Make a strong connection between what organizations do and what people do. A sense of connection has become increasingly important as a priority for both organizations and individuals. For example, technology has enabled more flexibility via the opportunity to work, meet, and even collaborate virtually. However, some would say there has been a downside in losing a sense of "touch" and face-to-face interaction. Furthermore, the employer/employee relationship has continued to evolve with the times and continues to adapt to things like generational and cultural differences.
Connectivity means different things to different people and is indeed multi-dimensional. Investments in initiatives such as mentoring and coaching programs have attempted to strengthen both person-to-person and person-to-organization connectivity. In other articles, I've discussed the impact customer/client-centric competency strategies can have in connecting what people do to what their organizations sell and do.
I think the bottom line is that each organization's culture is unique but can be fortified by making the most of competencies as the "glue" that can connect people, business processes, and perhaps otherwise disparate activities. At the risk of stating the obvious, individuals who don't feel connected to their organization labor much less over decisions to leave for other opportunities. I think of well developed and executed competency work as one way to give people a "piece of the action" - and reasons to labor more over the prospect of leaving.
Use competency models to paint the career progression picture many employees crave. Competencies can be very effectively used to describe the opportunities and expectations associated with career path progression. The employees organizations most want and need to retain are likely the same ones who are inspired by the opportunity to develop new capabilities that directly relate to their career goals and aspirations. The opportunity is to paint a clear and attractive picture for their progression within the organization without need to look elsewhere. Additionally, expectations can be managed by unambiguously delineating the specific capabilities and skills required for promotion.
Deploy people to their strengths and greatest value at the right times. Sometimes it can be expedient to place square pegs into round holes, but there is usually a price. Well executed competency assessment and career planning processes can inform optimized deployment decisions. People tend to excel at the things they enjoy doing and believe to be strategic to their career objectives - and vice versa. Jobs of course exist first and foremost because they need to be performed, but well defined competency models and paths can support definition of position descriptions that align with logical competency clusters and development progressions. It may not be realistic to expect a person who is proficient in competencies A and B to necessarily be proficient in competencies C and D. Some competency relationships are more complementary than others.
The risk of jamming square pegs into round holes may actually be greatest with respect to promotion where people often progress with less due diligence than may occur during the hiring process. We sometimes are under the impression that “known quantity” employees can do “anything.” And sometimes people lose sight of their own strengths and what they really enjoy doing in the excitement and eager anticipation of promotion and new opportunity. Said another way, sometimes organizations and employees unintentionally conspire together to deploy people in the wrong roles at the wrong times. Well developed competency models can serve as a grounding reference point for all parties.
Other times sudden organizational change in the form of mergers, acquisitions, reorganizations, and downsizing results in a flurry of hurried position description creation or modification and related deployment decisions out of necessity. Some roles are literally pasted together without the luxury of thoughtful competency consideration. While that may be the only practical option sometimes, both the organization and its people are underserved if no one circles back after the dust settles to “fix” what can be fixed. Otherwise, the outcomes may be left to a combination of chance and survival – with some working and some not. Competencies can actually enable change when not treated as an afterthought.
Achieve strategic and nimble organizational alignment. Wouldn’t you want all of your employees to focus upon that which supports your current business objectives – even and perhaps especially when they change? Properly deployed, there is nothing quite like a clear set of competencies and associated expectations to get employees’ attention – especially when they know their performance evaluation and recognition/reward are linked to them in meaningful ways. In my opinion, people actually want to know what they are supposed to be doing more often than not. Achieving alignment via competencies makes change more tangible and relevant for employees – and feels much less like alignment for the sake of alignment.
Speaking of alignment for the sake of alignment, there are some very legitimate reasons why aligned competency models make sense in and of themselves. Larger organizations with multiple locations may transfer employees and want to know with some degree of confidence that an employee performing Job A in Location A is experienced and proficient in the same competencies as those required to perform Job A in Location B. “National/corporate vs. field” tension is not uncommon; picking and choosing where alignment may be negotiable requires judgment and is somewhat a function of an organization’s culture. Sometimes compromises are made. For example, there may be room for some latitude in defining and augmenting behavioral descriptors that can be made more relevant using local examples or reflecting legitimate local nuances.
Quickly and efficiently emphasize existing or implement new initiatives and strategies – e.g. focus upon Ethics, regulatory environment developments, or new service lines. Words do matter. Competencies that are defined and described in terms directly related to specific objectives will focus everyone on that which is current and critical.
Discover and capitalize upon “hidden” competencies – the things employees already know how to do that we don’t know they know how to do – and that may prove valuable to the organization. Carefully facilitated project debrief sessions are one way to identify and capture these sometimes well kept “secrets.”
Understand organizational bench strength. Aggregated competency trends and gaps can help identify an organization's strengths and its weaknesses. This information can prove invaluable in strategic planning endeavors where competitive advantages (and disadvantages) are analyzed as well as in informing investment decisions.
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