Article from Iñaki Saltor and Álvaro Cárcel, founding partner and partner.
We recently had the opportunity to read an article in Expansión & Empleo with which we fully agree ("Why knowing how to learn is worth more than being smart when looking for a job"), and which explains in large part the reasons that pushed us to design our own evaluation methodology.
Historically, selection processes have given important weight to IQ.
Without doubting that it can be a predictor that provides interesting
information, it has been shown that other aspects, such as the ability to learn
called "learnability", or the intrinsic motivations of the person, play
an even more important role.
In selection processes, especially those aimed at evaluating and selecting key profiles in the organization, they must be oriented to evaluate, through different techniques or tools, different critical aspects that help us predict the future performance of a person in a position and in a given context.
We talk about predicting, or, in other words, trying to get as close as
possible to a "scientific" conclusion, since absolute security never
exists when we talk about people. But it is possible to define a structured
process that helps us make the right decisions in most cases, or at least, to
make decisions being aware of the existing risks.
After thoroughly
evaluating those aspects that can have a direct impact on the performance of a person
in a given position, company and environment, at Saltor Talent we decided to
introduce the following in our evaluation process:
Cognitive
capacity: These are
precisely the skills by which our brain allows us to learn, retain, reason, and
interpret information. It is a group of
mental processes related to information processing, and especially in ambiguous
or complex environments, a person with an above-average cognitive capacity will
have a greater facility to navigate them.
Intrinsic
motivations: There are
different intrinsic motivations that all human beings share, but some manifest
themselves especially strongly in some people, and instead are not very
relevant to other people. Some models speak of up to 16 intrinsic motivations
that we can find in every human being. If, to a high cognitive capacity,
intrinsic motivations such as curiosity are added, we are faced with a profile
not only with the capacity to learn and unlearn, but with the will and
motivation to do so.
Personality behaviors: Personality traits are
probably one of the most difficult aspects to measure, since our personality is
constantly moving and evolving. However, there are highly reliable tools to
understand certain key dimensions that undoubtedly impact positively, negatively
or neutrally on the performance of the functions of a specific job position.
For our part,
Agilities: There are 5 key agilities that are
included within the Agility learning model. It is a complex set of skills that allows, among
other things, to extrapolate what has
been learned to another place or circumstances. That is, again, being able to learn, adapt,
unlearn and relearn quickly.
In a world as
changing and uncertain as the one we live in, we need leaders who learn and
unlearn agilely, resilient, with emotional intelligence and developed
self-knowledge. They also need emotionally secure environments that allow them
to develop and impact.
Referenced article: