You need competencies to evaluate and grow talent.
We have competency modeling expertise.
Competency Modeling is the process used to define the unique sets of skills, abilities, and behaviors that employees are expected to exhibit. Competency models are essential building blocks for critical HR processes, including recruitment and hiring, learning and development, performance management, and succession planning. They are tools for communicating what success looks like in your organization. And, because they are used at every step of the employee life cycle, they serve to define your culture. That’s why every word in every competency definition matters. If you want to ensure that you are sending the right messages to candidates and employees, we’re here to help.
Discover how the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Chartered Professionals in Human Resources (CHRP) have developed their HR competency models.
Our Approach to Competency Modeling
We align competencies with your Mission, Vision, and Values
We start with conversations with your senior leaders to understand your Mission, Vision, and Values. Every competency will tie to your organization’s purpose, aspirational future state, and core principles that guide your culture. This is where an off-the-shelf competency model falls short. If your competencies don’t sound like your culture, they can’t help build it.
We define competencies that are distinct and measurable
We draw upon our expertise in behavioral science and psychometrics to ensure that every competency is precisely defined and distinct. Remember – competencies should be observable, not aspirational. That means no “fluff”! You also need to be able to measure them via multiple methods (e.g., interviews, performance reviews, personality and ability assessments, etc.). This is where we see many competency models fall short. If you can’t measure it, your efforts are wasted.
We ensure the competency model is measurable.
When it comes to competency modeling, streamlined and simple is best. Overdone competency frameworks and unwieldy definitions are too difficult to understand and implement. Everyone in your organization will be able to understand and appreciate the utility of the competency models we create. This is where expertise is critical. We’ve created and reviewed hundreds of competency models. So, we know what works and what doesn’t.
We help you define outcomes.
This one is often overlooked. It’s important to clearly define what you want your competency models to do. In other words, what problem, are you trying to solve? What impact do you want the competencies to have on your business results? We engage you in discussion to help you identify how you will measure the impact of your competency models. For instance, you may want to improve your hiring decisions by training managers on how to use competency-based interview guides. Or, you may want to establish a competency-based framework for your performance management system to improve your managers’ understanding of how to use it. Identifying evaluation metrics, and a baseline, will help you to show the impact of your work.
Rolling Out Competencies to Talent Processes
Structured Interview Guides
We have extensive experience writing past behavior and situational judgment items with behaviorally-anchored rating scales. This improves the reliability, validity, and fairness of your interview process.
360-degree Feedback Tools
We can design custom online surveys or interview-based 360 that measure your competency models. This ensures people are given feedback on behaviors that are needed to support your culture and achieve their goals.
Objective Assessment Tools
We can create customized assessments for hiring, development, and succession planning that measure your competencies using valid psychometric tests and structured interviews.
Competency Models are the Foundation of all Talent Process
We make sure they're
built to last.