Company: LanguageLine Solutions, Monterey, CA
Company Description: LanguageLine Solutions created the Over the Phone Interpretation industry more than 30 years ago when our founders, a police officer and a Vietnam Veteran, witnessed first-hand the traumatic effect language and cultural barriers had on the Limited English Proficient communities they served. As the need for interpretation and translation services has grown and evolved so have we.
Nomination Category: New Product & Service Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Business-to-Business Services

Nomination Title: eLanguage Proficiency Test

Tell the story about this nominated product or service (up to 650 words). Describe its function, features, benefits, and performance to date.

I am writing to nominate the eLanguage Proficiency Test (eLPT) for the American Business Award’s New Product Entry. The eLPT is LanguageLine Solutions recently launched web-based test designed to easily assess the fluency and competency in bilingual and interpreter staff, as well as candidates for hire. The eLPT offers online delivery of LanguageLine Academy’s proven Language Proficiency Test, allowing for quicker, more convenient fluency testing of bilingual staff and job applicants without compromising the quality of the results.

Today, there are more than 25 million Limited English Proficient (LEP) people living in the U.S. - an 80 percent growth from 1990-2010. Hospitals, 911 operators, retail service centers, insurers and other entities are grappling with how best to ensure effective communication for this growing population in multiple languages. Thanks to the innovative eLPT, organizations can hire and utilize bilingual and interpreting staff with confidence and ease, mitigating risks of misunderstanding and costly mistakes.

The eLPT is available in 17 languages, including English. The eLPT was internally developed by experienced language professionals and externally validated by independent experts in language test design. The test follows an oral proficiency interview format in one language that tracks the candidate’s skills and strengths within a general conversational context. The test takes the candidate through progressively more challenging linguistic tasks to determine the level at which the candidate can speak the tested language. The eLPT is easily integrated into existing HR platforms or company intranets to provide seamless incorporation into the hiring process with easy access to results.

Here’s how it works:

• Staff and candidates register online and provide a call-back phone number
• They are immediately called to take the approximately 30-minute automated test
• They can register and test anytime, from anywhere with online access
• Tests are evaluated and rated by experienced professional raters
• Written results are delivered within 5 business days

LanguageLine Academy Raters are experienced language professionals, fluent in English and the target language. They are native speakers of their language and carefully chosen based on their educational degree and experience in language acquisition and testing. The Rater assesses the submitted test responses and provides an accurate appraisal of skill and ability. The candidate is then rated on a scale of 1-5, Novice to Educated Professional.

As the experienced industry leader, LanguageLine Academy has more than a decade of testing experience, and tests more than 5,000 bilinguals annually. We utilize our proprietary superior test design, administered by the most experienced testers, to determine if the level of linguist competency of bilingual staff is adequate for the interpretation situations they may be called on to assist with inside their organizations.

In bullet-list form, briefly summarize up to ten (10) of the chief features and benefits of the nominated product or service.

• Fast, flexible, convenient testing
• No waiting
• No limits to how many can test simultaneously
• Simple to access link
• Easy to use
• 24/7 online delivery
• Available in 17 languages
• Quality results within 5 business days
• Rated by a professional
• Integration with HR platforms and portals