Why Your Business Needs Psychometric Testing

In people management, the true art lies in unlocking the full potential of your team. By comprehensively understanding the unique strengths and capabilities of every individual, managers are better equipped to harness the collective power of their workforce.  

Through psychometric testing, the approach to employee development, growth and collaboration is redefined to enhance productivity and cohesion in the workplace. 

What is Psychometric Testing? 

Psychometric testing is a scientific method that measures an individual’s capabilities and behavioural style and is used to provide data that can help assess a candidate’s ‘fit’ within a team. 

At its core, psychometric testing evaluates an individual’s skills, personality, and intelligence. Commonly used in recruitment, organisational development and education settings, psychometric testing offers a reliable insight into an individual’s capabilities, tendencies and potential, allowing employers, educators, and psychologists to make informed decisions based on empirical data.  

The Importance of Psychometric Testing 

1. Better Decision Making: Psychometric testing aids business owners in making informed decisions about hiring, promoting, and team placements. This ensures both a skills match and cultural fit, leading to more cohesive teams and an improved organisational output. 
2. Enhanced Team Dynamics: Understanding each team member’s personality and skills helps in building harmonious and productive teams. Collaboration can be optimised with psychometric testing through a sounder understanding of individual dynamics.  
3. Personalised Development: With insights into an employee’s strengths and weaknesses, tailored development plans can be crafted. These plans allow for targeted training and mentoring, maximising employee potential and driving growth within the organisation. 
4. More Engaged Staff and Better Retention: Psychometric testing enhances staff engagement by enabling employers to identify candidates whose skills and personality traits align with the company’s culture and values. 

REACH: The All-in-One Ecosystem 

For organisations aiming to enhance their leadership abilities, REACH can be utilised as a comprehensive people and culture development ecosystem. It’s more than just a testing tool, it integrates the science of psychometric testing with the assessment of agility in personal and professional development. 

The REACH Process 

REACH begins by evaluating the individual, team, and organisation’s current standing. The individual’s REACH profile is plotted on a four-quadrant spectrum, and they are assigned a correlating REACH profile. 

There are four REACH profiles, counselor, coach, advisor, and driver. The main traits associated with each profile are as follows: 

• Counselor – Includer, belief and harmony 
• Coach – Activator, communication and winning others over 
• Advisor – Deliberative, focus and consistency 
• Driver – Self-assurance, futuristic and competition 

REACH is a measure of an individual’s agility in adapting to different people, tasks, and situations. It is measured on a scale from 1.0 to 5.0 and is reported as a REACH quotient (RQ).  

Growing the ability (agility) to reach into the other styles is achieved by developing the skills most commonly associated with the other primary styles. As an individual grows their agility, they grow their REACH and, in turn, improve their effectiveness in different situations. 

Once a REACH profile is generated, learning and support materials are developed to help your team harness their skills and foster team understanding and collaboration. Progress is monitored at both individual and team levels, and this information is used for continuous development. 

REACH in Action 

A key example of REACH in action took place at an accounting firm. Every employee at the firm had the knowledge and skills to process financial data and provide accurate financial advice, but a noticeable lack of efficiency and productivity was observed. After a REACH assessment, it was found that all employees of the firm were ‘advisors’, and while this positioned them to be excellent in their individual accounting tasks, it did not contribute to a cohesive team environment. The team were all very analytical and lacked the diverse skills of agility, collaboration and emotional intelligence, which are vital for fostering collaboration and adapting to rapid changes. 

Just as a sports team needs players who are skilled at different positions, a workplace requires diverse strengths to tackle various challenges. A mix of drivers, counselors, advisors and coaches ensures that while there are members who excel in detailed analytical tasks, others can facilitate communication, some can quickly adapt to changes, and others can assist with the team’s overall wellbeing. 

Gaining insights into how everyone works is instrumental for getting the best out of a team. When leaders understand the unique REACH profiles of their team members, they can allocate tasks more effectively, promote collaboration, and drive the team towards shared goals. Recognising and valuing each individual’s capacity ensures everyone feels acknowledged and is positioned to contribute meaningfully, resulting in increased productivity and job satisfaction. 

REACH Reliability 

REACH is backed by industry-acknowledged standards, boasting a Cronbach Alpha score well above the accepted threshold for both its psychometric and skills aspects. This score measures the internal consistency, or reliability, of a set of survey items. REACH’s scores reliably correlate to engagement, making it suitable for teams across various industries, roles, and cultures. 

REACH With Attain 

At Attain, we utilise REACH within our own teams when onboarding staff so we can learn how to provide them with the best support for their personality type. Attain can help businesses upskill their workforce, energise their teams, sharpen their leaders and achieve their goals with the help of REACH. 

REACH enables organisations to grow, evolve, and thrive in today’s challenging business landscape. If a more efficient and collaborative team is your aim, get in touch with us today.