Being Certified in PAPI 3™ by Cubiks

By: Mahmoud Mansi

‘Talent’ is a word we hear a lot in today’s business world, especially in the fields of human resources, people development, consulting and education. In the dawn of the 4^th industrial revolution Talent is proven to be one of the most valuable assets in the workplace of both today and tomorrow. Nevertheless, common global challenges remain, such as hiring talent with the right culture fit, identifying top talent, retaining and developing talent.

Some key drivers underpin the accurate measurement of talent, and the robust assessment of workplace personality and behaviour is a critical tool for organisations when identifying employees who display important 21st century traits like agility, innovation, leveraging diversity and willingness to adopt new technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Additionally, HR Directors continue to ask common talent-related questions:

• How can we attract talent?
• Where can we select best-fit talent?
• How can we retain talent?
• How can we develop talent?
• How can we best utilise talent?
• How can we predict people performance?
• How can we develop leadership skills?
• How can we find and prepare successors for critical roles?

There are various talent tools that help organisations find answers to the above questions. PAPI 3 is a great example.

About the PAPI 3 Assessment Tool

People can be multi-talented, yet uncertainty about the work environment, behaviour of others, and nature of work in today’s fast-moving world can impact an individual’s performance. PAPI 3 (Personality and Preference Inventory) is a tool that measures behaviour and predicts performance based on individual differences by assessing candidates/employees/leaders based on the following dimensions:

• Organisation & Structure
• Impact & Drive
• Engagement
• Composure
• Work Momentum
• Interaction
• Ideas & Change

Each dimension is broken down to more detailed factors. However, the results of the online assessment alone are not a sufficient predictor of a person’s behaviour or performance. This score has to be validated through an interview or an assessment centre, that’s when the assessor starts exploring the results of each dimension (0-10 scale) with the candidate through a validation interview. A high score doesn’t have to be a positive indicator and a low score doesn’t have to be a negative one. For example, let us focus more on the “Ideas & Change” dimension which contains a sub dimension of “Need for Change”. If the score is above 7 then this means that this person is likely to cope well with new situations, but it can also mean that this person may become bored without regular change. As one of the Cubiks trainers highlighted, “there is no good or bad”, it depends on the organisational culture and the role. Some organisations or roles need change agents, and some are seeking people who do not get bored by routine.

When using PAPI 3™, you will not only understand your own behaviour at work, but also better understand the behaviour of subordinates, peers, and managers. Therefore, besides the technical benefits of the tool, from a business psychology perspective it makes it easier for a manager to understand and communicate with teams, and productively work with people who have differing views or perspectives.

PAPI 3 Certification Training Programme

Using a blended learning technique, Cubiks – specialised in talent consulting and assessment – conducts the PAPI 3™ Training and Certification Programme, where human capital consultants, psychometricians, talent specialists, psychologists, and human resources professionals, learn about the different kinds of assessment tools, the benefits of each tool, mastering the PAPI tool, dealing with clients, defining job competencies, preparing for and conducting the assessment interviews, candidate psychology, documentation of information, coaching the candidate, giving feedback, writing detailed reports, development planning, and using the Cubiks online platform to manage assessments and clients.

During the week prior to the 2-day training programme, participants go through a 4-hour e-learning session which explores the origins of PAPI, development of the tool over time to fit the changing environments and people, components of the PAPI tool which focuses on behaviour at work, the difference between PAPI 3 I and PAPI 3 N, and taking the test.

After the flexible e-learning training is completed the participants attend the two full-day training programme which usually takes place in Cubiks’ office. The trainer – who is also a psychologist at Cubiks – starts by recapping on the history and structure of the tool, followed by short workshops and brainstorming discussions around implementing the tool. The programme is designed in a collaborative way which helps the participants to consider different scenarios, risks, implementation methodologies, and coaching styles.

Gamification and role plays play a big part of the programme, where participants practice on-the-job learning through assessing, coaching, and conducting interviews with one another before being provided with detailed feedback from the Cubiks trainer.

After speaking more with the Cubiks team, it was noted that Cubiks makes sure to implement its motto “PEOPLE MATTER” in every training programme offered by the company. Therefore, throughout the programme the trainer plays the role of a facilitator, coach, motivator and mentor. This is how the learning experience is delivered to the aspiring certified PAPI 3 assessors.

Strengths of the PAPI 3 Tool

• Based on science and independently reviewed by the British Psychological Society
• Flexible tool with a significant range of personalised report options
• Benchmarks the candidate against other regional or global professionals with similar responsibilities or within same job family
• Highlights the individuality of each candidate rather than forcing them into categories like some other tools
• It is used in recruitment, talent development, and training
• Connects candidates, employees and leaders’ mindsets to work culture