with the other participants for between 40-50 minutes. There will usually be no right or wrong answer to the problem. We will simply be interested in how you communicate and work with a team, and how you deploy your problem solving skills. Assessors observe the exercise and take notes but do not participate.

OR

Group exercise – generic. You will be given information on a problem that collectively the group has to solve. The problem will be a general one and not DFID related. Each participant will be given some background information to analyse, and then all participants will be expected to work together to solve the problem. In this exercise we are interested in how you communicate and work in a team, and how you deploy your problem solving skills. Assessors observe the exercise and take notes but do not participate.

Management scenarios exercise. You will be provided with background information on a core management problem, then asked to analyse it and provide a written response. The background information may consist of several pages, or it may be a short paragraph - depending on the particular management exercise used.

You may be asked to complete this exercise on line in advance of the assessment centre day. If this is completed on line it takes around 50 minutes to complete but is not timed, so you don’t have to worry about being penalised if you take longer because of internet connection problems.

Instructions on the precise task and the format of the written response will either be provided on the assessment day; or when you are invited to attend the assessment if it is to be completed in advance.

Personality questionnaire. For certain vacancies you may be asked to complete a short personality questionnaire, as this can help determine a candidate’s suitability for a vacancy. The questionnaire will cover areas about how you work with others, how you plan and organise work and how you approach the pressures and challenges of your work. The resulting personality profile will be discussed with you in a one-to-one discussion. This will provide insights into your working style and you will be given a short written summary at the end of the discussion.

Please note: If you are required to complete a personality questionnaire we will send you a leaflet which gives more information before the assessment centre. You may be asked to complete this on line in advance.