CASE STUDY WORLD WAR II SPY ASSESSMENT FOR THE a selection system to "identify operatives who could success- OFFICE OF STRATEGIC SERVICES (OSS) fully undertake hazardous intelligence-gathering missions be- Thank you to Joe McCune of Rutgers University for allowing hind enemy lines. In other words, you are to select spies who us to provide this exercise. will work in Japan, Italy, or Germany. Role Challenges It is 1940, and you are a selection specialist assigned to the 1. You have been given limited job information, no job de- Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Your assignment is to scription, KSAOs, competencies, or performance criteria work as a team with three to four other classmates to develop related to the position. Chapter 9 . Assessing External Candidates 293 2. Since the advertisements for the job must be vague to Assignment maintain secrecy, they will attract undesirable candidates, including people who are chronically bored, pathologi- 1. Create a list of important characteristics discussed pre- cally adventuresome, neurotically attracted to danger, and viously. Remember, in 1940, there were no computers, so forth. Therefore, you will need to include a process to video phones, or satellites. Spies needed to do things like weed out such individuals. access locked buildings, identify possible informants, and 3. You have no time to validate your assessment methods- persuade them to provide useful information about enemy they need to be implemented immediately. actions. 2. Determine the three most important qualities that an ap- Task plicant must possess In the time allowed, identify the important characteristics (ap- 3. Develop procedures to test for each of those characteristics titudes, competencies, and so forth) a person needs to be a spy 4. Describe how you will evaluate the effectiveness of your during the three-day procedure at Station S. and develop three tests and simulations that will help you iden- tify successful spies. The selection procedure will occur over selection system. a three-day period in a private facility (Station Sin Virginia)