Modern information technology provides opportunities that nobody would have dared to dream of only a few years ago.

Database platforms and sophisticated algorithms allow for the evaluation of complex data on a level that has never been reached before. Simulation techniques can be used in order to model organizational reality in full dynamics and complexity.

We amplify the scope of personnel selection and training by consistently exploiting the possibilities of modern information technology. Look and see!

Leadership Potential Center

Nothing shapes your organization more than your company’s leaders – they determine the future success of your company. As markets in today’s global economy become increasingly competitive, striving for excellence has become not an option but a necessity. Only companies that exhibit strong leadership on every level are able to provide a lead in the rapidly-changing business world of the future. Not every manager is a leader - recognizing and developing leadership potential therefore is a task of vital importance for today’s organizations.

What is leadership potential?

Leadership potential can not be taught or developed easily – true leaders display extraordinary competencies in the cognitive, social and personal domain alike. They exhibit drive and a sense of urgency, they quickly understand complex problem constellations, they dare to think across borders and conventions and inspire energy and enthusiasm in others. Leaders are not born as leaders, but most of them have developed their leadership competencies over a long period of time. Leadership potential therefore cannot be appraised simply by looking at one’s professional achievement – a highly-distinguished engineer will not necessarily be a good leader. The challenge is to identify and encourage future leaders in your company as early as possible.

The Assessment Center Method

As early as the turn of the last century, a revolutionary new method for identifying leadership potential emerged in Europe. The idea was surprisingly simple: In order to identify leadership potentials, participants were confronted with a set of tasks that closely resemble real leadership situations. The behavior of the participants was observed and assessed in a systematic manner. The basic idea was that participants who do well in the simulated tasks are likely to do well in reality as well. The idea has stood the test of time and is now widely known as the Assessment Center method. A large body of research meanwhile proves that the Assessment Center is the method of choice for reliably assessing leadership potential.

What is an Assessment Center?

The logic behind the Assessment Center is simple: the demands of a management position are mapped onto standardized exercises simulating realistic job situations. The behavior of several participants in these exercises is systematically observed and assessed by several observers using a set of predefined competencies. Based on the behavior of the participants in the exercises, future success as a manager can be accurately predicted.

The Leadership Potential Center (LPC)

With the Leadership Potential Center, scitrain has taken the Assessment Center method to a new dimension. In the LPC, participants and observers alike experience the fascination of a complex business world unfolding. This world is shaped by each and every action of the participants – whatever the participants do has a profound and irreversible impact on the evolving business world.

At the core of the Leadership Potential Center is the complex computer-simulated business game Cosmetica. Cosmetica is a high-fidelity simulation of a company operating on the national cosmetics market. The business game is characterized by a high degree of realism, high complexity and high unpredictability.

The Business Game

During the business game, teams of 4-6 participants are put in charge of a computer-simulated company. The teams are confronted with a multitude of challenging tasks in different branches of the simulated company, including finances, R&D, marketing, purchasing, production, and staffing. Furthermore, unexpected crisis and problems force the participants to continuously adjust their strategy and actions in order to meet the demands of the highly dynamic computer-simulated reality. Given the time pressure in the business game, participants must think and act quickly – decisiveness is a key requisite for success in the business game. As a result of the multitude of demands arising in the business game simultaneously, true leaders emerge naturally – only such participants are recognized as leaders by their fellow team members who inspire energy and a sense of urgency, who manage to cope with the complexity of the simulated business environment and who prove that their decisions hold against the relentlessly honest feedback of the computer-simulated reality.

Additional Exercises

A set of additional exercises such as role plays, presentations or case studies, all thematically embedded into the business game, complement the Leadership Potential Center. While the business game allows for assessing general leadership competencies such as team leadership, problem solving or flexibility, the additional exercises offer a detailed assessment of more specific competencies such as negotiation or presentation.

Observation and Assessment

Several trained observers (ideally experienced leaders from your company) observe the behavior of the participants over the course of the various exercises. Observation is guided by predefined competencies such as team leadership, strategic thinking, problem solving or communication. At the end of each exercise, observers rate the performance of each participant independently using a standardized rating scale. By combining the independent judgments of several trained observers, a highly objective measure is obtained.

Integration of the Results

The results of the various exercises are fed into a software tool that allows for a thorough evaluation of the performance of each participant. The software tool automatically generates ranking lists, tabular reports and graphical profiles of the participants’ performance. Furthermore, the software contains additional functions for conducting sophisticated statistical analysis. Using the software, the participants’ leadership potential can be evaluated in a concise and comprehensive manner.

In addition, written reports can be compiled with the software describing the observed behavior of each participant in detail.

Range of Application

The Leadership Potential Center can be used for selection as well as for training purposes. When used for selection, external or internal applicants can be compared with regard to their leadership potential. The results of the Leadership Potential Center provide an excellent basis for a hiring or promotion decision.

Used in a training context, future leaders will receive a detailed analysis of their individual strengths and weaknesses. This analysis represents an excellent starting point for drafting an individual development plan. The individual development plan can serve as a basis for carefully tailoring training and development measures to the individual needs of each participant.

Preparation and Implementation of the Leadership Potential Center

Prior to the implementation of your Leadership Potential Center we will tailor the LPC to your specific needs. Accessing our large database of exercises and competencies, we will create a customized Leadership Potential Center for you that perfectly matches your demands. If your company has its own leadership model, we will base the competencies assessed in the LPC on your leadership model. If necessary, we will develop new competencies and exercises in order to meet your specific needs.

Once the design of the Leadership Potential Center is complete, we will assist you in planning and organizing the LPC by providing easy-to-use tools and checklists. If preferred, we can do the planning and organization for you. Our experienced facilitators will train observers from your company and are prepared to function as external observers in the Leadership Potential Center. The Leadership Potential Center will be facilitated by our experienced staff who guarantees a smooth flow of the LPC as well as high quality results.

Ongoing Quality Management

We will assist you in establishing an ongoing quality management system for the continuous evaluation of the quality of your Leadership Potential Center. The predictive power, quality, and costs of the Leadership Potential Center can thereby be continuously monitored and optimized using our sophisticated software system.


Home Advanced Hiring System Leadership Potential Center Cosmetica Case Studies Scientific Background The Company Downloads & Publications Please contact us at: 100 Lincoln Way East Suite 180 Massillon, Ohio 44646 Phone: 330.880.4888 Fax: 330.880.5029 info@scitrain.com	Modern information technology provides opportunities that nobody would have dared to dream of only a few years ago. Database platforms and sophisticated algorithms allow for the evaluation of complex data on a level that has never been reached before. Simulation techniques can be used in order to model organizational reality in full dynamics and complexity. We amplify the scope of personnel selection and training by consistently exploiting the possibilities of modern information technology. Look and see! Leadership Potential Center Nothing shapes your organization more than your company’s leaders – they determine the future success of your company. As markets in today’s global economy become increasingly competitive, striving for excellence has become not an option but a necessity. Only companies that exhibit strong leadership on every level are able to provide a lead in the rapidly-changing business world of the future. Not every manager is a leader - recognizing and developing leadership potential therefore is a task of vital importance for today’s organizations. What is leadership potential? Leadership potential can not be taught or developed easily – true leaders display extraordinary competencies in the cognitive, social and personal domain alike. They exhibit drive and a sense of urgency, they quickly understand complex problem constellations, they dare to think across borders and conventions and inspire energy and enthusiasm in others. Leaders are not born as leaders, but most of them have developed their leadership competencies over a long period of time. Leadership potential therefore cannot be appraised simply by looking at one’s professional achievement – a highly-distinguished engineer will not necessarily be a good leader. The challenge is to identify and encourage future leaders in your company as early as possible. The Assessment Center Method As early as the turn of the last century, a revolutionary new method for identifying leadership potential emerged in Europe. The idea was surprisingly simple: In order to identify leadership potentials, participants were confronted with a set of tasks that closely resemble real leadership situations. The behavior of the participants was observed and assessed in a systematic manner. The basic idea was that participants who do well in the simulated tasks are likely to do well in reality as well. The idea has stood the test of time and is now widely known as the Assessment Center method. A large body of research meanwhile proves that the Assessment Center is the method of choice for reliably assessing leadership potential. What is an Assessment Center? The logic behind the Assessment Center is simple: the demands of a management position are mapped onto standardized exercises simulating realistic job situations. The behavior of several participants in these exercises is systematically observed and assessed by several observers using a set of predefined competencies. Based on the behavior of the participants in the exercises, future success as a manager can be accurately predicted. The Leadership Potential Center (LPC) With the Leadership Potential Center, scitrain has taken the Assessment Center method to a new dimension. In the LPC, participants and observers alike experience the fascination of a complex business world unfolding. This world is shaped by each and every action of the participants – whatever the participants do has a profound and irreversible impact on the evolving business world. At the core of the Leadership Potential Center is the complex computer-simulated business game Cosmetica. Cosmetica is a high-fidelity simulation of a company operating on the national cosmetics market. The business game is characterized by a high degree of realism, high complexity and high unpredictability. The Business Game During the business game, teams of 4-6 participants are put in charge of a computer-simulated company. The teams are confronted with a multitude of challenging tasks in different branches of the simulated company, including finances, R&D, marketing, purchasing, production, and staffing. Furthermore, unexpected crisis and problems force the participants to continuously adjust their strategy and actions in order to meet the demands of the highly dynamic computer-simulated reality. Given the time pressure in the business game, participants must think and act quickly – decisiveness is a key requisite for success in the business game. As a result of the multitude of demands arising in the business game simultaneously, true leaders emerge naturally – only such participants are recognized as leaders by their fellow team members who inspire energy and a sense of urgency, who manage to cope with the complexity of the simulated business environment and who prove that their decisions hold against the relentlessly honest feedback of the computer-simulated reality. Additional Exercises A set of additional exercises such as role plays, presentations or case studies, all thematically embedded into the business game, complement the Leadership Potential Center. While the business game allows for assessing general leadership competencies such as team leadership, problem solving or flexibility, the additional exercises offer a detailed assessment of more specific competencies such as negotiation or presentation. Observation and Assessment Several trained observers (ideally experienced leaders from your company) observe the behavior of the participants over the course of the various exercises. Observation is guided by predefined competencies such as team leadership, strategic thinking, problem solving or communication. At the end of each exercise, observers rate the performance of each participant independently using a standardized rating scale. By combining the independent judgments of several trained observers, a highly objective measure is obtained. Integration of the Results The results of the various exercises are fed into a software tool that allows for a thorough evaluation of the performance of each participant. The software tool automatically generates ranking lists, tabular reports and graphical profiles of the participants’ performance. Furthermore, the software contains additional functions for conducting sophisticated statistical analysis. Using the software, the participants’ leadership potential can be evaluated in a concise and comprehensive manner. In addition, written reports can be compiled with the software describing the observed behavior of each participant in detail. Range of Application The Leadership Potential Center can be used for selection as well as for training purposes. When used for selection, external or internal applicants can be compared with regard to their leadership potential. The results of the Leadership Potential Center provide an excellent basis for a hiring or promotion decision. Used in a training context, future leaders will receive a detailed analysis of their individual strengths and weaknesses. This analysis represents an excellent starting point for drafting an individual development plan. The individual development plan can serve as a basis for carefully tailoring training and development measures to the individual needs of each participant. Preparation and Implementation of the Leadership Potential Center Prior to the implementation of your Leadership Potential Center we will tailor the LPC to your specific needs. Accessing our large database of exercises and competencies, we will create a customized Leadership Potential Center for you that perfectly matches your demands. If your company has its own leadership model, we will base the competencies assessed in the LPC on your leadership model. If necessary, we will develop new competencies and exercises in order to meet your specific needs. Once the design of the Leadership Potential Center is complete, we will assist you in planning and organizing the LPC by providing easy-to-use tools and checklists. If preferred, we can do the planning and organization for you. Our experienced facilitators will train observers from your company and are prepared to function as external observers in the Leadership Potential Center. The Leadership Potential Center will be facilitated by our experienced staff who guarantees a smooth flow of the LPC as well as high quality results. Ongoing Quality Management We will assist you in establishing an ongoing quality management system for the continuous evaluation of the quality of your Leadership Potential Center. The predictive power, quality, and costs of the Leadership Potential Center can thereby be continuously monitored and optimized using our sophisticated software system.