1. Competency Modeling & Aligning
Competencies to Your
Organization’s Mission
Armando Justo
September, 2009
The opinions expressed in this
presentation are entirely those of the
author and should not be attributed in any
manner to his current work or employer.

2. Objectives
• Increase the understanding of
competency-based management
– The foundational models (functionalist,
behavioral, and constructivist)
– The use of competencies in the different
human resources processes
– Best practices and lessons learned in the
implementation of competencies
2

3. Contents
Competitiveness and employability
1
Theory of competencies
2
Competency modeling
3
Competency-based management
4
Change management planning
5
3

4. Competitiveness and employability
1
4

5. Competitiveness and employability….
…..the business case for competencies
Renovation
Clients Competition
Continuous Innovation
Improvement
Workforce Technology
Transformation
5

6. Turbulence in the business environment…
6

7. ...risks and opportunities
What are doing
leading Technology
organizations to
better adapt and
thrive?
Strategy
Processes People
7

8. “The ability to learn faster than your
competitors may be only sustainable
competitive advantage.”
Arie de Geus
8

9. Theory of competencies
2
9

10. Why competencies?
Competencies are the
characteristics that
individuals have and use
in appropriate,
consistent ways in order
to achieve desired
performance
10

11. Integrated performance-oriented capabilities…
…..which are conditional for carrying out tasks,
solving problems and more generally, effectively
functioning in a certain profession, organization,
position or role
Competencies
Clusters of Personal
Knowledge Traits and
Skills and
values
Abilities
11

12. Origin and evolution of competencies
Medieval
Societies
1954
Apprentices
developed John C. Flanagan
their skills utilized the critical
Incidents technique 1959
working with
a master. to examine what Robert White
people do; analyzing identified a
work processes and personality
documenting trait which
observed incidents he called
to allow inferences competence.
and predictions
about the individual
performing the act.
12

13. Origin and evolution of competencies…
Most of today’s organizations use competencies
to increase their productivity and competitive
advantages.
1973
McClelland
supported that 1994
a person’s self Gary Hammel and C.K. 2005
motivation, Prahalad introduced
results the term “core A study conducted
orientation, and competency” referring by Hewitt
self image have to organizational Associates
a bigger impact capabilities difficult to involving 373
on performance imitate that create companies
than his/her advantages with revealed that 73%
intelligence competitors. of these
level. organizations use
competencies
13

14. The elements of competencies
IE S
E TENC
Values C OMP
and Traits
Observable Observable
Clusters of
Knowledge
Skills and
Abilities
Behaviors
14

15. Behaviors
Clusters of
knowledge /
cognitive,
interactive, affective
and psychomotor
capabilities /
attitudes and values
15

16. Competency modeling
3
16

17. Foundational competency approaches
Behavioral Functional Constructivist
17

18. Behavioral competency approach
History:
• David McClelland and Richard
Boyatzis
• McBerth Associates
Characteristics:
• Focus on successful performance
• 19 generic characteristics of outstanding managers
• Historic models related to the past
The difference between average and superior performance is
to focus on what managers can do and how they do things. In
other words, how they behave rather than what skills or
knowledge they have.
18

19. Functionalist competency approach
History:
• Gilbert Jessup (Head of Curriculum Design NCVQ)
• Reforms in the national educational systems of the UK (1980s)
• National Council of Vocational Qualifications –NCVQ
• National Vocational Qualifications Frameworks –NVQ
• National Skills Standards Board –NSSB (USA)
Characteristics:
• Competency standards across all sectors of industry
• An NVQ comprises units of competence that can be separately
achieved and certified
• The NVQ framework covers five levels
• Focus on certification
• Detaching -- work roles -- units of competence --elements of
competence
19

20. Constructivist competency approach
History:
• Bertrand Schwartz
• Training program for unskilled workers in
depressed areas (1960)
• National Institute for Adult Education (Mission
locale d'insertion -1982)
Characteristics:
• On-the-job training and reorganization of work process
• Integral, lifelong education
• Equal importance: non-formal adult education -- school-
based formal education
• Combination technical and practical instruction
• Training -- trust -- responsibility
20

21. Behavioral Functional Constructivist
Industry The individual
Superior
sector and the
performers
standards environment
Key
High Collective
activities,
performance learning
Performance
behaviors needs
criteria
Correct a
Develop traits Certification problem /
associated
Standardization Improve a
with results
process
21

22. Combining the competency approaches
Foundational
Approaches
Competency Functionalist
Model
Behavioral
Constructivist
22

23. Functionalist Competency Approach
Unit of Performance
Competence 1.1 Indicator
Key Work Unit of Performance
Function # 1 Competence 1.2 Indicator
Unit of Performance
Competence 1.3 Indicator
Critical Work Key Work Unit of Performance
Function Function # 2 Competence 2.1 Indicator
Unit of Performance
Competence 3.1 Indicator
Key Work Unit of Performance
Function # 3 Competence 3.2 Indicator
Unit of Performance
Competence 3.3 Indicator
23

24. Behaviorist Competency Approach
Competency: Accountability
Level 1: Communicates requirements and
expectations
Level 2: Sets limits
Level 3: Demands high performance
Level 4: Confronts performance problems
Level 5: Creates a culture of responsibility
Source: Journal of
Healthcare Management
(Nov/2008)
24

25. Competency Model
“…..written description of the competencies
required for fully successful or exemplary
performance in a job category, work team,
department, division, or organization.”
David D. Dubois & William Rothwell, Competency-based Human Resource Management
How many competencies
should include the
competency model?
25

26. The ASTD WLP Competency Model
• Roles, areas of xamp
le
E
expertise, and
foundational
competencies.
• Foundation for
the ASTD
Certification.
Source: ASTD WLP
Competency Model
26

27. Functionalist Competency Model Ex amp
le
“Promoting Development, Saving the Planet”
Policy Making Capacity Building Renewal Technologies
Partnering with Countries
Climate Change
Environmental Governance
Country and Mitigation
Development Dialogue Knowledge
Needs Management
Outcome-based Sustainable
Renewal
Evaluation Development Energy
Finance
Project Project
Execution Design &
Supervision Development
Technical Excellence
Fiduciary Excellence
27

28. Functional Analysis Map E xamp
le
Main Main Competency Units Competency Elements
Purpose Functions
Thematic Knowledge*
Climate change
and Mitigation Policies and Strategies
Advise Dialogue
Country Sector Knowledge
government to Knowledge
address climate Management
change
Change
Promote Management
sustainable
development Analysis
in Countries and Design
Competency Elements
Manage explain in detail the
Project
Environmental Management requirements for each
Projects Competency Unit.
Outcome- based
Evaluation
Interpersonal and
Leadership
competencies
28

29. Three levels for each competency
le
E xamp
Level
Sector knowledge
Solid Team member for non-complex environmental projects; applies
technical concepts, methodologies and tools.
Sector knowledge and experience
Team leader/team member for complex environmental projects;
Advanced develops new tools and methodologies; advises and raises
awareness in key stakeholders; solves complex problems.
Recognized as an environmental expert in the region
Responsible for the positioning of the organization as a leader in
Expert climate change and mitigation issues in the country; sphere of
influence is large, complex, and global; team leader for complex
sustainable development projects; leads the formulation of sector
strategies, policies and methodologies; establishes best practices.
29

30. Climate Change and Mitigation Dialogue
Ability to facilitate policy dialogue and raise awareness for climate
change with key stakeholders in the country amp
le
Ex
Competency
Solid Advanced Expert
Elements
Thematic • Applies • Provides solutions • Leads sustainable
Knowledge thematic based on thorough development
knowledge. experience. efforts. Conducts
Ability to Keeps current on Demonstrates the policy dialogue on
perform technical capacity to establish priority topics at the
environmental advances within constructive policy highest country
analysis and the climate dialogue with key levels. Identifies
propose actions change sector. stakeholders. Offers innovative actions
in line with Disseminates practical and effective that respond to
country experiences, solutions to problems. country needs.
development lessons learned Involves key
needs and best constituencies in the
practices. analysis of sector-
related topics.
Develops new tools.

31. Competency modeling: Key insights
Get a mandate
• Develop a solid business case (competitiveness and productivity)
• Align with career development (employability and transparency)
Obtain top level support
• Obtain visible support from key sponsors
Align the competency model with the business
• Map the competency model with the company’s vision, priorities and key
processes.
Develop change advocates
• Involve people with strong skills and good reputation
Make the competency model simple and thorough
• Different layers to allow simplicity while making the model robust enough
• Start with the HR application in mind
Imaging a supervisor using the model to provide feedback:
– Is the model connected to the business strategy?
– Are behaviors observable to clarify desired level of performance?
31

32. Competency-based management
4
32

33. Integration of competencies
Competency
Model Recruitment /
Performance
Selection / On
Management
boarding
Competency-
Talent based Compensation
Planning Management
Mobility, Career
Development, Learning and
Promotion Development
33

34. Competency-based mgt: a comparison
Traditional HR Competency-based
Management Management
Fundamental • Work functions: • Competencies:
base Fulfill work Superior
requirements performance and
productivity
Human • Quantitative • Quantitative and
Resources (Headcount) Qualitative (Headcount
Planning and Competencies)
Recruitment • Education and • Proficiency in work
and Selection Experience functions /
competencies
34

35. Competency-based mgt: a comparison…
Traditional HR Competency-based
Management Management
Performance • Subjective criteria • Behaviors /
performance criteria
Compensation • Equal for same job / • Differentiation based
level on performance
• Requirements • Business needs
Training (Union / supervisors / (performance gaps)
employees)
Development • Based on seniority / • Directed / lateral
vertical and vertical
35

36. Competency-based human resource management
Top trends in leadership competencies
Top 20 Other
Characteristics
Companies Companies
Companies with competencies 100% 73%
…succession planning 100% 73%
….performance management 95% 69%
…development 90% 65%
….long-term incentives 65% 23%
…base salaries 60% 30%
….annual incentives 60% 31%
Source: Corporate Leadership Council. (2006);
“Transitioning to a Competency-based Workforce” 36

37. Competencies and career development
Useful framework for career development
37

38. Career Paths and Progressions
Exa mple
Project Path
Management
V:
Management
V: Project V: Technical
Manager Manager
IV: Senior
III: Specialist Horizontal and
vertical learning
II: Analyst and growth
I: Entry
Technical 38

39. Selection based on competencies
les
E xamp
• Online evaluations +200
• Case studies 50-60
• Reference checks
8-12
• Interviews 3-4
• Individual interviews
(behavioral interviewing)
• Panel interviews
39

40. Competency inventory: analysis of gaps
Competencies
Exa mple
Competency 3
Competency 4
Competency 6
Competency 2
Competency 5
Competency 1
Average
Employees
Employee 1 8 6 3 2 8 6 5.5
Employee 2 10 8 9 9 5 8.2
Employee 3 4 6 3 4.3
Employee 4 4 5 4 4 4 5 4.3
Average 7.3 5.8 4.3 5.0 7.0 4.8 5.7
Standard Deviation 3.1 1.7 1.5 3.6 2.6 1.3
Basic Level (1,2,3,4)
Advanced Level (5,6,7)
Expert Level (8,9,10) 40

41. Competency Gaps
Average competency levels
le
Competency 12 Ex amp
Competency 11
Competency 1
6.18
Competency 10 5.06
Competency 2
4.9 6.26
4.92
Competency 9 5.41 Competency 3
4.84
5.67 5.58
Competency 8 5.32 5.05 Competency 4
5.99
Competency 7 Competency 5
Competency 6
41

42. Competency Gaps Vs. Business Needs
How would you prioritize competency gaps?
High 4.0
Exa mple
Required Vs. Existing competencies
Competency 12
Competency 9
Gap analysis
Competency 7 Competency 1
3.0
Competency 11
Competency 4
Competency 5 Competency 2
Competency 3
2.0
Competency 10
Competency 6
Competency 8
Low 1.0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0
Low High
Business Needs
Contribution of competencies to business objectives 42

43. Targeted learning solutions
Managing the business paradoxes
+ Productivity and competitiveness
+ Employability
+ Learning styles and employee needs
- Learning budgets amp
les
Ex
On-the-job Brown Bag
training Literature Coaching Lunch
Workshops
Short-term Learning
Webinars
assignments Mentoring Missions
43

44. 2008: sustained support to learning
2008 ASTD State of the Industry Report revealed that
companies maintained a sustained support to learning
What will be the impact for 2009 due to the
economic downturn?
Average learning investment Number of training hours
per employee per employee
(USD$)
Participating companies
Participating companies
Global companies
Global companies
$1,800 50 BEST companies
BEST companies 45
$1,600
40
44.7
44.3
$1,400 35
$1,531
$1,451
$1,200 30
$1,609
43.0
$1,000 25
40.7
$1,320
$1,040
$1,103
$800 20
15
35.1
37.4
$600
$400 10
5
$200
0
$0
2006 2007 2006 2007
Source: 2008 State of the Industry Report, ASTD, November 2008 44

45. Certification processes
Competency Norms
Performance Evidences
Comparison Vs. Competency
Register
Norms
Competent
Competent? Certified
Non-Competent
Training Needs
Training and Development
Source: Irigoin, M.; Vargas, F.; Competencia laboral: manual de conceptos,
métodos y aplicaciones en el sector salud; Montevideo : Cinterfor, 2002. 45

46. Certification processes: Key learning
• Industry sectors must guide the development
of competency standards
– Public-private alliances for defining labor competency
norms
– Separation of responsibilities (competency definition /
assessment / training)
– Focus on productivity and competitiveness
– Alignment with education and employment policies
• Strategic alignment with industry sectors
– Pilot experiences with demonstrative effects
• Coordination and teamwork
– Clarity in objectives and benefits for stakeholders
– Future economic sustainability
– Long-term process
46

47. Competencies / Quality Mgt. System
A quality management system provides confidence
in the organization’s ability to deliver products and
services that fulfill customer needs and expectations
Quality Management System
• ISO 9000 norms
• Malcolm Baldrige Quality
Award
• Six-sigma
• Lean manufacturing
• Business Process
Management
47

48. Complementary systems
Competency-based Quality Management
Management System
• Focus on individuals • Focus on processes
• Performance criteria for • Consistency in work
people processes
• Development of capacities • Process improvement
• Certification of people • Certification of work
processes / companies
Creation of competitive advantages
• Continuous improvement, productivity, innovation
48

49. Implementing both systems
What should be first?
Quality Competency-based
a) Management Management
System
Quality
Competency-based Management
b)
Management System
Quality Management System
c)
Competency-based Management
49

50. Competencies in higher education
The Tuning Project seeks to 'fine
tune' educational structures
• Learning outcomes, competencies, and student centered
– Competencies (generic and specific for thematic areas)
– New approaches for teaching-learning
• 19 countries and 190 Universities in Latin America
• Create conditions to foster future employability
– Develop knowledge and skills for a profession
– Develop motivations, values, skills and personal resources
– Creating links between universities and other appropriate
and qualified bodies.
50

51. Tuning: The six most important competencies
According to academics of Latin America
Ethical commitment
Capacity to learn and keep updated
Capacity of abstraction, analysis, and synthesis
Capacity to apply knowledge to real situations
Capacity to analyze, and solve problems
Commitment with quality
Source: Informe Final del Proyecto Tuning América Latina: Reflexiones
y perspectivas de la Educación Superior en América Latina.
51

52. Alignment of competencies with HR processes: Insights
Performance Management
– Clarify performance expectations / Improve quality of feedback
(Performance management processes)
Training and Career Development
– Targeted learning solutions (Workshops, coaching, mentoring, blended
learning, etc)
Talent Recruitment and Selection
– Help to migrate from a gut feeling approach to a comprehensive
assessment process (structured-based behavioral interviews, personality
tests, case studies, and assessment centers)
Promotions, Mobility
– Transparency in lateral assignments and promotion decisions (Promotions
criteria)
Workforce Planning
– Translate business needs into concrete talent demands (Gap analysis)
Compensation
– Pay for performance (Combining the achievement of results (tangible
elements) and competencies (observed behaviors) 52

53. Change management
5
53

54. Change is great as long as it affects somebody else...
Change is great as long as it affects
somebody else...
54

55. Basic approaches for managing change
Managed Transition “Hammer” Approach
ENDING,
LOSING,
THE
LETTING GO
NEUTRAL
THE
ZONE
NEW
BEGINNING
Unfreezing Transition Freezing Transition
Unfreezing Freezing
Period Period
Post- Actual Post-
Actual
Operation
Transition Implementation Operation Implementation Transition
55

56. Managing the implementation of competencies
Alignment with
Business Strategy
Alignment Climate
with Rewards Evaluation
Change
Training Agents
Plans Involvement
Communication
Planning 56

57. Managing change: Key Insights
Ownership of the competency initiative
• The business areas should be sponsoring the competency initiative
• Pay attention to the “project” and the “process”
Communications and involvement
• Business sponsors should be visible
• Competency workshops to better align competencies with the business
and engage change agents
Focus on easy wins
• Start with most common application of competencies (training and
development, performance management, recruitment, promotions)
Align incentives
• Link competencies with rewards (promotions, desired behaviors)
Long-term process
• Do not create higher expectations. Competencies are useful tools but
they do not substitute an articulated business strategy
57

58. Further reading
• Anderson, Roger. (1999). Introduction to Competency Modeling (Part 1): Learning tools, techniques and theories. Linkage
Incorporated.
• Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo. (2002). La función del Fondo Multilateral de Inversiones en cuanto a normas para
certificación de aptitudes (MIF/GN-85).
• ChileCalifica. (2008). National System for Competency Certification. Chile. www.chilecalifica.cl
• Cinterfor/ILO. Gestión de calidad en la Formación. ISO 9000 y Competencia Laboral. Obtenido de
http://www.oitcinterfor.org/public/spanish/region/ampro/cinterfor/temas/calidad/doc/iso_comp/int.htm
• Corporate Leadership Council. (February 2006). Literature Key Findings: Transitioning to a Competency-based workforce.
Washington, DC: Corporate Leadership Council.
• Corporate Leadership Council. (September 2004). Literature Review Findings: Using Competencies for Employee
Management. Washington, DC: Corporate Leadership Council.
• Corporate Leadership Council. (June 2002). Literature Review Findings: Use of Competencies within the HR function.
Washington, DC: Corporate Leadership Council.
• Corporate Leadership Council. (October 2002). Literature Review: Competency-Driven Workforce Planning. Washington,
DC: Corporate Leadership Council.
• Deloitte Development LLC. (2008). The Chemistry of Talent. Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.
• Dubois, D. & Rothwell, W. (2004). Competency-Based Human Resources Management. Palo Alto, CA: Davies Black
Publishing.
• Green, P. (1999). Building Robust Competencies: Linking human resource systems to organizational strategies. San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
• International Organization for Standardization (ISO). http://www.iso.org/
• Kahane, E. (2008). Competency Management: Cracking the code for organizational impact. ASTD.
• Mertens, Leonard. Competencia Laboral. Sistemas, surgimiento y modelos. CINTERFOR/OIT. Montevideo. 1996.
• Universidad de Deusto. (2007). Informe Final del Proyecto Tuning América Latina: Reflexiones y perspectivas de la
Educación Superior en América Latina. Alfa/Europeaid. http://tuning.unideusto.org/tuningal
• Hammel, G. & Prahalad, C. (1994). Competing for the Future: Breakthrough strategies for seizing control of your industry
and creating the markets of tomorrow. Boston. MA: Harvard Business School Press.
• Vargas Zúñiga, F. (2005). Key Competencies and lifelong learning. Montevideo. ILO/Cinterfor
58

59. Thank you!
armandojusto@live.com
59