A senior official of the Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) believes that the core reason for problems in the workplace, such as inefficiency and low productivity, stems from employers not hiring the right people in the first place and then not effectively developing them to their full potential.
Responding to comments attributed to a local businessman who lamented that Barbadian workers were “lazy” and “inefficient,” BCCI vice-president (finance) Peter Downes said that if the wrong person was hired for the job, there was sure to be problems later down the road.
Downes, who is the chief executive officer of Profiles Caribbean Inc., said that these problems would be greatly reduced if more businesses engaged in using psychometric assessments.
“Psychometric assessments seek to measure human behaviour, interests and thinking style, among other things. It is a useful tool for pre-screening potential employees and is ideal for matching people to jobs to ensure the right fit,” he said.
“There are several assessment tools available to help employers and existing employees improve their performance by critically examining strengths and development areas.”
Downes said he had watched the Barbados labour landscape evolve to one where it had the edge over its regional counterparts. “The Barbadian labour force is seen as well-educated and informed,”?he said. “But we have become a little too complacent in our outlook and this has hurt our competitiveness.”
Over the years, he added, the business community had been highly critical of the quality of graduates coming out to work, citing poor interview skills, lack of business etiquette and poor work ethic, among other things.
According to a statement from the BCCI, that organization and the Social Partnership in conjunction with Profiles Caribbean Inc. had developed the World of Work programme to help young people prepare for employment and create avenues for mentorship through attachments with various business houses. (PR/GE)
