Understanding the Key Components for Use

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NCRC WorkKeys
Understanding the Key Components for Use
Rachael Jungblut Executive Director MINCRC
Advocates Grand Rapids Community College
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Rachael Jungblut Exec. Director MINCRC
Advocates rjungblu_at_grcc.edu 616-234-3623
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• The National Career Readiness Certificate
  addresses these needs
• Certifies the common workplace skills and
  trainability of students and job seekers
• Is a nationally-recognized, portable credential
• Is recognized by both education and business
• Provides a common measurement between individuals
  and specific jobs
• Has been adopted by over 20 states and growing
• http//www.act.org/certificate

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• No one questions the importance associated with
  employer adoption of the NCRC.

• Recognize that the NCRC exists in a traditional
  supply and demand market. It exists in Michigan
  High Schools, and in MIWorks!

• So the questions include how do we help
  employers engage how can the NCRC be used by
  employers and why should employers want to be
  engagedhow does the NCRC fit to their priorities?

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To answer questions of why and how, it is
helpful to consider the postsecondary talent
identification and development system (admissions
system).
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A strength for which higher education in the U.S.
has been lauded and applauded is its diversity
including colleges and universities that range in

• Size
• Philosophy
• Make-up of the student population
• Range of offers
• Areas of specialization
• Funding sources, annual budgets, endowments

Within this great diversification of offerings,
all of the two- and four-year colleges/universitie
s shared a common goal of admitting individuals
to their respective institutions with the skills
necessary to benefit from and contribute to the
institutions offerings Individuals who are
college ready.
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How does the admissions model work? Assessment
results are used in a compensatory model as one
of several criteria in making the admission
decision along with

• High school G.P.A.
• Rank in class
• Course taking pattern
• Recommendation
• Candidate essay

Results also inform course placement decisions.
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The colleges know from experience that ACT
research and local studies (if conducted)
document the predictability of student
performance based on ACT results. The
relationship between performance on the ACT
assessment and performance in college courses is
well documented.
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What are the outcomes that result from the
admissions model?

• Individuals pay 45 to take an assessment.
• Schools review and teach skills pertinent to
  performance on the ACT assessment.
• Parents lobby schools to prepare their
  son/daughter with the skills necessary to take
  the ACT assessment.
• Students seek ACT assessment preparation
  experiences.
• Third party organizations offer test preparation
  opportunities.
• Key publics are interested in regional/state
  performance on the ACT assessment as one
  indicator of school performance.
• Realtors use ACT results by school district to
  position property for sale.
• A set of common college readiness skills become
  the focus for a cross-section of stakeholders.

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College Admissions Analogy
The colleges speak to thousands of high schools
and millions of individuals via the ACT
The NCRC provides the same opportunity to
employers.
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The NCRC Can have the same Impact?

• Aggregate the Voice of the Employer
• Endorse the NCRC and its use within the employer
  community.
• Require the NCRC for hiring purposes.
• Advocate for expanded use of the NCRC through
  documenting successful practices.

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How does the college admissions model fit to the
employer use model?

• Employers aggregate their demand by requiring the
  NCRC from job applicants (for all or a number of
  their jobs).
• Individuals acquire the NCRC through the services
  of the workforce or educational development
  systems or independently.
• Employers use the NCRC as one of several criteria
  for hiring into their workforce (compensatory
  model). ACT research reports that individuals
  earning an NCRC are more likely to perform and/or
  learn in the workplace. Employer case studies
  support ACTs findings as well.
• Workforce development systems and schools focus
  their attention on preparing individuals with
  essential employability skills.

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What does this mean for the corporate community?
Potentially plenty!
Corporations have objectives not dissimilar to
those of colleges and universities. Within all
of the corporate diversity, corporationsas with
colleges and universitiesseek to admit (hire)
employees with the core essential skills
necessary to benefit from and contribute to the
work of the corporation. They seek to have
employees work ready just as postsecondary
institutions seek college ready individuals.
The lesson corporate America can learn from
higher education is the power of acting in common
to address a common needbetter job applicants.
The problem in the past was not having an easily
implemented common standard to which individuals
could be held. That has changed.
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• Skill Areas of The Career Readiness Certificates
• Reading for Information
• Applied Mathematics
• Locating Information
• Three Certificate levels
• Bronze Minimum of Level 3 in all Skill Areas
• Qualified for 30 of Jobs
• Silver Minimum of Level 4
• Qualified for 65 of Jobs
• Gold Minimum of Level 5
• Qualified for 85 of Jobs

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T H E S O L U T I O N
www.michigancrc.org
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WorkKeys is the measurement tool.

• WorkKeys quantifies skills in the following
  categories
• Applied Mathematics
• Applied Technology
• Business Writing
• Listening
• Locating Information
• Observation
• Reading for Information
• Teamwork
• Writing

Slide 16
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Job Profile  identifies the skills and skill
levels needed to be successful on the
job.Assessments  shows the current skill levels
of an individual.Training  helps individuals
and employers correct skill gaps.
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Qualified applicants

• Foundational skills (NCRC)
• Reading for Information, Applied Math,
  Locating Information
• Occupational skills
• Certificate degree license
• Experience
• Years of specific experience years of related
  experience
• Soft skills
• Performancebehavioral concerns
  Talentpersonality indicators Fitjob fit,
  interests and values
• Other
• Reference checks validation of job performance,
  experiences, responsibility and contributions
  drug screen negative history search

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Human Resource Policies, Employee Handbook and
Link to Employee Performance, Metrics
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Recommended use of the certificate

• Require the NCRC for all or a subset of jobs.
• Do not specify level of certificateuse
  performance to inform hiring decision.
• Use NCRC as one of several criteria for
  selection/hiring.

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Require a Specific NCRC

• Require the NCRC for all or a subset of jobs.
• Require a Specific Level of NCRC for all or a
  subset of jobs.
• Document your selection criteria with one of the
  following processes
• Occupational Reference, using ONET ACT
  Occupational Database, combined with your job
  description
• ACTs Estimator Product
• Use NCRC as one of several criteria for
  selection/hiring.
• For information on ACTs job analysis tools
  Estimator
• http//www.act.org/workkeys/overview/prod.htmla
  nalysis

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Require Specific Level Scores for Specific Tests
www.act.org/workkeys/profiles/occuprof
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Certificate Adoption and Use Model
Significant benefit to employer and employers
workforce performance with commensurate cost
Full Deployment of WorkKeys System
Focus on WorkKeys System
Pre-Selection Using Certificate Levels and
Assessment Results
Major benefit to employer with modest costs
Focus Shifting to WorkKeys System
Training/Development
Low cost to employer, no out-of-pocket expense.
Significant benefit to community and substantial
benefit to employer
National Career Readiness Certificate Adoption
Focus on Credential
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Projected benefits for employers
Employers have reported several benefits
associated with their use of the WorkKeys system.
These benefits are listed below

• A reduction in training time due to a more
  targeted overtime approach overtime turnover
  scrap expenditures.
• Improved quality of new hires.
• Increased productivity.
• Cash flow improvements.
• Improved efficiency of operational procedures.
• Documentation to meet ODHA requirements.
• Improved employee morale.
• Accelerated training given new hires readiness to
  learn.

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Projected benefits for employers

• Better fit of employee to work.
• Boost in quality of work.
• Increased job satisfaction skill levels
  participation in further education.
• Greater diversity in the employee pool.
• Improved ROI.

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Questions/Dialogue
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National Career Readiness Certificate
Partnerswww.michigancrc.org

• Rachael Jungblut, GRCC, 616-234-3623,
  rjungblu_at_grcc.edu
• Bill Guest, Metrics Reporting, 616-430-0828,
  bill.guest_at_metricsreporting.com
• ACT WorkKeys, www.act.org/workkeys
• Steve Anderson, 563.391.3742, steve.anderson_at_act.o
  rg
• KeyTrain, www.keytrain.com
• Brian Heerdt 616-234-3845 , Brian.Heerdt_at_michiganc
  rc.org

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Rachael Jungblut Exec. Director MINCRC
Advocates rjungblu_at_grcc.edu 616-234-3623