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Automating the Testing and Assessment Process

Testing and assessment programs for pre-employment selection and employee development can no longer be done in isolation from other critical practices and applications. Leading-edge programs in corporate, governmental, educational, and certification assessment are now requiring the ability to integrate assessment events and data seamlessly with other functional systems. This new emphasis on process validity reflects the practical values of parsimony, access, speed, and cost.

This presentation will focus on the design and implementation challenges and successes of automating tests and assessments for the high-stakes pre-employment screening needs of the Transportation Security Administration, a major division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Participants will get focal coverage of these topics:

• The TSA team model of “best-of-breed” solutions partnering driven by systemic, data flow, and content integration capabilities and the integration of client and vendor development and process teams.
• Critical issues in the web assessment design and quality assurance: Ergonomics/usability; delivery model for proctored testing sites; test battery and reporting design and management.

Coverage of important impact areas for TSA: Seamless integration; multi-hurdle skills and competency-based filtering; data aggregation and flow; multi-site testing; support.

David Pfenninger, Ph.D. is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Performance Assessment Network, Inc. (“pan”), a leading provider of web assessment and testing solutions to major government and corporate clients. He has presented and published on topics including e-testing, personality classification, employee turnover, scenario planning, and organizational systems theory, has chaired two international academic conferences, and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Constructivist Psychology.

David is a member and occasional academic reviewer for the American Psychological Association (Divisions of Clinical and Theoretical Psychology), and is a member of the American Society for Training and Development, Society for Human Resource Management, Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, the American Staffing Association, and the Association of Test Publishers. Previously, he held positions in academic psychology and administration with the Indiana University School of Medicine and the U.S. Veterans Administration, and in corporate psychology consulting practice with praxis group.

Mr. Davis is responsible for leading the technical team for the provision of services to the Transportation Security Administration. He is Deputy Program Manager for CPS Human Resource Services which is the prime contractor for this engagement. One of the main purposes of the contract is to provide the service of recruiting and hiring security screeners at the federalized airports. Assessment Centers are the key method to select a qualified and customer service oriented workforce.

Mr. Davis joined CPS in 1997, bringing over 12 years of experience in recruitment and selection. Prior to joining CPS, he was a Personnel Research Psychologist at the County of San Diego. Mr. Davis is a frequent contributor to regional and national conferences in the area of selection and testing.

Dr. Kolmstetter is an Industrial and Organizational Psychologist who is the Director for Standards, Testing, Evaluation, and Policy in the Training and Quality Performance Division at TSA. She is currently responsible for the selection and training standards, testing and certification and was the expert who developed and validated the screener selection process. She also works in the broad area of strategic human capital development to ensure the TSA workforce is skilled, evaluated, and continuously improving. She joined TSA from the National Skill Standards Board (NSSB/DOL) where she was the Senior Director for Standards, Assessment, and Certification. She was responsible for the technical work and policy development for a national, industry-led system of skill standards, assessment, and certification for front-line workers across all industry sectors in the United States. Prior to joining the NSSB, she was the first Chief of Personnel Assessment and Research at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). As the first Industrial and Organizational Psychologist ever to be hired by the FBI, she was responsible for developing, validating, and implementing selection and promotion systems for Special Agent and Support positions, performing research studies on various HR programs, and providing technical guidance to numerous projects related to the performance management system. She has also worked for private industry and in consulting. Dr. Kolmstetter received her Ph.D. and M.S. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.