ACE Assessment Centre: 1500-Word Report & Reflection

This report will include a reflection of my experience, feedback and general outcomes from the project for the purpose of improving my careers skills. Specifically, when applying for future graduate employment and internship opportunities where attending an assessment centre may be a requirement during the application process. 

An assessment centre simulation was organised at Watford FC where assessors provided individuals with feedback collected from their observations during each activity. All participants were briefed about the three exercises needed to be completed at the centre. 

During the interview exercise, I was asked a series of questions relating to the Creative Technologist position advertised at Ogilvy. I received the following feedback, “Positive Engaging, Smiling approach. Came across as confident. Evidence of prototyping knowledge on current course. Able to reflect on what she’d do differently next time – choice of technology as well as role distribution. Used positive examples. Great interview!” (Jones, 2018) This demonstrates my ability to present myself in a confident, relaxed and friendly manner throughout an interview. Being a positive individual creates a good first impression for the employer and is a valuable quality. Moreover, Creative Technologists rely heavily on rapid prototyping. Therefore, I felt that it was appropriate to talk about previous independent mobile application projects that used MyBalsamiq and Invision for user-testing as this showed my software knowledge. As the job description mentioned being a team-player, I gave an example of a group project that occurred during the course induction, which demonstrated my teamwork skills. Jones (2018) stated, “Able to reflect on what she’d do differently next time – choice of technology as well as role distribution.” I explained that there were aspects of this project that needed improvement which would be taken into consideration in future projects.

Furthermore, I received the following suggested feedback, “Show her experience earlier on e.g. Student’s Union work. Lack of understanding of ‘how Ogilvy works, it’s design process’ Some research online would have revealed this, so choose questions that demonstrate your knowledge and show your passion for the organisation.” (Jones, 2018) During the interview, I was unsure where to include my experience when answering questions and therefore mentioned my current employment as a part-time Graphic Designer near the end of my interview. Coming up with a question to ask the interviewer was difficult due to nervousness and therefore made the mistake of asking about Ogilvy's design process.

On reflection, I found the interview exercise the most challenging. In future, when preparing for an interview thinking of specific examples for generic interview questions will be beneficial, so that I can answer questions easily. Relating keywords in questions prior to the interview will allow me to answer them comprehensively. Unfortunately, I struggle to answer questions in a naturally structured way. Practicing the STAR technique will alleviate this and booking a careers appointment will assist me in practicing this. When answering questions, I need to include my previous experience earlier and show my industry knowledge to support my answers. Although the question may not be asking for this directly, I need to loosely link this information in my answer as this may prompt the interviewer to ask more questions about my experiences. It is vital that in future, I prepare a question for the interviewer to show my research about the company and industry experience. 

During the presentation exercise, I presented my instant coffee packaging design ideas to the group. 

This was based on the design and visual brief, “Prepare and present packaging design ideas on behalf of Ogilvy for the launch of a brand new instant-coffee range targeted at young, urban consumers.” Using a PowerPoint presentation, mood board handouts and a physical coffee jar mockup as visual aids, I was able to engage my audience successfully. After I had completed my presentation, this was followed by up to five minutes of questions. I received the following feedback, “Well structed, good content/detail, engaging, very creative, credible and answered questions well.” (Middleton, 2018) My preparation took at least two weeks which allowed me to design the coffee brand and practice my presentation skills thoroughly. Using a presentation clicker meant that I was able to focus on content delivery rather than changing the slides - this helped my presentation look more professional. The total length was under five minutes and therefore received the suggested feedback, “Use all allocated time effectively.” (Middleton, 2018) As preparation I had practiced my presentation while being timed where I averaged at five minutes. Therefore, I may have increased my talking speed during the exercise because of being apprehensive. Another reason may have been due to the time allocation as I aimed to be exactly five minutes or under. I may have subconsciously sped up as I didn’t want to be over five minutes which would have caused the assessor to stop the presentation. This would have resulted in being unable to deliver all of my content/presentation.

On reflection, I may consider purchasing a presentation clicker that includes a timer to able to keep track of time. I was unable to use PowerPoint to monitor the time as my laptop was facing the group. In future, I could use my handouts to create a sense of control during my presentation by asking the audience questions and their opinions. This would make the presentation more interactive which would engage the audience further. With more preparation time, I could have added more of a selection of coffee brand design ideas and found out the opinions of my target audience during the survey.

During the group exercise, we were briefed by Ogilvy to create a solution to attract already-existing and new customers to the Galleria in Hatfield. We had forty minutes in total, five minutes were spent re-reading the brief and brainstorming ideas while twenty-five minutes were spent discussing these ideas with the group. The remaining time was spent explaining our ideas to Ogilvy. Seetal volunteered to monitor the time and used her mobile as a stopwatch so that we didn’t go over the time provided. 

We decided to create a mobile application for the Galleria. This would be advertised using digital posters and promoted on social media allowing customers with the app to keep up to date with events and offers. Every member participated in our group discussion and provided vital key points to reach a final solution. 

Due to the number of sportswear outlets in the Galleria, Mel suggested a sporting event which would help to promote these stores. I added that a miniature sporting event could take place for children, attracting families to the event. Leonardo suggested a world’s food event to promote the restaurants at the Galleria. Each restaurant is of a different nationalities cuisine and therefore could include an offer during this event. Anja/Ben mentioned using geolocation to notify customers of events/offers when they are in close proximity of the Galleria. Seetal/Tamya suggested adding an interactive map to direct new customers through the Galleria with parking costs and times. Tamya/Anja discussed a points reward system as an incentive to shop again and mentioned advertising promotional items on the app. Kim and I discussed the layout of the app and sketched these design ideas. We agreed that using categories when you enter the app was a good idea to separate the offers that weren’t suitable for that specific audience. We all agreed with using the Galleria’s brand colours of purple and white.

During the group exercise, I received the following feedback, “You encouraged others views/ideas. You presented your ideas confidently to the group and presented creative ideas. You listened well to others viewpoints and built on their ideas. You were aware of others around you and included them – great time player.” (Moughton, 2018) During the group exercise, I made an effort to include the quieter members of the group. Whenever I would share an idea, I would ask the group if they agreed. This gave the opportunity for anyone who disagreed to speak up without the pressure of having to raise this concern themselves, as this situation can be intimidating. I involved myself in the group discussion by bringing my creative ideas forward and challenging other members’ ideas to further our concept.

Furthermore, I received the following suggested feedback, “Don’t allow others to speak over you. If this happens find a way to be heard.” (Moughton, 2018) Unfortunately I don’t remember the specific moment this happened. This may have occurred when I was discussing the design of the app, as the topic of conversation went off tangent, however I did bring the conversation back to the app design. 

On reflection, in future when ideas are being discussed in a group situation, I will make sure that the quieter members are able to voice their opinion more so that it doesn’t feel like the confident members of the group are dominating the conversation. Therefore, ensuring that every member has an equal say in the discussion. Regarding other aspects of teamwork, I will continue to apply the positive elements mentioned in the feedback given.

To conclude, the assessment centre was an effective tool in discovering my strengths and weaknesses. The feedback received was helpful as this highlighted key areas that needed improvement. By altering my interview and communicative technique, this should increase my employability when applying for future internships and graduate jobs.

Bibliography

JONES, B. (2018) Interview Exercise Feedback. Unpublished.

MIDDLETON, S. (2018) Presentation Exercise Feedback. Unpublished.

MOUGHTON, L. (2018) Group Exercise Feedback. Unpublished.