Sanlam had been running standalone assessments via Questionmark™Perception™ for 10 years when it was decided to integrate Perception with the SAP Human Resources and Learning Management System. This combination would make it easier to document compliance-related activities. The integration has enabled Sanlam’s training team to record training interventions against the qualifications and learning profiles of learners and at the same time allow the team to give learners feedback within Perception at a detailed topic level. Not only does the integration allows access to Perception’s full range reporting features, it also gives facilitators and trainers access to the more comprehensive question types.

“We provide ‘real life’ assessments that allow learners the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills to practical application as if they were back at their work station, explains Julius. “This makes it much easier for them to perform well when they are live on the job.”

At any one time, about 4,000 people in Kenya, Botswana, South Africa and Namibia are taking surveys, quizzes or tests. On average 14,000 assessments are taken per month. A robust server handles these assessments smoothly and efficiently. The company has used a wide variety of delivery platforms, from an intranet to CDs for those training facilities without a network. Perception to Go has enabled offline delivery to some 2,000 individuals; the company is testing Questionmark to Go as a newer means of delivering assessment offline.

In addition to identifying knowledge gaps for employees and trainers, Perception reports help the training team convey the significance of employee survey results to business units. Frequent staff surveys help business units understand employee attitudes, opinions and needs.

One of the benefits of integrating Questionmark Perception with SAP HR is the ability to access the company’s Organizational Structure. Org structure level reports generated on SAP can determine specifically who completed the assessments; business unit heads can be informed of those individuals who have not completed the assessment as well as those deemed competent or not yet competent.

Perception’s Question Statistics Report reveals which questions received the most incorrect answers in bi-monthly product knowledge tests. This prompts trainers to include the most frequently missed questions on the next test. The Coaching Report helps trainers provide important feedback to employees about how best to focus their learning.

With Questionmark’s help, Sanlam has made a complete transition away from paper-based assessments. SAP has made possible the increased use of eLearning. The integration of the two solutions has helped the company reduce training costs while improving its results and how they are reported.

Online assessments have enabled us to administer more quizzes, tests and surveys while saving time and money,” remarks Julius. “People are able to stay on the job more, because they can use elearning resources and take assessments at the times most convenient for them.

“It’s been proven that during training the process, learning is facilitated more effectively when an employee who completes an assessment receives immediate feedback. We aim to focus more on formative assessments whereby we consistently assess employees’ knowledge levels. This is contrary to having employees take only summative assessments with longer time intervals between tests. Assessments therefore form part of the employees’ daily tasks to ensure quality of productivity and excellence in learning.”