Monthly Archives: May 2011

Negotiation Skills Training

What do you think of when you hear the word NEGOTIATION? Ambassadors and generals seated around a mahogany table, wheeling and dealing nuclear weapons and the fate of nations?

OPEC oil ministers nose to nose with oil company executives? Labor and management locked in a 12th-hour contract struggle? Buyer and seller haggling over the price and terms of a cow or a car? According to Dr. Israel Unterman, most of us do think of negotiation in this limited, tough-guys-finish-first, win-lose sense. Continue reading →

Assessment Center and Simulations Tools

Dr. Bill Byham likes to point out that an “assessment center is a process, not a place.” And a lot of selection processes may look as though they’re based on an assessment-center approach but they’re not.

You can download excellent powerpoint slides on HR management, business strategy and personal development HERE.

The problem of when an assessment center is an assessment center was addressed in a year-long effort by an all-star task force of 17 assessment-center specialists, chaired by AT&T’s Dr. Joel Moses. Their initial recommendations were published as “Standards and Ethical Considerations for Assessment Center Operations” and presented to the Seventh International Assessment Center Congress held last June in New Or-leans. Continue reading →

Assessment Center and Management Potential

In the midst of all the controversy over validity and standards, a simple fact gets overlooked. At least part of the popularity and impetus for the development of assessment centers has been their ability to bridge time.

You can download excellent powerpoint slides on HR management, business strategy and personal development HERE.

Pre-World War II executives had time on their side in evaluating management potential. Promotions came slowly, and turnover was virtually a non-problem. Past behavior was an acceptable predictor of future behavior. The end of WW II heralded a new era. Executives were faced with the task of predicting the success of hundreds of people who had no directly relevant past behavior. Continue reading →