“In a small company, one bad hire can mean the difference between success or failure.”

BestWork DATA’s leadership team is headed by Chuck Russell, a leading authority on business applications for assessment technology for over twenty years. Author of Right Person – Right Job, Guess or Know, Chuck has pioneered a new understanding of the practical power of solid DATA to transform the human resources of a business in ways never before imagined.

The BestWork Data service tells you how people think, learn, and behave. This is accomplished by a 25 minute online experience that measures cognitive abilities and hard wired personality traits. The data from this is used to help companies make better hiring decisions, manage their employees, train their employees, and a host of other applications.

In addition to their B2B BestWork service, they also have two sister divisions. Jobthoughts provides career and job search information for the job seeker and Students & College is for the high school and college student giving them insights into college choices, majors, and how their strengths parlay into various jobs.

MO: How did you come up with the concept for BestWork Data?

Chuck: For 10 years, I was a successful management consultant and sales trainer using simple DISC tools and other surveys. In 1989, I was introduced to one of the first serious business instruments. The knowledge that people had hard wired strengths and abilities that did not change, with training or coaching, shattered all of my paradigms regarding hiring, training, and managing. It changed the very nature of my practice. Ultimately, it lead me to work with some of the top experts in that field to make this powerful data accessible and understandable to any business without the need for experts or special training.

MO: Why do you think that it’s so important for employers to understand how people think, learn, and behave when it comes to the hiring process?

Chuck: Bad hires cost thousands of dollars. They cause businesses to lose customers. They keep good ideas from succeeding. With data, that risk can be virtually eliminated for the cost of about a dollar. Hiring without data, is riskier than driving a car without insurance.

MO: Can you talk about the experience of being disruptive influence in the assessment industry where many where the majority of the products are based on old science and outdated methodology?

Chuck: There are over 80,000 occupational-related assessments being sold today. Fewer than a dozen of these are based on current psychological theories and use the most advanced test design. All of them, come out of a laser printer looking much the same. Few people know the difference. Even the sales person who sells them rarely know much about their competition. Lack of knowledge allows outdated overpriced assessment products to survive in a world that does not want two year old cell phones.

I created a special information site, www.aboutassessments.com, to educate businesses on the qualitative differences in the world of assessment.

MO: How have you been preparing for your national launch of our Students & College division?

Chuck: I hired a dynamic young women with a passion for helping students know their strengths. She has begun a series of blogs and is working with a web designer to put the finishing touches on the website. Once the ability to buy the Students & College product online is completed, she will launch a marketing campaign beginning with social media.

MO: What’s one marketing strategy that’s worked really well for you?

Chuck: Exhibiting at trade shows where we can identify thought leaders in key industries who understand the competitive advantage of disruptive innovation. It also provides us with a good base of interested parties who want to learn more about what we do.

MO: Do you have any tips or insights for a small company currently seeking candidates or considering expanding their team?

Chuck: Don’t hire without DATA. A large company with thousands of employees can make a 100 bad hires and it will have little effect on the enterprise. In a small company, one bad hire can mean the difference between success or failure. Small businesses have unique cultures and specific rolls that must be filled. The team must work closely together often, under stress. Data provides the information to ensure that this is possible.