What does Lego have to do with getting a job?
Today at the end of another Lego Assessment Day at Specialisterne NI’s office at Skainos, Belfast, I am again struck by the difference that using a work-like scenario such as building Lego Mindstorms in groups of two, makes to the Assessment process. A recruiter for over 10 years I have used interview techniques and references in order to best assess a person’s skills, yet when 2 years ago I started working with people with Autism Spectrum Disorders I was challenged to look at other means for assessing skills, given that what you see at interview for a person on the Autistic Spectrum may not reflect the person’s full skills, it’s a bit like being tested at your point of weakness, with the results forming the final answer for what you have to offer.
In a Lego Assessment participants build Lego Mindstorms Robots and programme them in small teams. The Specialisterne NI team take observational data and code this in relation to team, task and self-management factors. In post assessment interviews the interviewer explores moments from the assessment to test what we think we saw, and use this conversation as a springboard to discuss career aspirations and next steps.
