Competencies Defined - Part 2 of 2

In this second post, we look at how we define a competency architecture and all of its components.

Competency Architecture:
A competency architecture describes the common rules for defining competencies within an organization. It includes the guiding principles that describe how the profiles will be designed for the entire organization - e.g., the format for displaying the competency profile, content for the profile (behavioural / technical / professional competencies), core vs. unique competencies, etc.

The model shown below illustrates a basic competency architecture, starting from the vision, values and strategic business priorities of the organization. The various elements of this model are defined below:

Core Competencies:
The Core Competencies include very general/generic competencies that all employees must possess to enable the organization to achieve its mandate and vision (e.g., Teamwork or Client Focus or Achieving Excellence). These competencies describe, in behavioral terms, the key values of the organization and represent competencies that are organizational strengths or help the organization differentiate itself from its competitors.

Job Family Competencies:
Job Family competencies are those competencies that are common to a group of jobs. They often include General Job competencies that tend to be required in a number of Job Families (e.g., Partnering), as well as Job Specific competencies that apply to certain job families more than others (e.g., Project Management). These tend to be related more to knowledge or skill required for certain types of jobs (e.g., Accounting for jobs involving financial administration).

Technical / Professional Competencies:
The technical/professional competencies tend to be specific to roles or jobs within the Job Family, and include the specific skills and knowledge (know-how) to perform effectively (e.g. ability to use particular software; knowledge in particular professional areas such as finance, biochemistry; etc.). These competencies could be generic to a Job Family as a whole, or be specific to roles, levels or jobs within the family.

Leadership Competencies:
These are the key competencies for roles in an organization that involve managing, supervising or influencing the work of others in some way. Some organizations view "leadership" to be a part of every job of the organization in that employees are expected to contribute and offer new or better ways of working regardless of their level or role in the organization. Leadership is required in teams, project management, as well as at the managerial, executive and board levels.

To learn more about Competency-based Talent Management, download HRSG's free best practice guide on competency-based talent management to find out how to maximize the benefits of Competency-based Talent Management.

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HRSG is a leader in competency-based talent management. Contact us today to find out how we can help you.

Competencies Defined - Part 1 of 2

While competencies are not new to most organizations, the language used can often be confusing.  When embarking on a competency-initiative, it is important to understand what is meant by the various terms, and how all the pieces fit together.

Making sure everyone is speaking the same language will go a long way in increasing buy-in into the concept of using competencies, conveying the benefits of competency-based talent management, and more quickly ramping up adoption of the tools.

In this first post, we will define all the elements of a competency, making sure that you can easily describe its elements and how it is used within a competency profile. In the next post, we will define the competency architecture and its components.

Competencies:
We define competencies as the observable abilities, skills, knowledge, motivations or traits defined in terms of the behaviors needed for successful job performance.

Properly designed, competencies translate the strategic vision and goals for the organization into behaviors or actions employees must display for the organization to be successful. Competency-based Talent Management (CbTM) standardizes and integrates all HR activities based on competencies that support organizational goals.

Sample Competency: Client Focus

Competency Definition: 
The definition describes the competency and the essence of the behaviours contained within.

Proficiency Scale:
Proficiency Scales, or Levels, are used to define incremental degrees of proficiency for a given Competency. As you move up the proficiency scale from level 1 to level 5, the required behaviors become more complex, have more impact and are more strategic in nature.

If we look at an example of a sales department, Level 1 behaviors would be required for entry-level positions, such as a telemarketer or account development representative, and the Level 5 behaviors would be expected from a Vice-President of Sales who communicates strategically to achieve specific objectives.

Notion:
The notion of a proficiency scale summarizes the overall theme of the behaviors identified within that level of proficiency.

Behavioral Indicators: 
A Behavioral Indicator is a task statement that demonstrates the use of a competency at a specific level of proficiency. Behavioural Indicators must be S.M.A.R.T.

• Singular:  cover only one behavior.
• Measurable: can be objectively observed or measured.
• Achievable: can be accomplished by most employees capable of functioning at the fully effective level.
• Relevant: clearly related to the role/job/function and within scope of authority and authority of employees.
• Transparent: clear and understood by anyone who must use them.

Competency Profile / Model:
A competency profile or model is identifies the set of competencies required for a particular job or role as well as the levels of proficiency for each. Usually there are several competencies (5-10) for any given position.

The starting point for any competency application is a competency model / profile that is valid and constructed in a way that it can be easily used to support all intended HR goals. With valid, fair and unbiased competency profiles, management can recruit, select, train, develop and reward employees in a manner that is consistent with the strategic vision and objectives of the organization. Therefore, any investment an organization makes in competency profile development has benefits far beyond the usefulness of the results for employee development purposes.

To learn more about Competency-based Talent Management, download HRSG's free best practice guide on competency-based talent management to find out how to maximize the benefits of Competency-based Talent Management.

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HRSG is a leader in competency-based talent management. Contact us today to find out how we can help you.

Welcome Back to Competencies (Part 2 of 2)

In my last post, I discussed where competency-based talent management has come from, and the barriers that discouraged organizations from using them as a foundation for managing talent. 

What’s different this time around is that the world of competency-based talent management has rapidly changed from the mid-nineties and the issues of the past have been addressed by today’s vendors:

• Creating competency dictionaries from scratch is expensive and time consuming: Many detailed and validated competency dictionaries are available for purchase and/or adaptation by organizations.
• Competency profiling, especially in a large organization, is highly time-consuming as it requires significant support from HR employees and time for validation among many stakeholder: Competency profiling has become much more automated with computer-based profiling software and validation through video or teleconference. Pre-developed competency profiles can also be purchased off-the-shelf and adapted and validated for use in an organization.
• Defining core competencies and general competencies (soft skills) is fairly simple, however technical competencies are much harder to write and add little value, as they apply to few employees: During the past couple of decades, vendors have been developing competencies for clients in a variety of industries and many have developed specific technical competencies for jobs. Also, many industry associations have developed specific technical competency profiles that can be adapted by organizations.
• Implementing competency-based talent management as a manual process is time consuming, and it is hard to track and implement changes on a consistent basis as the paperwork/documents in all HR functions must be revised: Competency-based talent management software has completely changed how HR implements competencies. Changes to competency profiles are automatically applied to recruitment, performance management, career development and succession planning processes as they are all connected in one accessible computer system.

With all of these changes, there has been a transformation in the types of organizations seeking services in the area of competency-based talent management. Many of them already have some tools, such as competency dictionaries, and are simply looking for training and coaching to complete their implementation. Others are looking for software supports to revise their talent management processes to streamline implementation and bring their systems in to the 21st century.

Welcome back competency-based talent management!

To learn more about Competency-based Talent Management, download HRSG's free best practice guide on competency-based talent management to find out how to maximize the benefits of Competency-based Talent Management.

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HRSG is a leader in competency-based talent management. Contact us today to find out how we can help you.

Welcome Back to Competencies (Part 1 of 2)

When networking with folks at industry events or in meetings with new clients, I often hear the same story – “we have a competency dictionary but we haven’t really done anything with it”. Or, “we were using competencies but then they got away from us during implementation”. To understand this situation a bit more, let’s look at a brief history.

Interest in competency-based talent management surged in the 80’s and 90’s. Advancements in the area of behavioural psychology were brought over to the workplace and managers first became aware of the benefits of clearly defining the behaviours expected in their employees. Work in the area gained more steam as management gurus Pralahad and Hamel began publishing on the value of defining core competencies at an organizational level.

However, interest in implementing competencies began to wane in the late 90s and the first decade of the 21st century. Managers were faced with some major setbacks affecting the implementation of competency-based talent management:

• Creating competency dictionaries from scratch was expensive and time consuming
• Competency profiling, especially in a large organization, was highly time consuming as it required significant support from HR employees and time for validation among many stakeholders
• Defining core competencies and general competencies (soft skills) was fairly simple, however technical competencies were much harder to write and apply to few employees
• Implementing competency-based talent management as a manual process was time consuming, and it was hard to track and implement changes on a consistent basis as the paperwork/documents in all HR functions must be revised

As the surge begins to ebb, it hits yet another barrier – the tech boom. The labour economy switched from a buyer’s market for employees at the end of the last recession to a seller’s market as large organizations struggle to catch up with recruitment demands from job creation and poaching. The focus in HR became less about ensuring that employees had the required competencies to succeed and develop, to ensuring that employees stayed. It could be argued that outside of the government and non-profit sector many organizations were moving away from their competency initiatives.

The situation today is a very different story as the world is emerging at a turtle’s pace from recession. The focus is once again on employees; however, in these austere times, HR managers are faced with:

• the task of ensuring that they keep individuals with the right competencies and provide reasonable development paths;
• looming mass-retirement of the baby boom generation, especially in North America, and with this exodus, a massive loss in organizational knowledge and a dire need for adequate succession planning;
• the need to recruit, select and retain immigrants who have the competencies needed to ensure organizational success.

It is for all of these reasons that many organizations are returning to competency-based talent management.

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In the second and final blog post in this series, we will look at how vendors have made it easier for companies to adopt competency-based talent management, and how solutions are more strategic and business oriented. Sign up to our blog’s mailing list through the form on the right-hand side to receive the rest of the series in your inbox.

HRSG is a leader in competency-based talent management. Contact us today to find out how we can help you.

Performance Management in Summary (Part 10 of 10 of HRSG’s Guide to Performance Management through Competencies)

This is the first in a 10 part series that looks at:

1. What is Performance Management?
2. Linking Performance Management to Corporate Strategy
3. How to Design a Performance Management System - Step 1
4. How to Design a Performance Management System - Step 2
5. The Performance Cycle – How Competencies are Incorporated
6. Stage 1 – Planning for Success
7. Stage 2 – Managing & Feedback for Success
8. Stage 3 – Evaluating Performance
9. Multi-source Feedback
10. Performance Management in Summary

Performance management is about achieving results in a manner that is consistent with organizational expectations. Integrating competencies within the performance management process supports the provision of feedback to employees not only on “what” they have accomplished (i.e., performance goals), but also “how” the work was performed, using competencies for providing feedback. Assessing competencies as a part of performance management is an important means of assisting employees in understanding performance expectations and enhancing competencies.

Importance of how Performance Management is implemented
Regardless of how the system and forms are designed, the latest research indicates that how the Performance Management process is implemented is as important, if not more important than the defined form, process and the performance appraisal itself.

The issue is that performance management is often viewed to be a series of prescribed steps within formal administrative systems that are disconnected from the day-to-day activities, rather than a process for supporting performance effectiveness (e.g., communicating clear work expectations, setting short-term objectives and deadlines, and providing continual guidance). Although well-developed tools and systems can facilitate performance management, these alone do not yield effective performance management. Instead of making further changes to formal performance management systems, many organizations are now devoting more attention to improving supervisor / employee communication and working relationships (e.g., levels of trust). Hence, if performance management initiatives are to succeed, the focus needs to shift from the system itself to its use as a tool that guides individual and team development towards organizational goals.

Integrating Performance Management in Your Talent Management System
The results of the Performance Management can feed into a number of key talent management processes. In some organizations, the ratings feed into and support the determination of merit increases in pay. Incorporating competency assessments supports the analysis of strengths and gaps in employee competencies, thereby supporting the development and implementation of Individual Learning Plans.

The competency assessment can also support career development and succession planning by providing an assessment of how closely the employee matches the competency requirements of other jobs in the organization. By incorporating the competencies in the performance management process, the organization has the data and information to examine the supply of available talent to meet the current and future business needs of the organization (Strategic HR Planning). Finally, by analyzing the selection outcomes against later job performance, one can determine the efficacy (empirical validity) of the recruitment and selection process.

Best Practices for Effective Performance Management
In summary, best practice research indicates that to be effective Performance Management processes should include the following features:

• Links individual goals to the corporate and work unit business plans and goals;
• Focuses on results, behaviours (competencies) as well as process improvement;
• Regular reviews and updating of performance plans to address changing demands;
• Training for both managers and employees on how to effectively give and receive feedback, including providing feedback to employees who experience challenges in performing to the standards required in their jobs / roles;
• Training for managers on how to provide performance evaluations that are valid, fair and unbiased.

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HRSG is a leader in competency-based performance management solutions and training. Contact us today to find out how we can help you.

Multi-source/360-Degree Feedback (Part 9 of 10 of HRSG’s Guide to Performance Management through Competencies)

This is the first in a 10 part series that looks at:

1. What is Performance Management?
2. Linking Performance Management to Corporate Strategy
3. How to Design a Performance Management System - Step 1
4. How to Design a Performance Management System - Step 2
5. The Performance Cycle – How Competencies are Incorporated
6. Stage 1 – Planning for Success
7. Stage 2 – Managing & Feedback for Success
8. Stage 3 – Evaluating Performance
9. Multi-source Feedback
10. Performance Management in Summary

Multi-source/360-Degree Feedback Defined: “evaluations gathered about a target participant from two or more rating sources, including self, supervisor, peers, direct reports, internal customers, external customers, and vendors or suppliers.”

First introduced to support development, the underlying premise of multi-source, or multi-rater feedback is that individuals with different relationships with the target will have different perspectives on job performance. By combining different perspectives, it becomes possible to construct a more complete picture of the person’s strengths and development needs. Although controversial, more recently multi-source feedback is also being used also to support administrative decisions – e.g., promotion, bonuses, etc.

How are Competencies Integrated?

Most commonly:

• Behavioral indicators of the competencies form the basis for rating performance
• The scores are then combined to result in ratings of Competencies
• Reports provide detail to support development based on key competency strengths and areas for development
• Action plans / recommended development options are linked to the competencies

An example from a multi-source feedback report is shown below:

Key Questions and Best Practice
There has been extensive best practice research on multi-source feedback. There are a number of benefits, but there are also down sides to engaging in a multi-source process.

Benefits:

• Subordinates and others are often in good position to observe target behavior and provide valuable perspectives
• Multiple assessments increase reliability and validity
• Opens candid discussion – it is not just the supervisor providing feedback
• Increases informal and formal feedback
• Increases management learning
• Increases focus on customer service
• Encourages goal setting and skill development
• Focuses on important organization performance dimensions
• Changes corporate culture
• Improves behavior and effectiveness

Downside:

• Costly to develop and implement – money and time
• Feedback might not be truthful – too positive or too negative

However, the research indicates that it does work to improve job performance, especially for those with initially low levels of performance, because it:

• Signals certain performance is important to organization
• Enables the subject of the feedback to set specific goals
• Motivates change for managers with largest differences between feedback and performance standards
• Links key performance dimensions to organization's strategy

Use of Results
Multi-source feedback is most often used to support development, because it enhances self-awareness. Sometimes is used as part of the performance appraisal process, because it provides a perspective other than just the superior; however, when doing this, it should be remembered that ultimately it is up to the superior to manage employee performance, and therefore the final decision regarding the recommended final rating should lie with the superior.

Multi-source assessments are sometimes used in combination with other assessment methods as part of an assessment center process to make assignment or selection decisions for high-stakes jobs and for leadership development.

Organizational Readiness
Regardless of the end use of the results, best practice indicates that the organization and those participating in the process must be prepared for this type of performance feedback. Key questions include:

• Is there a culture of learning and changing?
• Do employees feel free to speak up without reprisal?
• Do managers view openness as essential to organizational success?
• Will managers use what they learn to make changes?
• Will managers discuss results with employees to show their input matters?

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In the final blog post in this series, we will summarize some key findings from the latest best practice research on competency-based performance management as well as discuss how competency-based performance integrates and supports the whole talent management process. Sign up to our blog’s mailing list through the form on the right-hand side to receive the rest of the series in your inbox.

HRSG is a leader in competency-based performance management solutions and training. Contact us today to find out how we can help you.