COMPETENCY MAPPING

HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

GROUP 3
PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT II

TOPICS COVERED

COMPETENCY MAPPING

EVOLUTION
DEFINTION, OBJECTIVES AND NEEDS
STEPS IN COMPETENCY MAPPING
EFFECTS ON OTHER HRD SYSTEMS
COMPETENCY MAPPING AT DIFFERENT LEVELS
ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK BASED ON
COMPETENCY MAPPING
TOOLS FOR DEVELOPING COMPETENCIES

THEORY OF EVOLUTION
(SUMMARY)

First there were some amoebas. Deviant amoebas

adapted better to the environment, thus becoming
monkeys. Then came TQM.
I am leaving out some details, but the theory itself
also has a few holes that are best left unquestioned.
- Scott Adams

COMPETENCY MAPPINGEVOLUTION

Beginning of the twentieth century - work brought complex skills

to the job. Business process required specific competencies for the
task at hand.

Era of scientific management Taylors and Fords use of assembly

line shifted focus from competency to time and motion study.

World War II (mid century) enforced management centric views

where officers gave orders to subordinates who obeyed without
questions.

COMPETENCY MAPPINGEVOLUTION

1960 David McClellands landmark article in the American

Psychologist asserted that companies should hire people
based upon competencies rather than test scores.

1973 McClelland developed new methods to predict human

performance for US Information Agency. Objective was to
eliminate the potential biases of traditional intelligence and
aptitude testing.

COMPETENCY MAPPINGEVOLUTION

The turning point for competency movement Article published in

American Psychologist in 1973 by McClelland.

Article presented data supporting that traditional achievement and

intelligence score may not be able to predict job success. need of the
hour was to profile the exact competencies required to perform the
given job effectively.

Equally noteworthy is the pioneering work by Douglas Brey and his

associates at AT&T which gave evidence that the competencies can be
accessed through assessment centers and on the job success can be
predicted to certain extent.

COMPETENCY MAPPINGEVOLUTION

Behaviour Event Interviewing (BEI) was developed by

McBer to map the competencies.

Increased

recognition

performance

appraisal

of
in

the

limitations

predicting

of

future

performance shifted focus to potential appraisal and

assessment centers in seventies.

Assessment centers were an integral part of the HRD

plan given to L&T in 1975.

COMPETENCY

Any underlying characteristic required for

performing a given task, activity or role successfully
can be considered as competency.

COMPETENCY - DEFINITION
United Nations Industrial Development Organisation
(2002)
A competency is a set of skills, related knowledge and attributes
that allow an individual to successfully perform a task or an activity
within a specific function or job.
RANKIN (2002)
Competencies are definition of skills and behaviors
organizations expect their staff to practice in work.

that

MANSFIELD (1997)
Underlying characteristics of a person that results in effective a
superior performance.

Observable
Behavior

Knowledge

Attitudes

Skills

Motives, Values , Traits, Self Concept

Competency may take the following forms:

Knowledge
Attitude
Skill

Other characteristics of an individual including

Motives
Values
Traits
Self Concept

COMPETENCY MAPPING
It is a process of identification of the competencies
required to perform successfully a given job or role
or a set of tasks at a given point of time. It consists of
breaking a given role or job into its constituent tasks
or activities and identifying the competencies
(technical, managerial, behavioral, conceptual knowledge
and attitude and skills, etc) needed to perform the same

successfully.

COMPETENCY MAPPING

Competency Map. A competency map is a list of an

individuals competencies that represent the factors most
critical to success in given jobs, departments, organizations, or
industries that are part of the individuals current career plan.
Competency Mapping. Competency mapping is a process
an individual uses to identify and describe competencies that
are the most critical to success in a work situation or work role
Competency profiling It is the process of identifying the
knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, and judgment required
for effective performance in a particular occupation or
profession. Competency profiling is business/company specific.

OBJECTIVES OF COMPETENCY
MAPPING
Competency mapping serves a number of
purposes. It is done for the following functions:

Gap Analysis
Role Clarity
Succession Planning
Growth Plans
Restructuring
Inventory of competencies for future
planning

NEED FOR COMPETENCY

MAPPING
Training and
Development
Recruitment
and Selection

Replacement
Planning

Competency
Mapping

Career
Planning

Compensation

Succession
Planning

Performance
Appraisal

STEPS IN COMPETENCY
MAPPING
The following steps may be followed in competency
Mapping:
1) Decide the positions for which the competencies need to
be mapped.
2) Identify the location of the positions in the
organizational structure. This needs the clarity of
organizational structure, defining the position
relationships (reporting authority, subordinates, peers
etc.).
3) Identify the objectives of the function or the department
or the unit or section where the position is located.

STEPS IN COMPETENCY
MAPPING
4) Identify the objectives of the role. Why does the
position exist? What are the main purposes of the
role etc. details.
5) Collect the Key Performance Areas (or KRAs,
Tasks, etc.) of the position holder for the last two
to three years from the performance appraisal
records. Alternately, collect the job descriptions of
any of the position to make a list of all tasks and
activities to be performed by that position holder.

STEPS IN COMPETENCY
MAPPING
6) Interview the position holder to list the Tasks and
activities expected to be performed by the
Individual. Group them into a set of tasks. The
tasks list may be as many as 15 to 20 for some
positions and as Competency Mapping few as
five to six for other positions. There is no rigid rule
about the number of tasks. It depends on how
complex the position is. It is useful to start with as
many tasks as possible.

STEPS IN COMPETENCY
MAPPING
7) Interview the position holder to list the actual knowledge,
attitude, skills, and other competencies required for
performing the task effectively. The position holder should be
asked questions like: If you are to recruit some one to
perform this task what qualities or competencies would you
look for in him/her? What competencies do you think are
required to perform this well?
8) Repeat the process with all the position set members.
9) Consolidate the list of competencies from all the position
holders by each task.
10) Edit and finalize. Present it to the supervisors of the
position holder and the position holder for approval and
finalization.

EFFECTS OF COMPETENCY
MAPPING ON OTHER HRD SYSTEMS
Effects on the following HRD systems: Recruitment & Selection
Performance Management System
Training
Development
Compensation Management

RECRUITMENT & SELECTION

Competency-based recruitment is a process of
recruitment based on the ability of candidates to produce
anecdotes about their professional experience which can
be used as evidence that the candidate has a given
competency.

A competency based approach to recruitment and

selection of staff can help an organization, to make it
an effective and successful investment of time,
money and expertise. Such an approach will help to
ensure that:
i.
The organization is clear regarding the competencies and
skill sets required by the job;
ii.
Selection processes encourage a good fit between
individuals and their jobs, managers and staff have the
required skills and competencies;
iii. Individual skills and abilities are matched to the
requirements of the job; and
iv. Evaluation of work demands and staffing are accurate

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT
SYSTEM
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.
Integrating competency with PMS helps:i.
Employees in understanding performance expectations and
enhancing competencies.
ii.
To provide a mechanism for providing positive feedback about an
employees training achievements and on-the-job performance
iii.
To provide job standards for performance appraisal
iv.
To provide clear direction for learning new job skills

TRAINING
Competency Based Training focuses on what the participant is
expected to be able to do in the workplace as opposed to just having
theoretical knowledge.
An important characteristic of Competency Based Training is that it
is focused not only on the actual jobs that are required in the
workplace, but also the ability to transfer and apply skills,
knowledge and attitudes to new Situations and environments.
The advantages of competency based training(CBT) are:i.
Participants will achieve competencies required in the
performance of their jobs.
ii.
Participants build confidence as they succeed in mastering specific
competencies.
iii.
Participants receive a transcript or list of the competencies they
have achieved.

DEVELOPMENT
All businesses are based on some key competencies. The main
reason for an organization to create a competency-based
development system that focuses on having the right people with
Right skills at the right time is that it helps in accomplishing
business targets.
Competencies are the need of the hour and designing appropriate
competency development models is a necessity.
Advantages of competency based development:i. Improvement in productivity, performance and profitability
ii. Identify employees capabilities for an organizations future needs
iii. Analyzing capability gaps

COMPENSATION MANAGEMENT
Competency-based pay fits this new environment. It provides an
ongoing incentive to employees to enhance their ability to perform
their jobs. Employees are rewarded with salary increases when they
add new knowledge or skills or when they demonstrate higher level
competence on existing capabilities.
Advantages of competency based compensation:i.
Provides a basis of deciding on the compensation.
ii.
Encourages employees to develop their competencies further.
iii.
Lead to a focus on totality of job rather than just what is achieved.
iv.
This system fits every job.

COMPETENCY MAPPING AT
DIFFERENT LEVELS

The 11 qualities separated into three groups, as

shown in the following slide, it represent three
different levels. The first level forms the
foundation level, and comprises of two kinds of
basic knowledge and information a manager may
need to use in decision making and action taking.

The Lancaster (Burgoyne) Model of Managerial Competencies

LEVEL
1

LEVEL
2

LEVEL
3

ASSESSMENT & FEEDBACK

BASED ON COMPETENCY MAPPING

ASSESSMENT & FEEDBACK

BASED ON COMPETENCY MAPPING
A Competency Mapping can address many of
the issues related to performance appraisal:
This ensures agreement on performance criteria, what is
accomplished and what is not accomplished, collecting
relevant and sufficient data
It also ensures opportunity to supervisors to observe
behaviour, specificity and concreteness in discussions
about performance deficiencies

ASSESSMENT & FEEDBACK

BASED ON COMPETENCY MAPPING
Provides a shared understanding of what will be
monitored and measuredA Competency
Mapping integrated with performance appraisal
ensures a balance between what gets done and
how it gets done.
The skills, knowledge and characteristics that are
important to success are clearly described. It
provides a roadmap of where to begin the
discussion and what areas to focus on.

CONTD.

Provides focus for gaining information about

behaviourAn appraisal process includes a
simple, accurate method for a boss to assess job
performance. But what happens when the boss is
new or he/she controls a number of different
locations? By identifying the specific behaviours
crucial for effective performance, Competency
Mapping offer bosses a starting point.

360-DEGREE FEEDBACK
PROCESS

The 360-degree Feedback Process is being

increasingly used in organizations for
development, appraisal and compensation
purposes. It involves a collection of perceptions
about an individuals behaviour and its impact on
bosses, colleagues, subordinates as well as internal
and external customers. Competency Mapping
help to ensure that such feedback relates
specifically to the competencies crucial to
individual or organizational success.

TOOLS FOR DEVELOPING

COMPETENCIES
Literature Review: A preliminary approach for
defining job content and identifying required
competencies is to conduct a review of the
literature to learn about previous studies of the job
or similar jobs.
Focus Groups: In focus groups, a facilitator
works with a small group of job incumbents, their
managers, supervisees, clients, or others to define
the job content or to identify the competencies
they believe are essential for performance.

TOOLS FOR DEVELOPING

COMPETENCIES

Structured Interviews: In structured

interviews, carefully planned questions are asked
individually of job incumbents, their managers, or
others familiar with the job. Benchmarking
interviews with other organizations are especially
useful in achieving a broader view of the job or
determining which competencies are more
universally deemed necessary for a particular job.

TOOLS FOR DEVELOPING

COMPETENCIES

Behavioral Event Interviews: In behavioral

event interviews (BEI), top performers are
interviewed individually about what they did,
thought, said, and felt in challenging or difficult
situations. The competencies that were
instrumental in their success are extrapolated
from their stories. Often, average and low
performers are also interviewed to provide a
comparison.

TOOLS FOR DEVELOPING

COMPETENCIES

Surveys: In surveys, job incumbents, their

supervisors, and perhaps senior managers
complete a questionnaire administered either in
print or electronically. The survey content is based
on previous data collection

TOOLS FOR DEVELOPING

COMPETENCIES

Observations: In this data collection method,

the research team visits high-performing
incumbents and observes them at work. The more
complex the job and the greater the variety in job
tasks, the more time is required for an
observation.

CASE ANALYSIS ON
BUYING A CAR

Once a buyer has decided what to look for in a car, he or she

must decide how to assess specific cars to identify the one best
suited to his or her needs. There is a number of assessments
the car buyer can make to help with the selection decision:
Look at its general appearance
Use a checklist of essential characteristics
Ask how good the owner thinks the car is
Question previous owners on the history of the car
Look at the handbook and service history
Ask for specific examples of the cars performance
Take it for a test-drive
Make predictions based on technical characteristics of the car.

The car buyer may undertake more than one of the above
assessments before making a decision on whether to purchase
the car or not. Some assessments will not provide the best
measure of a cars suitability. For example, buying a car
because it looks OK and the owner says it is a great car to
drive is at best going to leave the car buyer unprepared for
what is wrong with the car, and at worst leave him or her
having made a very expensive mistake.

Short of taking a car away for a few months to try it out, a

test-drive is probably the most accurate means of assessing of
its suitability. It enables the car to be driven in realistic
situations while undertaking tasks that represent the everyday
operations the car will be required to perform. For example, if
the car is to be used for long motorway journeys with a full
load as well as for trips around town, then these conditions
should be part of the test-drive.

The car buyer may undertake more than one of the above
assessments before making a decision on whether to purchase
the car or not. Some assessments will not provide the best
measure of a cars suitability. For example, buying a car
because it looks OK and the owner says it is a great car to
drive is at best going to leave the car buyer unprepared for
what is wrong with the car, and at worst leave him or her
having made a very expensive mistake.

Short of taking a car away for a few months to try it out, a

test-drive is probably the most accurate means of assessing of
its suitability. It enables the car to be driven in realistic
situations while undertaking tasks that represent the everyday
operations the car will be required to perform. For example, if
the car is to be used for long motorway journeys with a full
load as well as for trips around town, then these conditions
should be part of the test-drive.

There are some assessments that a buyer may wish to make

before he or she undertakes a test-drive. These assessments
will prevent the buyer from viewing a car which does not
meet certain basic requirements. For example, he or she
may wish to check that the car has a certain number of seats
because, however suitable the car is in other ways, without
the right minimum number of seats there would be no point
in viewing it.

There are also some assessments the car buyer may wish to
make after taking it for a test-drive. For example, the car
buyer may wish to check the cars history by looking at the
service book.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
The

Handbook of Competency Mapping,

Understanding, Designing & Implementing
competency models in Organization, Seema Sanghi,
2004,pg.20-28, Response Books.
http://www.iqpc.com/uploadedFiles/Training/Asi
a_Training/The_Gateway/competency.pdf
[Accessed on 25th February, 2012]
www.citehr.com
The Competencies Handbook, 2005, Steve Whiddett
& Sarah Hollyforde, Jaico Publishing House

THANK YOU