Many aptitude diagnostics methods currently available on the market only determine absolute values of candidates' personality traits and in most cases, if at all, can only reflect these against a demographic group. The test result is therefore only meaningful to a limited extent. The absolute result of a personality trait does not say whether this value is good or bad. Only in comparison with candidates from the same occupational group can a statement be made about the quality of the characteristic.
An example of this is the problem of relation. Here is an example: In the high jump, the question is how high the bar is. However, the height alone is of little significance. This is because the jump only becomes interesting when the height is set in relation to the other high jumpers. What can be very good for academic performance is not competitive at the Olympics.
Figures such as 80%, which are still sometimes used in aptitude assessment procedures, are irrelevant because they are not set in relation to a comparison group. Only the comparison with a group or best group allows a statement to be made as to whether a value is to be classified as good or bad.
The system of aptitude diagnostics developed by the HR Consult Group involves mirroring the candidate against one of currently 115 standard and best-practice profiles of people operating successfully on the market. This enables the assessors not only to compare the proposed candidates directly, but also to mirror them against a much larger group of successful candidates on the market. This explicitly visualizes development potential as well as personal strengths in relation to the specific occupational group.
If a candidate's result value lands within the colored bandwidth, as shown in the example (see figure: Deviation of the candidate from the comparison group), the candidate is within the comparison profile. If the result is lower, i.e. to the left of the variance of the comparison group, the candidate has a clearly different assessment of this characteristic than the comparison group. If the candidate's result is to the right of the colored bandwidth, they consider themselves to be stronger than the comparison group on this point, which generally does indeed reflect a strength. The percentages shown on the far right indicate the exact values of the average of the comparison group, the candidate's value and the delta calculated from this, i.e. the exact deviation from the average of the comparison group.
Such standard and best practice profiles do not exist per se, but must be generated from the test inventory. It must therefore be ensured that sufficient tests are available to be able to create such norm and best practice profiles. For example, if a candidate is to be matched against the position of a sales manager, there must be enough test results from sales managers to be able to create a norm or best practice profile from these, which serves as a reference for comparison with the candidate profile.
The norm or best-practice profile is the average value including standard deviation of all test results per characteristic in relation to this specific group. In order to form these groups, however, more data about the candidate must be collected than is the case with most test procedures. Only knowledge of the candidate's general data, such as current position, current salary, with or without employee responsibility, etc., as well as personal information, makes it possible to form corresponding groups. This allocation is unique, i.e. the candidate can only belong to one of these groups. This means that all relevant tests can be filtered from the entire database and a standard and best-practice profile can be created.
A standard and best-practice profile is used for comparison. Based on the comparison, conclusions can be drawn on the positioning of the candidate in the individual personality traits and possible areas of development and potential can be uncovered and exploited by means of personnel development.
The Best Practice Profile (BPP) is a standard profile of the best. It is created by applying an additional filter. From these tests, the best 10 - 20 % are selected according to previously defined benchmarks and combined into a separate group.
The creation of a best practice profile is best explained using the example of a car salesperson. This is based on certain criteria that are used to select the participants used for best practice profiles. The selection criteria are varied and must be adapted and applied to each individual example. In this case, the top 10% of salespeople in terms of margin achieved and cars sold by a car manufacturer were selected as the relevant test group. The BPP created showed how the best salespeople of a car manufacturer are "knitted" and which characteristics are particularly necessary and beneficial for success in this job profile.
To verify this, the best salespeople from another car manufacturer were tested and it turned out that the two best-practice profiles were extremely similar.
It was particularly surprising that characteristics emerged across all participants for which the absolute values were virtually identical and there was virtually no spread in the candidates' answers. We would like to go into more detail on how this phenomenon should be evaluated in the next article.
The next article in this series will focus on key criteria. What are key criteria actually? And how are key criteria defined?
After studying automotive engineering and industrial engineering, he began his professional career in the automotive industry in the areas of sales, development and marketing and also spent a year in Japan with one of the largest automotive suppliers.
He then moved to a globally renowned premium car manufacturer, where he was responsible for product marketing in Japan and South America and for marketing strategy in North and South America.
In 1994, he decided to become self-employed and founded a personnel consultancy in Munich, where he has been driving development and expansion for over 20 years. As Managing Director, his industry focus is naturally on the automotive world as well as mechanical and plant engineering.
His doctorate in the field of aptitude diagnostics ideally rounds off his areas of expertise, particularly with regard to personnel and management consulting. The dissertation deals with the identification and verification of typical personality traits of engineers as well as the definition of development areas for a successful professional career.
These are scientifically derived and presented in the book "Eignungsdiagnostik im Praxiseinsatz".
At the same time, his focus is on the development of networks and cooperation models as well as the continuous further development of systems and processes in personnel consulting.
Over the last 20 years in personnel consulting, he has developed several brands that are still operating successfully on the market today.
Purchasing in particular is susceptible to compliance violations due to unclear rules and bait offers from suppliers.
German companies' purchasing departments turn over billions. Many suppliers are under enormous pressure to sell their goods and services. The temptation is therefore great to sometimes use unfair methods to generate an order.
Purchasing is therefore particularly susceptible to breaches of the rules. Insecure contracts and unethical behavior on the part of suppliers can encourage corruption and violations of antitrust law. It is not always criminal energy on the part of the purchasing department that is involved, but often buyers do not know whether they are already in a legal gray area. According to a survey by the Allensbach Institute, violations of legal regulations occur most frequently in the purchasing department, even before the sales or finance departments.
Suppliers can represent a major risk for companies.
It is therefore of the utmost importance for procurement that suppliers work in accordance with ethical principles, as violations of these principles represent a major risk for companies. If companies enter into business relationships with foreign suppliers who, for example, violate labor guidelines (child labor, non-compliance with occupational safety regulations) and are prosecuted, this can result in enormous reputational damage for the purchasing company. A conviction of the supplier can also lead to delivery failures.
Intensive examination of the supply chain is essential.
Early and comprehensive information about existing or potential suppliers can prevent the company from violating compliance guidelines, especially in the case of partners abroad or from other cultural backgrounds. The beneficial owner of a company is often not immediately recognizable at a glance. This is particularly the case if there is an extensive international interdependency structure that inevitably needs to be checked. In such cases, it is important for the purchasing decision-maker to allow sufficient time to research the potential supplier and identify the beneficial owner.
Purchasing and compliance must work more closely together.
The company management must promote cooperation between the purchasing and compliance departments. Both sides can complement each other when it comes to business transactions, for example when it comes to defining and adhering to process specifications. The goal should always be a high level of transparency in the procurement process.
The prerequisite is always the identification of the relevant risks.
The relevant risks to the purchasing department should therefore be identified and evaluated as part of a specific purchasing risk audit. Suitable measures should then be derived on the basis of a needs-based risk strategy in order to effectively counter the identified risks.
Eckart Achauer, studied law and business administration, postgraduate Master of Business Administration (MBA). In-service training as European Quality Manager (DGQ), mediator specializing in business mediation and Certified Compliance Manager (TÜV).
He worked for around 10 years in the international insurance industry in the management of a Swiss insurance group in various functions (claims department, sales, assistance) before moving into management and business consulting in 1997.
As a consultant and managing director of various consulting companies, Mr. Achauer has specialized in organizational and process optimization as well as in the development and implementation of management systems - quality management, risk and compliance management.
At Senator Executive Search Partners, Mr. Achauer is responsible for compliance management. As part of compliance audits, he analyses their organizational "compliance fitness", raises awareness and trains management, executives and employees and supports companies in setting up and implementing individual compliance management systems. In doing so, he always takes into account the specific risk situation of the company. Thanks to his many years of experience as a manager and consultant, he is very familiar with the business challenges faced in practice.
Why do some people cope better with exceptional situations than others? "Resilience is the answer," says clinical psychologist J. Christopher Kübler and reveals how he helps his clients to train their mental resilience.
We all know them: People who have "nerves of steel", who are "a rock in the storm" or who always prove to be a "stand-up guy". We use phrases like these to describe a remarkable characteristic that experts call resilience. They refer to an experience and behavior that not only allows us to withstand massive stress - in line with the Latin meaning of "resilire = to bounce back" - but also enables us to overcome our challenges and even grow in the process.
Anyone who thinks they are born with little mental resilience will be pleased to learn the following: Experience in counseling, coaching and psychotherapy has shown time and again that most people have resilience skills that are simply not activated. This means that there is more to us than we realize.
General resilience factors
Thanks to extensive research, scientists can now name a whole range of key resilience factors. These include, for example, intellectual abilities, social skills, problem-solving skills, good self-efficacy and self-control as well as successful stress management. Resilient people also prove to be solution-oriented, able to relate, open, interested, self-motivated, determined, purposeful, meaningful, positive-thinking, self-aware, calm and at peace with themselves. With this list of ideal characteristics, which cannot be extended any further, the question inevitably arises: How can I become such a resilient personality? And above all: is it really necessary to have all the factors at your disposal in order to be able to cope with life's adversities?
Resilience as an individual competence
It is important to understand the following in this regard: Lists such as the resilience factors make general statements based on a statistical average of the people examined. This form of scientific knowledge is less useful for coaches, counselors or psychotherapists working in practice. In their day-to-day work, they are concerned with individuals and their specific life situations. The question here is rather one of individual resilience competence. In other words, what challenges does this particular person face? Which resilient behaviors tailored to them would be effective for them? And what resilience factors do they need to be able to behave in this way? A person who is constantly in an exposed position at work, who is expected to be diplomatic (despite their choleric temperament) and who is constantly pressed for time (which doesn't exactly help their high blood pressure) needs tailored skills. Other resilience factors help someone who is expected to concentrate constantly, who tends to cultivate a certain phlegmatism and who has more or less severe headache attacks at least once a day. This is exactly what resilience coaching is all about: individual answers and approaches for each individual.
The practice of resilience coaching
Depending on the resilience and personality concept, there are certainly very different approaches to coaching. One very helpful approach, for example, is based on the potential hypothesis. This states that most people do not have a significant deficit in resilience skills that somehow needs to be compensated for or filled. We have what we need in terms of skills, they are (temporarily) just not (sufficiently) activated. Resilience coaching in this sense then means "treasure hunting" and "treasure utilization". It is about finding existing skills and activating them. Psychological methods that we all use in our everyday lives for our own "psycho-management" can help here - but usually without realizing it and sometimes not as versatile and skillful as possible. This is because this "psychomanagement" usually takes place unconsciously and involuntarily. Experts talk about hypno-imaginative, psycho-energetic and systemic constellation techniques that we use somehow every day and that need to be optimized in coaching. For example, by learning to access our involuntary competence. The fact that this type of resilience coaching builds on both existing skills and "psycho-techniques" that are already used on a daily basis means that there is a good chance of achieving a noticeable improvement in your own resilience skills within a short space of time. Because, as I said, there is more to us than we can dream of!
History of resilience research
Jack Block introduced the term "resilience" to science in 1950. Initially, however, it received no further attention. It was not until 20 years later that Emmy Werner and Ruth Smith took up the topic again in a highly regarded long-term study of children on the island of Kauai. Their question: Why do children develop so differently under equally poor conditions? They had observed that some grew up severely stressed and psychologically impaired, while others appeared to be able to cope with the circumstances. The researchers attributed this to differences in resilience. Since then, a large part of resilience research has been concerned with the question of which psychological factors cause resilience and which environmental or educational conditions have a decisive influence on these factors. The current popularity of the term "resilience" is linked to the growing awareness of topics such as stress, coping, burnout, salutogenesis and mindfulness. They are all aimed at a practical core problem: How can people promote and develop their mental competence so that they can cope with the challenges of everyday life in a healthy way?
A management audit is a systematic assessment or analysis of the skills and performance potential of managers. The focus here is on the needs and success of the company. These audits are used, for example, when the management team needs to be assessed to determine whether it is up to the current challenges. What measures can be taken to strengthen the management team? Another application can be seen in the integration of newly acquired companies. Do the management teams fit together? The targeted promotion of members of a talent pool can also be supported by such an audit. In addition, there are many other possible applications.
This article explains the preparation and implementation of the management audit process.
In order to meet the challenges of a management audit, some preparations must be made.
The first step is to define the objective of the audit. It must be clear what the intended result of the management audit should be.
Depending on the intended result, the company names the employees who will take part in the audit. At the same time, the subject areas on which statements are to be made from the company's perspective are defined and discussed. A list of questions is then drawn up for these areas, which is specifically tailored to the subject areas to be examined. On the basis of this information and specifications, a team of consultants is put together to carry out the management audit. From this team, a central contact person is appointed as project manager, who is available to the company at all times.
The smooth implementation and evaluation of the management audit is based on a schedule agreed with those involved.
As soon as all preparations have been made, the audit starts with an initial briefing for the company's participating employees. At the beginning, the participants carry out an aptitude diagnostic procedure. This is an online self-assessment tailored to the participant's position. This self-assessment is mirrored against known best practice or standard profiles. The result of this mirroring shows the participant's suitability, strengths and areas for action in relation to their current position.
As part of an extended procedure, the suitability of the participant for other possible positions can be examined with the help of multi-profile matching.
Using the results of the suitability diagnostics, structured interviews are then conducted based on the specific list of questions drawn up beforehand. Due to the four-eyes principle, two experienced consultants always take part in each interview. The results obtained are discussed with the project manager.
If several teams of consultants conduct the interviews, the results are validated once again by the project manager.
Overarching findings are also summarized by the project manager and presented to the company.
The second part of this topic will deal specifically with the evaluation of a management audit. How does the evaluation work? Which results are intended for the employees and which are important for the company?
As part of his training as an officer, he studied electrical engineering and graduated with a degree in engineering. This was followed by a further degree in industrial engineering with a focus on "Organization and Planning" and "Marketing".
After his career as an officer, he moved to a subsidiary of EADS in Paris, where he was responsible for international marketing, communications, trade fairs and exhibitions for several years.
Back in Germany, his path in a technology company led via the strategy department, later head of a product division, to the management. There he was responsible for sales, technical studies, strategy and business development.
In 2010, he moved to Rheinmetall to join a subsidiary as COO. After 2 years, he was responsible for a division with 2,500 employees. Extensive successful restructuring in Germany and Switzerland, the successful establishment of a joint venture in the USA and representation on several political and technological committees rounded off this phase.
He used the experience he gained in the fields of technology and general management to become a member of the Supervisory Board of both HR Consult Group AG and the technology company MECOMO AG. Accompanying the strategic development of HR Consult Group AG over several years convinced him to become a member of the Board of HR Consult Group AG. Because one experience is central: "It is all about people."
Would you like to receive regular information from us about interesting vacancies? The HR experts at HR Consult Group AG wanted to find out in a survey with more than 10,000 responses. The aim of the study is to capture the needs and wishes of candidates and to gain an insight into their opinions on the service and image of recruitment consultancies.
At 49 percent, just under half of those surveyed would like to receive information about current and suitable vacancies once a month. 38 percent of candidates, or more than a third, even prefer to receive information on a weekly basis.
This shows that even candidates who have not currently applied for a specific position would like to be kept informed of new job offers. With a total of 87%, the offer therefore meets with broad approval in the target group. Only 13 percent reject this service.
"Candidates' great need for information clearly shows how important it is for recruitment consultancies to offer a good service. The right balance is important here: if candidates receive too much information, they can quickly feel pressured or harassed. If, on the other hand, they hear too little from their recruitment consultancy, this can quickly be interpreted as a lack of service. The recruitment consultant should therefore discuss each candidate's individual information needs and the desired type and delivery of information in advance. This creates a pleasant and profitable collaboration for both sides," explains Dr. Armin Betz.
After studying automotive engineering and industrial engineering, he began his professional career in the automotive industry in the areas of sales, development and marketing and also spent a year in Japan with one of the largest automotive suppliers.
He then moved to a globally renowned premium car manufacturer, where he was responsible for product marketing in Japan and South America and for marketing strategy in North and South America.
In 1994, he decided to become self-employed and founded a personnel consultancy in Munich, where he has been driving development and expansion for over 20 years. As Managing Director, his industry focus is naturally on the automotive world as well as mechanical and plant engineering.
His doctorate in the field of aptitude diagnostics ideally rounds off his areas of expertise, particularly with regard to personnel and management consulting. The dissertation deals with the identification and verification of typical personality traits of engineers as well as the definition of development areas for a successful professional career.
These are scientifically derived and presented in the book "Eignungsdiagnostik im Praxiseinsatz".
At the same time, his focus is on the development of networks and cooperation models as well as the continuous further development of systems and processes in personnel consulting.
Over the last 20 years in personnel consulting, he has developed several brands that are still operating successfully on the market today.
Nachdem im VORANGEGANGENEN TEIL dieser Themenreihe die Eignungsdiagnostik für Ingenieure im Allgemeinen behandelt und vorgestellt wurde, widmet sich dieser speziell den ingenieurspezifischen Eigenschaften, also der Frage, ob es Eigenschaften gibt, die einen Ingenieur typischerweise ausmachen. Ebenso stellt sich natürlich die Frage, ob es Eigenschaften gibt und, wenn ja, welche für einen Erfolg in der Karriere verantwortlich sind.
Dabei muss man bei dieser Betrachtung sowohl die Persönlichkeitsmerkmale identifizieren, die über den gesamten Lauf der Ingenieurskarriere stabil bleiben und solche Persönlichkeitsmerkmale, die sich in Bezug auf Alter und Hierarchie extrem entwickeln. Erst dann lassen sich zuverlässige Aussagen über sogenannte typische Ingenieursmerkmale treffen und auch über eine Entwicklung von Merkmalen, die für eine erfolgreiche Laufbahn, einem Aufstieg auf der Karriereleiter, verantwortlich sind.
Grundlage hierfür war der Ansatz nach Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen Ausschau zu halten, die sich über sämtliche Hierarchiestufen hinweg nicht verändern. Das wären dann Merkmale, bei denen sich der Ingenieur sowohl als Starter im Berufsleben als auch als Führungskraft immer noch gleich hoch einschätzt.
Wenn die Hierarchie als Grundlage für einen Vergleich der unterschiedlichen Eigenschaften verwendet wird, wird deutlich sichtbar, dass sich Persönlichkeitsmerkmale, wie beispielsweise Zuverlässigkeit und Kooperationsvermögen, im Laufe der Karriere so gut wie nicht verändern. Aber auch Themen wie Perfektionismus und Einplanung von Störfällen sind Persönlichkeitsmerkmale, zu denen der Ingenieur in seiner gesamten Berufslaufbahn die gleiche Haltung einnimmt.
Die Merkmale aus Tabelle 7.1. und Abbildung 7.1. stellen die Entwicklung von der untersten zur höchsten Hierarchiestufe dar, die die geringsten Veränderungen aufweisen. Diese Merkmale werden also durch den Aufstieg auf der Karriereleiter am wenigsten beeinflusst. Somit lässt sich ableiten, dass die aufgezeigten Merkmale diejenigen sind, die für einen Ingenieur – aus dem Betrachtungswinkel des Aufsteigens auf der Karriereleiter, also die zeitliche Entwicklung während seiner Berufslaufbahn – charakteristisch sind, da sie sich nahezu nicht verändern.
Bezüglich der Persönlichkeitsmerkmale
Kooperationsvermögen,
Sinn und Engagement,
Einplanung von Störfällen,
Irrationale Einschätzungen,
Perfektionismus und
Zuverlässigkeit
ändert sich die Einstellung der Ingenieure nicht und der Schluss liegt nahe, dass bezüglich dieser Persönlichkeitsmerkmale das Sprichwort gilt: Ingenieur bleibt Ingenieur.
Auf der Suche nach Perönlichkeitsmerkmalen, die für Entwicklung und Aufstieg auf der Karriereleiter verantwortlich sind, wurde nun nach den Merkmalen gesucht, die über die Laufzeit einer Ingenieurskarriere die größten Veränderungen erfahren. Dazu hat man die Ergebnisse der Ingenieure als Fachkraft, Projektleiter, Abteilungsleiter und Geschäftsbereichsleiter miteinander verglichen. Man stellte fest, dass in den betroffenen Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen eine kontinuierliche Entwicklung über alle Hierarchiestufen hinweg stattgefunden hat, so dass es bei der Darstellung genügt nur die niedrigste und oberster Hierarchiestufe zu betrachten.
Ein Blick auf die Persönlichkeitsmerkmale mit den größten Veränderungen von der untersten zur höchsten Hierarchiestufe zeigt die unten stehende Tabelle mit Diagramm. Beispiele dafür sind Führungsaufgaben oder Verantwortungsbereitschaft.
Diese Merkmale (Tabelle 7.4. und Abbildung 7.3.) weisen bei der Entwicklung von der untersten zur höchsten Hierarchiestufe die größten Veränderungen auf.
Zum Beispiel die große Veränderung des Interesses an Führungsaufgaben scheint somit eminent wichtig für die erfolgreiche Entwicklung auf der Karriereleiter.
Somit lässt sich ableiten, dass die aufgezeigten Merkmale diejenigen sind, die für einen Ingenieur – aus dem Betrachtungswinkel des Aufsteigens auf der Karriereleiter, also die zeitliche Entwicklung während seiner Berufslaufbahn – die größten Entwicklungspotenziale bergen, da sie sich am meisten verändern.
Durch Vergleich der Entwicklungsfelder / Potentiale, die aus dem Betrachtungswinkel einer zeitlichen Entwicklung hervorgehen (Cluster „Hierarchie“) und der anderen, zeitunabhängigen Cluster, somit also statischen Unterschiede der einzelnen Normprofile, ergibt sich Folgendes:
Man kann in Tabelle 7.9. eine Aufteilung in die Dimension 1. Ordnung „Berufliche Interessen“ und die Dimensionen 1. Ordnung „Engagement“ und „Kommunikation“ erstellen. Erstere symbolisiert, wie es bereits der Name andeutet, Interessen. Bekannterweise sind Interessen etwas, das nicht direkt beeinflussbar ist, sondern sich intrinsisch formt und ausgeprägt wird.
Im Ingenieur erwachsen im Laufe seiner Karriere also Interessen, die durch das Aufsteigen auf der Karriereleiter geweckt werden und sich immer weiter entfalten bis hin zum deutlichen Unterschied der Merkmale im Vergleich der Normprofile „Fachkraft“ und „Geschäftsleiter“.
Anders verhält es sich mit den Merkmalen der anderen beiden Dimensionen 1. Ordnung „Engagement“ und „Kommunikation“: Sie stellen solche Gebiete dar, die durch Schulungen und Weiterbildungen verändert werden können. Somit können sie zu einem weiteren Aufstieg beitragen.
Im Rahmen der Personalentwicklung sollten also die Persönlichkeitsmerkmale und Interessensgebiete
Führungsaufgaben,
Marketing,
Beratung,
Verkauf,
Eigeninitiative,
Verantwortungsbereitschaft,
Begeisterungsvermögen und
Überzeugungsfähigkeit
besonders hervorgehoben, behandelt und weiterentwickelt werden.
Zusammenfassend lässt sich festhalten, dass für einen erfolgreichen Werdegang nicht nur die gleichbleibenden Persönlichkeitsmerkmale wichtig sind, sondern auch die Merkmale, die sich während der Karriere weiterentwickeln. Erst wenn beides berücksichtigt wird maximiert sich die Chance auf eine erfolgreiche Laufbahn als Ingenieur.
Der nächste Artikel zum Thema Eignungsdiagnostik behandelt die Norm- und Best-Practice Profile. Diese werden für die Spiegelung von jeder Eignungsdiagnostik benötigt. Wissen Sie, wie Normprofile und Best-Practice Profile verglichen werden?
Bildquelle:
Betz, Armin: Eignungsdiagnostik im Praxiseinsatz – „Ingenieur bleibt Ingenieur“, Deutsche Nationalbibliothek, 2015, S. 165, 169, 174, ISBN 978-3-00-052093-8
After studying automotive engineering and industrial engineering, he began his professional career in the automotive industry in the areas of sales, development and marketing and also spent a year in Japan with one of the largest automotive suppliers.
He then moved to a globally renowned premium car manufacturer, where he was responsible for product marketing in Japan and South America and for marketing strategy in North and South America.
In 1994, he decided to become self-employed and founded a personnel consultancy in Munich, where he has been driving development and expansion for over 20 years. As Managing Director, his industry focus is naturally on the automotive world as well as mechanical and plant engineering.
His doctorate in the field of aptitude diagnostics ideally rounds off his areas of expertise, particularly with regard to personnel and management consulting. The dissertation deals with the identification and verification of typical personality traits of engineers as well as the definition of development areas for a successful professional career.
These are scientifically derived and presented in the book "Eignungsdiagnostik im Praxiseinsatz".
At the same time, his focus is on the development of networks and cooperation models as well as the continuous further development of systems and processes in personnel consulting.
Over the last 20 years in personnel consulting, he has developed several brands that are still operating successfully on the market today.
