Questionmark and Cambridge Assessment launch new data literacy test

Making decisions based on relevant data can help businesses increase their profits by 6% and boost productivity by 5%.¹ But only 21% of global workers are confident that they understand how to use data properly.²

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“By ensuring team members understand how to use the wealth of data at their disposal, employers can increase efficiency and boost productivity. But if employees are not confident in using data, it can add to confusion and cause organizations to miss crucial opportunities. ”

Questionmark, the online assessment provider, has teamed up with Cambridge Assessment, the international education experts, to help employers measure and improve data literacy levels among the workforce.

Firms need data literate workers to be able to take advantage of the huge opportunities in the increasingly digital business world. McKinsey research shows that Covid-19 has forced companies to accelerate their plans to digitalize services and operations by three to four years.³ This means that more aspects of their business processes and customer interactions are tracked, creating more data which could help improve performance.

Organizations that use this information well are three times more likely to report improvement in decision making than those less reliant on data, according to research by Harvard Business Review.⁴

But despite the importance of being able to understand and make good decisions from data, just 21% of global employees are confident in their data literacy skills. Almost half (48%) of global employees frequently refer to a “gut feeling” rather than data when making decisions.⁵

The Questionmark Data Literacy by Cambridge Assessment test enables employers to measure data literacy skills across the workforce. The results indicate which team members can understand, apply, communicate with and evaluate data in their job role.

Lars Pedersen, CEO of Questionmark, said: “By ensuring team members understand how to use the wealth of data at their disposal, employers can increase efficiency and boost productivity. But if employees are not confident in using data, it can add to confusion and cause organizations to miss crucial opportunities.

“The Covid-19 crisis has forced organizations to speed up plans to deliver services digitally. As a result, many in the workforce have access to new data sources, which could lead to a world of opportunities. The new data literacy assessment will give employers confidence that the right decisions are being made with data and identify training needs for those that are struggling.”

Sally Brown, Assistant Director of Cambridge Assessment Network, added: “The need for data literacy skills has never been more needed than it is now. We are delighted to be partnering with Questionmark on this data literacy test as having employees that can derive meaningful insights from data and apply these insights to benefit the business is a great asset to have. This test will help to measure data literacy skills across the workforce and identify the necessary training needs.”

The assessment is aimed at anyone who might benefit from better understanding data. It covers:

• Understanding data and data visualizations
• Applying knowledge of data to understand its implications
• Evaluating the quality and appropriateness of data
• Communicating data appropriately and effectively

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