Competencies are common place in large and even medium-sized organisations. They underpin the performance review process and help develop career and talent management. Linking training to compencies really helps with the transfer of learning, but what if you’re new to working with them, or even want to design them from scratch?

Here are a few resources to help you.

Downloads

Firstly, this ebook is very detailed. It was downloaded from THIS WEBSITE where there are lots of free resources on many topics, so worth checking out.

Here are a couple of helpful documents, shared by Andonella Thomson.

• This one from ExpertHR has lots of links for further detail
• And here’s the CIPDs viewpoint – though if you are a CIPD member, it’s worth checking their website for the very latest version.

Websites

Here are a number of articles that are worth looking at too:

https://gateleyplc.com/insight/guides/how-to-design-an-effective-competency-framework/

https://www.alchemyformanagers.co.uk/topics/x8vhr9n2wQMhGibw.html

https://www.lucidchart.com/blog/how-to-develop-a-competency-framework

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/steps-design-competency-framework-nadeem-hasan/

https://www.workbrighter.co.uk/competency-framework/

https://letstalktalent.co.uk/blog/how-to-use-competency-frameworks-to-help-career-development/ _ Useful in its own right, but also has the opportunity to download a more detailed Whitepaper.

http://www.competencyinformation.co.uk/ provides a simple overview, but it’s very easy to understand.

Here’s a brief look at my own history with this type of work…

Here are some samples/templates

Some competency frameworks get very detailed and this can make them unwieldly. But they also need to include enough information to make accurate judgements about someone’s skill level, so getting the balance right is important.

• Here’s a nice ‘top-line’ way of presenting competencies from Skyscanner
• This is a detailed example from Greater London Authority that includes detailed descriptions and defines different levels of competence. It may be more than you need, but it’s well worth a look.
• Andonella shared a simple table format that can be used to create your own and provide a good level of detail for working with. Take a look here.
• If you’re looking for ideas about what competencies to include, here’s some Generic Competencies that might provide a good start for general roles (especially supervisor/first line manager)
• Korn Ferry are well known in space, and here’s a summary of their 38 competences. Good descriptions (which you can adapt) but not definition of ‘levels’.
• And this website lists 39 that might be useful. they aren’t described in detail, but you will need to make them relevant to your own organisation anyway.
• If 39 competencies aren’t enough, how about 67? The Lominger Competencies must surely capture every possible skill and aptitude associated with professional work?

Assessing Performance and Development Needs

Competence models can also be used as a guide for signing people off at the end of induction or training. Here’s a (scanned) example of a Coaching and Review form that I created in the past for a credit control call centre. I no longer have the original file, but this might spark some ideas if you need to do something similar.

Here’s a Progress Tracker from from B&Q that was used alongside their (very complicated) competence model for quarterly 1-1.

The sample from the Greater London Authority also allows assessments to be made.