Commitment, Insight and Warmth
are hallmarks of our work...
Commitment, insight and warmth are hallmarks of our work as we build a genuine partnership for your business success.
The greatest competitive advantage for organizations is their people. The ability to build talent is crucial. Current leaders must leverage their strengths and work on key development needs. Clearly, building strong bench strength for the future has to be a priority.
Bittner and Associates, LLC has a proven track record of helping organizations accomplish just that. We are committed to your success. We accurately assess and develop leaders to coach their teams, foster collaboration, drive results and make sound business decisions with a sense of urgency.
The greatest competitive advantage for organizations is their people. The ability to build talent is crucial. Current leaders must leverage their strengths and work on key development needs. Clearly, building strong bench strength for the future has to be a priority.
Bittner and Associates, LLC has a proven track record of helping organizations accomplish just that. We are committed to your success. We accurately assess and develop leaders to coach their teams, foster collaboration, drive results and make sound business decisions with a sense of urgency.
Assessment
Our experience at Bittner and Associates, LLC indicates that the most competent and capable human resources are continuously sought after and desired by multiple organizations. Employers often fight for the same high-potential candidates. Many times, companies do not have enough qualified people working in their jobs and have to do “more with less.” All of these ideas point to this fact: selecting and retaining the best person who is the most appropriate fit for the position and for the organization is a very smart investment indeed.
Many research studies have been conducted to assess the potential ROI lost when companies make a “bad hire” by selecting someone who was not the best fit, had performance problems, voluntarily left the organization, or derailed. Thousands of dollars are lost for organizations that need to replace and then subsequently train a new manager or executive. These types of mistakes can be avoided (or at the very least, minimized) by using Bittner and Associates, LLC’s valid assessment tools and a planned assessment process. Dr. Bittner and her colleagues have worked with pioneers in the field and with proven assessment technology for over thirty years. Simply put, we have the best and brightest assessors who are capable of making the most difficult calls on candidates: who will succeed in a particular role for a specific corporation and why and who will likely fail and why? In short, quality assessment (e.g., consistent, accurate, and fair) yields invaluable results and a competitive edge.
Further, robust assessment processes identify strengths to leverage and developmental opportunities to address. This important assessment information can be utilized for a company’s succession planning and performance management processes.
Many research studies have been conducted to assess the potential ROI lost when companies make a “bad hire” by selecting someone who was not the best fit, had performance problems, voluntarily left the organization, or derailed. Thousands of dollars are lost for organizations that need to replace and then subsequently train a new manager or executive. These types of mistakes can be avoided (or at the very least, minimized) by using Bittner and Associates, LLC’s valid assessment tools and a planned assessment process. Dr. Bittner and her colleagues have worked with pioneers in the field and with proven assessment technology for over thirty years. Simply put, we have the best and brightest assessors who are capable of making the most difficult calls on candidates: who will succeed in a particular role for a specific corporation and why and who will likely fail and why? In short, quality assessment (e.g., consistent, accurate, and fair) yields invaluable results and a competitive edge.
Further, robust assessment processes identify strengths to leverage and developmental opportunities to address. This important assessment information can be utilized for a company’s succession planning and performance management processes.
Assessment Steps
1. Customize the assessment process by basing it on the client’s specific needs. At Bittner and
Associates, LLC, we pride ourselves on tailoring solutions because we do not believe that “one size fits all.” This important point distinguishes us from many larger consulting firms who want to
“impart” their pre-packaged assessment process onto clients.
2. Use a comprehensive assessment process to fully assess both strengths and weaknesses of
individuals.
3. Incorporate the latest assessment research and technology (including content-valid business
simulations) that mirror the kinds of assignments in the actual business environment.
4. Offer two kinds of assessment: individual assessment and assessment/development centers.
5. Will work with our clients face-to-face and virtually – it is up to each client to decide what will fit
it's needs.
Associates, LLC, we pride ourselves on tailoring solutions because we do not believe that “one size fits all.” This important point distinguishes us from many larger consulting firms who want to
“impart” their pre-packaged assessment process onto clients.
2. Use a comprehensive assessment process to fully assess both strengths and weaknesses of
individuals.
3. Incorporate the latest assessment research and technology (including content-valid business
simulations) that mirror the kinds of assignments in the actual business environment.
4. Offer two kinds of assessment: individual assessment and assessment/development centers.
5. Will work with our clients face-to-face and virtually – it is up to each client to decide what will fit
it's needs.
Assessment and Development Centers
- Design the center to identify strengths and weaknesses of individuals (usually 4-8 people).
- Format the assessment center design according to client’s needs in half-day, one-day and two-day sessions.
- Include an integrated content-valid business simulation that allows for the core organizational competencies to be demonstrated. The exercises may include an in-basket, group exercises, role-plays, and interviews.
- Arrive at consensus as an assessment team by rating each individual’s performance in the assessment center on the competencies.
Individual Assessment
- Meet either face-to-face or virtually with the individual.
- Can be used for a myriad of purposes: identifying high potentials, transitioning individual contributors or leaders to broader roles, and helping individuals who may be struggling or derailing in their current role.
- Use a combination of on-line assessments (on critical thinking, leadership, and personality) and structured behavioral interviews to evaluate the core competencies of an organization. These typically include: ability to problem solve, make decisions, coach to build talent, foster collaboration by developing relationships, motivate and inspire others, drive results, focus on the customer, lead others, etc. We can tailor our approach to include business simulations (e.g., business case and role plays) and 360° feedback as appropriate.
- Communicate feedback both verbally and in writing, if desired. Our assessors provide detailed findings based on the available data and their own judgment about the consequences and impact of the individual’s behavior in a detailed report. Developmental recommendations on specifically what the individual should do to leverage strengths and work on developmental opportunities will be spelled out in detail.
- Provide a quick turnaround: verbal results can be discussed to management within one or two business days. Clients decide if they want the report to go just to management (for selection) or to the individual assessed (for development) or to both parties.
Coaching
Bittner and Associates, LLC’s coaching programs have been designed for leaders’ professional and personal development. In either case, our consultative processes help leaders become more agile and adaptable when it comes to changing their behaviors. A key component to coaching is knowing how much to focus on leveraging leaders’ current strengths vs. working on overcoming development opportunities and barriers to development to minimize the risk of executive derailment. Dr. Bittner and her coaching team consist of Industrial and Organizational, Counseling, and Clinical Psychology and business experts. As assessment is one of her specialties, she knows and selects the most competent coaches to work with for a given client. We work tirelessly to assist our clients to ensure they are the most adept leaders; the result being they have an edge over their competition.
Executive Coaching
Bittner and Associates, LLC’s team of executive coaches ensures that leaders perform to their potential and help organizations retain the best managers by developing their most talented people. Using Bittner and Associates, LLC’s executive coaching program, organizations can usually expect to see a positive change in a person's behavior over a period of three to six months.
Reasons for Coaching
1. Develop skills and capabilities of an individual by leveraging strengths and working on
developmental opportunities in the current role.
2. Develop a high potential individual for broader leadership roles in the future.
3. Expand and broaden the leadership skill set of an individual who is in transition to a higher-level leadership role.
4. Improve the performance of an individual or he/she may derail (requested by the person’s
manager).
Longer-term coaching (between nine and twelve months) is needed at times to coach individuals transitioning to a new, expanded, or broad management role with expanded responsibilities or for individuals who may be struggling with some aspect of their current role. A common goal for both our clients and coaches is to leverage strengths and work with our clients on two to three key developmental areas.
Before our coaches can help individuals, they need to gain clear, well-defined expectations for the current and/or new role. First, we gain a thorough understanding of job expectations and the required capabilities by using your company's leadership competencies, performance management factors, and management input. Second, we perform a thorough assessment by using a wide variety of tools to evaluate and then improve the individual’s performance on the competencies.
developmental opportunities in the current role.
2. Develop a high potential individual for broader leadership roles in the future.
3. Expand and broaden the leadership skill set of an individual who is in transition to a higher-level leadership role.
4. Improve the performance of an individual or he/she may derail (requested by the person’s
manager).
Longer-term coaching (between nine and twelve months) is needed at times to coach individuals transitioning to a new, expanded, or broad management role with expanded responsibilities or for individuals who may be struggling with some aspect of their current role. A common goal for both our clients and coaches is to leverage strengths and work with our clients on two to three key developmental areas.
Before our coaches can help individuals, they need to gain clear, well-defined expectations for the current and/or new role. First, we gain a thorough understanding of job expectations and the required capabilities by using your company's leadership competencies, performance management factors, and management input. Second, we perform a thorough assessment by using a wide variety of tools to evaluate and then improve the individual’s performance on the competencies.
Our Experienced Coaches will...
- Diagnose the situation fully through discussions, individual assessment (including interviews and on-line assessments), and a 360° feedback process.
- Give straightforward feedback, direction, and guidance while simultaneously maintaining the person’s self-esteem. We work effectively in both virtual and face-to-face situations depending on clients’ needs and preferences.
- Involve the manager and key stakeholders of the individual so that the person being coached has the appropriate support.
- Point out positive behaviors to continue using and less desirable behaviors and the impact of those behaviors if no change occurs.
- Collaboratively develop practical solutions to developmental gaps. Individuals must be willing and motivated to commit to these solutions and then need to have a written development plan outlining exactly what behaviors need to change, substituting new behaviors for old ones.
- Provide employees with practical "stretch assignments," readings, and training courses in order to help them grow and develop. Adult learning theory suggests the way to change an individual’s behaviors is to “tweak” on-the-job behaviors where the learning occurs on the job.
- Hold people accountable and evaluate performance improvement by checking progress on quantitative and qualitative metrics.
- Check progress with the individual’s manager and senior executives to ensure their expectations are being met and the desired outcomes are occurring.
Management Solutions
Bittner and Associates, LLC delivers the following talent development solutions to help your organization drive results in a team-based environment. Our services include:
- Individual Assessment (on-line or face-to-face)
- Assessment Centers
- Executive Coaching
- 360° feedback
- Succession Planning
- Structured Behavioral Interview Guides
- Competency Models
- Performance Management
- On-Boarding Services and Team Start-Up
- Facilitation Services (for Strategic Planning, etc.)
- Associate/Employee/Customer Engagement or Satisfaction Surveys
Don't procrastinate, contact us today!
