The Impact of Assessment and Testing

Working with the three-step learning process, you already know the skill requirements for a talented IT project lead. You also know that your IT projects, when successful, result in high-quality product releases that add revenue to your operation—a direct link between the IT project lead’s skills and your revenue growth. You begin by assessing Mary’s knowledge. You know her competency levels. She scored well in business acumen, creativity, database management and change adaptation. But Mary scored low in people management—a must for someone who would need to lead an integral piece of the technology organization.

The assessment process built accuracy and relevancy into a clear set of expectations for this worker. Because she is lacking the right people-management skills, it is clear that she is not ready for the lead role she wants. Your honest communication with Mary will improve her positive support for her personal growth plan. Communicating truthfully and candidly with Mary about her learning outcomes will result in an increase in respect and trust for leadership. It is this kind of collaboration that can help you and Mary decide what management training she needs.

In this case, the training Mary needs is a formal mentoring program where she can gain practical experience in coaching other employees. She also needs to attend a seminar and actively learn about building team-collaboration skills and to take a course in employment law that includes how to make the right hiring and firing decisions. This personalized learning plan is targeted at the skills Mary needs to acquire. Regardless of format, the results of Mary’s assessment will determine the specific people-management training that you need to recommend. Once she takes advantage of this recommended training and her knowledge is measured, ideally her people-management skill level will have improved. Both you and she will then have the proof of productivity improvement to propel her into the IT project lead role where she will be able to exercise her newly developed skills to drive revenue growth.