The 20|20 Skills Assessment: A Human Captial Management Success Story for Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group
Companies suffer huge costs when hiring the wrong people and maintaining mediocre performers and the less-than-optimal "fits" with its company culture. For example, studies have shown that even for low-level positions, a failed hire costs a company double the person's salary. At higher levels, the cost can be six times the salary. With this in mind, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group was looking in 2003 for the best practice, online solution for managing its human capital. However, Mandarin discovered that none of the hundreds of the assessments on the market today was customized to the hospitality-service industry or demonstrably met legal requirements by complying with professional testing standards. As a result, HVS worked with Mandarin Oriental to implement five multilingual versions of the 20|20 Skills assessment and conduct internal benchmarking across its global employee base. 20|20 Skills is an internet-based assessment tool specifically designed for the service industry. The system provides a state-of-the-art solution for assessing performance characteristics and company compatibility for line, middle, and senior level individuals.
HVS integrated the 20|20 Skills into Mandarin's online application process to facilitate the screening, selection, and training of new employees based on customized benchmarks. Since 2003, the 20|20 Skills assessment has significantly streamlined Mandarin's recruitment process, reduced employee turnover, and reliably identifies peak performers who are also most compatible with Mandarin's company culture.
InterContinental Hotel School Student Finds Personal and Professional Growth with the 20|20 Skills Assessment
Dr. Jim Houran's team at 20|20 Assessment™ strives to be the premier
resource for the industry when it comes to research and analytics. Dr. Houran's
team is also concerned with promoting personal and professional development.
Consistent with these goals, any student in the hospitality-service industry
may complete the 20|20 Skills assessment and receive a free report in preparation
for job interviews and as a tool for self-reflection. 20|20 Skills is proud
to be the first to make this standing offer in the industry.
Recently, a student based in Australia approached 20|20 Skills to take advantage of this offer. Mr. James Edmondson was seeking guidance on suitable for career opportunities and believed that the 20|20 Skills assessment would assist him in prospecting for positions.
James completed the assessment within one hour and instantly received a detailed report that provided feedback on the critical competencies for peak performance in the service-hospitality industry - Leadership, Creativity, Group Process, Sensitivity to Diversity, Service Orientation, Problem Solving, Ethical Awareness, Self-Efficacy, Loyalty and Sense of Humor.
James discovered that his major strengths included Leadership, Creativity and Self-Efficacy - a powerful combination of skill sets conducive for an innovative and highly successful functional leadership role within a support service to the hospitality-service industry. This guidance gave James what he seeking - an efficient and objective evaluation of his aptitudes and the foundation for a targeted job search in the industry. To aid his search for a compatible position, James has also joined HVS' global job board, Hospitality Career Network.
Peninsula Hotel of Beverly Hills Relies on 20|20 Skills to Identify Candidates with Strong Service-Orientation
- The Assignment and Results
Customers experience strong service-oriented employees as cooperative, responsive, personable, and considerate. High service-oriented employees have a strong 'Emotional IQ' and are effective at interacting with others. As a result, they are reliable ambassadors for representing their organizations to customers, for fulfilling consumer needs and expectations, and for producing a positive tone and mood with clients and even coworkers.
Keith Kefgen, President of HVS Executive Search, had worked with Lynn Kirsch, VP Human Resources on numerous search projects to find high-level personnel with strong service orientation. However, Peninsula Beverly Hills wanted to expand its scope and identify candidates at all employment levels with this crucial competency.
Keith Kefgen worked with Peninsula Beverly Hills to implement the 20|20 Skills system. Peninsula has continued its partnership with 20|20 Skills for several years based on the fact that the system consistently meets their need to find employees with strong service orientation in an automated and cost efficient manner.
