Korn Ferry Leadership Assessment - KFALP | KF4D | UIT Test
David Korn Ferry Assessment Expert

David, Korn Ferry assessment test expert at JobTestPrep.

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What Are The Korn Ferry Assessments

The Korn Ferry Assessments are used to select candidates for leadership positions by presenting them with a variety of behavioral and cognitive ability tests. Through these tests, your employer can learn about your leadership style and competencies, thus gaining an in-depth picture of your compatibility. 

The Korn Ferry Leadership Assessment is composed of three separate sections - the KFALP (also mistakenly written KFLAP in certain forums), the KF4D (AKA UIT Test), and the ViaEdge. Each of these Korn Ferry Assessments contains different elements that measure different leadership traits that typify successful leaders.  

 

Have you been asked to take the Talent-Q test together with the Korn Ferry test? Check out our Talent-Q all-inclusive practice.

 


Korn Ferry Assessment of Leadership Potential - KFALP

The KFALP Korn Ferry personality test (sometimes mistakenly referred to as KFALP) is designed to identify candidates who possess the highest potential for success in a leadership role.

Among the many leadership traits the KFALP assesses, cognitive abilities and learning capacity are highlighted as the most significant predictors of leadership performance. 

For instance, being adaptable, curious, focused, tolerant of diversity in thought and ethnicity, and able to work well regardless uncertainty are all considered desirable in this KF assessment. Understanding how to allow these factors to shine through is key to passing the test. 

Other factors rated as important in leadership roles include: experience, being self aware, inherent interest in taking the lead, problem-solving skills, and the propensity to avoid project derailment.

Here is a diagram of important leadership skills that the KFALP looks at (taken from the full PrepPack):

Korn Ferry Leadership Assessment

  

Here are some statements that you may encounter in a Korn Ferry Manager Personality Test. You will be asked to indicate to which extent you agree or disagree with them:

 

  • I prefer to be the one who makes the final decision.
  • I am good at organizing others.
  • People usually look up to me.

In these three statements, you may have noticed common theme - dominance. Strong agreement in all three statements will suggest a dominant character - which is a good indicator of good leadership.

 

How to Pass the Korn Ferry Assessment

Even though many people believe there is no need to practice for personality tests such as the Korn Ferry Assessment, this is a risky misconception. Just like any other high-stakes test you approach, good prep can make all the difference and give you the keys to success.

With JobTestPrep's recently upgrades Korn Ferry PrepPack, you will receive accurate and high quality practice materials covering every element of the test - meaning you get the score you deserve. 


Other popular personality tests JobTestPrep offers specialized prep for are the Caliper personality profile, Predictive index (PI)Hogan & P&G PEAK. 

Korn Ferry Four-Dimensional (KF4D) Executive Assessment

The KF4D (also referred to as the Korn Ferry UIT Test) is a combination of a personality test and a cognitive ability test. 

The behavioral part of the K4FD is a four dimensional assessment of the Korn Ferry dimensions characterizing high-performing leaders. Based on this method, significant emphasis is placed on learning agility and personal energy which can be measured in terms of traits such as persistence, assertiveness and drive to achieve.

In addition, the KF4 includes a psychometric tests section, that assesses skills such as:

  • Problem-solving
  • Verbal reasoning tests
  • Logical reasoning tests
  • Numerical reasoning tests
  • Abstract reasoning,
  • Decision-making
  • Strategic thinking, 

Here is a diagram of Korn Ferry Four Dimensions of Leadership and Talent: (Taken from Korn Ferry's website)

Four Dimensions

The Three Stages of the KFALP and KF4D Assessments

The Korn Ferry Assessment of Leadership Potential and the KF4D assessment usually appear together as a continuous test, the combined results of which provide the employer with a full picture of a candidate's leadership style and their compatibility for leadership positions. Each step of the assessment process focuses on a different aspect of your leadership potential:

Job Profile

This section aims to measure your readiness for a leadership role by asking you to answer questions regarding your current position (or sometimes a previous one). In this part you will be asked to rate personality traits related to a position in three stages, with the aim of gleaning a good understanding of what your leadership style is and where you place the most importance:

  • Competencies - this part of the test measures what makes you (or a hypothetical employee) particularly good at your job, what leadership traits are crucial for success. You are asked to carry out three separate tasks, each one measuring your attitude toward a different crucial part of the position:
    1. Choosing: In these types of questions, you are presented with a leadership trait that you must rank according to how critical they are in the position. For example, you could be asked to give a score for the leadership trait "Courage" - is it mission critical (highly critical), critical, or less critical for job?
    2. Balancing: Next, you will have thirty personality characteristics that you will need to divide equally into three columns, ten each. The columns divide the thirty traits into mission critical, critical, and less critical. Since there are only ten spots in each row, you will be forced to think carefully about where each trait belongs, and in some cases place a trait in a column you're not 100% sure about. 
    3. Ranking: Now that you have the traits divided into three columns, it's time to rank each one according to how critical it is within its own group. This means that among the "Mission Critical" traits you must now dive deep and decide which of these highly critical traits is the most, 2nd most etc. Continue this process all the way to ranking the least critical trait among the thirty!
  • Job Analysis - As opposed to the competencies section, here you will be asked to rate specific requirements of your position according to their importance. Think of this section as taking the personality characteristics that you ranked in the previous section, and seeing how they manifest practically within the day-to-day work. For example, you could be asked to rate how important being able to handle a tight schedule is in your position. 
  •  Company Culture - In this last part of the job profile section, you need to zoom out to a wider resolution, and consider the traits that define your company culture. One of the important things to consider here is that when applying for leadership positions, your alignment with the company culture becomes even more crucial. 

 

Individual Exercises 

This section of the test moves away from the specific realm of the position and the organization, and seeks to learn about who you are and what makes you tick. Through this section, a deeper understanding can be achieved regarding a candidate's career goals, natural tendencies, key strengths, and more. Again, you will be asked to rank statements, only this time they will be about your personality attributes and work preferences:

  1. What's your background - here you are required to provide demographic information, such as your management level, location etc. 
  2. Where do you excel - in this section you are presented with statements that reflect certain personal characteristics, which you must rank on a scale ranging from "most like me" to "least like me". For example, you could be presented with a statement regarding how you react to unclear situations, or how well you motivate people. 
  3. Who are you - here you are presented with four cards, each containing a statement reflecting a certain personality trait. Your job is to select three that are most like you, and then place them in order according to how much they pertain to your personality. 
  4. What drives you - here you must rank statements regarding your motivation on a scale between what is most important to you and what is least important to you. A typical statement could be related to the importance of status to you within the organization, or how important personal development at work is to you. 

 

Raven Abstract Reasoning Test

This section aims to complete the picture provided by the previous personality focused sections by offering some insight into the cognitive abilities of the candidate. The Raven test is an abstract reasoning test, meaning it contains non-verbal information (shapes, patterns, colors) that contains a certain pattern that you need to identify to answer the question. 

Scroll down to try out a sample question taken from our specialized prep pack!  


Korn Ferry viaEdge

As a self-assessment, the viaEdge test is presented in an online, self-administered format. This exam's primary focus is on learning agility: This is the essential skill of high-potential leaders in learning from work situations and quickly adapting to new circumstances.

The viaEdge is used as a tool for hiring the best leadership talent, promotion of that talent through company ranks, and identifying managers who fit the requisites of international managerial positions.

While taking this test, expect a range of agility questions, including: Mental, change, people, and results. Immediate adaptation to situational changes is necessary for effective leadership and you will find many of the viaEdge items assessing this particular skill.

This is a 30-minute test that secondarily stresses self-awareness. Companies are looking for executives with a clear view of their own strengths, weaknesses, skill sets, and areas that are in need of heightened perception.

Tip: Be sure to take the test in a quiet environment, with a wi-fi connection that allows good internet speed. 


How Do I Prepare For The Korn Ferry Leadership Assessment Test?

The Korn Ferry test is a crucial step in your career development, and could be what stands between you and the executive position you are after.

You can  prepare for Korn Ferry leadership assessments by working on practice tests; studying Q&A analysis; reading a study guide to arrive at a better understanding of both the focus behind the questions and the rationale for expected answers; and learning strategic testing tips.

Practicing sample tests has been found to decrease exam anxiety and increase accuracy and speed toward the actual test. Knowing what to expect before you begin your actual Korn Ferry leadership exam goes a long way toward optimizing your test results.

Our site provides an affordable and thorough Korn Ferry Assessment test preparation with a customized package which includes: Korn Ferry practice tests, a study guide, test tips, and more.

With this PrepPack™ you can start improving your chances of passing the test and landing the job you want.

Here is a short review of one of our verified buyers:

Khalid A. - Korn Ferry Leadership PrepPack Verified Buyer

Excellent tests to develop your leadership skills.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 


Korn Ferry Practice Test Questions

Korn Ferry Practice Test - SJT sample question:

You are a department manager, and you have thought of a new procedure you believe would improve the work process. Some employees in your department agree with the change, and some don't.
One of your employees voices their criticism to your director.

What would you do in this situation?

Response #1: You decide to ignore the criticism to avoid conflict.

This response is a passive response, inappropriate for a managerial role.

Avoiding conflict in this scenario shows poor managerial skills, specifically maintaining authority, as you take no disciplinary action against your employee's misconduct.

Response #2: You reprimand the employee for going over your head to the director. You dismiss the criticism and work to promote your idea with even more enthusiasm.

This response is an active response as you tackle the problem head-on by reprimanding the problematic team member.

However, this response shows you are not open to criticism, since you promote your idea with even more enthusiasm, as opposed to listening and discussing the criticism.

Response #3: You meet the employee to discuss their criticism and explain that bypassing your authority is unacceptable.

This response is another active response.
Like response #2, here you address bypassing your authority.

However, this response is open to discussing the criticism and is therefore a better response. This response reflects your ability to be assertive, while exhibiting your social skills. It is therefore the best response.

Response #4: Employees' trust in their manager is important, so to keep your employees satisfied, you implement only some changes.

This response shows your inability to maintain authority and a lack of managerial skills, as you ignore your employee's misconduct, do not address the issue, and 'give in' (so to speak) to the demands of your employees.

In our full preparation package you will get hundreds of questions and drills with full explanations, so you will know exactly how to answer each question you will encounter. 

Here is an example of a KF assessment question from the cognitive aptitude tests section.

Korn Ferry Practice Test - Abstract Reasoning

The drawings in the box go together in a certain way. Choose the drawing that goes in the missing box.

Korn Ferry Assessment Practice

 

Drawing A
Drawing B
Drawing C
Drawing D
Drawing E
Correct Answer
Incorrect Answer

The correct answer is D. Identify the image which completes the pattern by examining how the series of shapes change across the rows and down the columns within the matrix. The direction in which you examine the question should depend on where you can most easily visualize the relationship.

Across the rows, all of the triangles remain in the same position:
The first row contains a triangle with a right angle at the bottom-left corner.
The second row contains a triangle with a right angle at the top-left corner.
The third row contains a triangle with a right angle at the top-right corner.
Down the columns, the background color and shape color remain the same:
The first column contains blue shapes in a yellow background.
The second column contains white shapes in a blue background.
The third column contains blue shapes in a white background.
Since the empty square is located in the bottom row in the third column, we can assume that the figure will be a blue triangle in a white background. The right angle will be located in the top-right corner of the square. Answer choice D is the correct answer.

 


Interested in more accurate practice questions? Check out our Complete Korn Ferry Preparation Pack

Get instant access to hundreds of practice questions with full Korn Ferry test answers, solving tips, study guides, and more.


What Are The Korn Ferry Tests?

In the world of executive assessments, Korn Ferry is considered to be the global leader. This company aims to align the specific leadership position requisites with the matching candidate.

In addition to its four-dimensional set of factors, Korn Ferry has identified four primary leadership styles: task-focused, intellectual, participative, and social.

Focused on leadership in the present world, some of the highlighted Korn Ferry Leadership elements include:

  • Traits/Dispositions - patience, logic and reasoning, risk of derailment, assertiveness, risk-taking, self-confidence
  • Experiences - leadership-related tasks in employment history
  • Competencies - interpersonal relations, decision-making, work-related skills

 

About the Author:

 

author
David is JobTestPrep's Korn Ferry Assessment expert. He has over 30 years' experience in the test prep industry, specializing in personality, behavioral, and Situational Judgment Tests. David has led JobTestPrep's efforts to provide test-takers with the most accurate online prep possible since 1992. You can contact him at

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