Prima Employment Test Guide
The Prima Employment Test service consists of two separate parts. Part 1 is a test of job skills and aptitude. There are
several tests options based on job title and the questions are geared for the type of work required in an optometric
practice. Part 2 is a personality profile. Prima will send you the test links via email that will allow your applicants to take
the tests online. The email will come from eSkill, the test service that we partner with.
After pre-qualifying your job candidates, have each one sit at a workstation in your office and take both sections of the
test. Taking the tests in your office ensures that the applicant does not have any help from others. The total time
required varies but it is typically about 30 minutes for both tests.
For Part 1, choose the primary job title (see list below) for the position you have available. Part 2 is the Personality
Assessment and there is only one test. The Prima office will send you a test report with each candidate’s score and his
primary personality type. Supply a pad of paper and pencil for math calculations. The Front Desk/Receptionist,
Optometric Technician, and Office Manager have a typing (keyboarding) test as the final question; the candidate will be
asked to type a paragraph for accuracy and speed.
Tests Are Available For These Job Titles:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Optician (frame selection, sales, fitting measurements, lens design, dispensing, optical repairs).
Optometric technician (includes pretesting, contact lens assisting and scribing).
Front Desk/Receptionist
Office manager
More job titles are in progress
These tests ask questions on a wide variety of topics such as: basic math, customer service, medical office administration,
logical thinking, communication skills, computer knowledge and more.
Skill Tests Results
The test will be graded electronically and once the test is submitted, there is a pop-up screen that asks if you want to see
the test results. Please instruct the test taker not to click on the screen if you prefer they not see the test results. You may
view the scores from this screen, and a member of the Prima staff will send the scores to you in a separate email; they
check the site several times a day to assure you receive your test scores in a timely manner.
Should you want to see how a candidate answered a question, you may do so with the test score link that is emailed from
Prima. When you open the link, scroll to the bottom of the page and click the “Results by Question” button. This will take
you to a screen that lists the category for each test question with an icon of a magnifying glass on the far right column. Click
on the icon and you can read the question, see how the test taker answered the question, and the correct answer to the
question.
Keyboard Tests Results
Use the following guideline to evaluate the keyboarding skills:
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
Average Standard Gross WPM scores are used to evaluate typing skills. Typing text (alphanumeric) is measured as
words per minute (WPM) and is presented as an average with five keystrokes considered a word.
Average Standard Net WPM: Net WPM means the errors were deducted from the gross WPM.
o Low WPM is 20 or less.
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o An average WPM is 40.
o Fast WPM is 60 or above.
Average KPH: Entering data or numbers on a 10-character keypad is usually measured in keystrokes per hour
(KPH). An average KPH is 8,000.
Average KPM: KPM refers to keystrokes per minute; KPM is the KPH divided by 60.
Average Actual Gross WPM and Average Actual WPM are scores based on the actual length of the word rather than
using the five keystroke rule.
Personality Analysis
The personality report will show four personality types (Powerful, Peaceful, Perfect and Playful) and a percentage score will
be listed for each one. The highest percentage indicates the primary personality type and the next highest percentage
indicates the secondary type. A primary score of greater than 60% indicates a strong personality type.
Job/Personality Matching
Listed below is a description of each personality type and some ideas about which type is better suited for various
optometric job positions: Personality types are not exact or absolute. We all have a combination of multiple personality
traits and many people can suppress some of their tendencies based on what the situation calls for. You should consider
the personality types of your existing staff members as you determine the preferred personality of a new hire. Consider
how various personality types get along with each other as well the traits that you think are best for each job. You may
administer the Prima Employment Test to your existing staff if you wish to find out more about them, but consider that
some may feel apprehensive about this and it may not be worth upsetting anyone. You may already know each employee’s
personality anyway if you think about it.
Remember, this is only one tool in the hiring process and your overall assessment and instinct about a job candidate may
overrule these guidelines.
1. Perfect
 Good at everything except front desk because Perfects are not always very happy people.
 Good as office manager if they are trained to overcome these factors:
o Hard time making decisions; always wants more detail
o Paralysis of analysis
o Can often carry a grudge
 Good as optician, bookkeeper, insurance coordinator, pretesting, chairside, lab technician
2. Playful
 Good as receptionist. Could be acceptable as optician, pretesting, chairside.
 Not good as bookkeeper, insurance coordinator, lab technician
3. Powerful
 Great as office manager if you can train these factors:
o Need to give the appearance of caring about people because they care more about end results than
people’s feelings. They want achievement so it is OK if they have to confront someone to get the
job done.
o They expect to tell someone what to do and he will do it. This is not the real world. Must manage
the process and use systems to be sure things get done properly.
o Put in intermediate touch points. If need job by Thursday, touch base on Tuesday.
o Not always good at details.
 Good as optician, pretesting, chairside, lab technician
4. Peaceful
 Good as bookkeeper, insurance coordinator, chairside, pretester
 Not good as office manager
Ideal and Secondary Personality Preference Per Job Title
This is only a rough guide and many exceptions exist.
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Optician: 1) perfect, 2) powerful
Pretester: 1) perfect, 2) powerful
Chairside: 1) perfect, 2) powerful
Receptionist: 1) playful, 2) peaceful
Lab technician: 1) perfect, 2) powerful
Bookkeeper: 1) peaceful, 2) perfect
Insurance coordinator: 1) perfect, 2) peaceful
Office manager: 1) powerful, 2) perfect
Marketing specialist: 1) perfect, 2) playful
What Does Each Group want?
1. Perfect
 Everything done perfectly
 Order
 Sensitivity
2. Playful
 To have fun
 Attention
 Approval
3. Powerful
 Control
 Achievement
 Appreciation
4. Peaceful
 No conflict
 Respect
 Feeling of worth
Strengths and weaknesses of each personality type
Type
Perfect
Strengths
 Detail oriented
 Gets things done
 Great analysis
Playful


Fun to be around
The life of the party
Powerful

Takes control
Weaknesses
 Could have analysis
paralysis
 Believes they are right
even when wrong
 Super-sensitive
 Can hold a grudge
forever
 Does not always get
work done
 Procrastinates
 Does not care about

Peaceful
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
Achieves more in short
period of time
Usually right
Loyal
Easy to be around
Tends to please
Avoids conflict

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


other people’s feelings
Ignores rules
Not detail oriented
Achievement is not high
priority
Works on their own time
frame
Avoids conflict
Employment Testing Quick Start Steps!
When you are ready to started testing job applicants, send Lauren Styron an email at lstyron@primaeyegroup.com.
Send Terri:
1. The test(s) you want to give. Terri will send a web-based link for the test(s) you plan to give to job applicants.
2. You may use each test link multiple times; take a test yourself or have your staff take one if you like. We welcome
feedback!
When You Are Ready To Give The Test:
1. Click on the link, have the candidate enter their name and your email address. The office email address is
important. Test results are stored in the system, and the email address let’s the Prima staff know who to send the
test results to. If a personal email address is used, the Prima staff will not know what office the test scores should
be sent to.
2. Be sure to provide the person with a notepad and pencil for the math questions.
Call us at 800.668.0599 if you have any questions.
*Please follow all EEOC guidelines when testing employees, and should you need more information, please see the link
below.
http://www.uniformguidelines.com