WHAT CAN YOU EXPECT FROM AN ONLINE ASSESSMENT?

Allow me to introduce myself: I'm Bas, I write texts. Also for iScreen. And to gain firsthand experience, I was eager to take an online assessment. It was arranged, I went through the questions, received a report, and had a good conversation afterward.

If you're reading this, chances are you're already familiar with assessments and might have even taken one yourself. If you're about to undertake one soon, it's good to know what you can roughly expect. Hence, my experiences as a participant in an online assessment.

A good reason

This kind of experience naturally starts with the reason behind it. Aside from the aforementioned, I was mostly interested in knowing my strengths and areas for development, whether the aspects I value and cherish truly need my attention, and how I can improve my performance in diverse teams.

Most people associate assessments with job applications or reorganizations, where it feels like something you can (and should) perform well on – even though no one wants to make you feel that way. That's a shame. An assessment offers you the chance to open up new perspectives and do something positive with the outcomes. The results of the online assessment, as explained beforehand, provide insights into talents, motivations, communication styles, and driving forces. In all cases, it's useful and valuable for future employers when building a team.

Completing Questionnaires

The online assessment consists of several questionnaires, which took much less time to complete than I had anticipated. Mainly because you're supposed to answer the questions quickly and without overthinking, it goes quite smoothly. This doesn't mean it's not time-consuming; the questionnaires are thorough and detailed.

I couldn't 'see through the questions' – something I, as a know-it-all, usually believe I can do. Understand the question's intent. Identify the pattern. Figure out what it's searching for. And how I can cleverly respond. From the very first questions, I forgot about that. Partly because it was made clear to me that this isn't a test where you can 'score' or get things right or wrong. And partly because it just didn't work. So, it was better to ride the wave of questions, answer based on 'gut feeling,' and not worry too much about what it all might mean.

A Pleasant Report About Me!

About a week later, I received the results in a 'Communication Style and Character Profile Report.' I'll skip the details and focus on what I could do with the report.

In some aspects, the results confirmed what I already knew about myself. Apart from being pleasant, the results also provided tools to delve further. You often overlook the things you understand about yourself. The 'obvious' elements. We get it, yes, moving on. By combining, weighing, and connecting the results, new perspectives emerge. This happened to me as well. And those 'no-brainers' turned out to be the areas where there was much left to discover, explore, and develop.

Other outcomes felt familiar but wouldn't have stood out to me – without the assessment. The report is easy to read, the color-coded summaries are clear, providing enough material for thoughtful reflection.

Time for a Good Conversation

What's missing from the report is the conversation. While the report can trigger your thinking and provide insights to a certain extent, the conversation delivers direct eye-openers and insights you can immediately act on.

In that conversation, iScreen makes connections you might not be able to. You respond to thoughts and ideas. You receive counterarguments. You have the opportunity to test your own ideas. Through discussion, a picture emerges that both fits like your favorite jacket and is challenging, inspiring, and ambitious. You're presented with options about who you are and want to be, about the cost of doing things that might not come naturally to you. It's a conversation full of optimism and hope. It's not an easy conversation; you need to be sharp and open to hearing things that might not be pleasant, and be receptive to what might seem strange to you. You can't be lazy or passive. But don't worry, the iScreen psychologist, as in my case, shares that responsibility.

The True Value of the Assessment

My assessment didn't have any stakes. There was nothing 'on the line.' I'm aware that for you – the prospective online-assessee – there might be something at stake. Even though everyone says there isn't. A new job. A new position in a new team. Reorganizations. The outcome matters to you. You want that job, that new role, that place in that challenging team. And ideally, you want to know which answers will get you into that team.

I get it.

But that's not what an assessment is for. An assessment guides you toward enjoyment and fulfillment in your work within a team that energizes you. Because imagine you get that amazing job and after six months, you're miserable because you feel misunderstood, unseen, or unheard? What if you join that team and have to spend eighty percent of your time doing things that drain your energy and don't make you happy? Or you slide comfortably through the reorganization to a position where four people can do exactly the same as you. An assessment helps you work towards future happiness. It goes beyond the immediate job.

I concluded the assessment with a series of tough questions for myself and a positive feeling about where I stand and where I can go. It's a mix of philosophical thinking and grounded actions. Regardless of what you want the assessment to do for you, I hope it gives you just as much.

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