August 30, 2017 – In a new global study, hospitality human capital advisory firm AETHOS Consulting Group and its performance management service 20|20 AssessSM are evaluating the unique and specific combination of core competencies, characteristics and attitudes of the most successful non-management employees in hospitality. “To date, no one has cracked the psychometric code for attitude, or what we call the ‘Hospitality X-Factor,'” said AETHOS Consulting Group Managing Director Jim Houran, Ph.D, who oversees the firm’s performance management advisory and its suite of software, 20|20 AssessSM. AETHOS’ preliminary research suggests that employees with the “Hospitality X-Factor” are especially Conscientious, Hospitable, Adaptable and Trainable, or the CHAT model.
This study also uses leading-edge psychometric analyses in the development of new predictive algorithms based in AI (artificial intelligence), which will help organizations screen and select candidates more efficiently and effectively than is possible today.
AETHOS and 20|20 AssessSM are currently calibrating pilot questions and establishing norms with employees in the field – to develop a short, mobile test designed specifically for fast screening and selection of non-management applicants with the “Hospitality X Factor.” Interested corporate research partners can forward a special URL test link to their organization’s base of line-level employees and encourage them to complete a 15-minute questionnaire. Guest-facing and back-of-house employees are desired, as well as those spanning all performance levels.
“A next-gen assessment that makes valid, real-time recommendations for line-level positions in the hospitality industry would be a game-changer,” says Dr. John Bruce Tracey, Professor Employment Relations, Human Resources and Law, The Hotel School at Cornell University’s SC Johnson School of Business, co-collaborator of the study.
Adds AETHOS’ Dr. Houran. "This will be a one-of-a-kind and next gen solution that aims to solve one of the biggest issues plaguing the service-hospitality industry – a 70% turnover rate. Our findings will give critical information to employers at earlier stages of the hiring process, which can reduce the time-to-hire and avoid the financial costs of bad hires.”
Research partners will receive an advanced report of findings from the field that will help screen and select line-level team members more effectively, as well as a unique partnership opportunity to be among the first-adopters of the ’20|20xf’ tool.
Hospitality organizations interested in participating in the study should contact Dr. Jim Houran who serves as lead on this study, at jhouran@aethoscg.com.
"Dr. Jim" Houran, Ph.D., Managing Director of AETHOS Consulting Group, is a 25-year veteran in applied psychological research and a published expert on peak performance, online testing and interpersonal and organizational compatibility. He has written more than 150 articles, and his award-winning work has been profiled by a myriad of media outlets and programs, including the Discovery Channel, A&E, BBC, National Geographic, NBC's Today Show, USA Today, New Scientist and Psychology Today. He is adjunct faculty at the Laboratory for Statistics and Computation, ISLA – Instituto Politécnico de Gestão e Tecnologia (Lisbon, Portugal) and an editorial board member for the APA peer-reviewed journal Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research and Practice.
