TULSA, OK. July 29, 2011 — Poor customer service can be expensive; a recent study estimated it costs businesses more than $83 billion each year in lost revenue. Yet many of the jobs with the greatest customer contact — greeter, cashier, bank teller, call center operator and the like — have the least stringent hiring standards.
Hogan Assessment Systems‘ Research Division (HRD) finds the path to better entry-level hiring is personality assessment. HRD released the Advantage Report Outcome Highlights, a collection of case studies that prove that personality assessment improves hiring and, consequently, customer service in high-turnover positions.
The Hogan Advantage Report is an off-the-shelf solution designed to provide an efficient way to screen applicants into entry-level positions. The Hogan Advantage Report is based on components of the Hogan Personality Inventory (HPI), which is the industry standard for measuring “bright side” personality characteristics and predicting job performance for working adults. The report evaluates applicants along three competencies necessary for success: Dependability, which concerns following rules, accepting supervision and finishing assignments; Composure, which involves the degree to which a person seems calm, even-tempered, and good humored; and Customer Focus, which concerns providing good customer service.
The seven case studies in the Advantage Report Outcome Highlights demonstrate that individuals who score high on these three competencies are generally more successful in their jobs.
Report highlights include:
• Bank tellers who scored higher on Composure, Customer Focus, and Dependability received significantly higher supervisor ratings than those with low scores.
• Cashiers who scored high in Customer Focus were more likely to communicate well with customers and were more than twice as likely to be rated high performers.
• Long-haul truck drivers who scored high on the Dependability scale were two and a half times more likely to be rated as a high performer.
“The key to success in most entry-level positions is the ability to handle stress and pressure, maintain friendly interactions with customers, and follow through on tasks,” said Hogan Director of Research and Development Jeff Foster. “The Hogan Advantage Report is a fast, inexpensive way to identify these characteristics in job applicants.”
The full Advantage Report Outcomes Highlights and information about other Hogan products can be found at www.hoganassessments.com.
About Hogan
The international authority in personality assessment and consulting, Hogan Assessments has more than three decades of experience dramatically reducing turnover and increasing productivity by helping businesses hire the right people, develop key talent, and evaluate leadership potential.
Hogan’s portfolio of employee selection, development and leadership tools allow companies to better manage their most valuable assets — their people.
This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.