Optimal Assessments and Consulting Inc.
Privacy Policy Statement
General:
Optimal Assessments and Consulting Inc. (Opt-Assess) is a Canadian-based distributor of the ASSESS suite of tools which includes ASSESS, SalesMax and SELECT. Opt-Assess also provides training and certification and HR consulting services to its clients. Opt-Assess has a strategic alliance with Assess Systems, the creators of the Assess Suite of on-line assessment tools. Using the products identified above individuals respond to a series of questions and, in some cases, other people respond to a series of questions about the individual. Responses are tabulated and evaluated, and reports of results are produced.
In many cases, the products are intended to help client organizations make employment selection or promotion decisions. In some cases, the products are designed to also provide feedback and personal development recommendations to the individuals assessed. In other cases, the products are designed for self-assessment by the individual only.
Our Commitment to Individuals:
We are committed to protecting the privacy of our clients and our clients’ employees and potential job candidates. We will not collect information from candidates before they read a statement of informed consent or other similar documents that explain how their responses to the product(s) and personal identifying information will be used and what parties will have access to the information afterwards. Depending upon the product and the circumstances of the assessment, candidates may or may not receive feedback on the results of their assessment. A candidate’s access to feedback will be explained in the statement of informed consent and the instructions provided by the sponsoring organization. After receiving this information, candidates may opt out of the assessment process at this time. Otherwise, they must agree with the provisions of the statement of informed consent before they will be allowed to submit their responses and personal identifying information.
The information we gather about candidates will be used only for the purpose to which the candidate agrees. We will not disclose information about any candidates to any other third party without the consent of the candidate.
For research purposes, we will aggregate responses to the product(s), without personal identifying information, with the responses of other people to develop group norms, conduct validation studies, and other similar activities to improve the product(s) for future use.
We have comprehensive procedures and systems to protect the privacy, data integrity and security of the information provided, to protect it from misuse, unauthorized access or alteration.
Our alliance partners at Assess Systems who manage all of the data collected, subscribe to the privacy policy guidelines of the US Department of Commerce, the US Safe Harbor framework and the appropriate European Union Data Protection Authorities.
Our Commitment to Client Organizations:
We are committed to protecting the privacy of the individual by limiting the use of personal information collected by the products to the purpose stated in the statement of informed consent and by limiting access to the information to the sponsoring organization. Additionally, the products limit access to individual information to the few people within the client organization having a bona fide “need to know.” These people have been authorized by the client organization to administer tests, surveys and other instruments, process them and have access to results. Access is controlled by the products via unique user ID’s and passwords and by client-managed access control procedures.
Individual information will not be transferred from the sponsoring organization to a third party without the written permission of the individual and the sponsoring organization. Aggregate information for the organization (norms, pass rates, selection profiles, etc.) will not be transferred to third parties without written permission from the sponsoring organization.
For research purposes, responses to the products, without personal identifying information and without organizational identification, are aggregated to develop normative information, conduct validation studies, and other similar activities to improve the product(s) for future use.
From time to time, client companies will be asked to participate in research studies to norm, validate andotherwise improve the product(s) for use at the client company, in a country or region, or for general use. During these studies, individual job performance information and other sensitive client-specific information may be transferred to Opt-Assess and in turn to Assess Systems. This information will be kept confidential, will be used only for the stated purpose, and will not be transferred to any other third party.
Our Commitment to Data Security and Integrity:
To maintain and protect information from unauthorized access, we use procedural, physical and electronic measures.
All Assess products require unique user ID’s and passwords for access. A structured and layered access system is used to allow access only to those records within the organization for which a user has a need to know designation (established by the organization).
All data collected and transmitted to and from Assess Systems servers is encrypted, and Secure Socket Layers (SSL) and firewall technologies are used. Independent security audits are regularly conducted on all Assess Systems and security systems are regularly upgraded to protect against the latest security threats.
Assess Systems servers are physically located in an off-site, secure data center that provides controlled access, 24-hour security, and redundant power and connectivity services.
Contact Information:
If you have questions about our privacy policies, please contact us by e-mail at info@opt-assess.com. For a PDF version of this Privacy Policy, please click here.