Some recent examples of our work:

CENTRICA - Graduate sifting/initial selection
Centrica are recognised as one of the ‘best practice’ graduate recruiters in the UK. Working in close partnership with Centrica since 2003, WorkLife carries out a programme of competency based on line assessment for some 5000 graduate candidates a year. Screening is conducted against stringent criteria in line with Centrica’s high standards. The results are:

THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION - Ability testing through to assessment centres
As a preferred supplier to the LGA WorkLife have worked hard to gain a thorough understanding of the organisation, its values and requirements. Objective and rigorous assessment is very important to the LGA and we provide a wide range of assessment services to the HR team to assist them here. At its simplest our input covers advising on appropriate ability tests and assessment exercises for the wide range of roles within the organisation. On a more complex level we design assessment exercises and bespoke assessment centres (from the definition of required competencies through to full design and delivery). We work in partnership with the HR team to deliver assessment centres for both generic roles and for ‘one off’ senior positions. With the former the emphasis is on our training the LGA HR team and giving them ownership of the centres, with the latter we also provide assessors and centre integration. We also carry out competency based telephone screening for customer service roles and mark assessment and personality exercises for the LGA on a regular basis.

ILEX ENERGY CONSULTING - Personality questionnaires
This small energy consultancy based in Oxford has been a client since 1996. We have been involved in all Consultant recruitment campaigns providing support at second interview stage and Occupational Personality Testing and feedback. We have worked with junior Consultants, through to MD level, and in international appointments. The behavioural competencies we have developed are now used as a foundation for recruitment, training and development.

CENTRICA - Graduate assessment centres & assessor training

WorkLife have worked with Centrica on their graduate screening programme for over four years. This year Centrica invited WorkLife to review their wider graduate and summer placement assessment programme. Our brief was to help Centrica to ensure their assessment process was best practice, rigorous, ‘user friendly’ and further aligned to the graduate programme needs. WorkLife introduced:

The Centrica Graduate Recruitment team were also keen to widen their pool of internal assessors:

Yvonne Crew, Graduate Resourcing & Development, Centrica

“We have continued our fantastic relationship with WorkLife this year in creating a newly defined consistent approach to our recruitment process through new exercises and scheduling of our assessment centres. Our new assessors were encouraged to bring together existing skills and merge these into the graduate process. The feedback from our training from the assessors has been exceptional - ‘Just the right pitch’. I’m looking forward to seeing the results at the end of our current campaign!”

PCL AIR TECHNOLOGY - Staff survey
PCL Air Technology Ltd is a major designer, manufacturer and distributor of tyre inflation equipment, air distribution and air line technology worldwide. After a re-structuring of the senior management team and Board, WorkLife was assigned to produce a detailed, qualitative staff survey. The survey focused upon gaining an understanding of managers’ and staff’s perceptions relating to such issues as: Customer Service; Change; Communication; Leadership Style and Strategic Direction. After detailed one to one and group interviews, WorkLife presented their findings both to the Board verbally and in a detailed report format. The survey has assisted the new Board significantly in the process of defining their mission statement, core values and expected behaviours and will be used from hereon to help with further strategic thinking.

PERKINS ENGINES LTD - Graduate on-line and telephone screening
Perkins Engines, have run a highly successful and respected Graduate and Placement scheme for 10 years. The organisation has an excellent track record of developing and retaining the graduates they recruit and over the past 5 years, 80% of the graduates recruited into Perkins have stayed with the company. WorkLife were asked to work in partnership with the Graduate Recruitment team to help them identify suitable candidates in a diverse range of disciplines including; Research and Development, Electronic Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Supply Chain, Purchasing, Finance, Sales and Marketing, Information Systems and Human Resources.

WorkLife undertook online assessment for both Graduate and Placement applicants. Screening was conducted against stringent technical and behavioural competency criteria as specified by Perkins. For the successful Graduate cohort an additional telephone interview was arranged and managed by WorkLife, again this was based on behavioural competencies. The whole programme was successfully conducted over a four month period with the organisation being able to make a record number of offers during their Assessment Centre programme.

THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION - CSA screening
WorkLife carry out telephone interviewing of prospective Customer Support Advisors on a regular basis for the LGA. We produce scoring methodology; carry out structured situational 20-30 minute telephone interviews with every ‘long list’ candidate; produce full written reports and recommendations and conduct feedback interviews. This is done to short deadlines calling for speed and efficiency – usually the LGA are able to run assessment centres with the candidates we recommend within 6 working days of our beginning work.

THE ASSOCIATION OF POLICE AUTHORITIES - Top tier selection and assessment
Our initial work with the APA was to help them recruit their Executive Director. Here WorkLife worked closely with the Chair and Vice Chair of the Association as well as the HR team to define the competencies required for this high profile, politically sensitive role. From here we designed the assessment centre from a clean sheet. We also provided assessors for the event, carried out event facilitation and integration and provided detailed written reports on each candidate. The APA expressed particular satisfaction at the professionalism of the event. Since then we have worked with the APA on the assessment processes to recruit their top line team – including their Policy Director, Deputy Executive Director, Senior Policy Officers and their Communications Manager.

THE IMPROVEMENT & DEVELOPMENT AGENCY - Assessment centre design and management
WorkLife developed a generic assessment centre for the IDeA to help them with their extensive recruitment programme for Consultants. After developing a set of pragmatic, user friendly competencies for the roles, WorkLife designed a new assessment centre. The centre was composed of both a bespoke exercise which WorkLife developed after consultation with our client, backed with one ‘off-the shelf’ exercises and appropriate aptitude and personality tests. We then ran a series of London and regional based one-day centres. WorkLife trained a team of IDeA line managers to assess at the centres alongside WorkLife assessors, ensuring that IDeA would have ownership of the process. The centres produced strong candidates for final short listing and have been specifically praised by the HR team at IDeA for their ‘high predictive validity’.

TAYLOR WOODROW - Graduate assessment centres
We have worked with Taylor Woodrow, to tight timescales, to redesign their assessment centres to help them recruit around 35 graduates. This involved: a reassessment of their competencies; redesigning exercises and structured interviews; providing scoring mechanisms; sourcing and managing venues; training the organisation’s HR team and line managers to act as in house assessors; providing WorkLife assessors as an extra resource.

CADBURY SCHWEPPES - Talent events
When Cadbury Schweppes launched a global process re-engineering project to integrate all their internal functions and processes using SAP technology, we worked closely with the HR team over a nine month period to recruit 50+ SAP Consultants into the organisation. We assisted in a large number of regular ‘Talent Events’ involving CV screening; interviewing against competencies; OPQ and ability testing. The result was a highly successful recruitment campaign that was well received on both an internal and external basis.

THE WELSH LOCAL GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION - Director level assessment
When the WLGA needed to recruit a new Director, WorkLife worked closely with the Association to define the competencies required for this politically sensitive role and to then design the assessment centre which followed. We recommended a mix of off the shelf and bespoke exercises, provided assessors for the event, carried out event facilitation and integration and provided detailed written reports on each candidate. Both candidates and the client expressed a high level of satisfaction at the professionalism of the event.

WESLEYAN ASSURANCE - Assessment and development support
We have conducted a number of assignments for this organisation, including ‘one off’ and volume recruitment assessment projects. With the former the process has involved: CV sifting; response handling; establishing an interview and psychometric testing schedule; designing a detailed situational interview script; conducting interviews; writing and producing short list reports. With one particular ‘volume’ project we were involved in undertaking a situational interview campaign to assist The Wesleyan to re-structure its front and back office team to meet revised organisational needs. The result here has been a more customer and service focussed management team.