Transcript Welcome to a Special Demonstration of CritiCall

For selecting the best
Dispatchers • Call-Takers • Telecommunicators
more than 600 public-safety agencies use
Pre-Employment Testing Software
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Dispatching has changed
dramatically over the years…your
employment tests should reflect
these changes!
Hiring the wrong
person can be very
expensive!
One Texas city
reported it cost
$88,000 for the
recruitment, testing,
selection, training,
and probationary
supervision of a
single dispatcher
Too many public-safety
agencies have learned the hard
way that interviews and written
tests are not sufficient to
determine whether someone
possesses the knowledge, skill,
and ability needed to become a
successful dispatcher
They should
have used
CritiCall to
see if he really
could do the
job
What is CritiCall?
• CritiCall is a nationally validated,
computerized, pre-employment selection
test designed to aid in the selection of
public-safety dispatchers and call-takers
• CritiCall is virtually self-administering and
self-scoring
• CritiCall is designed to address the federal
Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection
Procedure and the CALEA Standards for
Public Safety Communications Agencies
Commission on Accreditation for
Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc.
This is not meant to imply endorsement by these organizations
A comment from a satisfied CritiCall user…
“CritiCall testing has allowed us to test in areas that our
previous standardized testing didn't. It allows testing of
multi-tasking skills, data entry, and other vital tasks
related to hearing, understanding, and responding to
various tests in a computer environment. I believe we
have been able to save time by not hiring people who
do not have the skills to work in a computerized
environment. This testing and an improved pre-service
training regimen has improved our retention of new
hires.”
Sandra Simonds, Communications Manager,
York County Communications
We would be happy to provide references upon request!
CritiCall was created by the
Biddle Consulting Group (BCG)
• BCG is a Human Resource Consulting
company with over 30 years experience
assisting public safety agencies in
selecting their employees
• BCG has extensive experience in
computerized testing and product support
• BCG provides a wide range of Equal
Employment Opportunity services to clients
nationwide
CritiCall Helps You to Hire
Qualified Employees
• Scientific studies show that
computer-related multi-tasking
requires the ability to use a
computer as part of a subconscious,
automatic routine
– Fact: If workers have to focus on using the computer, they will
have extreme difficulty focusing on other required tasks!
– CritiCall automatically measures computer-related abilities,
along with many others
CritiCall Uses
Work Sample Testing
• Many of CritiCall’s test modules are a
miniature replica of the job
– These tests provide to the applicants a Realistic
Preview of the job
– The average validity of work-sample testing is
the highest of any kind of pre-employment
testing
– CritiCall is scientifically designed so the job
candidates need no prior dispatch experience
or special dispatcher training to succeed
during testing
CritiCall Testing Measures a
Wide Range of Abilities
•
•
•
•
•
Decision Making
Multi-Tasking
Data Entry
Using a computer
Listening and using the
information heard
• Using alphabetical lists
• Comparing and
contrasting data
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Prioritization
Memory recall
Spelling
Sentence Clarity
Reading Comprehension
Map Reading
Basic Math
Keying a microphone and
speaking clearly
USING LISTS
MAP READING
Screen shots
of some of
CritiCall’s
Tests
DATA ENTRY
DECISION MAKING &
MULTI-TASKING
READING
COMPREHENSION
MEMORY
MATH
SPELLING
CritiCall is Easy to Set Up
• You can use as many, or as few, of
CritiCall’s 23 test modules for your
pre-employment testing as you wish
• CritiCall contains a built-in Test
Creation Wizard that helps employers
choose the most appropriate tests to
use during testing for the job as it is
performed at their agency
Another comment from a satisfied CritiCall user…
“CritiCall has made the testing process comprehensive
and it can be tailored to the needs of the organization.”
Robert Farr, Communications Training Assistant
Phoenix Police Department, AZ
“Prior to using CritiCall, we had to run candidates
through three separate tests, which unreasonably
extended the testing process. Now our testing is done
quickly, efficiently, and with a more up-to-date process
which more closely simulates the day-to-day operations
of our Dispatch Center. It's like coming out of the Stone
Age!”
Robert Hansen, Lieutenant
Medford Police Department, OR
We would be happy to provide references upon request!
CritiCall is Easy to Use
• CritiCall is virtually self-administering
and self-scoring
– The job candidate sits at the computer and
the CritiCall program does the rest
– CritiCall automatically scores virtually
every aspect of the test
• Thousands of job candidates have
been tested by hundreds of agencies
with great success
Another comment from a satisfied CritiCall user…
“This has helped speed up the testing process. We went from
testing quarterly to now testing as soon as we have prequalified applicants. We have saved money and resources
and hired more qualified individuals in the process.”
Amy Smith, Human Resources
City of Jacksonville Beach, FL
“The program is user friendly on both administrator and the
applicant. Biddle [Consulting Group – the creator and sole
distributor of CritiCall] has been very accommodating when
needed.”
Sherrie Matthews, Training Coordinator
Indian River County Sheriff’s Office, FL
We would be happy to provide references upon request!
CritiCall Work Sample
Testing can …
• Reduce Adverse Impact: Worksample testing has been shown to
reduce adverse impact against
protected groups of employees in
some settings
• Lower Turnover: Persons selected
using work-sample testing frequently
stay on the job longer
How CritiCall Can Help
You Reduce Turnover
• Research indicates that 80% of newly
hired telecommunicators who leave
before finishing probation leave because
they had inadequate job-related
knowledge, skills and abilities
• CritiCall measures many of the
knowledge, skills, and abilities needed
to be a successful dispatcher or calltaker
prior to being hired!
A comment from a satisfied CritiCall user…
“In 2000, before we started using CritiCall, we
successfully trained and retained only 15% of our new
hires. In mid 2001 we started using CritiCall and our
retention rate rose to 54%. In 2002 we did even better,
and retained 86% of our new hires. And, believe it or not,
in 2003 we had a 100% retention rate. CritiCall was
definitely not the only change we made to our hiring
and training practices, but I consider it to be one of
the most integral parts. Thanks again for a great
product and feel free to call on me anytime!”
Susan Koch, Training Coordinator, Washington County 911, OR
A comment from a satisfied CritiCall user…
“[CritiCall] has dramatically reduced our
turnover rate since we started using it over
two years ago. Have not lost anyone to
training failure and our turnover was less
than half of what it was the prior years.”
Kathy Sukus, Operations Manager,
Rock County Communications Center, WI
We would be happy to provide references upon request!
The CritiCall Test is Based
on a
National Job Analysis
• CritiCall was originally developed and validated
using input from experienced dispatchers from
49 agencies in 12 states
• Since the initial validation study was performed,
we have collected validation information from
hundreds of dispatcher experts from more than
50 additional agencies from around the country
– State, County, City, Local, Regional, University
– Police, Fire, Ambulance, and Cross-Functional
Communication Centers
Testing that is Valid
for Your Agency
• CritiCall contains a Validation Wizard
feature, which you can use to
automatically conduct your own
content validity study
• The Validation Report automatically
produced by the CritiCall program
can be used as evidence of nondiscrimination in the event of civil
rights litigation
More than 600 Public Safety Agencies have adopted CritiCall
including over 25% of the nation’s
State Police/Highway Patrol Agencies
You Can Also Write Your own
Test Questions using
CritiCall
• CritiCall contains a tool that allows you to
create your own multiple-choice, true/false,
and fill-in-the-blanks test questions
– While we do not recommend that you write your own
questions for pre-employment testing, this feature is great
for developing questions to determine the effectiveness of
your training or for promotional testing!
• The custom tests you create can be
automatically administered and scored by
the CritiCall program
CritiCall Never
Becomes Outdated
CritiCall is constantly being
updated to meet the everchanging needs of the Public
Safety Communications
Community
Notice: CritiCall Version 4.0 measures five times the
multi-tasking of previous versions!
Outstanding
Service and Support
With every CritiCall system, for
the first full year you receive
 Complimentary software upgrades and
updates
 CritiCall User Group membership
 Includes access to the password-protected User’s
Group web pages with CritiCall training and
information 24 hours a day
 Unlimited toll-free telephone support
Note: Similar support after
the first year is available on a
subscription basis
Another comment from a satisfied CritiCall user…
“CritiCall covers each of these key areas for
us and is a very realistic simulation of our
dynamic environment, not to mention it
requires very little to no time to administer
and is very easy to implement. I just wanted
to let you know how pleased we are with
CritiCall. I would be happy to share the word
with others considering your product and you
are welcome to add me to your reference
list.”
Cindy Thomas, RESPONSE Services Center
Columbia, MD
We would be happy to provide references upon request!
In Summary, CritiCall…
• Uses a combination of work-sample and other
testing to measure computer-related and many
other knowledge, skills, and abilities that are
needed prior to the first day on the job as a
public-safety dispatcher or calltaker
• Is virtually self-administering and self-scoring
• Can lower turnover / save money
• Can decrease training & supervision time
• Is easily validated specifically for your agency
• Can be used to create your own tests
“For many years we have struggled with trying to find
a method for adequately measuring/determining
candidates' capabilities in all aspects of the job.
However, of all the things we have tried, we have
never found anything that comes close to CritiCall
as it relates to evaluating a candidate's multitasking abilities. Though there are clearly aspects of
the test battery that are geared specifically at multitasking, just about all of the individual tests we use
measure multi-tasking in some form or manner. By
requiring test users to validate the individual tests for
their agency, the overall instrument has increased
credibility and I am confident that if challenged, it
would hold up in court.”
Sgt. Steven R. Kowa, Ph.D., Commander
University of Maryland Department of Public Safety
Pre-Employment Testing Software
For more information call
800-999-0438
or email [email protected]
Bona-fide public safety agencies can obtain a
demonstration version of the CritiCall Pre-Employment
Testing Program for review