20 August 2010

Aircraft test for bosses

A company has developed an alternative to psychometric testing as a way to see how bosses cope under stress - asking them to land a commercial airliner.

Virtual Aviation, a flight training firm, is working with a business psychology consultancy company to offer employers the chance to see how their managers react in a life-or-death crisis, although they use a flight simulator rather than a real aircraft

A spokesman for the company is reported as saying that running a modern aircraft is not really about flying skills, it's more about how you manage your co-pilot, the cabin crew, relationships with air-traffic controllers and other key personnel.

Psychometric research has shown that putting people under pressure in an alien environment will lead to them falling back into their core behaviour patterns, just as they would under extreme stress at work.

For example, one manager might start barking orders at his co-pilot while another is unable to make effective decisions. A third might demonstrate a dangerous willingness to take risks.

Although the flight simulator may be an effective tool for assessing businesses leaders already working within an organisation, it is unlikely to become a widely used method when it comes to recruitment.

Existing psychometric tests can produce similar results and are easier set up and more cost effective during the recruitment process.

 

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