Executive Assessment and Selection
Executive hires are low-volume and high-consequence — the wrong one costs years and culture. At this level you need two reads: how the person actually leads (not how they describe it), and a faking-resistant view of the traits and derailers a polished interview is designed to hide.
What an executive assessment should cover
Two complementary lenses, beyond the resume:
| Dimension | Why it matters at the top | Measured by |
|---|---|---|
| Leadership behavior across domains | How they actually lead, seen by observers — not self-report alone | Achieving Leader 360 |
| Leadership philosophy | Underlying assumptions about people (Theory Y / Theory X) | Leadership Philosophy Assessment |
| Trait profile (faking-resistant) | The personality and derailers a strong interview can mask | ELLSIx |
| Integrity | Non-negotiable at the top | ELLSIx / Honesty & Humility |
| Strategic reasoning | Handles complexity and ambiguity | Reasoning |
The assessments that fit
Pair the Achieving Leader 360 — a multi-rater read of how the candidate actually leads across six domains — with ELLSIx for a faking-resistant trait and integrity profile. The Leadership Philosophy Assessment adds their assumptions about people.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you assess candidates for an executive role?
Combine a multi-rater view of how they actually lead (the Achieving Leader 360) with a faking-resistant personality and integrity read (ELLSIx), since a polished interview hides more at this level.
Why use multi-rater feedback for executive selection?
Self-report alone is easy to manage upward. Observer ratings across leadership domains show how a candidate's leadership actually lands.
What derails executive hires?
Integrity gaps and personality derailers a strong interview masks — which a faking-resistant, forced-choice assessment is built to surface.