When something works well, we get excited about it. And in our enthusiasm, we tend to want to figure out other ways to benefit from our discovery. The first time I used my home computer to make a purchase, I was ecstatic. First it was airline tickets. Next it was flowers. As my concerns about my credit card number appearing on billboards adjacent to the interstate diminished, and the efficiency of my online shopping increased, I found myself using the internet for all kinds of purchases -- clothing, birthday presents, car rentals.

So it is with assessment procedures. After experiencing firsthand the benefits of formal assessment procedures, companies are often eager to use these tools to achieve other personnel-related objectives. If they've been using assessments for employee selection, they may want to use similar instruments to identify developmental needs of employees who already have some tenure with the company. If organizations have been using assessments as an employee development tool, they may see value in incorporating these assessments into their selection process.

But, as with on-line shopping, it is important to balance expediency with caution and think about our ultimate goals. While many assessment instruments can provide valuable information for both selection and development decisions, it is important to carefully consider the different goals of these two processes and to institute procedures that support the special needs of each process.

Employee Selection:

As an employer, you've identified specific goals for your employee selection process. Some examples probably include:

• Hiring the best candidate you can find for your job opening.
• Meeting EEOC requirements, including the ability to document that your hiring process has satisfied any concerns related to adverse impact.
• Building a positive relationship with the job candidate, but with no concerns about a long-term working relationship unless a job offer is tendered and the candidate accepts.

Employee Development:

Let's look at a similar list for an employee development assessment process. This list may be a little more complex, but probably includes the following objectives:

• Maximizing the professional growth of your employees. (Facilitating employee development is just good business practice. After all, people who continue to grow and learn are your company's most valuable assets.)
• Enhancing morale by demonstrating your investment in and support of your employees' professional goals.
• Maintaining open and positive relationships with your employees.

Looking at these two lists, it's clear to see that the goals of the two programs are far from identical. With different goals, what are the best ways to handle details that arise? Think about these important questions:

• What specific information are you hoping to learn from assessing this individual?
• What is the best way to present the assessment program to the individual being assessed? What do you want to communicate about the rationale?
• Will you give feedback to the individual being assessed? If so, what kind and in what format?
• Within your company, who should have access to the assessment results? Why?
• What policies and procedures will you have in place regarding the length and method of retention of assessment results, as well as the method of eventual disposal of this data?

As you read through the questions, did you find yourself having one set of thoughts about assessments for selection and another set of thoughts about assessments for development? Just as you may decide to purchase airline tickets on-line, you may also conclude that buying groceries that way just doesn't fit with your objectives.

In Part II of this article, I'll examine each of the questions listed above and make some suggestions about different ways to answer them... depending, of course, on whether you're dealing with assessment for selection or assessment for development.

Happy (but thoughtful) shopping!