Owing to the large number of vacancies in technical and engineering-related fields, there was a need for an aptitude assessment tailored primarily to engineers.
As a result of many years of successful collaboration between HR Consult Group AG and the geva-institut, an aptitude assessment specifically for engineers has been developed: the Soft-Skills Check. The geva-institut is a psychological management consultancy specialising in assessment and HR consultancy.
This project benefited from the scientific expertise of the geva-institut and the long-standing experience of HR Consult Group AG.
Prior to the development of aptitude assessments for engineers, there was no test available for this professional group that even came close to measuring and evaluating personal, social and methodological skills in relation to engineering-specific characteristics. Although soft skills tests already existed in various other fields, these were not specifically tailored to engineers.
For many years, HR Consult Group AG has been working closely with the geva-institut, which meets all the necessary quality criteria and ensures compliance with the DIN standard.
This effective collaboration combines the theoretical development of the methods with the expertise gained from real-world interactions with companies and candidates. This creates a solid foundation for a tool that is as accurate as possible when it comes to analysing personal, social and methodological skills. Even today, the testing procedures are constantly being refined. Strengths are further developed and weaknesses minimised by drawing on empirical evidence.
The Soft Skills Check for engineers involves answering questions on the key topics of motivation, behaviour, interests, leadership, educational background and work experience.
In order to identify the various groups of engineers, factors such as educational qualifications, age, management status, sector, gender, position within the organisation and role are also necessary for meaningful analysis.
These provide an opportunity to form various clusters. A cluster is a group comprising several profiles that are thematically related. In addition to distinguishing between the various engineering groups, this requires a large number of participating engineers.
In total, more than 1,500 engineers took part in the Soft Skills Check in collaboration with VDI Nachrichten. The engineers were made aware of the initiative through the online and print editions of VDI Nachrichten. It was only after this large-scale test that it became possible to form a wide variety of clusters – for example, by gender or field of work.
The figures above clearly show that the ‘Industry’ cluster illustrates the sectors in which engineers are employed. Engineers are predominantly required and employed in the automotive, mechanical engineering and plant engineering sectors. It is clearly evident from the ‘Field of Activity’ cluster that most engineers work in development. Project management comes in second place.
The majority of the participating engineers are aged between 30 and 45. This is also reflected in the organisational hierarchy. Many of the participants work as specialists or project managers. The ‘Hierarchy’ cluster can be used to conduct various analyses. For example, the hierarchy can be divided into specialist/technical staff, project management, departmental management and divisional/executive management. This classification allows the development of personality traits to be identified and distinguished.
The next article in this series will not only examine in more detail the personality traits that remain consistent throughout a person’s career, but also those traits that are key to a career in engineering. Do you know which areas of your personality need to be developed in order to build a successful career?
Image source:
Betz, Armin: Aptitude Testing in Practice – „An Engineer Remains an Engineer“, German National Library, 2015, p. 111 ff., ISBN 978-3-00-052093-8
About the author
After completing his degree in Automotive Engineering and Industrial Engineering, he began his career in the automotive industry in the fields of sales, development and marketing, and also spent a year in Japan working for one of the largest automotive suppliers.
He then moved to a world-renowned premium car manufacturer, where he served as a marketing officer responsible for product marketing in Japan and South America, and as a marketing officer responsible for marketing strategy in North and South America.
In 1994, he decided to set up his own business and founded a recruitment consultancy in Munich, which he has been developing and expanding for over 20 years. As managing director, his main areas of focus are, naturally, the automotive sector and mechanical and plant engineering.
His PhD in the field of aptitude assessment perfectly complements his areas of expertise, particularly with regard to HR and management consultancy. His thesis focuses on identifying and demonstrating typical personality traits among engineers, as well as defining areas for development to ensure a successful career.
These are scientifically derived and presented in the book *Aptitude Testing in Practice*.
At the same time, his focus is on building networks and cooperation models, as well as the ongoing development of systems and processes in HR consultancy.
Over the past 20 years in the field of HR consultancy, he has developed several brands that continue to operate successfully in the market to this day.
