FAQ

For Businesses:

 

How long have you been in the career assessment business?
What types of clients do you work with?

CDS has over 20 years experience working with hundreds of individuals, groups and businesses assisting them at all stages in their career trajectory – from graduates to junior management, and on to senior management.

For more information please see the section on ‘About Us‘ on our website.

What are psychometric tests?

Psychometric tests are assessments that attempt to objectively measure aspects of a person’s mental ability or personality.

There are two main types of psychometric tests;

Aptitude & Ability tests which measure logical reasoning or thinking performance in an attempt to determine and measure a person’s potential to develop specific skills and acquire knowledge.

Personality and Interest tests which measure the way a person typically behaves and specifically the way in which a person interacts with their environmnet and other people.

Psychometric tests are often used as part of the recruitment process by employers.  They can give an insight into how well a person will cope with the behavioural and intellectual demands of the job, how well they handle stress or work with other people.

Does CDS use psychometric tests?

Yes.

How valid and reliable are the tests and methods used by CDS?

We guarantee that the tools and methods we use are the most robust in the industry. They are scientifically proven and are approved by the EFTA, (European Federation of Psychologists Associations), BPS (British Psychological Association), ITC (International Test Commission) and other relevant bodies. Our core values are quality and we apply the guidelines on the use of occupational tests adopted by the International Test Commission and the BPS.

The results obtained can also be used in areas of organisational development such as team profiling and analysis, improving communication systems and identifying management, leadership and sales potential.  They can also be used at the recruitment stage in identifying a job and person match.

My workforce is made up of a number of different department teams, however they do not seem to be working effectively, could CDS help me to find out why?

Having a knowledge and an insight into the diverse characteristics of team members and their roles is crucial for optimum team performance. What we do is to measure each individual’s specific team role, and the strengths and contribution each individual brings to the team. This provides an opportunity to look at the overall team composition, its skill set and competencies and the dynamics within the team. In doing so, we can highlight the possible areas within the team where there is a deficit of key team roles, where the team may lack a functional skill and what that may be costing the team in terms of output. We can also highlight the potential for synergy or conflict within the team. With our Team profiling, a visible and accepted team culture can be promoted thus helping to increase respect and harmony within a team.  Team training can be initiated to encourage people to adopt more flexible roles thereby building a stronger and more efficient team.

For more information please see the section ‘For Business‘ on our website.

Can CDS help our organisation with advertising vacancies and recruiting staff?

We can help an organisation to carry out a comprehensive job profile associated with a specific vacancy which will highlight the most important characteristics that a potential candidate will need to match the job requirements. This can help in compiling a job advertisement and provide people with the information to judge their suitability for the post and ensure that only the most suitable candidates will apply.

For more information please see the section ‘For Business‘ on our website.

I am the manager of a small business and I seem to have a huge turnover of staff, recruitment is costing us a fortune. How could CDS help me?

We have helped countless Irish companies not just to recruit the most suitable staff for their organisations, but to implement the sort of career development and retention strategies that allow you to maximise the input of your staff to the organisation over the long term. We adopt a unique and proven process of carrying out a job profile, person profile and job and person match, giving you reliable information to make informed decisions, to recruit, select, retain, motivate and develop the right employees in the right way – fairly, objectively and ethically. We will work with you to identify the person whose skills, personal work behaviour and competencies match with the requirements of the job role, and whose core values will be consistent with the values of your organisation.

For more information please see the section ‘For Business‘ on our website.

There is a temptation to take short cuts when interviewing. Would you always recommend a structured interview?

Absolutely. We believe in the importance of having a well defined job analysis done before an interview . Questions then can be developed based on the job analysis at the interview. This is the best way to ensure that your interviews will be complete, consistent and fair. Also, you will find it much easier to evaluate each candidate’s qualifications based on their responses to your questions.

 

For Individuals:

 

How long have you been in the career assessment business?
What types of clients do you work with?

CDS has over 20 years experience working with hundreds of individuals, groups and businesses, assisting them at all stages in their career trajectory – from graduates to junior management, and on to senior management. For more information please the section on ‘About Us‘ on our website.

What kind of services does CDS offer?

From knowing who you are and what you want to do, to writing CV’s,  making applications to succeeding at interviews, we can help you every step of the way.  Most people are rejected at the application stage.  Therefore it is very important to spend time getting it right first time by producing a high quality targeted CV cover letter or application form.  We will help you stand out from the crowd.

For more information please see the section on ‘For Individuals‘ on our website.

I don’t know what I want to do!

Everyone is different and thinks about their career plans in different ways.  Career Development Services can help you gain clarity about yourself.  We help you identify your interests, your abilities, you skills, what you want most out of a job. Our indepth career profiling provides clear  knowledge of your career strengths and weaknesses.  We have helped many individuals find focus, provided them with career search techniques and an ability to explore key aspects of career planning in a systematic way.

For more information please see the section on ‘For Individuals‘ on our website.

What does a typical career guidance system involve?

A typical career guidance system involves helping an individual to find the right career fit for them by identifying what are their core behavioural strengths, skills, values, interests, talents and competencies and matching these to appropriate career areas. The next stages in the career guidance system includes identifying suitable training/education programmes where appropriate and helping the individual to market themselves to potential employers by ensuring that they present themselves as positively as possible through their Curriculum Vitae, application techniques and interview skills. For more information please see the section on ‘For Individuals‘ on our website.

Does CDS provide guidance for graduates and post graduates

Career Development Services works with young students and graduates at the exploration stage of their careers. With our professional expertise, we can provide high-quality one-on-one coaching and mentoring be it to school leavers, college students, graduates or postgraduates, equipping you with the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions.  Whether you have decided on your next step or are confused about you r options, we can tailor our services to whatever stage of the decision making process you are at.

For more information please see the section on ‘For Individuals‘ on our website.