Today's Trucking, July 1996

Pre-screening tests catch trouble early.

You're a fleet manager with a driver-related problem - whether it's high turnover, lousy attitudes, or generally sub-par performance - you might have been able to nip it in the bud during the hiring process.

That's when the potential for trouble is first evident. And that's when it's often missed.

The answer is effective pre-hire screening, which may be easier said than done. For many companies, it demands some kind of formal test in addition to good old intuition. Such a test can uncover personality traits and tendencies that just won't show up on an ordinary job application form or during a face-to-face interview.

One of the more innovative pre-hiring tests comes from Scheig Associates Inc. of Gig Harbor, Wash. The 40-minute, 20-page written test was devised by Dr. Richard Scheig specifically to reduce turnover among truck drivers. Rejecting the old way, namely the standard psychological and intelligence tests that build profiles based on a psychologist's perceptions of what makes a good employee, Scheig modeled his test on the traits of proven top drivers at several of the best US fleets. He first worked with them to design a thorough job analysis, then asked them questions about the job's specific nature and what separates them from other workers.

The prospective new hire is judged on his suitability to a particular job and measured against people already doing the job well. This removes much of the subjectivity that's part of the traditional hiring process while also making the test nondiscriminatory.

"Drivers who score well on our test will have the same driving, safety, and customer-relations characteristics as some of the top drivers in the US," says Scheig.

Does it work? A manager of a short-haul grocery distribution fleet saw his turnover drop to 27% while his competitors were up in the 150% range.

One of the Canadian fleets using the long-haul program is Concord Transportation of Concord, Ont. Since the fleet began using the test two years ago, safety director Ken Curl says both turnover and accidents are down by 19%.

Fleet Driver-trainer Doug Milne, who oversees all of Concord's driver pre-hire screening, road testing, and now drug testing for 600 drivers stretched across the continent, can't be everywhere. The Scheig test helps the company maintain a consistent hiring standard. "It's one of my main hiring tools," he says. "I'd be lost without it."

Milne allows that he was apprehensive at first, and early on he tried hiring a few people who had actually scored below the acceptable level on the test but who seemed worthy. He was wrong, the test was right. Those drivers, no longer with the company, had both attitude and performance deficiencies. Lesson learned.

Milne says one of the most important advantages of the test - though it would presumably apply to any test - is that it highlights literacy problems. The Scheig test is written in simple, straightforward language, and if a prospective driver can't understand it, he'll also have trouble with complicated waybills, Milne says.

Interest and Willingness Checklist

This first section identifies the applicant's experience and the basic job requirements to ensure there's a match in employee and company interests.

Forced Choice Checklist

Drivers choose character attributes that best describe themselves. Each answer is plausible, but one is better than the others. For example, the driver might have to choose between "Takes special precaution when packing or loading" or "Is willing to work cooperatively." Scheig says forced choice is one of the test's best measuring tools.

Critical Incident Checklist

A series of multiple-choice questions involving true-to-life, on-the-job experiences encountered by superior drivers. The best prospects go through this test from right-answer to right-answer, like connecting the dots, says Scheig.

Interestingly, Dr. Scheig says experience is not as important as some might think. Skills can be learned, for one thing, but truck driving is around 30% technical skill and 70% behavioral. And attitudes can't be learned.

Once complete, the tests are faxed toll-free back to Scheig Associates for grading, which takes less than an hour (usually less than half an hour, according to Concord's Milne). For information, call Scheig at 800/999-8582, E-mail cservice@scheig.com, or visit the company's site on the World Wide Web at http://www.scheig.com.