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Case Studies
DISTRIBUTION CENTER SELECTION SYSTEM
The Challenge
The nation’s largest distributor of office supplies was focusing on operational excellence in all
aspects of its business. Key to excellence was having the right people in its national network of
distribution centers. To ensure this, the organization wanted to add a testing phase to its
pre-employment screening process. The tests needed to focus on identifying those who could learn
the full range of distribution center jobs quickly and perform them efficiently, accurately and
with a consistent level of energy. Identifying individuals whose attendance would be exemplary
was also important.
The Response
Polaris Assessment Systems conducted telephone interviews with job experts from across the country
to define the requirements of the organization’s jobs. It then structured tests that contained the
personality, attitude/belief and basic ability components identified by the organization’s experts.
Figure 1 shows the Key Success Factors addressed by the testing system.
The tests were administered on a trial basis to a nationwide sample of over
200 incumbents from both “high-tech” and “low-tech” centers. Statistical analyses verified that
the tests predicted both overall performance and key facets of performance (e.g., attendance) at
statistically significant and meaningful levels. For example, Figures 2 through 4 show the increasing
proportion of Outstanding employees…and the decreasing proportion of Weak employees…among high
versus low test scorers.
The organization implemented an un-timed test that took most applicants about
30 minutes to complete. The test contained personality, attitude and belief, and workplace aptitude
components. PC-based software was created to score the tests and produce reports that supplied
interviewers with information about a candidate’s responses to the tests (e.g., problematic answers
to certain items, marginal scores on key test dimensions). This enabled the interviewers to probe
potentially troublesome areas in greater detail.
The Results
The organization was able to seamlessly integrate a testing phase into its existing pre-employment
screening system. Additionally, the organization’s interview process was enhanced by (a) reducing
the need to interview large numbers of applicants due to the test screen, and (b) the “pass through”
information supplied to interviewers. The result was a system that not only supported the selection
of excellent employees – it also exemplified the “operational excellence” the organization was building
into all of it processes.
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