Do you use foreign languages tests during recruitment? Do you assess foreign language skills during the recruitment interview instead? Is it really worth investing in recruitment audits for your current employees? Definitely!
Periodic evaluations of employees, language training, creating an international team, bonuses for foreign language skills, working with foreign partners – these are just some of the situations when language audit is performed, assessing each of the employees’ language competences, checking language proficiency levels based on Common European Framework of reference.
Annual evaluation of an employee
Periodic evaluations of employees are usually carried out once a year – they not only allow the examination of the degree of achievement for the set goals, but can also positively influence the commitment and motivation of employees. This is a great opportunity to gain feedback, either from the employee or from the person representing the organization.
Is the annual evaluation based solely on a conversation?
Of course not! The superiors and the employees may be afraid of holding such conversations, and just view them as taking up too much time. It is therefore worth considering how to make such an evaluation more attractive. If you are going to address the same issues with every employee, it is worth collecting this information through a questionnaire, for example. It should not just minimize stress, but also to obtain thoughtful answers.
An employee evaluation can also be enriched with all kinds of tests, including language tests, allowing for a standardized evaluation of multiple employees. In the case of foreign languages proficiency test on the Focus platform, you can ask additional questions not available to our auditors, which allow you to gather additional information. This allows you to devote the conversation during the periodic evaluation of employees entirely to such issues as discussing further development.
Bonus for foreign language skills
In times of economic uncertainty and high employee retention, it is critical to recognize your most valuable team members. An interesting option for companies operating in an international environment is to give bonuses to employees that relate to their knowledge of a foreign language at a certain level. Of course, you might have to take their word for the level that they claim, as it can be extremely difficult to assess language proficiency on your own. Language audits can help here, as they allow you to check any language competency that is crucial for your company. An evaluation by an external teacher, experienced in such work, is certain to give you an accurate evaluation of the language proficiency level according to the CEFR scale.
Foreign languages courses
Language assessments are also recommended before and after a language training process. Why? A language audit before the start of the language training allows you to gain an in-depth examination of the current state of knowledge, making it much easier to tailor the course program to the needs of the trainees, and therefore achieve the desired goals. On the other hand, what benefit does a language audit organized after the course offer? It is first of all an effective way to measure the effectiveness of the learning. That feeling about how the course has allowed you to develop your language competence is, of course, very important, but it is also worthwhile checking the actual increase in knowledge. A post-course language audit allows you to evaluate the language school of your choice.
Building an international team
Are you planning to enter foreign markets, or perhaps you already operate in an international environment? English language skills are very often required in these kinds of situations. You can score additional points by communicating with your partners in their native language – this also allows you to avoid any misunderstandings and overcome barriers resulting from communicating in a language that is foreign to both parties. A language audit allows you to both select the best people for your team, as well as to assess the needs for further training of selected employees.
How to organize a language audit for employees?
Fill in the form or email us at contact@focusaudits.eu – our team will get in touch with you to prepare a tailored offer. You can also check out a demo version of our audits by filling in the simple form available here. If you want to buy just single audit, you can get it directly from our online shop.