Manufacturer of Do-It-Yourself Tools Finds Pre-Employment Tests "Worth Every Penny"

Ames True Temper

Headquarters: Camp Hill, PA

“It’s worth every penny.” – Wendy Becker, HR representative

The Need

For more than 200 years, Ames True Temper, a subsidiary of Griffon Corporation, has been manufacturing tools to help advance the careers of contractors and the interests of do-it-yourselfers nationwide. From rakes and cultivators, to pushers and shovels, the company has become the go-to source for around-the-home, muscle-powered tools.

The management team at Ames True Temper understands that maintaining its brand assurance of high quality products delivered with best-in customer service begins and ends with the employees in its ranks. That is why the company has for some time included candidate assessments in its hiring process.

In 2010, Ames True Temper management realized, however, the assessment process it employed was not as efficient as the company required. The provider it used at that time employed the pencil and paper method, which then had to be sent to an out-of-state psychologist for analysis. Ames True Temper needed a partner provider that could supply responsive, real-time candidate assessment solutions.

The Customized Solution

Management at Ames True Temper was referred to Success Performance Solutions, where they began working with Ira Wolfe, founder and CEO, and his staff. With a need to evaluate applicant personalities to determine fit within the Ames True Temper corporate culture, PeopleClues and Prevue assessments were the two tools identified to provide greatest accuracy.

“Using Prevue and PeopleClues allows us to send the test to candidates out of state and have the candidate spend less time on site,” says Wendy Becker, HR Representative for Ames True Temper. The technological capabilities provided in the completely on-line testing and analysis platform that Success Performance Solutions employs, also increases the effectiveness and efficiencies of the process for Ames True Temper—making it possible not only for candidate assessments to deliver important information, but to do so in a timely manner.

Prevue Hiring System—Available to companies of any size, this employee testing system allows Ames True Temper to screen and assess candidates for 20 work-related characteristics including General Abilities, Interests, and Personality. The Prevue online system automates job analysis and allows hiring managers to determine job suitability by comparing candidates to an ideal job benchmark. Each report also includes a list of recommended interview questions.

PeopleClues—This personality assessment uses the five-factor model to determine personal behaviors in candidates, to include: Open to experiences, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism (emotional stability).  With over 110 job and industry benchmarks, it is an affordable and predictable pre-employment test system for hourly, sales, and supervisory positions.

The Added Bonus

Becker says it’s the customer service received from the staff at Success Performance Solutions that makes the difference. “The customer Service is great,” she explains. “Lori and Allison are fantastic to work with and provide immediate responses.  Ira (Wolfe) also is always available to help read the assessments and explain them if we don’t understand.”

When asked what she might say to prospective clients about her experience working with Success Performance Solutions, Becker energetically says, “It’s worth every penny!”