Graduate assessment centres: Why, what and how?

In the first of an exclusive three part series on graduate recruitment, consultant Mike Morrison reveals best practice in hiring graduates using assessment centres.

Why
So you have made the decision to recruit graduates. You know that if you place an advert you will get lots of replies, so how do you put systems in to ensure the individuals you offer posts to are right for you?

First things first – not all graduates are the same – some have work experience – some do not. This simple difference makes graduate recruitment much more difficult than for many other posts. In addition to this graduates are not the cheapest of new recruits.

In come recruitment and selection methods. Traditionally assessment centres have been run by larger organisations to recruit onto their graduate development programmes, but now more and more organisations are either revisiting assessment centres they have run for years or are starting out for the first time.