Business Test Publishers Association Ltd

Publishers form industry body to improve the corporate use of tests, assessments and other HR instruments

On 9th April 2003, 13 leading companies formed the Business Test Publishers Association Ltd ( BTPA ). The association will provide a powerful voice for publishers involved in work-related assessment, training and human development.

The association will work with the British Psychological Society, the Chartered Institute of People Development and other scientific and professional bodies to increase the professional use of tests, assessments and development techniques in industry. The Association will also lobby UK and European legislative and policy-making bodies to ensure that such techniques are used to the benefit of organisations, employees, job seekers, students, school-leavers, and society in general.

The Association will act as a single point of contact for media seeking objective information on testing as part of news coverage, programme development and articles on up-to-date business practice. This is particularly timely given the huge interest in this area caused by:

programmes such as the BBCís Test the Nation, which is now being adapted throughout Europe.

increasing use of the internet in job recruitment.
renewed scientific interest in human attributes.
vastly increased test use throughout UK business.
companiesí need to gain real competitive advantage in difficult economic conditions.

real concern about the value of educational qualifications: what they tell employers about candidates and whether they guide job seekers to positions in which they will succeed.
The BTPAís web site ñ www.btpa.org - will provide up-to-the-minute information to anyone involved in assessment, training and staff development: including hr and training staff; careers guidance professionals; developers, authors and academics to those seeking work or wishing to develop their skills in existing work. The members will develop practical guidelines and position papers on key assessment and development issues: from the possibilities and limits of on-line testing to the integration of training and development with assessment results.