Best Practices in Employee Assessment
1 Mar, 2005
By: Mark Selcow,Rhonda ProctorEmployee assessment is becoming a key driver of successful world-class contact centers, but how to achieve it is still topic of much debate.
In an effort to better understand employee assessment and some of is best practices, interviews were conducted with Courtenay Huff, Associate Partner in Accenture’s Human Performance and CRM practices, and Joe Sefcik, founder, President and CEO of Employment Technologies Corp.
Q1: To clarify, can you give us a working definition of how employee assessment is applied in contact centers?
CH: Employee assessments are a critical component of a high-performance contact center. In the assessment process, an employee’s capabilities are measured against a specific set of competencies. This can be accomplished through a combination of observation, demonstration and testing. [Assessments] are used in a number of different ways.
First, these programs are used to identify candidates for promotion. Second, assessments are used to help employees understand how they are performing in their current position and what skills they need to develop before they can increase their level of responsibility. Third, organizations often use employee assessment programs in the recruiting and interview process. Finally, they inform the coaching process, helping coaches and employees identify and work on priority development opportunities.
JS: Employee assessment is generally defined and applied in three ways—pre-hire/promotion assessment, knowledge/technical skills assessment and training/development needs assessment.
Q2: Is there such a thing as an “employee assessment initiative”?
CH: The employee assessment initiatives that I have been part of tend to be a piece of large strategic initiatives such as mergers and the introduction of a new product line. These types of changes can often trigger a shift in the employee assessment process or the need to create a new process. In the face of such change, assessments can contribute toward aligning individuals to organizational changes.
JS: Yes, contact centers frequently initiate actions to re-evaluate the procedures used to recruit, qualify and hire the best people. These actions are usually triggered by turnover rates and/or erosion in customer satisfaction. Successful contact centers do recognize the importance and profitability of having effective agents.
Q3: If assessments are so important, why don’t we hear much about them?
CH: We don’t often hear exclusively about assessments because they are generally supporting other initiatives. Just like in a theatre production, an audience member doesn’t know everything that goes on backstage in support of the actors and the production, but without the appropriate sound, lighting and support staff, the performance would not be successful. Assessments can often serve a similar supporting role. They don’t take center stage, but they play an important part in supporting transformation and the attainment of high performance.
JS: Historically, contact centers have been thought of in terms of the physical space configuration and the technology. Increases in contact center efficiency and productivity have been dramatic based on just those two aspects. However, as industries mature, competitive advantage becomes more dependent on skilled/effective people and less dependent on advances in technology. We are seeing that trend now in call centers.
Q4: What tools are necessary to support an employee assessment process?
CH: In many organizations, traditional survey tools are used to support employee assessment. However, in the contact center, survey tools need to be supplemented to get a complete view. Often these survey and assessment tools are supplemented by performance management and quality monitoring applications to support employee assessments in contact centers.
For daily use, performance management tools allow contact center professionals to track performance against goals. This supports everyone knowing their level of performance at any given time and enables individuals to intelligently modify behavior to achieve peak performance. As employees change behavior, the entire operation becomes more efficient and productive. Performance management applications provide the critical link between competency and historical performance—a vital point of view in assessment work. After all, the best predictor of future performance is past performance.
Quality monitoring tools typically guide coaches through observations to provide feedback to associates and standardize and improve processes. In addition, these tools can be used to build best practice libraries that benefit others. In assessment work, quality monitoring tools allow an assessment team to determine whether or not an employee is exhibiting the desired attributes and behaviors needed to support change or a promotion.
JS: We have seen best practices from our simulation tools that produce strong and consistent reductions in turnover ranging from 20 percent to 75 percent, with an average reduction of around 30 percent. Our clients also experience significant improvements in performance and customer satisfaction ratings. A service bureau in Virginia achieved a performance bonus from their client based on quality improvement. They had never achieved this distinction prior to implementing our simulation programs. A banking call center reduced the dropout rate from their initial two-week training program by 25 percent. These are just two examples of the benefits of simulation, and the results are consistent across our clients regardless of industry.
Q5: What should a sound employee assessment program include, and what best practices have you seen?
CH: Comprehensive employee assessments include three elements: First there’s a competency model serving as the foundation of the assessment. A competency model outlines the specific knowledge, skills and attributes necessary for a particular function.
In addition to assessing core competencies, comprehensive assessment programs measure individual style preferences and team performance. Style assessment tools can help individuals develop a deeper understanding of how their preferences either support them or hold them back in a given position. Team assessments provide valuable insight into group strengths and weaknesses and help teams capitalize on skill and style diversity.
JS: The most effective pre-hire assessments predict how well an applicant will actually perform on the job. For the most accurate prediction of job success, simulation-based assessment has proven to be superior to other testing methods. Because simulations replicate the job itself, they give applicants an opportunity to “test drive” the job. As a result, organizations receive a true picture of the applicant’s job performance before they hire.
Most high-caliber contact centers use simulation in their assessment process. Effective employee assessment programs often include a job fit pre-screener to determine who is willing to do the job, a validated simulation-based assessment to determine who has the skills to do the job, and a structured, behavioral interview to determine who has the experience and communication skills for the job.
Q6: Is there a call center profile that is best suited for an employee assessment program?
CH: Contact centers that are experiencing growth or high turnover are more likely to warrant a program. When a call center is experiencing significant growth, employees often have opportunities to increase their level of responsibility or take lateral job changes. In this situation, an assessment program can support both employees and management on the competencies and behaviors that need to be developed before an individual can be promoted into a new position.
JS: Any center that is operational and running fits the profile! Without an effective employee assessment process, organizations will experience significantly higher turnover and will place greater demands on trainers and supervisors. Customer service levels and sales will also suffer.
Q7: What surprises managers most about the impact of employee assessments?
CH: The enormous effect on moral and motivation. Many managers and employees view measurement tools as a hammer. But, if assessment tools are used properly—and are supported by the organization overall—they can be extremely motivational. By empowering employees with the knowledge and understanding of exactly what is necessary to succeed in their organization, individuals become more satisfied and productive.
JS: Many organizations don’t realize the expense and time-consuming effort required to overcome the effects of a poor employee assessment process. The mistake that concerns us the most is the misconception that all assessments are essentially equal. It can be shortsighted if “shorter and quicker” becomes the primary criterion in evaluating an assessment tool. The full impact of an assessment on morale, productivity, turnover, etc., must also be considered. Only then will organizations recognize that all selection tools are not created equal.
Q8: What would you recommend to a contact center that is implementing or changing an employee assessment program?
CH: Four things: First, management must explain why the employee assessment program is being implemented or changed. Managers need to think about how they can use this process, and the supporting technologies, to inspire and equip people to do a better job. Second, performance goals must be viewed as logical and attainable. Third, the employee assessment program must include feedback mechanisms. Regular feedback and coaching sessions provide the support and development necessary for individuals to achieve high performance. Finally, an individual’s strong performance must be recognized and celebrated. Through recognition and celebration, a culture is fostered motivating all to succeed.
JS: The convenience and proven accuracy of simulation-based assessments make them an obvious first choice for producing immediate results. From that foundation, organizations can then add supplemental tools to fine-tune their employee selection and development process.
