Strategy and Tactics:
Five Challenges That Businesses and Agencies Can Address With Objective Skills Data

Recommended Reading:
The 2003 Buyer's Guide to Talent Management Systems, from ICG

 

Feature:
NASA Validates IT Security Readiness With Objective Skills Metrics

n NASA's sensitive information environment, IT security plays a large role in the daily operations of its systems administrators. These administrators, including 3,000 employees and contractors, work in a variety of systems environments across ten different operations centers in the U.S. For NASA, the ability to measure and validate the IT security skills of these professionals is essential.
      At a gathering in October 2002, decision-makers from across the agency explored new strategies for measuring and certifying security skills, identifying skills gaps, and supporting training programs. They also sought a way to develop information that would document agency progress in meeting the performance mandates of the President's Management Agenda.* To achieve these goals, NASA needed a reliable skills measurement system that would provide objective skills data across a large enterprise environment.
      NASA decision-makers considered a variety of alternatives. Unfortunately, most were biased by their ties to vendor services, or too inflexible to meet NASA's unique IT needs. After the group examined and rejected several options, Robert Solomon, a project leader in NASA's IT Security Awareness and Training Center, put forth a new suggestion--an online skills measurement solution, not tied to training services, available across the enterprise regardless of location. His recommendation gained interest, and later resulted in the successful implementation of a program uniquely suited to the agency's need for objectivity, flexibility, ease of administration and cost-effectiveness.

Online System Gives NASA Objective Skills Data
According to Solomon, an accurate assessment of skills would have to be based on objective data. In many skills development solutions, the assessment component is geared towards building the case for purchasing further services from the vendor. In others, a certification in a skill is nothing more than a certificate of completion from a training course. NASA's online solution is a product of Brainbench, an established enterprise skills measurement provider, and it works independently of training or consulting services.
      Under NASA's system, the test-taker can measure each critical skill through an online test enabled by Computer Adaptive Technology. This technology dynamically selects each question as the test progresses. Each question is selected based on the level of knowledge indicated by a test-taker's answer to previous questions. As a result, Solomon explains, the tests adapt to the boundaries of the test-taker's knowledge--a key feature for any organization that wants an accurate, unbiased snapshot of critical employee skills.

Flexible Solution Enables Administrators to Meet Unique Agency and Individual Needs
NASA tailored its skills measurement program to address the unique needs of its systems administrators, developing a customized test to assess critical IT security skills. Rather than create this test from scratch, the agency selected from an item bank of over 100,000 questions that make up the existing Brainbench ISO 9001-2000 certified assessments. Available in NASA's Brainbench system, these assessments included an online general IT security tests, as well as system-specific tests. Customization required much less development time than creating the test from scratch. The result was a challenging IT security assessment, relevant to the job functions of system administrators across the agency.
      Another feature of NASA's skills measurement program is a flexible structure that enables different individuals to assess skills that apply to their unique individual needs. The first component of that structure is the required Primary Certification, covering Internet security and basic systems environments, including Windows 2000, WindowsNT, Unix, Linux, and other operating systems. A Secondary Certification then allows users to take "elective" tests covering other specified operating system tests. Once certified, participants are given access to the entire Brainbench testing library.
      For test-takers, this structure provides the ability to certify essential IT security skills while providing the opportunity to validate additional skills for career development. For managers, these results help deliver a detailed picture of available skills across the agency. The flexible, modular nature of its online skills system now enables NASA to use a consistent approach to measuring security skills relating to every operating system. This approach eliminates the need to determine equivalency of different tests from different sources.

Online Delivery and Reporting System Reduces Administrative Burden
With 3,000 systems administrators in ten different centers nationwide, Solomon's department faced a significant challenge in administering its skills assessment program. To do so effectively, they required an assessment process that would not consume the resources of program managers or the available time of the test-takers.
      NASA's online solution addresses both concerns, accommodating the time and resource constraints of test-takers and program managers alike. Users can access the assessments at any time from any location. Results are made available immediately, to both the user and to the manager or other decision-makers.
      The immediate availability of assessments and test results is instrumental in keeping the costs of the program within budget. NASA's online skills measurement system minimizes the manpower investment needed for a successful initiative. According to Solomon, four people in his department are currently involved in running a program that will accommodate 3,000 people.

NASA's online skills measurement system
minimizes the manpower investment needed
for a successful initiative.

Continuing Program Helps NASA Address Executive Mandate for Critical Skills Validation
A consistent measurement platform, a consistent reporting system, and assessments validated through an ISO 9001-2000 certified development process--these are primary components of the NASA skills measurement solution. According to Solomon, they are key ingredients in the continuing success of NASA's program.
      The initiative may have begun as a way to demonstrate how the agency is following the President's Management Agenda, but during the course of implementation it is also providing much needed consistency for tracking skills improvement and focusing training programs. According to Solomon, the independence of the skills measurement system provides a valuable advantage in training, giving his organization the option of using any training supplier or leveraging in-house learning resources. It is also giving contractors the data they need to prove their ability to provide service to the agency. In many cases, contractors have approached NASA looking for information about adopting an online skills measurement system for their own organization.
      Like many agencies, NASA approached its skills measurement strategy looking for a way to show that its people had the capabilities to perform and succeed in their job functions. Today NASA's skills measurement system is delivering results. It is not only providing objective metrics to validate critical skills, but it is serving as a catalyst for continuous improvement among employees and contractors who are crucial to the agency's success.

* Published by the Office of Management and Budget in 2002, The President's Management Agenda is a comprehensive outline of strategic initiatives aimed at helping agencies achieve measurable improvement in all areas of operational performance. For more about the Agenda, see our feature article on the subject in Skills Measurement Report: Vol. 2, Issue 1: January 23, 2003

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About SMR
Skills Measurement Report explores the latest developments in measuring, managing, and improving skills across the knowledge-driven enterprise. Each month, SMR provides a variety of skills measurement insights, including interviews with thought leaders and practical advice for improving business results through objective skills measurement.

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Have comments or questions?
Contact us at editor@skillsmeasurement.com

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SMR is Produced by Brainbench
As a leading provider of enterprise
skills measurement solutions,
Brainbench provides individuals
and businesses with online assessment and certification of
more than 425 skills that drive business success today. Visit www.brainbench.com/business

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Strategy and Tactics:
Five Challenges That Businesses and Agencies Can Address With Objective Skills Data

or companies and government agencies, skills measurement solutions are gaining recognition as effective tools for developing objective skills data to address specific business needs. These needs may include such issues as performance improvement, recruiting enhancement, or simply the documentation of a skills inventory in response to an executive mandate.
     While a skills measurement strategy may deliver a positive impact on multiple facets of human capital management, the initiative usually begins in response to a single specific need. Below are five common reasons decision-makers initiate skills measurement strategies for their organizations, along with unique capabilities of online solutions that make them particularly adept at meeting those needs.

#1: Responding to Executive Mandates
In the federal arena, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is using its power as a controller of funding to drive agencies toward adoption of private sector best practices and solutions. Part of the emphasis of this push, outlined in the OMB publication of The President?s Management Agenda, includes e-government initiatives as well as a focus on strategic management of human capital. An online skills measurement system directly addresses both needs. It leverages e-government capabilities, and it provides objective data to identify and manage skills across the organization.
     The same push that drives federal agencies toward online skills measurement also applies to the private sector, particularly as companies implement initiatives to optimize their ability to perform better with fewer resources. (To learn more about The President?s Management Agenda, see our article in Skills Measurement Report, Vol. 2, Issue 1 January 23, 2003.)

#2: Addressing Specific Performance Issues
Skills drive performance across all aspects of business, from operations to management, sales and customer service. IT skills are particularly influential, as businesses seek ways to ensure that they?re maximizing returns on new technologies and the processes that go with them. An online skills measurement system enables decision-makers to quickly develop a snapshot of skill levels across an organization.
     Unlike pass-fail tests, online assessments provide a level of detail that reveals skill levels, rather than the mere presence of skills. As a result, administrators can immediately pinpoint where skills levels fall short within an organization and then implement the training and education effort needed to correct those skills gaps.
     One of the biggest advantages an online solution offers for correcting a skills gap is repeatability. The user can take a repeat assessment in the same subject and still experience the level of challenge needed to test his or her skill level. As a result, an organization can give employees a self-service ability to measure a skill, improve in a skill, and track that improvement with detailed results. Ultimately, the repeatability feature is crucial in both identifying and correcting skills gaps?a key driver of organizational performance.

#3: Documenting Organizational Transformation
When missions are redefined, the demand for employee skills is redefined as well. Realizing the full benefit of mergers, acquisitions and organizational restructuring efforts is impossible without a detailed knowledge of skills assets across the enterprise. How can a decision-maker ensure that decisions about organizational change are made at the optimum time and are based on objective data rather than educated guesswork? A skills measurement system provides an answer.
     The objective skills metrics delivered by an online measurement system provide an effective tool for assessing available skills against a consistent standard that is not limited by organizational boundaries. As a result, decision-makers can make apples-to-apples comparisons of skill levels across groups and teams, and document employee capabilities throughout the transformation process. For more about skills metrics and organizational transformation, click here to download a pdf report on the subject: Skills-Based Change Management.

#4: Improving Recruiting Success
In the recruiting cycle, the time from pre-screening to final hire is driven largely by the need to identify the right candidates from a large pool of applicants. An online skills measurement system provides a powerful tool for accelerating that process, particularly at the front-end, where the need to pre-screen candidates and validate skills is greatest. By identifying people with the right skills at the beginning of the process, an online skills measurement system can deliver a dramatic reduction in time-to-hire.
     Recently, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) utilized an online skills measurement system to validate applicant skills at a multi-agency online job fair. In cases where the recruiting process was aligned with the online format, the hiring cycle was reduced from several months to as little as three weeks. It is important to note that an online system also provides the benefit of clarifying the skills requirements for job openings. As a result, initial evidence from the OPM job fair indicated a better-than-expected proportion of qualified candidates applying through the process.

#5: Do More with Less (Identify Skills Across the Organization)
In today?s tight economy, managers are frequently asked to look inside the ranks of their employee populace to find the skills to address an internal need or to complete a particular engagement. A common complaint from managers is that ?we don?t know what we know.? In other words, companies may already have the skills they need to achieve their business objectives, but they have no objective means of finding out where they exist within the organization.
     An online skills measurement solution addresses this problem, enabling employees to measure their skills without the need for extensive scheduling or training. Detailed skills data indicates where skills exist across the organization and at what level those skills are available.
     In addition to consistent data, an online system also delivers the benefit of easy assessment across a wide range of skills. Rather than limit employees to taking ?assigned? assessments, companies are giving employees the option of taking ?elective? assessments, available in nearly every critical professional skill, ranging from IT, computer software, and office skills to management, language and communications, and industry knowledge. The skills data revealed through a broad assessment solution can prove crucial in identifying employee capabilities that might otherwise remain hidden to the organization.

Skills Metrics Deliver Benefits Beyond Single-Issue Goals
Whether an organization wants to measure skills for performance improvement, to pre-screen recruiting candidates, or meet any of major human capital management goal, gaining executive buy-in for implementation is crucial. Often, the best way to ensure successful buy-in is to build a case on a single objective, and expand that case with the additional benefits that online skills measurement provides. Once a program is implemented, organizations can scale the program as needed to meet a variety of key performance objectives.

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Feature:
NASA Validates IT Security Readiness With Objective Skills Metrics

Recommended Reading:
The 2003 Buyer's Guide to Talent Management Systems, from ICG

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Recommended Reading
The 2003 Buyer's Guide to Talent Management Systems, from ICG


The 2003 Buyer's Guide, published by Talent Market Group, Inc. and HR.com, is a consulting resource designed to ensure that decision-makers make the right investments and purchase decisions regarding their talent management solutions.
      Included in this publication is an informative section featuring best practices, RFP-building tools, and strategies for utilizing a systems approach to talent management. A second section provides extensive coverage of best-practice vendors with an emphasis on enterprise solutions. This report is not priced for the casual reader, but the return on knowledge is more than worth the purchase price when an enterprise talent management investment is at stake. For more info, visit www.hr.com.

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Feature:
NASA Validates IT Security Readiness With Objective Skills Metrics

Strategy and Tactics:
Five Challenges That Businesses and Agencies Can Address With Objective Skills Data