If a job description says ‘bilingual,’ I want to know a little more. What will the person need to do in each language?
Answer customer questions on the phone? Read a technical document? Write an email explaining a delay? Those are different tasks. The word bilingual doesn't tell us how comfortable someone will be with each one.
Before choosing a language test, describe the work. It gives the assessment a purpose and makes the result easier to use.
Take a customer support role
Consider a position that involves answering calls in English and Spanish. The employee needs to understand the caller, ask follow-up questions, explain the next step, and check that the caller has the information they need.
Speaking and listening matter here. If the employee also sends written follow-up messages, writing belongs in the picture too. If they refer to product instructions while helping the customer, consider what they need to read and understand.
This is an example, not a universal test plan. The right combination depends on the actual responsibilities.
Separate language skills from other skills
An employee may speak Spanish well and still need training on your products. Someone who knows the product thoroughly may need help explaining it in Spanish.
A proficiency assessment provides information about language ability. It doesn't answer every question about job readiness, product knowledge, or customer service judgment. Those need their own consideration.
The same distinction applies to interpretation. Being bilingual doesn't by itself establish that someone is prepared to interpret a specialized or sensitive conversation.
Explain what the assessment is for
Tell candidates or employees which skills are being assessed and how the results will be used. If the purpose is class placement, say that. If the result will help determine readiness for particular duties, explain those duties.
Comparable roles should have a consistent process. Deciding what the job requires before seeing a person's result helps keep the conversation focused on the work.
Decide what you will do with the result
A result might help place someone in a class, identify an area for coaching, or inform a staffing decision alongside the other information you use. Plan that next step before ordering the assessment.
For training, keep the starting point so you can compare later progress. Give employees opportunities to practice the tasks that prompted the course, and look at whether they can use what they've learned in those situations.
Workplace Languages helps companies select and administer language proficiency testing. Send us a description of the role and the conversations or written tasks it involves. We can start there and work out which skills need to be assessed.
