Each year, we at Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC meet with more than 1,000 company executives with respect to talent development, in-depth work style and personality assessments, and team building.
And because so many folks know our thoughts and feelings (from our website, our articles, and our books) on all things recruiting and managing through assessments, they often ask us who are some of the other competitors we have.
Never ones to shy away from being blatantly honest with respect to competition and wanting our clients to be as informed as possible, here is a review of several assessments. Why do we do this? Because Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC gladly welcomes comparison of our use of the Sixteen Personality Factor questionnaire (16PF) and follow up detailed analysis to what else is available.
Warning About Three Low-Cost Options
On this point we are crystal clear: Do not attempt to do talent development and team building on the cheap with these three assessments:
DISC. This popular assessment is not designed for candidate screening, only staff development. After extensively studying the characteristics and patterns of thousands of people, the original was developed by psychologist William Marston in 1928. The factors he selected were Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Cooperation, from which the DISC acronym takes its name. There are many variations of the assessment in circulation, with some offering inexpensive variations; however, buyer beware. As the adage states: you get what you pay for. DISC assessments don’t ask enough questions in order to get a full picture of the personality nor do they have enough primary scales.
Myers Briggs Type Indicator. The popular MBTI is exclusively intended to be used for the purposes of team building, not as a hiring or promotion screen. Based on the work of Carl Jung, it is popular among employers but there is little empirical evidence of its validity for employee selection. think of this more as a conversation starter. Like DISC, Myers Briggs assessments don’t ask enough questions in order to get a full picture of the personality nor do they have enough primary scales.
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Index. The MMPI was developed for mental patient profiling. Per the guidelines of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), it cannot be used as a selection test prior to offering a candidate a job in the majority of situations.
A Much More Expensive Option To Assess
Predictive Index. Many people ask us about the pros and cons of The Predictive Index. Today, The Predictive Index is one of around 2,500 cognitive personality tests on the market that can be used for talent development and team building. According to The Predictive Index, it is not a test because the word test implies you can pass or fail, and that’s not the case with any of its workplace assessments. The Predictive Index measures behavioral drives (Dominance, Extraversion, Patience, and Formality) as well as cognitive ability. One assessment outlines the behavioral traits and cognitive ability someone might need to be successful in a given role. Another assessment helps determine if someone has the right personality for the job. Together, these hiring assessment tools increase probability of predicting candidate success. Predictive Index presents a good understanding of an individual’s learning capacity. Plus, the job assessment tool defines jobs through individual needs and attributes. Together the instruments adequately identify what motivates each employee and what can set them up to be successful in their work. The company’s website does not detail pricing or the actual science behind the assessments. We have some clients use its assessment as a basic prescreen tool and then have Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC do an in-depth work style and personality assessment on their candidates.
For Further Review
If you are open to a conversation about how our in-depth workstyle and personality assessment compare to others, including pricing and the science behind the tests, please contact us at 310-453-6556, extension 403.
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If you would like additional information on this topic or others, please contact your Human Resources department or Lighthouse Consulting Services LLC, Santa Monica, CA, (310) 453-6556 or [email protected].
Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC provides a variety of services, including in-depth work style and personality assessments for new hires and staff development. Lighthouse Consulting Services, LLC can test in 19 different languages, provide domestic and international interpersonal coaching and offer a variety of workshops on team building, interpersonal communication, and stress management.