Ian Choy Human Resources Manager Certifications Offered Microsoft Office Specialist Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and Outlook   Employer EastPoint Property Management Services Limited Location Hong Kong

In his own words: "Productivity has been enhanced, the need for application support has been substantially reduced, and the quality of employee work has improved. They are able to find new ways to do the same job, thus reducing traditionally labor-intensive processes into tasks that can be done with a push of a button."

Hong Kong Property Management Company Increases Productivity and Employee Morale, Reduces Support Costs Thanks to Microsoft Office Specialist Certification
By making a certification investment in its employees, company builds a competent, capable workforce

In an effort to build a more skilled workforce, EastPoint Property Management Services Limited recently increased its investment in and commitment to employee development by offering Microsoft® Office Specialist certifications to employees. As more and more employees take advantage of the opportunity, the Hong Kong company has experienced considerable increases in employee productivity, loyalty, and ability to perform time-saving tasks using the Microsoft Office system of business productivity programs.

BACKGROUND
With over 20 years of experience in the property management business, EastPoint manages over 100 million square feet of property and cares for the homes and offices of approximately 10 percent of the population of Hong Kong. Running prestigious, high-class residential developments as well as commercial and industrial properties, government offices, housing estates, shopping centers, and education facilities, EastPoint has over 3,300 employees and is the largest independent property management company in the city.

Seeking to better develop the skills of its workforce, EastPoint recently implemented the Office Specialist certification program. “We hope to build a population of skilled workers within our organization,” said Ian Choy, Human Resources Manager at EastPoint Property Management Services Limited. “Certification is an investment we are making in our employees. Because of our commitment to workforce development, the workforce tends to be more stable.”

“We chose Office Specialist certification over other programs because our Information Technology (IT) infrastructure is based on Microsoft products,” Choy continued. “In addition, we feel that because Microsoft products are the most widely used software in the commercial world, it makes perfect sense from the point of view of our employees, as well as for the company, that Office Specialist is the preferred choice.”

PROCESS
To begin certifying its workforce, EastPoint first registered with Certiport to become a Certiport Center, an authorized testing facility for Office Specialist exams. EastPoint then hired a dedicated IT Trainer and a Training Assistant to run the testing center. “Economy of scale was a major consideration, in addition to flexibility,” said Choy, regarding the company’s decision to become a testing center. “With an increased number of certifications taking place, we realized becoming a certified testing center would allow certification to take place without constraint as to when the employee can take the accreditation test.”

EastPoint provides internal IT training based on the Office Specialist exam objectives, which are published by Microsoft. The syllabus for the training was developed by the IT Trainer. “We also provide practice tests for our employees to take one week before the Office Specialist exam,” Choy mentioned. “These assessments enable employees to familiarize themselves with the format of the exam.” Choy said the trainers compare employees' scores on the practice tests with the passing scores required of Office Specialist exams to determine if employees are ready to certify.”

CERTIFICATION
More than 50 EastPoint employees have earned Office Specialist credentials since the program began one year ago. “The majority have earned Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel certifications,” Choy said. The EastPoint testing center boasts an exam pass rate of 75 percent.

EastPoint does not require employees to earn Office Specialist certifications, but does encourage them to do so. In addition to providing thorough pre-certification training, EastPoint pays the costs of certification exams if employees reach certain benchmarks. “We encourage our employees to attain Office Specialist certification,” said Choy. “It is primarily important for employees who show potential in their computing skills, but is not limited by gender or job position. We hope certification can help identify and retain productive and efficient staff. Microsoft products are the most widely adopted software applications in our organization. It makes good sense to encourage certification of our employees.”

RESULT
EastPoint has experienced significant benefits from its commitment to Office Specialist certification. Productivity, employee morale, and loyalty have improved. Support costs and the time it takes employees to perform repeated tasks have declined.

“There are definite advantages in encouraging staff to attain Office Specialist certification,” Choy said. “Productivity has been enhanced, the need for application support has been substantially reduced, and the quality of employee work has improved. Our staff is able to perform repeated tasks within the programs more quickly, and their knowledge of the programs is enhanced. They are able to find new ways to do the same job, thus reducing traditionally labor-intensive processes into tasks that can be done with a push of a button.”

EastPoint employees have viewed the company’s investment in their skills, knowledge, and development very positively. “The training course signifies an investment in the employee,” Choy said. “It has helped to achieve better morale and loyalty in the organization. Employees are more effective in their work and, in general, are more confident.”

EastPoint is currently in the process of expanding its certification offerings into other applications in the Microsoft Office system of programs, including PowerPoint®, Access, and Outlook®. “We are also working to transform our in-house training modules into commercially available courses for other organizations. What was initially an internal training solution is now an enterprising opportunity,” Choy said. “The implementation of the Office Specialist program has increased the training demands on our department, but we welcome this higher demand. Office Specialist certification is lifting our employee standards to higher ground.”