In the helping profession, specially for mental health practitioners, tools for assessment make the insights richer, the work more fruitful, the solutions more to-the-point. A professional tries to limit bias, identify underlying issues, get quality data on strengths, competences, capabilities. Because everyone naturally wants to look good, plays to his best side, garnishes accomplishments, the assessment provides reliable and valid data for which the best treatment plan can be developed. There are a variety of tools available —one simply cannot get a test from facebook and self-administer. The professional is in charge of making sure that the tool can give reliable results, and more than that, give a well-rounded customised analysis (not machine generated), suited to the client. Assessment done properly limits subjectivity, identifies motivations, makes the intangible tangible, provides insights which are otherwise unreachable, evaluates learning. An analysis is not just test scores. it is a combination of the clinical interview, the practitioner’s professional diagnosis, and all other elements that a test and machine cannot score but are very relevant.
The professional’s program then builds in the support by building strengths, lifting sagging spirits, finding areas of confidence and achievements that clients in the throws of crisis forget or minimize. And then, the challenge to move the client to step out of their comfort zone or fear —try again their hand and rebuild self-efficacy lost.
This is where the results come in. Bake in learnings with Consistency, Constancy, Calling out fears, Engaging, Pushing them forward. Working with positive stress. Having excellent listening skills, a good handle on the theories, then combining them with insight from within. This is why 75% best-in-class organizations directly attribute changes in revenue to their assessment strategies. (quote from Center for Creative Leadership). A seasoned and reliable coach uses these tools and does not do guess work.
*Image is borrowed form the leadership development framework of the Center for Creative Leadership.
Attended a seminar series in Career Exploration Through Psychological Assessments with Austalian based Assessment tools company, CPP Asia-Pacific. Refreshed my learnings on combining MBTI test results with i-strong career assessment result. Its not simply about being a introvert who should be a scientist because scores in those areas are high. Assessment done well should shed light in type of company, people to collaborate with, type of industry, schedule to choose, type of boss to work with.