Assessment Centre Manager Readme File ===================================== This file contains additional information not covered in the program

documentation or Help system. ================= Technical Support ================= e-mail: support@realneedsoftware.co.uk =============== Current Version =============== Version 2.0: Release Date: 1/01/2000 ========================================================= INSTALLATION OF ASSESSMENT CENTRE MANAGER AND DATA CENTRE ========================================================= To install Assessment Centre Manager and Data Centre, run the program SETUP.EXE from Installation Disk 1 or the CD. If you wish to install only one of the two programs, select the Custom Setup option during the installation and select which program you want to install. If installing both programs, you should install both programs to the same directory on your hard disk. =========================== New features in Version 2.0 =========================== Version 2.0 of Assessment Centre Manager has been designed to be 'lighter' and easier to use than previous versions. Some of the original built-in elements have been removed, allowing far greater flexibility in deciding which assessment centre materials you wish to use for your assessment centres. Completely re-designed interface ACM's screens have now been redesigned to make them clearer and easier to use. Built-in exercises removed. This version of Assessment Centre Manager does not contain built-in exercises. You can now use your own assessment centre exercises without having to incorporate these into Assessment Centre Manager. The various 'document facilities' from the earlier versions of the program have also been removed since these were concerned principally with the built in exercises. Improved and simplified assessment centre design facilities. Selecting exercises and dimensions and setting up the links between them has now been greatly simplified. Designs and timetables can now be shared amongst workgoup members Assessment centre designs are now saved in project files

and their associated timetables are saved in timetable files. The project and timetable files for an ACM project can be easily transferred from one installation of ACM to another. Improved specifications ACM now allows you to include up to 20 dimensions and 20 exercises in any single assessment centre project. You can also specify up to 20 assessors for inputting of data into Data Centre. Data Centre can be used independently of Assessment Centre Manager If you do not wish to use Assessment Centre Manager to design your assessment centres, you can still use Data Centre independently. Data Centre now allows you to create a DataSpec file from within the program itself, rather than relying on DataSpec files created in Assessment Centre Manager New narrative reports structured around dimensions Data Centre now provides four different kinds of narrative reports Feedback Reports: - Organised by Exercise - Organised by Dimension Selectors Reports: - Organised by Exercise - Organised by Dimension Revised data file structure The data file structure used by Data Centre data files has been revised to enhance performance. The structure of the data files has also been simplified to aid interpretation of data which has been exported to spreadsheet or text format. Viewing and printing out of raw data The raw data for each individual exercise can now be printed out as a report. Merging of data files for consecutive analysis of up to 200 candidates Data Centre now allows you to merge the data for up to 200 candidates from several different source data files. This enables you to compare and contrast candidates who have attended the same basic assessment centre but at different times in different groups. Optional candidate IDs Candidate IDs can be added to each candidates record in a data file. This is particularly useful for discriminating between similarly named candidates, especially when creating a merge file from several different source data files. New terminology The terms 'Logistics Planner' and 'Schedule' from version 1.0 have now been replaced by the more easily understandable 'Timetable Planner' and 'Timetable throughout the software and documentation. Plus many additional minor improvements ================================================== Upgrading from Assessment Centre Manager Version 1

================================================== A number of changes have been made to Version 2 which make this version incompatible with previous Versions. In particular, DataSpec files and data files created in Version 1 cannot be read by Version 2 due to the new file structures used in Version 2. If you wish to continue to use Version 1 then you should install Version 2 in a different directory to that in which you installed your previous version. See the note below if by any chance you have installed Version 1.0 in a directory called C:\ACM2 and wish to preserve this version on your hard disk as well as installing Version 2.0 ======================================================== Error under some circumstances when ACM Version 2.0 is started for the first time ======================================================== If you are upgrading from Assessment Centre Manager (ACM) Version 1.0 and if, for some reason, you installed that version in a directory called C:\ACM2, you are likely to get an error when starting ACM Version 2.0 for the first time. This is because ACM 2.0 will attempt to connect itself to its own database files in C:\ACM2 when run for the first time. If it is unable to find those files in C:\ACM2, it then looks for them in whichever directory it has been installed into and reconfigures itself appropriately. If however you have installed ACM Version 1.0 in C:\ACM2 and ACM Version 2.0 in some other directory, then ACM 2.0 will try to connect to the version 1.0 files and an error will occur during initial configuration. The solution is to temporarily rename the directory holding ACM Version 1.0 files to some other name (e.g. C:\ACMx). The start ACM 2.0 and allow it to reconfigure itself to the correct directory. Then rename the Version 1.0 directory back to the original C:\ACM2. If you continue to get errors even after the above procedure, then delete your entire installation of Version 2.0 and re-install the software after firstly having renamed the version 1.0 directory in the manner outlined above.