Language assessments are a must for customer-facing roles because they ensure clear, consistent communication, reveal training needs, and boost customer satisfaction. With these standardized assessments, organizations gain a consistent basis for evaluating fluency when recruiting for customer-facing roles.
To any business, no matter the size, brand reputation shouldn’t be overlooked. And customer experience has become more important than ever in doing so.
A 2022 report by NICE says, “95% of consumers say customer service impacts their brand loyalty.” This shows how having good customer service and brand reputation are closely connected.
For HR and L&D professionals, one of the best ways to meet these expectations is by making sure that employees in customer-facing roles have the right language skills. It doesn’t matter where a customer is situated. They expect clear, professional, and helpful communication when interacting with a company.
But how can organizations ensure that their employees have the necessary skills to provide top service?
Let’s explore why language assessments are essential for customer-facing roles and in delivering quality service:
Ensure Consistent Customer Experiences Across Global Teams
When a company operates across multiple countries, providing a consistent customer experience can be challenging. Different teams may speak other languages. Others may have varying communication styles or interpret guidelines in their own ways.
Without a common standard for language proficiency, it’s hard to ensure customers get the same type of treatment or service.
This is where language assessments come in. Using these types of tests offers the following advantages for international teams:
- helps HR teams objectively measure employees’ speaking, writing, listening, and reading skills
- sets clear expectations and communication standards when hiring beyond borders
When aligned with trusted frameworks like the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), language assessments can serve as a trustworthy way to ensure consistency in the level of fluency required for any type of service. Overall, it makes it easier to ensure that everyone, from a call center agent in Manila to a sales representative in Paris, can communicate with customers effectively and professionally.
Identify Specific Language Skill Gaps to Create Targeted Training Plans
Even strong communicators can have areas where they need improvement. One employee may have excellent speaking skills but struggle with writing professional emails. Another might understand technical terms but may struggle to explain them to customers. Without the right tools, finding these gaps becomes more difficult.
Language assessments help by providing detailed insights into each employee’s strengths and weaknesses. Instead of guessing, HR and L&D teams can see exactly which language skills need development.
Moreover, employees feel more supported when they receive training that fits their needs. Offering clear, targeted learning paths is a way for a company to show they are invested in its people. This then boosts their motivation to stay and grow.
Boost Customer Satisfaction and Retention
Clear, professional communication isn’t just nice to have. It’s vital for customer satisfaction. When customers ask about a product or service, they want to feel listened to and get clear answers to their questions. This makes them more likely to have a positive view of the company.
But misunderstandings, awkward conversations, or confusing emails can negatively impact customer satisfaction. This can then lead to frustration, lost business, and a bad reputation, according to Joe Delmont-Ferrara, President of JDF Executive Communication.
Language assessments help businesses avoid these risks by ensuring employees can handle multilingual interactions. This allows them to cater to a wider, more diverse audience and build rapport with customers. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a support chat or call. Employees who communicate clearly and show care leave a lasting positive impression.
Investing in language assessments ultimately leads to happier customers and better business results.
Moving Forward: The Value of Language Assessment in Customer Service
Customer-facing employees are the voice of your company. Making sure they have the language skills needed to deliver excellent service is not optional. It’s essential. Overall, with the help of language assessments, organizations can ensure clear communication, reveal training needs among employees, and lead to improved customer satisfaction.
The result? It leads to better customer experiences, stronger customer loyalty, and a real competitive edge in today’s global marketplace.
For companies that want to stand out, using language assessments in customer-facing jobs is a step forward. When considering solutions, they may look for a reliable tool that comes with quality support. If you’re looking for a holistic approach, why not try goFLUENT’s Language Assessment?
goFLUENT’s solution combines adaptive Artificial Intelligence (AI) and human scoring to deliver a comprehensive picture of candidates’ abilities. With its wide range of ATS integrations, recruiters get a quick, streamlined means of assessing candidates, all in one platform.
To learn more about this solution, check out goFLUENT’s Language Assessment page for more information.
