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There is a constant struggle to maximize your time management and the seemingly ever elusive work-life balance. Every day, the average person is overwhelmed by the enormity of assignments and tasks they have to complete within a limited time. 

Assessments are used by organisations during the hiring process to measure an employee’s capability to take on a role or job position.

Assessment centers implement a variety of assessment methods like group discussions, competency-based tests, presentations, and others.

Using assessments is of more value to a recruiting organisation than the candidate; therefore, it is ideal for assessments to be the major part of the recruitment process.

Here are some of the benefits of hiring using assessment:

Detailed Insight: Assessments give a recruiter a detailed insight into the candidate’s ability, behaviour, skills, values and other relevant criteria for the job. This helps recruiters hire right by picking the candidate that ticks the necessary boxes rather than making vague decisions. You get to see how a candidate will handle a real-life situation instead of getting a verbal and premeditated answer.

Accuracy: Eliminate every form of bias, personal opinion or gut feeling in your recruitment process. The choice of candidate is not dependent on bias or based on the subjective opinions of the different interviewers involved in the hiring process.

‘Psychic’ Abilities: Not only does hiring with assessment provide the recruiter with immediate insight to the candidate’s existing performance, but it also helps the recruiter to predict the future job performance of a prospective employee. This prevents errors in the recruitment process and can save the organisation from making a huge mistake.

Cost-Effective: You save your organisation the cost of paying for unnecessary recruitment phases and errors by making use of the assessment process.

Fairness & Objectivity: Assessments ensure an organisation is fair in all its dealings; especially the hiring process. The spate of corruption should be prevented from seeping into the recruitment process from time-to-time. Assessments use a broad and rigorous array of exercises that makes certain that the hiring process is fair and merit-based. The most suitable candidate gets the job.

Employer brand: An organisation that makes use of assessments is building its employer brand because candidates get a first-hand experience of how painstaking and fair the organisation is in selecting its employees. The candidates’ impression of the organisation is very important as it promotes its reputation as a brand with integrity.

High Validity: The high validity of the assessments used in recruitment processes represent a foolproof method of hiring top talents. You are certain that the candidate(s) you eventually select is the best fit for the role.

Unique Experience: The transparency and thoroughness of assessment impressed the values and culture of the employer/recruiter on candidates. This can only be experienced through interaction between candidates and staff members.

These are most of the benefits of using assessments in the hiring process. It is very unwise to conduct hiring without assessment; I wouldn’t do that if I were you.

People are widely regarded as the most valuable assets in any workplace. An organisation is only as successful as the skills, competencies, and capabilities of its workforce. Given that this is true, it is, therefore, detrimental to leave the selection of what could make or mar the progress of your organisation to chance.

Selecting a candidate or promoting an employee indiscriminately is an omen that portends no good either in the short-term or long-term. The danger of this is perceptible in many cases of a failed organisation whose mission were put into jeopardy as a result of a wrong hire or incompetent executive.

According to a 2018 study of global recruitment trends, 5 techniques have emerged to replace the traditional way of selecting talents. They are;

•  Soft skills assessments
•  Job auditions
•  Meeting in casual settings
•  Virtual reality assessments
•  Video interviews

Underlying these techniques is the ability to identify the behaviours in an individual that align with the success profile of the role he/she is being considered for. People selection should, therefore, be a careful, deliberate and painstaking process that ensures only the very best fit in all ramifications make it into or are retained in your organisation.

The problem of hiring or promoting right is not just about the knowledge of the existence of the techniques, but it is in the dedication to the rigours and the processes that guarantee only the right talent is selected. Many organisations neither have the manpower nor the time and techniques required to meet the standards of the 21st-century assessment and hiring process.

But there’s good news! Workforce Selection can take the headache off you. With the competencies we have developed and deployed over a decade which gives us a clearer view of talent and capability, we have earned a reputation as the one-stop shop for end-to-end recruitment and assessment services that supports all phases of the talent acquisition lifecycle.

Clients who have engaged our services have given feedback that they have:

• Been more accurate in selecting the right candidates
• Drastically cut down the turnaround time in selecting the right candidates
• Justified their recruitment cost significantly
• Ultimately experienced better employee productivity

Through our array of recruitment and assessment solutions, we provide support which guarantees that you get the best talents available to work in your organisation.

Eliminate the rigours of finding the right candidates for your entry level role.
We have invested the right amount of time and resources in creating a highly filtered pool of well-screened and employment-ready Talents.

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In today’s market environment, organisations are faced with unprecedented challenges such as economic uncertainty, intense competition, rapidly changing consumer behaviour and at times, regulatory demands.

Despite the constantly shifting competitive landscape, organisations are continually juggling their core competencies with other business functions, thereby resulting in distractions and avoidable dissipation of energy and resources that could otherwise have been channeled to more productive ventures.

However, forward-looking organisations keen on boosting their competitive advantage are leveraging outsourcing as a strategic tool to increase productivity and optimise value. This helps to narrow the focus to the core business areas, set priorities more clearly and consequently, improve organisational efficiency and productivity.

Why You Should Outsource Your Business Processes

Improved Efficiency

Outsourcing your business process to a trusted outsourcing company leads to an increase in productivity. You will be able to tap into an existing resource base without needing to make huge investments to acquire these resources on your own. By doing this, you can optimise value and mitigate risk.

Reinforced Core Competencies

With the distractions of handling certain tasks taken off, you can strengthen your core competencies by channeling your energy and resources appropriately to your major business areas.

Faster Time to Market

The importance of releasing new products ahead of your competitors in a rapidly changing market environment cannot be overemphasised. The external collaboration you access by outsourcing will speed up your product development process, from development to launch.

Leverage Built-In Expertise

You no longer need to make a huge investment in recruitment and training. A trusted outsourcing partner will have a vast pool of highly skilled professionals in various business areas. With them, you can access expertise and capabilities without breaking the bank or compromising the quality you get.

Cost Savings on Investment in Infrastructure

Your outsourcing services provider bears the responsibility of your business processes and provides the resources required for implementation thereby helping you to eliminate the need to invest in infrastructure and technology. You can significantly lower your costs by outsourcing.

A Fresh Perspective to Your Business

When you work with a credible outsourcing vendor, you benefit from a fresh perspective. They take an unbiased look at your business and offer valuable insights that you may easily miss. This different angle can help you innovate.

Get the Workforce Group Advantage

With over 13 years of documented industry and practical experience, we are the leading provider of outsourcing services. We have over the years, built clientele across all major sectors of the economy using a unique approach that enables seamless completion of projects. We understand the business terrain and have consistently demonstrated the ability to deliver positive returns to our clients’ investment. Our partners trust us to enhance business performance and optimise shareholder value.

We are everywhere you want to be. Our operations span all the states in the country thereby ensuring promptness of service delivery. Our contingent workforce of over 7000 staff across different sectors lends credence to our reputation as the preferred outsourcing services provider in Nigeria.

Let’s Create Value for You

There is no better time to rethink your operating model than now. Whether it is your back office, procurement, customer service, human resources, and talent management or digital marketing, you can count on us to help transform your business. Outsourcing your business processes to Workforce Group will achieve sustainable growth for your organisation.

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E-learning training has become increasingly popular owing to its convenience, advanced learning methodology, learning at one’s own pace and quick access to materials.

These advantages, however, make it essential for individuals to possess time management skills, self-discipline, willpower, and strong motivation needed to complete their e-Learning courses.

As an online learner, get the best out of your e-learning training using the following tips:

Identify your goals & objectives: A good knowledge of your overall goals and objectives will not only lead you in the right direction for your e-Learning but also serve as a means of measuring the success of your efforts. To stay on track, always make sure to identify your goals and targets at the beginning of each session. Take note of the course requirements and review them thoroughly so as to stay in pace. Improve your effectiveness and performance by concentrating on the most difficult part first.

Devote your time: E-Learning has made studying easier because you can take your courses at your preferred pace and time. Consistent concentration and complete commitment in virtual classrooms are the major pluses. Maintain self-discipline and complete tasks within the specified amount of time by strictly obeying the learning practices. Procrastinating on tasks is a certain invitation to stress. Therefore, it is recommended that you manage your time accordingly to stay on track. Create a calendar system and plan a to-do list of all important dates and deadlines, this will help you manage your study accordingly.

Dedicated Study Space: Whether you study at home or at a coffee shop, ensure your surrounding is organised and peaceful. The study environment is a major concern while learning online, ensure it doesn’t distract your study routine. The place you choose must be with the adequate internet, no distraction and must be quiet. Research states that altering your workplace every time builds on efficient learning as you associate your learning with space around. Decorate your study space with inspirational quotes and pictures.

Self-Discipline: Self-discipline is the key factor in determining the output of a course. Before taking up the course, make sure to set up and stick to the limits, as this will eventually develop self-discipline. If you at anytime move out of the track, start afresh by taking a break for a few hours. Integrate some personal time with your regular study routine, if possible. This will help you work more effectively in renewing energy and imparting a clear mind.

Prepare your Resources: Doing a little preparation in advance ensures your class goes smoothly. Before you start with the course, make sure your computer and the necessary tools are available and function properly. Also, make sure you have reliable internet access. Ensure that you save your work repeatedly and backup regularly using cloud storage in order to be able to access your previous work from your smartphone or tablet, whenever the need arises. Furthermore, ensure you not only have a backup of your online course material and assignments but also you have saved your instructor’s or trainer’s contact information in your cell phone or in your email. Reliable internet access will also give you the opportunity to check in, stay current with your e-Learning course, and deal with sudden schedule changes.

Constant Contact with Trainer: Instructors are available to help you throughout the course. Never hesitate to ask for help from your online instructor whenever you have a problem. This way, you get an understanding of the overall effectiveness of the course and your instructor will be in a position to evaluate learner experience and make any further changes in his study plan.

Regular Revisions: Break the lessons into smaller concepts and concentrate on each part. Regular revisions and practices improve your memory and enhance your knowledge of the subject. Consider having one or more study partners; this will give you alternative views of difficult concepts and the motivation to achieve better results, and help in completing your online assignments more quickly by reviewing what you have learned. Share your study notes and habits with your virtual classmates and support each other throughout the online learning process.

Stay Motivated: Finally, don’t underestimate the effort needed to fully commit to your e-Learning course. Never forget the reason you are taking the course and come to terms with the fact that you will have productive and less productive days. Having healthy snacks nearby boosts your energy and keeps you motivated. You should reward yourself every time you complete a challenging task or course. Take breaks as often as possible so you do not get fed up or have a breakdown.

E-learning requires self-discipline, constant motivation, and the will power to successfully finish the course(s) and reap the benefits. Apply these tips judiciously and you will enjoy your learning experience and stay successful in your course.

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A success-driven manager must possess the ability to train others; it is a core skill that depicts leadership.

Naturally, managers are mentors and coaches to their subordinates who meet them to glean insights they have accumulated through their years of work experience, success stories, and even setbacks.

It is paramount to the growth of the organisation for managers to take on formal training, not just for their own sake, but to increase their impact as leaders within the organisation.

Turn your managers into skilled trainers in the following ways:

Instill Teaching Skills: Not everyone is born with the core skills for teaching. Training and workshops must be organised to instill managers’ knowledge and understanding of teaching skills such as adaptability, communication, imagination, mentoring patience, risk-taking, and teamwork. This can be done online or face-to-face by involving a higher trainer.

Let the Managers Experience First-Hand Training: Before putting an individual in a new system, it is advisable to let them have a first-hand experience so they can learn the ropes and have the required capabilities to fulfill expectations. Therefore, before turning a manager into a trainer, he should have gone through the process of being a trainee under a trainer; preferably a senior executive in the organisation. This will ensure that the manager encounters most, if not all of the sectors of training. It will also give him an insight into proven methods of training.

Build Mentor/Mentee Relationships: When an employee joins an organisation, he should be handed over to senior staff to begin a mentoring relationship. It is the obligation of the mentor to pass crucial knowledge about the organisation’s business and culture to the mentee; information based on experience, not research. This relationship will eventually develop into a partnership where the mentee can also impart knowledge to the mentor.

Encourage Learning and Development: Encouraging the culture of learning and development determines the success of an organisation. It cannot be achieved if the employees do not have the support of their managers/leaders. E-learning is the best solution to this as it can be done at your desk during work hours without abandoning the work.

Reward the best trainers: The best trainers are undoubtedly the best managers as they have better business results and they should be rewarded with key positions in the organisation. This will encourage all members of staff to work harder and enforce teaching/training as an important skill for prospective managers.

Using your leaders as teachers and turning your managers into trainers is beneficial to every member of the workforce and the organisation as a whole.

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Talent Assessments are used by employers to influence their hiring and retention decisions. They are used to evaluate the potential of prospective employees and the competencies of existing employees.

Employers use Talent Assessment to determine if a candidate is eligible for a job opening or occupy his current position.

Organisations make use of Talent Assessments for the following reasons:

Hiring Right: Talent Assessments are designed to assess the candidate’s knowledge, skills, personality, work style/ethics and if they meet the job requirements and organisational culture. The process also determines the candidate’s performance and retainability.

Clarity in Hiring Decisions: Using talent assessments create clarity and remove personal bias in hiring decisions. This overrules gut feelings, bias or personal power as the recruitment procedure is governed by objective analysis.

Effective Onboarding Process: The assessments are also used to increase new hire engagement through a more effective onboarding process. This increases productivity, turnaround time and performance.

Learning and Development: An organisation can link assessment data to development programmes, succession paths, variable compensation, and productivity output.

Manager Assistant: Talent Assessments also serves as an assistant to a manager; by providing a science-driven, data-focused roadmap to make informed employment decisions and performance improvements at all stages of employment.

In-house Talent Sourcing and Development: Assessing your employees regularly helps an organisation discover useful talent within and also encourages them to strive for development to drive success and profitability. Employees that have goals or learning opportunities are assets while those that do not have both are overhead costs.

Risk reduction: Using a competency-based approach during recruitment helps an organisation to reduce certain risks.

Employee Assessment: Talent assessment and management give a deep insight into the management into their employees’ abilities, career aspirations, development needs, dislikes, likes, strengths, and weaknesses. This helps to determine their motivation and other features that would be helpful to the growth of the organisation.

Cost-Effectiveness: Talent assessments help your organisation to save time and money as your people can focus on their time with candidates that meet with the required competencies for the job. Hiring a qualified candidate by first assessing him or her means lesser time and use of resources.

Customer Satisfaction: When employees go through talent assessments that are competency-based, they carry out their required tasks with more effectiveness. This naturally translates to high service levels which increases customer satisfaction.

Retention of Talent: Retaining top talent is important to the leadership and growth of an organisation. Organisations that do not work towards this face the risk of losing out to their competitors. It is advisable to focus on employee retention strategies and programmes that are based on quality people.

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There are key steps Learning Managers must incorporate to assure success. They are:

1. Create awareness for ROI in the organisation

For a successful implementation, it is important to create awareness and carry all stakeholders along, this forms part of the cultural change process.

2. Build ROI Capacity and Expertise within the organisation

 To ensure sustainability, it is important to build the internal capacity of the L&D team on ROI competence. There are 9 skill areas for building competence in implementing ROI and these are:

• Planning for calculation
• Collecting evaluation data
• Isolating the effects of training
• Converting data to monetary value
• Monitoring programme costs
• Data analysis and ROI calculation
• Implementing the ROI process
• Providing internal consulting on ROI
• Teaching others the ROI process

3. Allocate resources for ROI Measurement

Implementing ROI has to be deliberate and not accidental. It involves serious planning and dedication of resources. Typically, organisations allocate 3–5% of the training budget, as well as a significant amount of time, and implementation of ROI measurement.

4. Start with a pilot

The implementation of ROI is a delicate process, therefore, it is advisable to pick one learning programme e.g. a training course as a pilot to test the implementation methodology. This ensures the L&D team is not spread thin and no step is missed along the way.

5. Communicate ROI results to the entire organisation

Communicating the results is important, even if it were a negative ROI, to reinforce a paradigm shift in the organisation and lock buy-in. What is more important is that people are carried along and know the outcome of the process.

6. Flesh up plans for future training programmes with a view to calculating ROI

ROI implementation is a process improvement tool meant to improve the design of learning programmes with a focus on business outcomes. Upon successful implementation of the ROI methodology, the ROI process should be infused into the L&D Standard Operating Procedures (SOP); by so doing we will have better-designed programmes that will achieve better business results.

TAKE ACTION

Measuring ROI may very well be the lifeline many L&D departments need. The extent to which organisations are willing to fund learning and the regard in which it is held will depend on the extent to which L&D professionals can convincingly demonstrate that learning initiatives deliver on management’s expectations for improved performance.

At Workforce Group, we partner with leading organisations to develop the framework and tools for measuring ROI and we handhold them through the implementation process. Our unique approach enables our clients to build internal ROI competencies through co-creation and practical application of the framework.

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