Our Assessment Centers

Why Utilize an Assessment Center?

Selecting and evaluating supervisory and management personnel is a familiar problem. It could be the most important decision that an organization will face. Because of the importance of these types of judgments, organizations need more information on which to base their selection, promotion, and career development decisions - information they can understand and have confidence in.

The assessment center method provides a job-related, objectively oriented approach to providing organizational decision makers with more complete information than they might ordinarily obtain through the use of written or oral examinations alone.

The Ure Consulting Group has experience in delivering assessment centers for over 30 years. All of our processes are custom designed for your organization and the job position.  We are also sensitive to your time constraints. Our goal is to produce an exceptional product in a lesser amount of time than our competitors for your convenience.  the sensitive nature of promotional processes and are dedicated to insuring that the best possible product is delivered to your organization.

Our process starts with a free consultation, to evaluate your organizational needs. After a careful evaluation and review, we then make recommendations on the type of process that will best accomplish your organization's promotional goals and objectives.

How the Candidates Benefit

We prepare all of your candidates with a pre-evaluation training session and conclude the assessment center with returning written candidate feedback from the assessors, along with their score sheets at the conclusion of the assessment center. This allows candidates to understand their strengths and weaknesses and to prepare themselves for future promotional opportunities. All candidates will receive the assessor feedback forms which is a personal and confidential evaluation of their performance, which includes observed personal strengths and weaknesses.  

Fire Service Assessment Services 

Our fire service clients can elect for a "Fireground Simulation" exercise which assesses problem solving.  Our state-of-the-art Digital Combustion's software "Digital Combustion" is a professional software tool that allows us to create simulations for fire, hazmat, and other emergency simulations.   The software's realism is amazing and assessment center candidates make decisions based solely on what they see.  Our selected fire service assessors evaluate and score each candidate's performance.. 

With Fire Studio, we are able to utilize digital pictures of local structures/hazards  in your community, import them into the software, create a simulated incident, and then use your simulation to assess your assessment center candidates.

Assessment Center Validation

The Ure Consulting Group utilizes a unique, cutting edge validation methodology. This method utilizes content and construct validation. We believe that it is the best in the industry. We construct matrix's for the department incumbents, which contain the future position and measure the tested dimensions, along with measuring each job related task several ways, including degree of difficulty, frequency, required job knowledge. The end result is that each assessed dimension (i.e., leadership, interpersonal dynamics, oral communications, written communications, problem solving and analysis, etc.) is given a scoring value, or "coefficient" which places scoring weight on those dimensions that are more important to the organization. Plainly said, a candidate's score in a dimension that is more important to the organization is rewarded with greater points, than the same score in a lesser important dimension.  Please note that there is an additional fee for this extra validation service.

Standing Behind Our Assessment Centers

Finally, we stand ready to support the organization in any challenges to the process. We have years of experience in designing evaluation processes and assessment centers. We use only trained evaluators and subject matter experts. All materials are validated to applicable standards and local procedures/guidelines. If a challenge or testing appeal does arise, our staff will represent the process and participate in any necessary hearings.

The final result will be a professional design and delivery of custom assessment of the candidates' skills and abilities. Not only is the most qualified person identified for the position, but candidates are also assisted in preparing for future opportunities while providing maximum liability protection to the organization. 

Assessment Center Components:

Typical Assessment Center Exercises

• Our typical assessment center exercises are:
• Leaderless Group Exercise 
• Professional Interview Exercise
• Graphic Biography Exercise 
• Written Essay Exercise
• Written Tactical Exercise
• Graphic Biography Exercise 
• Role Play Exercise
• Fireground Incident Command Simulation

Typical Dimensions Measured:

• Leadership
• Oral Communications
• Written Communications (only Lt. and Captain)
• Problem Solving and Analysis
• Interpersonal Dynamics