BT Assessment Centres Case Study
Overview
BT is one of the world’s leading communications services companies, serving the needs of customers in the UK and in more than 170 countries worldwide. BT had a “stuck” middle management population of 850 managers and wanted to enhance its Business Performance exponentially.
Dove Nest engaged a project team in BT to clearly understand the key issues and support required in order to develop a focused and robust approach that would engage managers and was aligned to business performance. As a result of this deep immersion into BT, we were able to design and deliver a series of robust Assessment Centres, staffed only by Dove Nest Group, with feedback to the participants taking place within five days of the Assessment Centre. All 850 managers were to be assessed and receive feedback within a six-week period.
The Assessment Centre was designed around the client’s four key Business Capabilities. Following this, a programme of Business Coaching was designed to help those who did not achieve the desired level make the necessary cultural and performance changes.
The one to one coaching consisted of six sessions over either 3 or 6 months (depending on grade) and was focused particularly on Business Performance applied to the individual’s work area. Detailed coaching reports allowed the client’s project team to monitor progress.
Outcome
75% of managers did not achieve the required grades in the Assessment Centre and undertook coaching; a further 10% of managers (who had achieved the required grades in the Assessment Centre) opted into the coaching in view of its perceived value to them.
The client believes that a net 10% saving on expenditure can be attributed to this programme (and other initiatives), which equates to a saving of £55m. The Assessment Centres were externally audited by OPP; the 100% accuracy was testament to the robustness of the process. No union issues emerged to cause the client any concerns.