Article: Blending the best of technology and experience

Technology

Blending the best of technology and experience

Organizations are not only embracing assessment and survey technologies, but are trying to leverage it to the fullest
Blending the best of technology and experience
 

Our experience tells us that processes instilled in an organization define what kind of technology solution is used there

 

The expectations that most companies have from assessment technologies is pretty simple:They want to automate and standardize their hiring and training processes wherever possible. A lot of the focus has been on hiring the best available talent and training them to become superstar performers in their trade.The good news is that companies are making the optimum use of surveys and assessments in all these areas (from identifying best hires to training them).

Assessment technologies have provided many tools to evaluate a candidate and give an overview of her/his personality so that one may have a fair idea about his skills against the role s/he is being considered for. Similarly, the need to have some actionable outputs from surveys has encouraged them to take the help of seasoned service providers who use relevant technology and processes to derive actionable outputs.

Assessments mostly are used as tools for selection, rejection and grading, however the use of technology enabled assessments have now made the benefits of assessments more worthy as the improved analytics from the technology platforms give users a great overview of test takers. The best analytics help understand the strength and development areas of the test takers, address fitment of a candidate to a particular role and also how soon a resource can become productive given the right sort of training and exposure. Because Assessment technologies are being used to evaluate a candidate’s knowledge, skill, aptitude and behavioral properties, the crux of all the above provides a fair overview of a person’s competence. It is competence that matters most in all aspects of organizational development.

Not only are service providers working towards delivering products and solutions that blend the best of assessment and technology, organizations too consistently give their feedback and ask service providers to modify technologies for better use. This has consistently improved the quality of services on offer.

The choice of platform or technology may differ from organization to organization. Different organizations have different needs even if they are from the same industry segment. While some might opt for a standard platform, others might choose a technology that’s more flexible and customizable.

Our experience tells us that processes instilled in an organization define what kind of technology solution is used there. Also, the fact that both recruitment and training are very process-oriented activities, adherence to a process helps deliver optimum results.

Some key drivers in the HR technology space have been HRMS, assessment, survey and training technologies. Though many service providers are likely to give similar solutions for assessments or surveys, in assessment space, every player has their own set of USPs. For instance, we at EXON Solutions specialize in end-to-end management of both assessment and survey processes. This includes technology, content, analytics and logistics management. Some of our counterparts provide standard assessments with industry benchmarks, standard assessment platform with ready content etc. The interesting part is that all of these solutions have their users and flag bearers.

Critical to invest in assessment and survey technologies when times are tough

When it comes to assessment technologies, probably the only deterrent in this sector is the funds or the lack of it. Though the industry is very nascent, we have weathered a couple of economic downturns in the last four to five years. The moment a recession hits, funds are withdrawn from HR as it is mostly seen as a support function. This has to change because in times of crisis, it is extremely critical that you hire, train and retain quality manpower; solutions such as assessment and survey technologies help you do that. So, when times are tough, it is essential to invest more in HR because it is only quality human capital that creates winning organizations.

Contrary to popular beliefs, cost is not much of a game changer in our space as much as it is in other industries. The HR technology space thrives on Return on Investment compared to cost and that is a boon for organizations such as us.

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Topics: Technology, #Trends

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