The digital revolution has touched organizations in every industry. Computer skills are now a “must have” instead of a “nice to have” for most jobs. About 20 years ago, 44% of U.S. jobs required medium-high digital skill levels. Fifteen years later, 70% of jobs required good computer proficiency. A 2023 National Skills Coalition study shows that 92% of jobs require at least basic computer proficiency.
Around 99% of businesses worldwide use Microsoft Office®. Demand is especially high for Microsoft Excel® skills because Excel is the most popular computer application for business and personal use. As a result, organizations use Excel proficiency tests for jobs where Excel skills are essential. They can instantly screen candidates, eliminate those who lack the required abilities and focus on top contenders.
How to Use Excel Proficiency Tests to Maximize Hiring ROI
Organizations need an industry-leading assessment solution to make hiring decisions quickly and efficiently. Many choose the eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM because of its track record. They know they can reduce hiring costs by about 70% and decrease time-to-hire by up to 60%. These are some best practices they follow to maximize their hiring return on investment (ROI) when hiring employees with Excel skills:
Customize Assessments: Not all businesses are structured in the same way. So, the same job at Company X and Company Y could have different requirements. This means it is highly likely that a one-size-fits-all Excel proficiency test is not the best solution. With the eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM, HR teams can create customized assessments to test proficiency in Excel. They can use pre-prepared skills tests as-is, add and delete questions, and designate difficulty levels. They can also build assessments with questions from multiple skills tests and add their own content.
Include Simulations: The best way to verify applicants can do a job is to watch them perform job-related tasks. The eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM offers MS Office®, Chat, Multitasking, and Digital Literacy Simulations. If an HR manager is hiring customer service representatives and needs to ensure they have good Excel abilities, they can build a skills test with questions from the Customer Service Skills Test and add questions from the Excel Simulation.
Streamline Initial Screening: Businesses may receive hundreds or thousands of responses to a single job posting. When applicants complete Excel proficiency tests, recruiters can sort the results by score and instantly identify the top qualifiers, which avoids wasting hours reviewing resumes while reducing hiring costs and decreasing time-to-hire.
Avoid Hiring Mistakes: Hiring mistakes are a business’s worst nightmare since they are expensive and “kill” productivity. According to LinkedIn and the US Department of Labor, a bad hire can cost thousands of dollars when you factor in recruiting costs, team disruption, possible loss of customer goodwill, and potential litigation. Getting hiring right the first time helps you avoid the expense that can result from bad hires.
Reduce Turnover: Turnover costs US businesses $1 trillion annually. This does not account for the proprietary knowledge and experience tenured staff possesses. When you have the right people on the bus, and they are sitting in the right seats, everything operates smoothly. Employees are happy and are likely to stay with your company instead of looking at new opportunities. Using assessments, like Excel proficiency tests, helps you improve the overall quality of hire, which helps reduce turnover.
How Employers Use Excel Proficiency Teststo Maximize Hiring ROI
Companies in every industry use assessments to simplify recruiting, reduce time-to-hire, and minimize turnover. These are examples of eSkill clients who have maximized hiring ROI using Excel proficiency tests:
Chemonics, a global environmental solutions consultant, wanted to streamline hiring, decrease time-to-hire and reduce turnover. Hiring for some positions often took months. Once the HR team began using assessments, like Excel proficiency tests, the company reduced turnover by 43% and decreased time-to-hire to 55 days.
Charger Logistics, a commercial transportation company based in Brampton, Ontario, reduced hiring costs by 30% and time-to-hire by 33%. It also increased employee retention to 95% when it started using assessments like Excel proficiency tests.
Regency Recruitment and Resources Limited, an HR solutions provider, was using a popular assessment solution. When it switched to the eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM, it used assessments like Excel proficiency tests to reduce recruiting costs by 50% while helping clients decrease time-to-hire.
SolvOne, an environmental compliance company, requires new hires to complete training. Attrition was high because many candidates could not pass the course. When it started using assessments like Excel proficiency tests, it improved the quality of hire and increased graduation rates by 26%.
TaskUs is a global business outsourcing company that provides digital and customer services that help companies protect and grow their brands. When it Implemented the eSkill Talent Assessment PlatformTM, TaskUs used assessments like Excel proficiency tests to improve the quality of hire and reduce turnover by 25%.
Get Started with Excel Proficiency Tests,
Assessments provide measurable data about candidates’ abilities. This helps hiring teams maximize hiring ROI because they can make hiring decisions based on hard data instead of a gut feel.
Do you want to learn how Excel proficiency tests can help you maximize hiring ROI throughout your organization? Contact us to request a demo.
