Have you ever worked with someone whose performance was not what you expected?  Today, job match assessments can tell you why that happened and whether it can be changed. The accuracy of higher-generation assessment instruments has created extraordinary possibilities for analyzing and understanding the performance of existing employees.

Almost all managers or supervisors know who their best and worst employees are. What they generally do not know is why people hired by the same methods, doing the same job, and managed by the same person perform so differently. For centuries, businesses and organizations have relied on observation, opinion, and emotion to solve their people problems. At the same time, system solutions were based on objective data, quantified data, and common frame of reference. Modern assessment instruments can provide this same level of data about people.

The concept of the three cornerstones of job performance for selecting new employees is also essential to understanding the performance of existing employees. In the case of successful current employees, job attitude is a more precise terminology than organization match. Successful current employees typically have a can-do attitude and believe in the value of the contribution of each employee. They are positive and enthusiastic and are happy with their work place. Many factors affect this attitude, such as organizational leadership, work environment, and personal issues. If job attitude is the only problem within an organization, motivational programs can work well toward improving performance. If, however, there is a more fundamental cause reducing performance, motivational programs can prove to be expensive and frustrating.

The second part of the puzzle of existing employees’ performance is skills match. Well-constructed training programs may have a tremendously positive effect on skills match. The difficulty arises when training is viewed without consideration of job match. Job match, as described earlier, is the degree to which the employee has the cognitive abilities, interests, and measurable personality traits that are necessary to perform the job
successfully. When job match is determined prior to training, the most effective training program is usually clear. The critical point is that unless job match is known, the best training is a hit-or-miss proposition: it can be frustrating for the employee and expensive for the organization.