Globalization, innovation, market share, identifying visionary leaders and, particularly, talent management …are just some of the issues that benefit from using assessment and development centres. Assessment Centres and Global Talent Management focuses on topics that influence the design of the assessment centre in terms of the competencies being assessed, the exercises that are used and the nature of the event, so that they can deliver what is required; often to change organizational culture and values.

Practical examples and case studies are sprinkled throughout the book as international contributors explore cross-cultural implications, and consider how the design, development and use of assessment centres should be adapted to different cultures. Some of the world's leading researchers and practitioners outline their research into new applications for assessment centre methods, showing how they have used it to design and implement specific assessment and development centres.

This is a book from which practitioners can see how science informs good practice, and scholars will find the 32 chapters a rich source of ideas for conducting research into emerging issues in the field.

Contents: Preface; Part I AC Best Practice: Three themes that explain our passion for assessment centres as tools for talent management, Nigel Povah and George C. Thornton III; We're doing better than you might think: a large scale demonstration of centre convergent and discriminant validity, Nigel Guenole, Olexander Chernyshenko, Stephen Stark, Tony Cockerill and Fritz Drasgow; An alternative take on AC research and practice: task-based assessment centers, Duncan Jackson, Mohd Hanafiah Ahmad, Gary Grace and Jeeyun Yoon; Adjusting exercise design in assessment centers: theory, practice, and research, Filip Lievens and Eveline Schollaert; Fit for purpose? Considerations when using 'off-the-shelf' versus 'customised' simulation exercises, Sophie Pritchard and Philippa Riley; Using computer-based simulation technology within an ADC: a South African case study, Deon Meiring and Jan H. van der Westhuizen; Integrating candidate data: consensus or arithmetic?, Chris Dewberry; The impact of ACs and DCs on candidates, Clive Fletcher; Whiter than white? The diversity credentials of assessment and development centres, Charles Woodruffe; The assessment of managers: a review and integration of assessment center and multisource performance rating research and practice, Brian J. Hoffman and Sean P. Baldwin; 50 years on: the ongoing reciprocal impact of science and practice on the assessment center method, George C. Thornton III. Part II Corporate Strategy and Talent Management: Building a talent for talent, Raimund Birri and Andreas Melcher; The challenges associated with a large AC in government: a South African case study, Anne Buckett; Using assessment centres to facilitate collaborative, quasi-standardized, industry-wide selection: lessons learned from medical specialty placement in England and Wales, Deborah E. Rupp and Rosalind H. Searle; Certifying competencies of HR Managers with the assessment centre method: quality assurance that HR contributes to corporate objectives, R.K. Premarajan; Pioneering assessment centers within local government in Sweden: Gothenburg's search for better leaders, Eva Bergvall; In pursuit of a diversification strategy: using an assessment centre to identify global talent, Natalie Livings and Will Mitchell; Integrating a developmental assessment centre with other human resource interventions, Sandra Betti and Satiko Monobe; The evolution of an assessment center program in a pharmaceutical sales organization over a 15-year period, David C. Purdy; Influencing decisions about assessment and development centres for talent management, Seán Boyle; Failure and success factors in assessment centers: attaining sustainability, George C. Thornton III and Raimund Birri. Part III International Issues and Implications: A review of recent international surveys into assessment centre practices, Nigel Povah; Assessment center practices in South Africa, Western Europe, and North America, Diana E. Krause; Assessment center adaptation and implementation in Indonesia, Vina G. Pendit; Variations in assessment centers in South Korea's public service, Myungjoon Kim; The contribution of assessment centres to the selection and development of future leaders in the Singapore public service, Glenn J. Nosworthy and Ee-Ling Ng; Eating the elephant: tackling the challenges of introducing assessment and development centres in East Africa, Zia Manji and Madeleine Dunford; The application of the assessment center method in China, Kai-Guang Liang and Ying Liu; The use of assessment and development centres in Russia, Svetlana Simonenko; Assessment center practices in Japan: a brief history and challenges, Shinichi Hirose; Assessment centers in Israel: some practices and perspectives, Shaul Fox and Soly Haboucha; Assessment centers in organizational and cultural contexts: evidence of the versatility of a proven human resource intervention, George C. Thornton III and Nigel Povah; Indexes.

About the Editor: Nigel Povah is the CEO and founder of Assessment & Development Consultants Ltd (A&DC), one of the UK's leading firms of Occupational Psychologists. He has a degree in Psychology from Leeds University and an MSc in Occupational Psychology from Birkbeck College. He is a Chartered Occupational Psychologist, an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society and a Founder Member of the Association of Business Psychologists. Nigel has over 30 years experience in assessment and development centres and is the co-author of a book of the same name (Gower, 2004). He was a member of the BPS committee which created the guidelines for best practice in the design and implementation of assessment and development centres and he frequently presents papers at conferences. Over the years Nigel has worked with private and public sector clients, such as Compaq, DTI, DVLA, Ford, HMRC, Ordnance Survey, Parker Hannifin and Unilever. He is a former professional Chess player and has represented England and he holds the title of International Master.

Dr George Thornton earned his Ph.D. in Industrial Psychology from Purdue University. He has over 40 years experience in the design, implementation, evaluation, and litigation of assessment centres, and is a recognized authority on the assessment centre method for selection, promotion, diagnosis, and development. He has consulted with private and public organizations and given workshops worldwide. An author of four books on assessment centre methods, George is Co-Chair of a task force that wrote Guidelines and Ethical Considerations for Assessment Center Operations, and winner of Outstanding Professional Contributions Award from the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology.

Reviews: 'Destined to be a classic for both practitioners and researchers that will take the assessment centre method to new levels of efficiency and accuracy. Really new insights and research that answer questions about assessment center design, validity, arithmetic data integration, and new techniques and simulations based on research from 18 countries. Easy to read and to focus in on specific areas of interest.' William C. Byham, Ph.D.Chairman & CEO, Development Dimensions International, Inc.

'Povah and Thornton offer the definitive work on modern Assessment Centers. This comprehensive anthology integrates and extends theory, research, and practice; it shows how Assessment Centers may be used to build corporate strategies of globalization, innovation, and customer service; and it clearly demonstrates the global reach of Assessment Centers. They have purposefully collected insights from 48 thought leaders in 18 countries, and each of the 32 chapters stands alone, but they have gone further to discern and deliver observations across these chapters. This work will become an instant foundation review of the modern Assessment Center.'
Dave Ulrich, Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, Partner, the RBL Group (www.rbl.net)

'This is an important book which combines theoretical models of best practice in Assessment and Development Centre design with practical guidance on implementation. The Authors have produced chapters that are accessible to interested stakeholders who are not necessarily Assessment Centre practitioners, yet they are sufficiently detailed and referenced such that those requiring more detail can easily delve deeper.

The book asks some critical questions, challenging accepted wisdom regarding the implementation of Assessment Centres, considering such issues as the relative merits of consensus meetings compared to more pragmatically straightforward arithmetic scoring and off-the shelf versus bespoke exercise simulations. Issues rarely considered in the design of Assessment Centres are also considered, such as the potential effect on self-awareness and motivation of candidates; the authors arguing that as Psychologists and practitioners greater emphasis should be given to individual candidates' welfare than may have been demonstrated in the past.
An important theme throughout the central chapters of the book is the need to implement Assessment and Development Centres within the context of the organisations they are designed to help. In addition to implementing empirically valid Assessment and Development Centres, as practitioners the requirement to carefully align the organisation's aims at strategic, operational and individual levels is emphasised. To this end, practical help is provided which will be invaluable to both practitioners and those commissioning Assessment and Development Centres alike.'
Professor Peter Saville, BA, MPhil, PhD, FBPsS, C.Psychol, CSci, FRSA, International Chairman and CEO, Saville Consulting Group Limited

'… the definitive work on modern Assessment Centers. This comprehensive anthology integrates and extends theory, research, and practice.
Dave Ulrich

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Full contents list, List of figures, and List of tables

About the editors

Notes on contributors

Chapter 1 - Three Themes that Explain Our Passion for Assessment Centres as Tools for Talent Management