When hiring new employees or managing existing ones, when you ask yourself "do they have what it takes?", what are you hoping to find?
A culture fit? It's beneficial. Applicable job experience/education? Absolutely. A great personality? Perhaps, but some aspects of a job can’t rely on disposition alone. What about the right skills? Skills aren’t just the words filling the last section of a resume in hopes of meeting an algorithm.
A combination (or lack of) skills can make or break an employee's success in a position.
Remember when you got your driver’s license? Imagine taking the driving test without having mastered a few basic driving skills. Being unable to park your car upon returning to the DMV would not only have been an embarrassment but a waste of everyone’s time.
Despite their inevitable existence, you don’t like bad drivers on the road, right? Similarly, why would you want employees that aren’t up to par? Assessing both prospective and current employee skills reaps many benefits. Why utilize skills testing?
Don't just go off of the job description alone, but really get into the details of what boxes need to be checked. An organized process now will prevent a headache later. Make your list, assess your employees and measure your results.
And if you didn't master the basic skills, then stay off the road. 😉