Appendix 2.
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Søren Møller Rasmussen (Respondent validation)
(How will you describe the concept of personality fit with the organisation? What does
your experience say about the personality traits of good managers?)
Management traits predefined and measured by NNIT of all managers are; be yourself,
development of people, empathy, passion, personal values and power of execution. Selecting a
manager should always be done according to the specific context i.e., position, colleagues,
superiors, customers and other stakeholders. According to Søren Møller Rasmussen the trait that
scores highest, and is most indicative for good leadership and performance, is power of
execution, especially taken into account the line of business NNIT is in. Also, if it is a people
manager, you have to have a sound view of human nature. Additionally, a premise for managers
at NNIT is that they should have thorough business understanding, and is one of the reasons why
NNIT is always looking for candidates in the same line of business, such as customers, suppliers,
and competitors. When looking for personality types for the headquarters in Denmark, NNIT is
looking for consultant skills. This entails being able to face a customer and have the necessary
communications skills to interact accordingly. NNIT aims to recruit ambitious professional
people, who have the skills to perform and interact with customers.
People often select a job because of a leader and employer brand, but quits a job because of
unfulfilled promises and managers.
(In what way has assessment of personality in management selections influenced the
procedures in this organisations staffing system?)
Establishing the recruitment consultant team in 2009 was because of a need for experienced
recruiters instead of line managers to handle the recruitment process. This was done, among
other things, because line managers are not necessarily competent in recruiting, despite their
functional skills and management competencies. (Comment: Beskrevet mere positivt tilfører
rekrutteringsafdelingen en ensartet og professionel tilgang til præsentation af NNIT som
virksomhed og organisationen og jobbet i særdeleshed. De sørger for en realistisk
forventningsafstemning ift kandidaterne således at det bedste match mellem job og kandidat
findes. Og meget meget andet.) (Addition:) The recruitment consultant team was moreover
established in order for NNIT to secure a consistent and professional presentation of the
organisation as a whole and the position in particular. These recruiting professionals make sure
Appendix 2.
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Søren Møller Rasmussen (Respondent validation)
that a realistic match of expectations is in place with the candidate to ensure the best match
between the position and the candidate.
NNIT has wide-ranging internal succession/talent management systems in place, and is the
main source for management level positions.
NNIT has two interviews procedures. The first interview is professional competency interview,
and the later a more personality based interview. Personality tests are always used, and are
under scrutiny at the second interview. The personality tests are used as the foundation of a
thorough personality assessment, where the candidate has to relate to how he/she sees
him/herself. The personality based interview is used to assess the P-O fit, not only for the wider
organisation’s perspective, but also the fit with the management team, colleagues, customers
and other stakeholders and contexts.
(What validity do you ascribe to personality tests? How have you used personality tests
as a selection tool in management and general personnel selection? What is your
experience of personality assessment in a job interview, and which processes do you
use to evaluate the candidate?)
NNIT uses a personality test (OPQ32) that is based on 32 personality traits, and provides an
indication of an individual’s preferred behavioural style at work, aimed at evaluating how a
candidate will fit into certain work environments, how they will work with other people and how
they will cope with different job requirements. At the interview, the interviewer is engaging in a
dialog with the candidate about these traits, and outlines contexts in which the candidate should
position him/herself accordingly. Behavioural and situational past-experience based questions
are used, because this is the best indicator of behaviour. Moreover, situational specific cases are
used to assess behaviour. The personality test is used as a framework for the interview, and
different areas are selected to go into depth with at the interview. In this connection, the
personality test is by no means a conclusive list, because candidates are able to cheat or
exaggerate some of the important traits for a position, and furthermore, the candidates can have
a twisted and misinterpret self-awareness. An experienced recruiter however, can rather quickly
assess whether the candidate has been honest in answering the personality test at the job
interview.