Hogwart's hat would make more sense

Oct 16 2003 By Peter Jackson, The Journal

James Murdoch, son of Rupert, is to undergo psychometric testing to establish whether he is suitable to be the next chief executive of British Sky Broadcasting.

These tests now seem to be de rigeur among big companies assessing candidates for senior posts.

Based on the theories of the Swiss psychologist Jung, psychometric tests consist of questions designed to discover personal characteristics.

There are no right or wrong answers to the questions, which focus on personality traits such as your ability to handle stressful situations, your motivation, determination and general outlook.

Some years ago I attended a number of management courses which relied heavily on these tests and I have to say I was left decidedly unimpressed.

My difficulty is - and maybe this is just me being awkward - I find it almost impossible to give a straight answer to any of the questions.

For the purposes of this column, I looked up a test on the internet and one typical question gave a series of personality combinations, requiring me to say which was most like me and which least like me.

They were: Amicable and quick, reserved and co-operative, consistent and correct or forceful and goal-oriented.

Really, it depends what mood I'm in and with whom I am. And anyway, why can't I be amicable and co-operative, which seems a much more likely combination, whatever Jung might say.

My other objection is that it seems childishly easy to lie in these tests, however much the compilers claim hidden traps will find you out.

In this case, for example, I said I was forceful and goal oriented and, for every other question, I answered in such a way as to portray myself as the objectionable, aggressive and thrusting type. Funnily enough, the test concluded I was an "extrovert controller".

Many people will not deliberately lie, but they will believe things about themselves which don't necessarily bear much relation to the facts. Have you ever met anyone who realises and will admit they have no sense of humour?

I once worked for a man who undertook one of these tests as a journalistic exercise and the resulting appraisal of his character he declared to be "uncannily accurate".

In truth, those of us who knew him could hardly believe how wide of the mark it was.

It said, if I recall, that he was assertive and there was a danger that this could make him too forceful and abrasive with people.

In fact, he had a horror of confrontation and would express disapproval of his staff by leaving small handwritten reprimands on their desks, even when they sat only a few feet away.

Judging character is a skill, some people have it, some take years to learn it and some never manage it. It cannot be reduced to a glib system, whether that be psychometric testing, graphology, reading someone's bumps or not trusting a man whose eyes are too close together.

I would have more confidence in BSkyB's selection process if it announced it had got hold of the executive version of the Hogwart's Sorting Hat.