1) Within the workplace environment, there have been significant changes regarding the use of assessments to evaluate prospective and existing employees and their value to the organization. Assessment tools have experienced many changes throughout the years and require effective approaches that will secure and obtain the necessary feedback and guidance regarding employees’ performance and learning style, among other variables (Atreja, 2013). This information is critical to the development of programs which will encourage greater reflection and support for employees as needed without the need for a lengthy paper-based approach that is antiquated and may not provide value to the organization or its employees in the same manner as in the past when this was the only option that was available (Atreja, 2013). These factors are critical to workplace assessments because there are specific challenges that employers must meet and these tools may provide greater insight regarding how their employees might accomplish these goals and objectives in a manner that is consistent with the needs of the organization and its long-term perspectives.
With the continued expansion of computer-based models, it has become increasingly important for employees to have the option to perform these assessments online with greater security, convenience, and encryption. This strategy will enable employees to become more fully engaged in assessments that they might not otherwise value under different circumstances. These efforts also demonstrate the importance of increasing employee satisfaction and in supporting the organization by completing these assessments in a timely manner without complications or complaints. The advanced technologies that are available to complete assessments have become increasingly relevant in addressing the issue with greater convenience, satisfaction, and a lower risk of fraudulent information that could compromise the integrity of the results and an individual’s future employment if these results are not truthful for any reason.
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2) Computer adaptive testing (CAT) has become increasingly common in organizations as a form of workplace assessment, particularly during the stage known as pre-employment, and this reflects the importance of engaging employees with simplified testing procedures using technologies that enable organizations to make decisions regarding prospective employees (Kantrowitz, Dawson, & Fetzer, 2011). These options are also highly cost effective and facilitate a more efficient process that impacts the screening and selection of employees more quickly, using advanced algorithms behind the scenes in a manner that is streamlined yet sophisticated for the organization (Kantrowitz et al., 2011). These efforts are critical because they provide the desired level of information and support the selection of prospective employees who are fully qualified for these positions; in addition, they support widespread knowledge and learning that may be applied to large groups in a single setting that positively impact employee performance and related outcomes (Chang, 2015).
With the continued expansion of computer-based tools and technologies, assessment methods have become increasingly user friendly and have established a new precedent for testing in many organizations. In addition, these tools appear to be largely reliable in many ways because they do not provide any margin for cheating or dishonesty that could distort the final results (Zitny, Halama, Jelinek, & Kveton, 2012). From this perspective, it is important for employees to recognize the importance of these assessments and to utilize the technologies that are available as freely as possible. Furthermore, employers should utilize these tools appropriately to obtain information that will serve employees well and engage them in their work more effectively to achieve optimal performance in their roles and in meeting their responsibilities. These efforts provide opportunities for employees to perhaps learn more about themselves and their personalities and to utilize computers to improve their understanding of their own work ethic, core values, and learning styles, among other variables which impact the workplace environment in a variety of ways.
3)There are critical factors to consider with respect to improving the assessment process in the workplace, as this remains a challenging and often unpleasant task within any position. Therefore, it requires an understanding of the tools that are available to alleviate some of the challenges related to assessments and to better understand their purpose and value for the organization. In this context, it is also important to acknowledge the global impact of assessments and how they impact organizations with a global presence, as these tools may alleviate some of the confusion and burden that exists when there are distinct cultural differences among employees. Furthermore, employees must learn to identify the value of these tools and recognize that their full engagement is essential to the discovery of tools and resources that may have a positive impact on their own performance in different ways (Petrulaitiene & Jylha, 2015). It is expected that organizations must continue to focus their efforts on assessments that provide greater value to themselves and their employees, while also considering how these assessments impact decision-making and judgment within the workplace.
There are critical factors to consider in regards to the stability and longevity of workplace assessments because they likely have a limited shelf life in some industries. For instance, blue collar organizations might not find these assessments useful and may not utilize them on a consistent basis, while other types of employers may find tremendous value in these tools and seek opportunities to get to know their employees better. Regardless of the circumstances, assessments should be utilized as necessary to identify employee strengths, weaknesses, and learning styles that impact decision-making and provide opportunities for professional growth in a variety of settings.
- Atreja, G. (2013). Workplace based assessments: a complement to the quarter model. Indian Pediatrics, 50(3), 346-347.
- Chang, H. (2015). Psychometrics behind computerized adaptive testing. Psychometrika, 80(1), 1-
20. doi:10.1007/s11336-014-9401-5 - Kantrowitz, T. M., Dawson, C. R., & Fetzer, M. S. (2011). Computer adaptive testing (CAT): A faster, smarter, and more secure approach to pre-employment testing. Journal of Business and Psychology, 26(2), 227-232. doi:10.1007/s10869-011-9228-3
- Petrulaitiene, V., & Jylhä, T. (2015). The perceived value of workplace concepts for organisations. Journal of Corporate Real Estate, 17(4), 260-281
- Zitný, P., Halama, P., Jelínek, M., & Kveton, P. (2012). Validity of cognitive ability tests – comparison of computerized adaptive testing with paper and pencil and computer-based forms of administrations. Studia Psychologica, 54(3), 181-194