Cognitive thinking is the mental process humans use to absorb information, so that we can make informed decisions and complete tasks effectively.
In the workplace, all team members need to be able to listen effectively to information, perceive that information, and then use it to perform their duties successfully. Whether it’s employees giving their undivided attention and ideas during a meeting, communicating and collaborating with one another, finding creative solutions to a problem, or thinking on their feet, cognitive thinking skills are essential to a productive workplace.
If your team is lacking in cognitive thinking skills, job performance will suffer across the board.
It’s important to note that cognitive thinking isn’t critical thinking. People develop critical thinking skills over time along with logic, judgment, and experience. It’s an essential skill to have when making big decisions.
Cognitive thinking is more broad and encompasses all the mental processes involved in learning, deciphering, and comprehending information.
Diversity in cognitive thinking styles
Cognitive diversity refers to the variety of ideas, modes of thinking, perspectives, and problem-solving methods that people bring to the table.
Depending on a candidate or team member’s cultural background, upbringing, or educational history, they may have a very different method of cognitive thinking than their coworkers.
There are many styles of cognitive thinking, including visual, analytical, sequential, and verbal thinking. Depending on one’s preferred method, a coworker could pick up on things that someone with a different method would overlook.
The Predictive Index has identified 17 different Reference Profiles that provide insight into alternative methods of cognitive thinking.
For example, the Strategist has an eye for detail, thrives on facts as opposed to theories, and gains expertise through thoughtful analysis.
Contrast that with the Promoter, who is less concerned with the finer details and more concerned with the big picture. Members of both profiles can be effective team members who bring their own unique perspectives to a project.
As an HR leader or hiring manager, why is assessing cognitive styles essential?
As an HR leader or hiring manager, you need to be aware of the different cognitive styles of your team and potential candidates. By understanding the diverse backgrounds and cognitive styles of candidates, you can identify their strengths and weaknesses to build a team with complementary skills and varying perspectives.
A diverse team is better equipped for creative problem-solving, approaching a project from multiple angles, and not resorting to biases. A team that understands and appreciates each other’s diverse cognitive styles recognizes each other’s strengths and weaknesses and can work together more effectively for everyone’s benefit.
Equally as important, if a team is reporting to you and you understand each member’s diverse cognitive styles, you can communicate much more effectively with the group as well as one-on-one.
For example, if you know a particular team member is a verbal learner who prefers to talk things out, you’ll know to offer feedback in a private conversation and not over email.
When you understand the cognitive diversity of your team, you encourage employees to be themselves in the workplace. They can bring their unique outlooks to a project, increasing innovation, productivity, and team cohesion.
How to assess cognitive thinking
There are a number of tests that can be used to assess cognitive thinking. Most of these tests focus on specific areas of cognitive ability and fail to measure other areas. Broadly, these tests assess cognitive skills like working memory, situational judgment, and attention, as well as language, pattern, and numerical comprehension.
The Predictive Index’s PI Cognitive Assessment tool is a timed cognitive ability test that measures a candidate’s general mental ability and capacity for critical thinking. Unlike other cognitive ability tests, the PI Cognitive Assessment was explicitly designed for the workplace, and measures how fast a candidate can be expected to acquire new knowledge.
Candidates get 12 minutes to complete as many of the assessment’s 50 multiple-choice questions as they can. These questions are drawn from three cognitive ability categories—verbal, numerical, and abstract reasoning—and nine subcategories, using these to determine a candidate’s capacity for rapid knowledge acquisition.
Utilizing this tool improves a company’s ability to make scientific hiring decisions and ensure the right candidate is hired the first time.
Candidates can familiarize themselves with the content and structure of the test with a list of sample questions. These questions are not scored and are not a valid indicator of cognitive ability or how well a candidate can expect to perform on the assessment. They are simply meant to familiarize a candidate with the content and format of the assessment.
Practical application of cognitive assessments in the workplace
Cognitive assessments can be helpful for a workplace in both the hiring phase and throughout normal day-to-day operations.
Cognitive assessments provide the following benefits:
- Assessing a candidate’s aptitude for a position and determining how quickly they will adjust to the training and demands of the job.
- Incorporating cognitive diversity into the hiring and recruitment process, making certain that you’re attracting and hiring candidates who will bring diverse outlooks and strategies to your team.
- Structuring a team and designing workflows to complement diverse styles of thinking.
- Measuring success when implementing cognitive diversity initiatives.
How one PI customer leveraged cognitive assessments
‘47, a premier sports lifestyle brand uniquely melding sport and style, needed to rethink its sales team structure to keep up with demand and growth. They turned to PI Certified Senior Partner Laura Caton of The Cornerstone Group, who recommended The Predictive Index® Hire solution to empower ‘47. PI helped quickly identify the candidates best suited for the job role and whether or not their cognitive thinking, as well as other traits, would be an ideal fit for the changing needs of the company culture.
The PI Job Assessment enables organizations to define the best possible cognitive and behavioral requirements for specific roles before the hiring process. With the tool, ‘47 identified key behavioral factors that would help encourage sales success both in the field and within its Key Accounts division.
Thanks to The Predictive Index® Hire solution and PI Cognitive Assessments, ‘47’s leadership team now has more profound insights into their employees’ behavioral drives and needs. They’re hiring, onboarding, and training more precisely than ever before.
‘47’s National Sales Manager Dan Larner said:
“At the end of the day, it comes down to this: ‘How do I effectively get my reps to do their jobs as successfully as possible? How do I best communicate in a way that’s going to get them to understand me, my objectives and goals, and then go out and execute?’ I’m able to use the data from the PI Behavioral Assessment to understand exactly how to work with each of my reps, and that’s extremely useful.”
Learn how you can leverage The PI Cognitive Assessment to measure a candidate’s or current team member’s general mental ability and capacity for critical thinking. In only 12 minutes, you’ll have more information about someone’s prospective job performance than you would after a standard aptitude test or one-hour interview.
