Chapter 1.

What do we mean by "competencies"?

Definition of competencies
- Typical competency structure diagram
- Application of competencies
- Qualities of a good competency model
- Findings

Many organizations have been developing and applying competency methods, or something similar, for at least 15 years. Currently, a whole direction has been formed in business psychology that studies competencies and their application, as can be seen from the topics of articles, journals, conferences and consultations devoted to the use of competencies.

So what happened in the development and application of competencies that generated such interest in them? For many organizations, the answer is both simple and obvious. The performance criteria, developed 10-15 years ago, were created to solve a very narrow range of problems. For example - a set of criteria only for conducting trainings. And the competency model makes it possible to create a set of criteria that directly links a wide range of specific activities with personnel management. The set of general criteria for personnel management has two important advantages:

• the ability to develop a common language to describe the performance of the whole organization. A common language helps to establish understanding between employees of different departments and different levels of the organization. For example - a common understanding for all: what is good leadership and what does effective teamwork mean;
• the possibility of achieving a high level of consistency in the evaluation of an employee, in the selection of candidates for promotion. All experts will equally understand the valuable qualities of the employee and know what needs to be appreciated and what can be ignored.

Previously, only professionals (such as recruiters and performance appraisers) defined and used competency-like criteria. These criteria served only for highly specialized applications. Line managers only encountered something similar to competency models when making reward decisions. Recent changes in the functions and organizational practices of human resources have led to much greater involvement of managerial practitioners in what used to be called "human resources". In the past, only personnel and training specialists discussed selection procedures, forms of training and incentive methods with external consultants. Now it has become a rule: consultants discuss all these problems together with HR specialists and line managers of companies.
The diversity of users of the competence method means that there are different points of view on the definition, application, structure and content of competences.
This chapter covers all that is necessary for the effective use of competencies. To achieve effective use of competencies, you need to:

• avoid ambiguity in the definition of competencies
• structure competencies so that they are easier to use
• understand the role and know the technique of applying competencies at work
• draw up competencies in accordance with quality standards.

All these tasks are solved on the basis of examples. A sample competency model is provided at the end of the book in Appendix 1. This appendix will often be used as an example in our book: in order not to confuse the examples from the appendix with other examples, we will refer to the appendix.

Definition of competencies

There are many different definitions of competencies. This should never be embarrassing. Different organizations and competency experts prefer their own definitions of this concept to “strangers” that appeared earlier. But most definitions are just variations on two themes that differ in origins.

Main topics

Two fundamental themes that give rise to contradictions in the definition of competencies:
- Description of work tasks or expected results of work. These descriptions have their origins in national education systems such as National/Scottish.
Vocational Qualifications and Management Charter Initiative (MCI).
In these systems, competencies are defined as "the ability of a manager to act in accordance with the standards adopted by the organization" (MCI, 1992).
- Description of behavior. This topic originated in the work of researchers and consultants specializing in the field of effective management.
Various definitions of behavioral competence are different variations of the same definition: “competence is the main characteristic of a person, the owner of which is able to achieve high results in work” (Klemp, 1980).
A specific variation is usually supplemented by an indication of what qualities the main characteristic includes. For example: motives, character traits, abilities, self-esteem, social role, knowledge that a person uses in work are added to this often cited definition of competence (Boyatzis, 1982).

The variety of definition options indicates that although competence consists of many personal parameters (motives, character traits, abilities, etc.), all these parameters can be identified and assessed by how a person behaves. For example: communication skills are fully manifested in how effectively a person negotiates, how he influences people and how he works in a team. Behavioral competence describes the behavior of people observed when effective performers show personal motives, character traits and abilities in the process of solving problems leading to the achievement of the desired results in work.

Definition and implementation of values

In addition to motives, character traits and abilities, individual behavior is influenced by the values ​​and principles adopted in the organization. Many companies have established what principles they are committed to and communicate these principles to their employees, emphasizing in particular the role these values ​​should play in daily operations. Some companies have included corporate principles and values ​​in the competency model and make sure that the behavior of the staff is in line with the accepted guidelines.

"Decoration of the month"

The municipal service released a statement on the company's values. These values ​​were not reflected in the guidelines for conduct used in staff selection and performance monitoring. For example, the stated principles of operation were: "customers and suppliers should be considered as partners." And the criteria for behavior included such instructions: "in negotiations, insist on getting the best service at the lowest price" and "set and maintain prices that bring maximum benefit." If the values ​​and principles of the municipal service determined the criteria for employee behavior, we would see such instructions: "winning in negotiations is winning the fight for high quality of service" and "provide customers with high-quality supplies at a good price." The separation of the rules of conduct and the principles of the company's activities is obvious: employees are not obliged to always and everywhere behave in accordance with the published principles, despite the good intentions of the company. This separation of values ​​and day-to-day work gave the impression that the values ​​were just "decoration of the month" and in a practical sense they were not that important.

What is the difference between "competence" and "competency"?

Many people want to know if there is a difference between competency and competence. A common belief has formed, according to which the concepts of "competence" and "competence" convey the following meanings:

The ability necessary to solve work tasks and to obtain the necessary work results is most often defined as competence.
- An ability that reflects the required standards of behavior is defined as a competence.

In practice, many organizations include tasks, performance and behavior in the description of both competencies and competencies and combine these two concepts. But it is more typical to associate the description of competencies with abilities that reflect standards of behavior than with problem solving or performance.
The subject of this book is competencies. And we define the concept of competence through standards of behavior.

Typical Competency Framework Diagram

Different organizations understand competencies differently. But in most cases, competencies are presented in the form of some kind of structure, like the diagram in Fig. one.
In the structure presented in fig. 1, behavioral indicators are the main elements of each competency. Related competencies are grouped into clusters. Each competency is described below, starting with the main blocks - with indicators of behavior.

Figure 1 Typical Competency Structure Diagram

Behavior indicators

Behavioral indicators are standards of behavior that are observed in the actions of a person who has a specific competence. The subject of observation is a manifestation of high competence. Manifestations of weak, ineffective "negative" competence can also become the subject of observation and study, but this approach is rarely used.
AT application Behavioral indicators are presented in the book with examples of effective competence. Example. Behavioral indicators of the competence "WORKING WITH INFORMATION", that is, actions in the process of collecting and analyzing information, include the following abilities of employees:

Finds and uses fruitful sources of information.
- Accurately defines the type and form of the required information.
- Gets the necessary information and saves it in a format convenient for work.

Competencies

Each competency is a set of related behavioral indicators. These indicators are combined into one or more blocks - depending on the semantic scope of competence.

Competencies without levels
A simple model, that is, a model that covers jobs with simple standards of behavior, may have one list of indicators for all competencies. In this model, all behavioral indicators refer to all activities. For example: a model that describes the work of only senior managers of the company, in the Planning and Organization section, may include the following behavior indicators:
- Makes plans that allocate work according to deadlines and priorities (from a few weeks to three years).
- Makes plans that exactly match the goals of the department.
- Coordinates the activities of the department with the business plan of the company.

A single list of behavior indicators is what is required, because all behavior indicators are necessary in the work of all senior managers.

Competencies by levels
When the competency model covers a wide range of jobs with different categorization of requirements, behavioral indicators within each competency can be summarized in separate lists or divided into “levels”. This allows a number of elements of different competencies to be brought under one heading, which is convenient and necessary when the competency model should cover a wide range of activities, jobs and functional roles.
For example: the content of the "planning and organizing" competency may be appropriate for both an administrative role and a manager role. The criteria for the behavior of people involved in planning and organizing activities are different for different roles, but the distribution of criteria by levels allows you to include homogeneous indicators of behavior necessary for organizing and planning in one competency model and not develop separate models for each role. At the same time, some competencies will have only one or two levels, while others will have several levels. For example, in application several levels are considered for each competency, although most competencies include three levels. But the competence "ACHIEVING RESULTS: planning" contains four levels, and "ACHIEVING RESULTS: clarity of management" - only two levels. One of the ways to distribute competencies by levels is to reduce the standards of behavior into groups indicated by numbers: the more complex the required standards of behavior, the higher the level. Some companies link levels directly to activity grades. For example, in some models, all Level 1 competencies are assigned to specific service grades, while all Level 2 competencies are included in the next job block, and so on. Usually there is a certain relationship between the levels of competencies and the complexity of the activity, but this relationship is not always direct and unambiguous. For example: the position of a senior manager requires the employee to have the highest level of "relationship management" competence, while junior managers can perform limited roles of this kind (resolving claims, maintaining accounts, etc.). For this reason, many firms avoid using the structures that have developed in them when compiling competency levels.
Another method of distributing competencies by levels is the division according to the professional qualities that an employee needs. This method is used when the competency model refers to one job level or one role. For example, the model might include a list of the following indicators:

Initial competencies are usually the minimum set of requirements necessary for admission to work
- outstanding competencies - the level of activity of an experienced employee
- negative competencies - usually these are standards of behavior that are counterproductive for effective work at any level

This method is used when it is necessary to evaluate the different degrees of competence of a group of workers. Examples. Baseline (minimum) standards of conduct can be applied when evaluating job applicants. When evaluating the performance of experienced personnel, more complex competencies can be applied. In both cases, negative indicators of behavior can also be used to identify disqualifying factors and develop a competency model. By introducing levels, it is possible to accurately assess personal competencies without complicating the structure of the competency model.
Competency models built by levels will have one set of standards of behavior for each level.

Names of competencies and their description

To aid understanding, competencies are usually referred to by a specific name, which is given an appropriate description.

The title is usually a very short term that distinguishes one competency from others, being both meaningful and easy to remember.
Typical competency titles:

relationship management
group work
influence
collection and analysis of information
making decisions
personal development
generation and accumulation of ideas
planning and organization
managing the completion of a task by a deadline
goal setting

In addition to the name of the competency, many competency models include a description of the competency. The first approach is to create a set of behavioral criteria that correspond to a specific competency. For example: a competency called "Planning and organizing" can be decoded as follows:

"Achieves results through the detailed planning and organization of people and resources in accordance with established goals and objectives within agreed timelines."

Where the competency content spans a single list of behavioral criteria, this approach works very well.
The second approach is a reasonable explanation of what is summarized, that is, an argument why this particular competence is important for the organization. This approach is best used when the competency model reflects multiple levels of behavior, because in such situations it is difficult to summarize everything that should cover all the personal roles that exist in the company and all the standards of behavior for different levels of competency.
For example. The competency model called "Influence" can have 5 levels. At one level, influence is exercised by presenting clear arguments and facts in support of a particular product. At another level, influence includes developing and presenting your own vision for your company and the company's impact on the market and various professional groups. Instead of trying to summarize such a wide range of standards of conduct, a company might put it this way:

“To persuade other people to some idea or course of action by effective persuasion. This is very important for learning, acquiring new knowledge, for innovation, decision-making and for creating an atmosphere of trust.”

In many cases, this formulation is much more useful than a brief listing of the standards of behavior included in the competency, since the detailed description explains why the firm chooses this particular competency model, and, in addition, this description explains the special nuances inherent in the selected competency model.

Competence clusters

A cluster of competencies is a set of closely related competencies (usually three to five in one bundle). Most competency models include clusters related to:

Intellectual activity, such as problem analysis and decision making
- actions, for example, to achieve specific results
- interaction, for example, to work with people.

All phrases in the description of competency models should be written in a language that is generally accepted and accessible to the staff. AT application, to which we periodically refer, these bundles of competencies are titled:

WORK WITH PEOPLE
- WORKING WITH INFORMATION
- BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
- ACHIEVING RESULTS.

Competency clusters are usually given names like these so that the competency model is understood by all employees.
Some organizations present descriptions of entire "bundles" of competencies to reveal the nature of the competencies included in each set. For example, the competence cluster "Working with information" can be represented by the following phrase:

"Working with information includes all sorts of forms of information, methods of collecting and analyzing information necessary for making effective decisions - current, operational and prospective."

Competence Model

A competency model is a term for a complete set of competencies (with or without levels) and behavioral indicators. Models may contain detailed descriptions of standards of behavior for a particular department's personnel or standards of action leading to the achievement of specific goals, but may also include basic standards of behavior designed to fully describe a business structure or activity aimed at achieving a set of diverse corporate goals. The set of details included in the description of a competency model depends on the intended practical application of a particular model.
The number of competencies in the models of recent years has decreased. Once upon a time, models were common that included 30 or more different standards; models containing no more than 20 competencies are now common, and sometimes as few as eight. Many users consider a set of competencies from 8 to 12 standards in one model to be optimal.
But models with a large set of competencies are still found. This is because some firms try to cover all the information needed for all occasions and for all roles, including detailed descriptions of tasks and performance and standards of employee behavior. The experience of recent years has shown that the most effective is the development of a general model of competencies - such as is given in our application, with an indication of how the general model can be used in practice.
The more competencies a model contains, the more difficult it is to apply. Experts believe that it is difficult to identify specific competencies in an overly detailed model, since the differences between individual competencies in such a model can be subtly small.

Confused Experts
The General Financial Department developed a model that included a huge set of competencies in the Negotiation and Influence sections. During the assessment of personnel, the observers of the Assessment Center found it difficult to identify the standards of behavior necessary for the subject in such, for example, competence as achieving goals when working in a team. What ability is needed to work in a team - skillful negotiation or a strong influence on others?

In addition, the documentation can turn into a very thick and uncomfortable tome. And the volume of documentation is usually inversely proportional to the number of people studying this documentation, that is: the more pages in a book, the less readers it has.

Volume is very important
A few years ago, a government agency developed a very complex competency model. The model contained about 60 competencies, each with five levels of difficulty. In addition, this model associated standards of behavior with tasks and work outcomes. This meant that each competency was illustrated with many examples (up to seven), in which different levels of competency were also considered. Users of this model found it nearly impossible to apply, and the 200-page reference document itself did not inspire any of the credibility it would have if the developers had created the correct model.
The agency, realizing the mistake, reworked the model: it defined standards of behavior that are common to all roles in this organization. The new model included only 12 competencies. Even the division of each competency into levels fit into a document of only 12 pages. Users found the new model to suit their needs, and the idea of ​​returning to the original model never appealed to anyone.

If all competencies included in a model apply to all activities of a company or department, then such a model is often referred to as the “Basic Competency Model”.
The core model does not include competencies that differentiate the activities of the working groups for which this model is intended. The core competency model consists of competencies that cover standards of behavior that are common to all activities, or only standards for specific types of work in a particular organization. The standards of behavior included in the core model are indeed general, so more work needs to be done to apply these standards to specific activities. For example: in the Application there is a competence "Decision Making" (in the cluster "WORKING WITH INFORMATION"). Standards of conduct of the first level of this competence:

Follows predetermined decision-making procedures.
- Collects and uses all the information necessary for decision making.
- Regularly reviews and agrees on decision limits appropriate to his/her role.
- Delegates decisions to others when it is appropriate to delegate the decision.

These are the general standards of conduct. But if the professional abilities of an employee are assessed in relation to a particular activity, then the standards of behavior are examples of this particular activity. For an employee serving regular customers, personal standards of behavior may be as follows:

Performs customer service procedures strictly according to standards.
- Obtains and uses information from the customer service database and from customer procedures instructions; if necessary, refers to colleagues when making decisions.
- Does not make decisions that exceed the authority established by the administration.

Model example

This structure includes clusters of competencies, that is, it describes in detail the main elements and standards of behavior of employees in the course of a specific activity. The app is built that way. Figure 2 illustrates this using examples from the WORKING WITH PEOPLE cluster.

Application of competencies

The Competency Journal regularly publishes reviews of the application of competencies. A few years ago, a magazine summarized the reasons why different firms use the same competencies:

efficiency and quality of work performance
culture Exchange
education and development
recruitment and selection
business goals (competitiveness)
career planning
ability analysis
flexibility
role clarity
general HR strategies
raising quality standards
remuneration
employee motivation
efficiency improvement
investment in personnel development
equal opportunity
Source: Competency (1996).

A very similar list appeared in the same journal a year earlier. The authors of these reviews used information from readers who generally indicated five reasons for seeking competencies in their companies. In other words, the reasons for the introduction of competencies were formulated by the users themselves, and not by the journal.
In practice, the reasons for turning to competencies can be associated with three tasks:
- recruitment and selection
- education and development
- reward.

Competency magazine used these reasons to summarize the topic. Although there are many reasons for developing and using competencies (see the first list), this set still boils down to three main tasks.

Figure 2 TYPICAL COMPETENCY MODEL CONTENT

It may seem strange that among the tasks there is no staff assessment. But there is nothing surprising here. Development and reward as volume tasks solved with the help of competencies can be divided into several separate functions of work with personnel. And the assessment of personnel and work to improve the professional qualities of employees is a single process in which all functions are closely related to each other.
In addition to a more rational and practical set of expectations from the application of the competency approach, the simplified competency model reflects the changes in human resources that have taken place over the past few years.

The cure for inconsistency
The pharmaceutical company has recently opened several new lines of business. Each line of business has its own competency model, and the largest lines have more than one model. Many of these models have been developed for special purposes. This gave rise to difficulties, because people faced various criteria in certification, promotion, selection, etc. c") due to their changing roles in the process of business integration. The company decided to develop a core competency model in order to have a single set of criteria common to recruitment, training and development, payment and trading, and performance management. Now this means that people are selected, evaluated, developed and rewarded according to the same criteria - regardless of their place in the company.This has led to an increase in the degree of alignment of the personnel management processes in the company, which has become obvious to employees. In addition, people from different HR functions are now talking about performance in the same language.

For example: many companies are currently developing competency models that cover a fairly wide range of professional roles. In fact, organizations use competency models to link corporate tasks and work with human resources.

Nowadays, there are often companies that use only one competency model that meets the standards of behavior and performance that are required of the entire staff. This model contains the basic standards of conduct in all types of personnel management activities, but above all - in recruitment, training, development and evaluation. For example, Appendix is based on a model composed of competencies and levels that are applicable to all activities of a trading company that includes about 20 different professions and employs about 400 people.

Impact on culture

At present, the attention of companies is shifting to the main activities, but it is necessary to remember some of the "secondary" areas that appeared in the early reviews of Competency magazine.
When organizing personnel management based on the proposed competencies, the actions of employees are determined by the standards of behavior expected from them and the requirements for the quality of work. Therefore, it should be remembered: the use of competencies will affect the internal culture of the company. In most cases, improving corporate culture is the main goal of introducing a competency system. If changes in the culture of activity are not provided for in the description of the standards of behavior, then this means that the competencies are drawn up incorrectly and conflicts between what the company needs and the standards of behavior that are proposed to be adopted by employees are quite likely.
In the Cultural Conflict example, the competency model reflects exactly what employees may consider to be the best way to work. This model does not take into account the principles of building an organization, the strict deadlines for achieving the goals that senior managers set and demanded to be met. This model did not correspond to the ideas of the senior managers themselves about what they wanted to change in the organization's activities. Changes in the culture of activity were not included in the development of competencies; the requirements of a successful business were clearly ignored.

Conflict in culture
The company, focused mainly on the sale of electronic equipment, has introduced a competency model for junior and middle staff. Competency behavior indicators were grouped around working together in an open organization, in which opinions were allowed to be expressed, problems raised, and opinions defended. All junior and middle management personnel were assessed according to the competency model, and the company's work plans were drawn up based on the same requirements. All this was done to make the competency model work. But any junior or middle manager who tried to behave in a collaborative style was immediately met with resistance and coldness from senior managers. Very soon, the work plans were changed to "reflect the real state of affairs", and in other cases, the plans simply did not take into account.

If an organization intends to influence culture change by introducing a competency model, then without the consent, support and initiative of senior managers, this good intention will not succeed.

Transparency of goals and limits

As mentioned above, many companies are introducing competency models to streamline human resource practices. The success of all efforts with such an integration of management processes is associated, first of all, with a depth of understanding of the function that competencies actually perform. Competences can be applied in the selection and hiring of personnel, in training, development and remuneration of employees. Those companies that use competencies as a tool to perform precisely such tasks work fruitfully. These companies clearly understand the limitations and true possibilities of competencies. Successful organizations give competencies their rightful place. And the exact definition of the place of competencies is the basis for their productive application. It is important to clearly understand that competencies help effective personnel management when applied correctly.
Competences include general requirements for personnel and standards of behavior in the form of positive samples. But the effective application of competencies requires a whole block of employee evaluation criteria.

For example:

When selecting an applicant for a vacancy, the professional experience of a person, his past merits and qualifications that are useful for performing the proposed work are taken into account.
- The training takes into account the professional tasks and results that the employee has to achieve.
- Development takes into account the interests of both the company and the individual.
- Remuneration depends on the actual value of the work, as well as on the need to encourage and motivate the employee for quality work.

The introduction of competencies can strengthen the link between all these tasks. However, the introduction of competencies in itself does not guarantee that this innovation will have a high effect. The effectiveness of the application of the competency model depends on the perfection of the organization of activities, on the availability of the necessary personnel management tools and on the skill of experienced people. Most competency models, no matter how carefully and correctly developed, will not turn a bad process into a good one and will not compensate for poor training, poor technological equipment and inexperienced staff. But on the other hand, where an efficiently and properly organized process of activity is combined with good management tools and experienced employees, the introduction of competencies can help significantly improve the structure of personnel management and the coherence of employees within the organization.

Qualities of a good competency model

For a competency model to work effectively, it must be relevant and used for its intended purpose. The competency model should at least be consistent with the quality standards listed in Table 1.

Table 1 QUALITY STANDARDS FOR THE COMPETENCY MODEL

The quality standards summarized in Table 1 provide a good basis for evaluating and validating the competency model. Where the model does not meet quality standards, it is possible to correct the situation, but the correction is not always easy and not always affordable. Quality standards (activity, product, management) need to be developed and adopted before a competency model can be drawn up and implemented. The competency model must be built on the basis of predetermined standards: only then can one be sure that the competency model will correspond to the task assigned to it.
These standards can also be used as a package of requirements for the quality of the model itself during its compilation. Each of the quality standards of a good competency model is explored below.

Clarity and ease of understanding

The competency model should:
- be unambiguous
- describe in simple terms
- have a simple structure
- have a coherent structural logic.

To be clear and easy to understand, the competency model should contain the language and phrases used within the organization. The model must be built in such a way that it is easy to follow this model. If the competency model is unclear and users find it difficult to use the model, interest in competencies is likely to be lost.

Relevance

The language used in the model must be native to the people who are going to use the model. It is very important whether the model becomes a common property or remains a tool for the “chosen ones”. “Relevance (conformity) of the competency model for the entire staff” means: all employees recognize behavior indicators as requirements corresponding to the quality of work. In addition, everyone who will apply the model, and everyone to whom this model will be applied, must be aware of the need and usefulness of the competency model for the cause.
In general models, the relevance of personnel behavior standards should be perceived by the bearers of all professional roles. In special models, relevance may be limited to a narrow range of roles or to a specific application.

Relevance for all roles - common models
The maximum use of competency models can be achieved if the models are relevant for all roles of the company or department. "Relevant to all roles" means: the competency should describe in general terms the behavior that is essential for the effective performance of all the roles covered by the model. It is important that the standards of conduct are directly related to the requirements of the job and that they are described by examples of such behavior that contribute to the effective performance of the job.

Role Relevance - Special Models

If competencies are being developed for a specific application or role, then the competency model should be appropriate for the application and role for which it was intended. For example: a model developed specifically for the selection of personnel should be sufficient in relation to the selection.

Accounting for expected changes
In order for the model to remain relevant, it is necessary to take into account the expected changes that may affect the organization of the firm. Possible changes are included in the competency model as standards of behavior that describe how employees will have to cope with work in the near future or in the longer term. The relevant model should take into account the vision of the future that the company's leaders have and which is included in the company's plans. To remain relevant, the model must take into account:
- changes in the external environment
- introduction of new technology
- an image of the future, predicted by managers in order to inform employees about the meaning of decisions made.

Discrete elements

One of the main ways to use competencies is personnel assessment. This may be an assessment of applicants for vacancies during selection or an assessment of the success of employees in work. The structure of the competency model has an important influence on the simplicity and accuracy of assessments. Therefore, it is essential that each of the competencies has clearly defined elements. Without clear indicators of behavior, it is difficult for experts to assess to which competence they should attribute a particular example of effective performance. A few simple rules can help you avoid mixing different competencies:

One competency should not depend on other competencies.
- Competencies and behavior indicators should be contained in only one fragment of the model.
- Competencies should not be included in multiple clusters.
- Behavior indicators should not refer to multiple competencies
- Behavior indicators should not span multiple levels of competence.

Behavior indicators are the working part of the competencies used in the assessment of employees. For standards of conduct to "work", they must:

Describe directly measurable (observable) manifestations of an individual's competence.

For example: informs colleagues about changes in work priorities; draws up detailed plans to achieve goals.
- describe only one act of behavior - it is unacceptable that some indicators of human behavior are good and others are bad.
- do not allow duplication of competencies and levels - it is unacceptable for a behavior indicator included in one competency or one level of competency to be included in
another competency or to a different level of competency.
- build from verbal expressions: indicators of behavior describe the actions of a person.
For example: informs colleagues about changes in work priorities; draws up detailed plans to achieve goals.
- include a sufficient amount of contextual information so that the actions carry a clear meaning, that is, they explain to the person why the actions they perform are needed.
For example: informs colleagues about changes in work priorities; draws up detailed plans to achieve goals.

Justice in everything

If high standards of quality are included in the competency model, then the model will be fair to all to whom it is applied. However, the model may meet the above quality standards, but, nevertheless, legitimize the planting of injustice in the company. Injustice can arise due to insufficient attention to the sources of various deformations. For example: a competency model is developed only by older (or only white, or only male) managers. Formally meeting all quality standards, such a model, however, will be unfair to everyone: it may exclude the standards of behavior that are characteristic of effective managers, but not included in the model adopted by the firm.

findings

Competences can be defined in different ways, but most models are now based on behavioral indicators. Clarity is important in defining the competency model in relation to a particular situation. This clarity can be achieved by defining the goals for which the developed competency model will be used.
For ease of use of the competency model itself, it should be extremely simple. Many successful companies find it easier to apply a generic competency model with clear instructions to model users than to try to build a model that captures the requirements needed to perform all tasks and all roles.
Competencies should contain a set of standards that can be applied to a wide range of activities related to personnel management. In order for personnel management to be effective, it is necessary:

Miscellaneous Information
- a clear and well-organized process of activity
- experienced users.

Competences can increase the effectiveness of people management activities in a company, but competencies alone do not guarantee the effectiveness of management.
The quality of a competency model has a significant impact on the ease and durability of its application. A well-designed competency model is characterized by:

clear structure
- Phraseology used in the company.

Whatever the purpose of introducing a competency model, the model itself should relate to:
- to the current and future state, which is covered by the adopted model
- to modern and perspective interests of the company.

Following these requirements will result (albeit without guarantee) in the creation of a model that is valid for all to whom the model will apply. Potential sources of inequity should also be considered when creating a competency model, and high standards of behavior should be included in the model to ensure:

Justice
- relevance
- clarity
- division by elements
- a long period of application of a particular competency model.

Speaking about the types of competencies, two important points should be noted:
1) species diversity of competencies in the absence of HR standards;
2) the existence of several classifications, that is, species diversity. There is no single classification of types of competencies; there are many different classifications for various reasons. Navigating this variety of species is very problematic. Many classifications are inconvenient and obscure, which makes their application in practice extremely difficult. But, one way or another, the current situation affects the practice of building a competency model.
In various theoretical and practical materials on the topic of competencies, one can find a wide variety of typologies. In world practice, there are examples of attempts to develop universal typologies and competency models that claim to be the world standard. For example, SHL, a world leader in the field of psychometric assessment and solution development, announced in 2004 the creation of a universal core competency framework by a group of consultants led by Professor Dave Bartram. The basic structure created by the professor's group included 112 components, headed by the so-called "Big Eight competencies". It is quite possible that global unification trends will soon lead to the fact that such a global standard will become unified in HR practice. But today, Dave Bartram's model does not meet all the specific requirements for corporate competency structures. In addition, competencies are a corporate tool, so it is practically impossible to create a single set of competencies that any company can use, taking into account all the specific requirements for positions.
We will consider the types of competencies based on the corporate scale (the scale of distribution of any type of competency) and the organizational level (the level of the organizational structure at which any type of competency operates): corporate, professional and managerial. This classification was chosen as the most optimal for building a competency model and using it in various areas of HR activities. In addition, it allows you to select technological tools for assessing competencies and, accordingly, make the competency system more accessible for use.

Types of competencies

Speaking of competency models, it is necessary to designate types of competencies.
1. Corporate (or key), which are applicable to any position in the organization. Corporate competencies follow from the values ​​of the organization, which are fixed in such corporate documents as strategy, code of corporate ethics, etc. The development of corporate competencies is part of the work with the corporate culture of the organization. The optimal number of corporate competencies is 5-7. This level includes corporate standards of conduct - business and personal qualities that every employee of the organization must possess, regardless of their position. Corporate competencies tend to be the most understandable, concise and easily identifiable. They contribute to the formation of corporate culture and the implementation of the strategic goals of the organization.
Corporate competence represents the competence of personnel at the level necessary for the organization to achieve its main goals: economic, scientific and technical, industrial and commercial and social "(Fig. 6).
The system of corporate competencies (internal requirements for candidates) fully reflects the specifics of each organization, the goals and objectives of its production and management structures, the organizational culture and values ​​of this organization, and other aspects of its organizational behavior.
Competences are usually regulated with the help of the outlined terms of reference and the legal activity of the holder of the competence.
Perhaps this follows from the statutory documents or other internal corporate rules, partly from legal and by-laws, the declarative goals of an enterprise, from a qualification handbook or job descriptions, regulations, orders, etc.

Rice. 6. Formation and development of corporate competencies
G. Cannac (France) defines corporate competence as “a rational combination of knowledge and abilities, considered over a short period of time, that employees of a given organization possess” .
2. Management (or managerial), which are necessary for managers to successfully achieve business goals. They are developed for employees engaged in managerial activities and having employees in linear or functional subordination. Managerial competencies can be similar for managers in different industries and include, for example, such competencies as: “Strategic vision”, “Business management”, “Working with people”, etc. This type of competence is the most localized and complex type. Most often, companies develop multi-level managerial competencies. At the top level are the competencies that all executives in an organization should have. Next - managerial competencies corresponding to the managerial levels of the organization. The last in this hierarchy are specific managerial competencies that are characteristic of a specific specific managerial position. The development of managerial competencies is complex. Great danger and temptation to create a model of an ideal supermanager, which is hardly possible to implement in practice. That is why, when developing, it is recommended to include in the list of managerial competencies an optimal set based on the principle of necessary and sufficient competencies.
3. Professional (or technical), which are applicable to a specific group of positions. Drawing up professional competencies for all groups of positions in an organization is a very laborious and long process. This type of competencies is a set of personal characteristics, as well as knowledge, skills and abilities necessary for effective work in a particular job position. It is necessary to distinguish between the professional competencies of a position and the professional competencies of activities or professional areas. The professional competencies of activities and areas are of a generalized nature. And the professional competencies of the position are limited by the scope of a particular organization.
Professional competence is “an integrated characteristic of the business and personal qualities of an employee, reflecting the level of specialized knowledge, skills and experience sufficient to achieve the goal, as well as his creative potential, which makes it possible to set and solve the necessary tasks. In accordance with the nature of the employee's activity and the characteristics of his labor process, the following types of professional competence are distinguished” (Table 3).
Table 3
Types of professional competence




Individual competence - "characterizes the possession of methods of self-realization and development of individuality within the profession, readiness for professional growth, the ability for individual self-preservation, non-susceptibility to professional aging, the ability to organize rationally one's work without overloading time and effort" ".
The above types of competence mean the maturity of a person in professional activities, professional communication, the formation of a professional personality, his individuality. They may not coincide in one person, who may be a good narrow specialist, but not be able to communicate, not be able to carry out the tasks of his development. Accordingly, it can be stated that he has a high special competence and a lower one - social or personal. Thus, certification of personnel competence is required, which involves assessing and confirming the compliance of the special, social, personal and individual competence of a specialist with established norms, requirements and standards. By analogy with the process of forming skills, here we can distinguish:
1) unconscious incompetence - low performance, lack of perception of differences in components or actions. The employee does not know what he does not know, what knowledge and skills he needs;
2) conscious incompetence - low productivity, recognition of shortcomings and weaknesses. The employee realizes what he lacks for successful work.
3) conscious competence - improved performance, conscious efforts aimed at more effective actions. The employee is able to consciously adjust his activities.
4) unconscious competence - natural, integrated, automatic activity with higher performance. The employee is able to transfer the action to a new context, modify it taking into account the changing environment. Acquired competencies will not bring the desired effect if their carriers are not interested in their maximum use. So, employees in relation to their individual competence pursue the following goals:
1) adaptation of personal qualifications to the requirements of the position (workplace);
2) guarantees of maintaining the position (workplace);
3) the basis for professional advancement;
4) increasing one's own mobility in the labor market;
5) ensuring the receipt of high labor income;
6) increase their own prestige.
The broadest in scale and highest in organizational level (corporate competencies as a type are inherent in all positions of the organization located at all levels of the organizational structure, including the highest ones) are corporate competencies. This type includes corporate standards of conduct - business and personal qualities that all employees of the organization must possess, regardless of their positions and duties. That is, these are the competencies that each employee of this particular organization should possess. Corporate competencies tend to be the most understandable, concise and easily identifiable; designed to identify an employee with corporate values ​​and corporate culture of the organization. They contribute to the formation of corporate culture and the implementation of the strategic goals of the organization. When reading corporate policy documents, corporate codes, or simply job advertisements, one can often see phrases like “our employees have an active life position, strive for personal development, are loyal to customers, etc.”. In fact, the same corporate competencies that we are talking about are “hardwired” into such phrases.
As a real example of corporate competencies, we can cite an excerpt from the Code of Ethics of the organization "XXX": the company especially appreciates:
- respect for the personal rights and interests of our employees, the requirements of customers and the terms of cooperation put forward by our business partners and society;
- impartiality, which implies remuneration in accordance with the results achieved and provides equal rights for professional growth;
- honesty in relationships and in providing any information necessary for our work.
- efficiency as a sustainable achievement of the maximum possible results in everything we do;
- the courage to confront what is unacceptable and take responsibility for the consequences of their decisions;
- care shown in an effort to protect people from any harm or threat to their life and health and the protection of the environment;
- trust in employees, which allows us to delegate authority and responsibility for decisions and how they are implemented.
These paragraphs list the corporate competencies of the organization. This example clearly shows that corporate competencies often merge in meaning with corporate values ​​in their perception. In addition, their set is almost identical in companies with completely different corporate culture, values ​​and business style. When developing corporate competencies, it is necessary to separate the really necessary competencies from the slogans, and also check the competencies for non-conflict with each other (they should not contradict each other).
Corporate competencies have a total distribution, that is, they should be characteristic of each employee of the organization, which means that it is understood that the larger the list of these competencies, the more difficult it is to ensure that each employee has a complete set. Therefore, it is recommended to make a set of corporate competencies optimal: brief, capacious, reflecting only what it would be extremely difficult for an employee to work effectively in this organization without.
In addition, we should not forget that competence must be measurable. That is, when introducing a competence, it is necessary to check it for the possibility of evaluation. It is important to remember this precisely when developing corporate competencies, since there is often a great temptation to include personal qualities of a social nature in their number. For example, "justice". It is very problematic to measure the presence of this competence in an employee, since the concept of “fair” is largely relative and difficult to identify.
Professional competencies are less broad and localized in scale (less broad - they do not cover a wide range of positions, but are tied to specific positions, up to competencies specific to any one specific position). Usually they are localized to specific positions (perhaps to one specific). But a certain set of professional competencies is inherent in any job position. This type of competencies is a set of personal characteristics, as well as knowledge, skills and abilities necessary for effective work in a particular job position. Given that our classification of competencies is limited to corporate boundaries, one should not confuse the professional competencies of a position with the professional competencies of activities or professional areas.
Professional competencies of activities and areas are more generalized. And the professional competencies of the position are limited by the scope of a particular organization. For example, there may be competencies of an employee in the pedagogical sphere - they are characteristic of all specialists conducting pedagogical activities, regardless of the organization in which they work, or there may be professional competencies of a teacher of a particular training organization. Speaking of professional competencies as a type of competencies, we mean exactly them. Most often, a set of professional competencies in an organization is formalized in the so-called position profile.
Managerial competencies are the most localized and complex type of competencies. These are the competencies necessary for the performance of managerial duties by a managerial employee.
Most often, companies develop multi-level managerial competencies. At the top level are the competencies that all executives in an organization should have. Further, managerial competencies corresponding to the managerial levels of the organization. For example, managerial competencies of top managers, middle managers, etc. The last in this hierarchy are specific managerial competencies that are characteristic of a specific specific managerial position. Oddly enough, the development of managerial competencies is the most difficult - the temptation to create a model of an ideal supermanager is too great, which is unlikely to be implemented in practice. Therefore, when developing, it is recommended to include in the list of managerial competencies an optimal set based on the principle of necessary and sufficient competencies.
Let's consider some of the opportunities that the competence-based approach provides for organizing effective personnel management.
1. It is necessary to keep in mind the chain "goal - activity - competence" and apply this model to the strategic management of human resources. This chain means that larger goals usually require more complex activities in order to achieve them. More complex activities require higher specialist competence. Acquisition of higher competence takes time, often considerable. After all, even a simple skill is formed on average in 21 days, and there may be several necessary skills. In addition, the development of personal qualities requires much more time - sometimes it takes years.
Ways to solve this problem can be the following:
. Implement a strategic management system and a strategic personnel management system in the organization. And then, knowing what goals the employee will face in a few years, and how he will achieve them, you can plan a long-term program for his training and development.
. To consider the current activity of the employee not only as practical, but also as educational. In this case, we can turn to the experience of big sport, and we will see that any competitions other than the main ones (World Championships, Olympic Games) are preparatory for larger competitions. That is, an athlete in the course of his training trains directly in the conditions in which he will have to compete in the future and win new achievements. Thus, he forms and develops a set of those competencies that he will need. For example, competitions are educational. And the task of the athlete is not only to win them, but also to improve his level of skill. Moreover, the goal of winning all competitions is long gone - it is more profitable to lose in simple competitions, but at the same time study and prepare in order to win the main competitions.
Applying this concept to business, we can say this: let my employee make mistakes if they are training mistakes, and not due to negligence. The damage from these mistakes will be covered many times over in the future. After all, when an employee raises his competence, he will begin to make a profit, immeasurably greater than he brings now (even if now he does not make any mistakes).
2. Talent management. This can be formulated as follows: if the competence of a talented employee exceeds the competence of his position in at least one of the parameters, then the employee feels dissatisfied, and his competence begins to decline.
Moreover, in order for such an employee to feel happy, it is necessary that the requirements of his position exceed his current competence in at least one of the parameters. Naturally, there are a number of conditions: the excess must be adequate to the position, the current tasks of the organization and the psychological type of this employee; the employee must be aware of this discrepancy and work with it, etc.
Still, despite all the difficulties, this conclusion opens up a whole range of opportunities for motivating and retaining staff. The most striking (even paradoxical) example: instead of increasing the amount of payments, you can complicate the professional activities of an employee. Of course, the question arises: how to complicate and how much. And this is where the analysis of the competence profile of this employee can help.
This conclusion echoes the ideas of the realization of human potential. The idea is that strategic directions and goals are determined not only on the basis of the decisions of the first persons of the organization, but also on the basis of the existing unrealized competencies of the staff (which, again, analysis of the competencies of employees can help). If people feel that the organization not only ensures their standard of living, but also allows them to realize themselves more fully, then there will be a phenomenon that has recently been called "staff involvement". But the involvement of personnel gives not only a psychological, but also an economic effect. It has already been irrefutably proven that due to the low involvement of employees, organizations lose huge amounts of money, incomparable in size with the costs of high-quality personnel management.
The attractiveness of the competency-based approach, in our opinion, lies in a special method for analyzing and evaluating the development of personnel competencies, in particular managerial ones, at each level of the hierarchy in the organization, thanks to which those qualities are determined that determine the good performance of a particular job.
The competency-based approach implies that the main emphasis is not just on obtaining knowledge and skills by students, but on the integrated development of the competencies of managerial personnel.
The competency-based approach has an impact on the development of the competencies of managerial personnel. This can be clearly seen in Fig. 7.


Rice. 7. The influence of the competency-based approach on the development of competencies of managerial personnel
The motivational competencies of managerial personnel include goal orientation, initiative, self-confidence, interest in the work of the individual, responsibility, self-control, self-realization, flexibility in work, influencing staff.
The intellectual competencies of managerial personnel are based on knowledge related to the basic principles, as well as information technology, decision-making technologies and the rapid perception of innovations.
The functional competencies of managerial staff are manifested in the skill set of managerial staff (self-awareness, leadership, interpersonal communication, negotiation, decision-making skills, delegation, team building, conflict management, efficient use of time).
Interpersonal competencies of management personnel contribute to the formation of balanced relationships, interpersonal understanding, dedication to the company, willingness to help, customer orientation, staff optimism, etc.
Many organizations do not use ready-made developments, fundamentally go their own way and develop their own competency structures. This can be justified only if the development is carried out by experienced specialists, since for novice developers, which are often HR managers in an organization, this task is either beyond their strength or threatens to create an incorrect and inefficiently functioning competence structure.

Key competencies

Key competencies

Competence from the Latin competo - "I achieve, I correspond to the approach." Professional competence, in fact, is the ability to fulfill one's work obligations in accordance with accepted norms and standards, that is, successfully, without control and constant (unplanned) outside help.

The purpose of highlighting competencies is to increase the efficiency (quality and quantity) of the company. If a person can demonstrate the necessary skills and results of work, he suits us. Competences are needed for a preliminary and monitoring intermediate assessment of its capabilities, assistance in its development and correction of mistakes, for understanding oneself in the end.

There are many interpretations of the concept of "competence" and, accordingly, approaches to their allocation and use.

1. Key competencies - qualities and personality traits of a professional, allowing to perform the tasks assigned to the employee in accordance with the main business function of the organization and unit.

1. Specific key business competencies— at the know-how level of the company, taking into account the peculiarities of the corporate culture.
2. A set of competencies for a position from exhaustive set of competitions(will be presented below).
3. Competences presented both personal and professionalqualities(see Attachment 4 ).

The presence of competencies in no way excludes the list pawork evaluation parameters, which competencies can include, otherwise they only disorient managers and employees themselves, turning the assessment into a too superficial and inefficient procedure. How can, for example, replace the quantitative indicators of the work of employees or the assessment of their appearance and discipline with competencies?!

Competencies- these are simplified, reduced to absolute understanding and (or) synthesized, isolated from "folklore" definitions (preferably in the working language of managers and employees) of the professional and personal properties of successful employees, according to which it is easiest to quickly or in a set with other criteria (parameters) evaluate the work of employees of this company, subject to the presence of a common language of corporate culture.

Competencies as skills and abilities. The differences are that a skill is a specific action with an expected result, while a competency is not usually described in terms of the end result, but can and ultimately should be described or created from it.

In practice, all these approaches intersect and complement each other. For example, as part of the annual performance appraisal or attestation, employees in most companies are also assessed by a set of competencies. On the basis of the latter, HR departments can draw up success profiles for each position and target levels of competency development for the year ahead in terms of career development and professionalism of an employee within the company. For any group of positions of a certain specialization, there can and should be their own hierarchy of competencies, possibly from a common exhaustive list. Within this hierarchy, there are 4-7 areas that are most valued - key, or basic, competencies.

For the head of the sales department, the most important are:

■ communicative qualities;

■ organizational skills;

■ client orientation;

■ entrepreneurial and financial approaches. For a literary editor are important:

■ patience;

■ attention;

■ the ability to convince;

■ "innate" literacy.

Below is an example with priorities set for three professional profiles (Table 1).

It is almost always clear to practitioners within the company what they mean by “sociability” or “progressiveness of views”, but in order to prevent misunderstanding, it is still better to fix what it consists of and what it is in the activities of a certain group of employees. Communication skills of a secretary for a client may include:

■ positive self-adjustment;

■ telephone counseling experience;

■ life orientation to help people;

■ personal sociability.

Sociability is “the ability, positively perceiving any client, any call, to be able to quickly understand its essence and direction and respond in accordance with certain cultural norms and in the information field of specified parameters” (formulation of the competence “secretary sociability” from one of the Internet companies. — Note. auth.).

The process of working with competencies is best carried out in a technological sequence similar to that shown below. This will allow them to be used with the greatest impact and benefit for all stakeholders within the company.

Full cycle of work with competencies across the organization.

1. Description exhaustive list competencies that are important for the successful work of a group of employees, experts.

1. Allocation of basic (key, core) competencies or, possibly, macro competencies. Macro competencies are unique combinations of professional knowledge, skills and experience, expressed in technologies for creating and distributing products (managerial know-how, intellectual and organizational results), which are difficult to develop and useless to copy.
2. Achieve the required level of detail.

Table 1. Priorities of the three professional profiles 1

Competencies	Position
	trade representative active sales	secretary	manager
Ability to quickly establish rapport with strangers	Necessary	Don't care	Desirable
Polite, friendly communication	Necessary	Necessary	Necessary
The ability to convince	Necessary	Desirable	Necessary
Ability to speak publicly	Don't care	Don't care	Necessary
The need for communication	Necessary	Don't care	Desirable
Well delivered speech	Necessary	Desirable	Necessary
Grammatically correct speech	Necessary	Necessary	Necessary

1 Table 1 is based on the book Ivanova S. The Art of Recruiting: How to Rate a Person in an Hour. — M.: Alpina Business Books, 2004. — P. 15.

1. Creation of position success profiles (perhaps within the framework of job descriptions, requirements for positions and vacancies) - standards.
2. Description of the target levels of competence development (using scores or scales) in connection with the development and tasks of the company, as well as the individual development of employees.
3. Setting achievable goals and defining a set of developmental activities: internships, training, etc. Schedule sub-tasks for achieving the target level of competence development, for example, “become more influential”: be able to attract attention, be assertive, justify ideas, actively listen, enlist support, encourage others to action, to negotiate.

7. Identification of indicators of level achievement (enlist support from the “become more influential” subtask: gain the support of all members of the board of directors).

An example of a tiered (scale) representation of a competency (scheduling the levels of one of the key competencies of the Leadership block in the Managerial Competence block) can be found in Table. 2.

Table 2. Leadership in foreseeing the future, inspiring employees, strategic planning (as a "lookout" function) to evaluate top managers.

Level	Managerial Competence
	Creates the future of the company. Develops and implements useful standards for engaging employees in effective future planning. Systematically and continuously evaluates the effectiveness of these standards and employee participation
	Actively participates in creating the future of the company. Polyvolume demonstrates the ability to create and formulate a vision of the organization's future. Involves others in the process of forming a picture of the future. Strengthens faith in this future through their behavior and demonstrated values ​​(personal example)
	Able to assess the importance of developing a picture of the future for the company, participates in the development of ways to achieve it as free time appears or receives direct instructions from shareholders
Fourth	Almost does not think about ways to achieve a picture of the future, is preoccupied with everyday affairs
	Uses rumors, "thinks what is not", not sure about the future, obsessed with routine activities, drowning in everyday affairs, psychologically attached to them

The principles of highlighting key competencies, drawing up standards for the performance of work and customer service are best "seen" through the process of grading employees.

Step-by-step process of grading and standardization of work of employees

1. Identification of grades (large groups of employees, similar in managerial status, powers and, consequently, the level of payment) and within them categories of employees.

2. Identification and description of the basic blocks of competencies or criteria for evaluating employees. For example, managerial skills, sales skills, professional and specialist knowledge, personal qualities, etc.

3. Prescribing competencies within the basic blocks of competencies for the entire range of categories of employees of all departments of the company. For example, in order to describe the “managerial skills” block, you need to answer the question: what managerial skills are fundamentally necessary for different categories of employees? The ability to conduct meetings (it can be broken down in more detail by the skills of holding a meeting), the ability to write a business plan (it can be written in more detail - topics, volumes, tasks, etc.), and many others. others

4. Identification of key (most significant) and secondary competencies for different categories of employees and depending on the specifics of the work of specific departments and positions. For example, for call center operators, external data will have a minimum value, and telephone communication skills (signed in detail), typing speed on a PC and the amount of operational, that is, short-term memory, attention switching speed and personal "non-irritability" will have a maximum value.

If necessary, assigning different weight (index) values ​​to key and secondary competencies for blocks of basic competencies and within basic blocks of competencies. Blocks of core competencies are indexed relative to each other by different weights assigned to them. This allows you to highlight the main thing in the activities of the employee, as well as to enter into a comparative accounting of the effectiveness, usefulness of the activities of employees in different departments.

Some employees can be compared with others, as well as with point standards for matching a position, category across a holding or division, since each employee in the certification process gains a certain total number of points.

6. Each level of development of a separate competence within the basic block of competencies and, if necessary, the entire given basic block is assigned its own score (for example, from 1 to 5), which is then verbally described in detail as a rank or standard for performing activities. When describing performance standards, depending on the need, other approaches can be applied, in addition to describing competencies: personal and professional qualities, skills, knowledge and their level of development:

■ process requirements - a description of business processes or activity algorithms, or interaction with employees and departments;

■ requirements for the quality of work performance;

■ accounting for quantitative (volumes of work done and (or) commodity, assortment and economic indicators, etc.) and temporary indicators of achievements (terms), indicators of labor productivity;

■ taking into account innovations, intra-corporate, intra-divisional and external image consequences of the employee's activities.

7. Further, in addition to being used in attestation, work performance standards find their rightful place in job descriptions, annexes to them, requirements for positions and vacancies, descriptions of categories of employees and other personnel and system-wide documents.

If they are already registered, the preparation of personnel certification is greatly simplified.

Stages of creating work performance standards, which should be tied to positions and jobs.

1. Identification of general (detailed list or specific competencies for the organization as a whole) competencies of the employees of the organization.

1. Highlighting key competencies for employees of a certain type and level. For example, for all warehouse employees and managers of a certain level.
   1. If necessary, endowing competencies with weighting values.
   2. Description of the reference levels of work performance for each key competency, indicator, parameter), criterion at specific workplaces or for typical positions - creating standards for work performance, customer service for groups of employees, a specific category of employees, etc.

The following criteria for assessing the success of an employee, the so-called digital standard:

"1" - initial level (unsatisfactory);

"2" - below the required level;

"3" - quite satisfies (middle level) - the standard for the position;

"4" - better than average;

"5" - exceeds expectations.

(Attention is primarily drawn to extreme values ​​- "zones of risk" due to clear non-compliance or increased compliance. - Note. auth.)

When determining level reference Behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS) are used, which combine rating and descriptive methods. The employee is evaluated by the manager in terms of the compliance of his behavior with pre-selected scale behavioral values ​​(how it should be, how it should not be). If this methodology is converted into a test, then employees themselves can evaluate themselves. If the test is “open” to the employee, then the methodology is already a self-learning tool.

A customer-centricity score might look like this:

■ an employee may ignore a waiting client if he/she believes that he/she is not promising;

■ spends as much time with the client as necessary, additionally consults the client by phone and e-mailmail;

t may refuse to consult a client if he does not have the necessary information;

■ perceives an irritated client as a natural phenomenon, calmly and respectfully works with him;

and in the absence of the necessary knowledge receives their independentbut also uses in his work;

■ makes fair remarks to the client if he is annoyed. (Correct choices are in italics. — Note. auth.)

The principles of client-orientation can otherwise be called a manifestation of "team" in relation to the client (customer— part of the businessfamilies, a member of our team) and the ideological basis for the development of service standards.

Table 3 shows an example of assigning criteria with different weights, based on expert assessments of the importance for the successful operation of a particular criterion.

Table 3. Evaluation of an employee using the rating method and the allocation of weight components of the evaluation criteria (coefficients)

	Evaluation criterion, competence	Specific gravity (coefficient)	Points	Final grade, in points
	Execution speed, performance			3×4= 12
	Appearance
	Discipline, presence in the workplace
	Communication skills within the team (support for team spirit)
	Communication with external agents
Sum of points by significant criteria: 24
Sum of points for secondary criteria: 6
Overall final score of 30 (for comparison with other operators)

Note. The key, most significant evaluation criteria are highlighted in italics. According to them, a comparison of this employee with others or with a point standard of compliance is carried out.

In the table above, three key assessment parameters are marked in italics. They are the most significant. According to them, first of all, one can judge the suitability of a specialist by comparing him with other employees or with a point standard of compliance.

The score standard of compliance is accepted in advance. It may not be lower than any certain sum of points for significant (key) criteria or the overall final score, etc.

The total final score is equal to the sum of the scores according to the criteria, multiplied in advance by the specific weights (coefficients).

The norm is when 70-80% of employees meet the specified success criteria. The remaining employees are divided approximately equally: below and above the bar of the specified criteria. If an employee is 30% above the set standards, then it is necessary to think about transferring him to a higher position or expanding his powers. With those whose performance is below the bar of specified criteria or standards, you need to do the opposite.

In order to combine numerous terminological and practical differences in approaches to the allocation and use of competencies for personnel assessment at the semantic level, we will create a simple sequence of “dependencies”.

■ In order for a person to be able to make a clay pot (for example, a hotel claims to be original and uses such pots as free souvenirs for guests), he needs to understand his mentor, have a certain natural skill and desire (motivation), take a course of study (gain useful experience in required volume). Then he will have the necessary knowledge of a practical and theoretical nature - he will be competent.

■ In order for us to hire him, we need to find out if he wants to work with us and in this direction further, what is his motivation (to determine the nature and duration of possible relationships, ways of controlling and motivating), whether he has lost his labor skills and communication skills, while did not work.

How to start highlighting core competencies? From the analysis of the content of work in relation to the main business function of the organization.

1. Analysis of the work of the entire sales apparatus and coordination of the responsibilities of all employees, as well as determining how all jobs are interconnected.

1. Selection of certain jobs for analysis.
   1. Gathering the necessary information by observing the actual work of employees, interviewing people in the workplace, and interviewing employees using questionnaires” 1 .

1 Fatrell C. Sales management. - St. Petersburg: Neva, 2004. - S. 220.

Based on the analysis of the content of the work, many important documents can be drawn up:

■ list of key and additional competencies, requirement of standards;

■ job description, qualification requirements, etc.

Identification of key competencies and other evaluation criteria

Recruitment agency "For family reasons", Moscow. The main business function is to connect qualified personnel with worthy parents and children. Mission: the best tutors and nannies for the active personal development of children. Competitive advantage: really high-quality personnel, real terms of selection, verification of proposed employees.

The agent’s work (main actions, functions) to connect the two partner parties consists in conducting interviews with nannies and tutors, assessing their personal and professional capabilities, maintaining databases on a PC, finding out the needs of parents and children, introducing the parties to each other, concluding agreements of mutual obligations , tracking the success of the work of employees in families, participation in solving difficult situations.

Based on all the above information, key comptendencies employees will:

■ insight (understanding people);

■ ability to conduct multi-stage negotiations (personally and by phone);

■ sociability and natural goodwill;

■ analytical ability to make accurate calculations;

■ self-organization and organization of time;

■ ability to work in a team.

These formulations are understandable to all employees of the recruitment agency without summing up the scientific base - at the level of a common language of communication.

Additional qualities: excellent memory for events and faces, conflict resolution skills.

Additional requirements: own successful experience in working with children and adolescents as a nanny, tutor, teacher and psychologist; natural inclination to work with children - love for children, commitment to family values; good physical health.

Special requirements: high speed printing on a PC, good attention span, knowledge of the basics of drafting service contracts.

You can see that the key competencies smoothly flowed into additional requirements, etc. This once again emphasizes that these competencies are key, but not the only ones of their kind. The secret is that the properties of our attention and memory force us to resort to various kinds of structuring, because there is no way to immediately cover a list of 40 mandatory items. But this does not mean that the approach to identifying key competencies is random and temporary. On the contrary, it is quite natural: first we single out the main thing, then that without which the main thing would not make sense, and finally, the desirable. (See the section on drafting an application and other sections.)

But that's not all, we can add some personal qualities and characteristics to the above evaluation criteria.

C. Fattrell in the book already mentioned above gives an even more classical approach, historically and logically preceding the above, namely, qualification requirements.

“Most sales managers define the following minimum required characteristics of a sales agent.

1. Intelligence is the mental ability necessary to perform tasks of a high level of complexity.
2. Education - graduation from an educational institution with above-average academic performance.
3. A strong personality is a focus on achieving success, self-confidence, initiative, a positive outlook on life, a sense of tact, maturity, and having a ready-made realistic plan for moving up the career ladder.

4. Experience - the diligent performance of one's work, which goes beyond simple official duties; if a person has just finished his studies, then his active participation in the activities of educational organizations and the development of projects is above average.

1. Physical characteristics - making a good first impression, good looks, neat clothes and good physical shape.

1 Fatrell C. Sales management. - St. Petersburg: Neva, 2004. - S. 222.

Why can Western society afford such high standards in relation to a seemingly ordinary commercial agent, while we in Russia cannot? This will become possible when we pay the worthy really worthy. These are clearly not enough. As a result of improper upbringing with threats and intimidation, our children do not develop properly logical abilities, the ability to think independently and the desire for the comprehensive development of the personality is lost, lack of will is formed, namely the will and a very strong desire to achieve the goals that distinguish the leader * and any successful person. Thus, for a seller in the service sector, it will be of particular importance have developed logical abilities in a harmonious combination and with the development of figurative, sensual, sensual (right hemisphere thinking) plus its volitional qualities in achieving goals and the ability to convince yourself and others. Appendix 9 gives a simple but very effective test for determining the nature of thinking in others and in oneself. It can also be used as a self-understanding test by guessing, without using a key, which of the three questions in each item refers to one or another style of learning and thinking: right hemisphere, left hemisphere or equal hemisphere.

Before doing more complex tests (multivariate, multimodal), evaluate yourself and others on this simple and forgotten: is your employee, applicant more process (right brain) or result (left brain) oriented, or is he a mixed type? Different types of activities require different people: some concentrate on the details, missing the main thing, others, seeing the main thing, forget about the specifics.

This test does not measure the level of personality development, even if it turns out that the person being tested is equal hemispheric, this requires a separate conversation. The test can be used for training in building compact questionnaires that are used to quickly evaluate someone. 10-15 questions followed by a discussion of the selected answers, a few questions from a standard structured interview - and you already understand how a person will build his strategy for achieving goals, how he will process information, what he wants to achieve, what is his map of ideas about work, etc. .

There are only three factors in the test, and therefore, you can quite easily understand the reality behind the three psychological directions of the questions: left-brain processing of information and the way to achieve the goal, right-brain, mixed. If you are lucky “through the prism of the test”, you will see an image, a model of a developed, integrated personality, who thinks logically and figuratively well, with well-formed analytical and intuitive capabilities, who feels good both in the process of work and in time pressure to achieve business goals.

Do not rush to use the key to the test. Sort the answers yourself and only then compare with the key - and you will have the opportunity to start a career as a psychodiagnostic, if you have not started it yet. In this regard, we quote from an excellent book that can be recommended as a rite of passage into professional psychodiagnostics.

“With a correct approach to the development and interpretation of multivariate test questionnaires, it is necessary to take into account the following psychometric maxim: it is possible (with more or less difficulty) to come up with such a question (and, therefore, a lot of questions) that, in a multivariate analysis of the matrix, will give a vector passing in the neighborhood of any a predetermined point of the multidimensional space of features. It follows from this that any locus of trait space (including a sparse one that does not give a grouping of items on this particular list, does not give a scale) can be filled with a group of correlated questions and get a new scale that measures something intermediate to what the questionnaire measured in its original version.

The choice of one or another system of scales (features) is largely determined by the developer's intention or the initial list that he has at his disposal" 1 .

As a result of the above considerations, some “corrective touches” are added to other criteria for evaluating employees of the “For Family Reasons” recruitment agency, since the previously identified key competencies are the result of these qualities and personality traits: strong will, development of logicalabilities and figurative-sensory thinking(sensual, emotional intelligence).

Various incentives encourage employees to work effectively: remuneration, professional development, career prospects... The ability to perform professional duties is determined by the potential of the employee, the training he receives, in particular in the organization, as well as physical and moral condition. There are no bad employees, there are unsuitable ones for your company. Mentally or in writing with the head of the organization or the head of the department, compiling a portrait of the ideal employee, a modern and competent HR specialist selects candidates according to their competencies. How to determine the characteristics that a newcomer must have to successfully work in a position?

The concept of competence

The concept of competence comes from the Latin competo (“corresponding, suitable”) and means the personal ability of a specialist to solve professional problems at a certain level.

From the standpoint of personnel assessment, competence is understood as a number of personal, professional, etc. qualities that are required from all employees of the company or from any particular group of employees. This is what they should show in their work.

Currently, there are many definitions of the concept of "competence" and experts offer different interpretations, but two approaches are considered the main ones.

American approach is to describe the behavior of the employee. In other words, here competencies are the main characteristics of an employee, having which he is able to behave correctly at work, achieving high results.

As part of European competencies approach is considered as a description of work tasks or the expected result of work. They characterize the ability of an employee to act in accordance with the standards adopted in the organization.

A set of competencies (competence) is a set of individual personal characteristics (stress resistance, propensity for teamwork, focus on results, the ability to set clear goals, plan and organize, leadership, collect and analyze information, generate and accumulate ideas, etc.), skills ( the ability to negotiate, identify customer needs, work in a group, communication skills, etc.), behavior patterns (typical behavior in a particular situation, adaptability, etc.).

Types of competencies

The competence of an employee is a concept that is quite difficult to give a clear definition, since this term is not deciphered in dictionaries. Any specialist interprets this concept in his own way, depending on the tasks in which he uses it. Competence is a rather broad concept. This is the ability of the candidate to effectively cope with the main duties provided for a particular position. He must be able to solve additional tasks that will arise in front of him during the work process, as well as perform specific tasks, if required in the future.

Depending on the moment of their formation, the following types of competencies are distinguished:

1) acquired at work, as well as in the course of training and daily activities, knowledge and skills. These competencies can be assessed through aptitude tests;

2) natural- basic personality traits (extroverts or introverts, emotional balance or anxiety, constancy or spontaneity, etc.). Assessment of natural competencies is based on personality tests;

3) adaptive- these competencies allow the individual to achieve goals in a new environment for him. Assessment of adaptive competencies is also carried out with the help of personality tests. Their source is in the emotional abilities of the individual, which can be both innate and developed during life.

Depending on the level, they differ:

1) corporate competencies. They support the core idea of ​​the existence and values ​​of the company and are applicable to any position in it. These business and personal qualities should be inherent in every employee of the company;

2) managerial competencies applicable to senior positions at all levels of management. They include abilities and personal qualities, a set of skills and abilities necessary for managers to successfully solve the set business tasks;

3) special competencies (a system of special (professional) knowledge, skills and abilities required for the effective performance of their duties by employees). They are developed in relation to certain groups of positions in different departments or for specific positions.

Some organizations develop only key competencies, others develop only managerial competencies, and some companies develop only special competencies for positions in various departments.

Depending on the area of ​​application, the following types of competencies are distinguished:

1) educational and cognitive. This is a set of skills and abilities of cognitive activity, possession of the mechanisms of planning, analysis, self-assessment, assessment of the success of one's own activity, the ability to act in non-standard situations, etc.;

2) informational. Determine the ability of an employee to independently search, select, analyze, process and transmit the necessary information;

3) communicative. They characterize the possession of skills of interaction with others, the ability to work in a group, to act in various social roles. This competence is manifested in the effectiveness of a person in negotiating, in the strength of his influence on people.

Competencies are created by the personality itself. This is influenced by character, and temperament, and the level of intelligence, and features of thinking, and abilities, and personal motives. Individual behavior is also significantly influenced by the values ​​and principles of the organization. Therefore, many companies began to bring them to the attention of their employees, including corporate principles and values ​​in the competency model, and make sure that the behavior of the staff is in line with the accepted guidelines.

Competence Model

For effective use, it is customary to combine competencies according to common features into blocks, which, in turn, form the so-called competency model. This is a set of competencies that is necessary to successfully perform a certain job. Models may contain a detailed description of the standard of behavior for the staff of an entire department or specific positions, which predetermines the achievement of specific goals. Within the framework of the model, a set of competencies, their level and indicators of the "correct" behavior of employees are determined. It all depends on the intended practical application of a particular model.

It is important to understand whether the development of a competency model is needed in your company, and not blindly follow the example of others. There is no universal solution, each organization operates according to its own rules, which means that in any case, an original competency model is required. Nevertheless, experts identify several common features of an effective model:

Ease of understanding;

Simplicity in structure and description;

Relevance for each employee;

Fairness towards all participants.

You should not create models with a large set of competencies, trying to cover all the information: a complex model is difficult to implement. It is necessary that the standards of behavior included in the competencies are suitable for all users, and the intended forms of application of the model are consistent with corporate values.

Conclusion

Competences can be used to evaluate or select candidates, or they can become the basis on which the entire system of work with personnel will be built. In most cases, companies work with competencies primarily to evaluate employees, as well as in their training to increase labor efficiency, motivation, and improve quality standards. Competency-based assessment opens up a number of perspectives for a company:

Possibility to develop uniform standards of work efficiency, which, in particular, contributes to the establishment of mutual understanding between employees of different departments and levels;

The ability to identify the strengths and weaknesses of each employee and use this information for its development;

The ability to assess the compliance of employees with the required level and plan their career (for example, recommend for inclusion in the organization's personnel reserve);

The ability to change the compensation package for qualified employees who successfully pass the assessment.

In turn, employees have a better understanding of what they do, what requirements are placed on them, what qualities they need to succeed in their work, and also get the opportunity to learn about their strengths and weaknesses, overall potential and career prospects.

The effectiveness of the application of the competency model depends on the skillful use of personnel management tools. And do not forget that the formal compliance of the competency model does not compensate for poor equipment, as well as poor training, inexperience of the employee.

"HR department of a commercial organization", 2015, N 4

competere- correspond, fit) - this is the personal ability of a specialist (employee) to solve a certain class of professional tasks. Competence is also understood as formally described requirements for the personal, professional, etc. qualities of the company's employees (or for some group of employees). In this understanding, competencies are used in the assessment of personnel.

A set of competencies; the availability of knowledge and experience necessary for effective activity in a given subject area is called

Depending on the semantic volume, competencies may have levels.

Competencies without levels– a model that covers types of work with simple standards of behavior. It has one list of indicators for all competencies. Here, all behavioral indicators non-exclusively apply to all functional roles.

Competencies by levels- a model that describes a wide range of work with different requirements for their implementation. Behavioral indicators within each competence are separate lists (levels). This allows several different competencies to be presented under one heading, providing convenience for the practical use of the competency model when it is necessary to cover a wide range of functional roles. The introduction of competency levels allows for a more adequate assessment of personal competencies without complicating the structure of ideal competency profiles.

Types of competencies

There are the following types of competencies:

• Educational and cognitive competence is a set of skills and abilities of cognitive activity. Possession of the mechanisms of goal-setting, planning, analysis, reflection, self-assessment of the success of one's own activity. Possession of methods of action in non-standard situations, heuristic methods of solving problems. Possession of measuring skills, use of statistical and other methods of knowledge.

• Informational competence is the ability to independently search, analyze, select, process and transmit the necessary information.

• Communicative Competence is the ability to interact with other people, the ability to work in a group. Introduction to various social roles.

Competencies in personnel assessment

Competencies are used in companies. In this case, the set of competencies is a Competency Model that describes the qualities that personnel in a given company need in order to be successful. Can be distinguishedcorporate competencies- necessary for all employees of the company,managerial competencies- necessary for company managers (all or only a certain level), as well as special (specific) competencies necessary only for a certain category of employees (For example:sales managers

A typical mistake associated with assessing a candidate's competence is when a recruiter carefully evaluates the "can" zone and does not evaluate the "wants" zone at all. As a result, we take a person - a tested person who completed a trial task, and ... at the same time we get a sluggish, poorly performing employee. And why? Yes, he just does not want to work, his motivation does not meet the standards adopted by the company. Let's figure out what is included in the "wants" zone.
1. "Like"
Try to hire people who genuinely like most of what they can do. This is easy to check using the "three pluses and three minuses" method. For example, if a person does not like to speak in public, he will not perform well. All of us, even if we are very decent and responsible, want to quickly get rid of what we do not like. Conversely, we can be creative, we fulfill ourselves, we work like clockwork only when we enjoy our work. Letting employees do what they like is a great motivation.
2. "Benefits"
- material (money, bonuses);
- intangible (prestige, status, recognition, relationships in the team, relationships with the leader);
- vital (everything related to physical comfort, health, safety).
A good one is the motivation of the candidate, which corresponds to the capabilities of the company. Motivation in and of itself is not good or bad. If for a person the main motive is money, then this will be an excellent employee for a company that pays more than others, where it is possible to influence the salary with the help of its results. And at the same time, it will be a disgusting employee who will quickly leave if the company pays below the market average. If salaries in your company are low, but you have a great team, then hire someone for whom team relationships are important.
3. "Values"
The candidate's values ​​should not conflict with the values ​​of the company. Otherwise, conflict is inevitable. Always keep this in mind when applying for a job.

Competence Model

Competence Modelis a set of competencies necessary for the successful performance of this work in this organization. The competency model can include a wide variety of knowledge, skills, abilities and individual personal characteristics. The main requirement for them is that they must be described in the form of indicators of behavior.

Competency model development includes:
1. Preparatory stage (setting goals and objectives of the project, project planning, creating a team to collect and analyze information).
2. Direct development of a competency model.
selection of performance criteria;
determination of the criterion sample;
choice of specific analysis technique;
collection of information;
analysis of information and design of a competency model;
checking the validity of the draft competency profile.
3. Launching the model into work.
Ways to develop a competency model or profile:
1. Interview to obtain behavioral examples
The behavioral case study method of interviewing allows you to determine the competencies necessary for high-quality performance of work. By asking people to focus on the critical situations they encounter at work, you can collect data on the most important competencies. Respondents tell vivid short stories about how they coped with the most difficult, most important areas of their work and at the same time showed the competencies necessary to carry out this work.
2. Work with a group of experts
The role of experts can be managers, best employees or third-party experts. A group of experts in the process of discussion determines the personal characteristics of employees necessary to perform work at the minimum acceptable and highest levels.
3. Libraries of competencies
The use of competency libraries ensures the collection of a large amount of data for statistical analysis in a short time. However, the data of such libraries and collections is limited, and therefore, when using them, competencies that were not included in the collection by its compilers are often missed. Libraries do not provide an opportunity to identify new competencies or provide detailed information about the nuances of competencies. Competency libraries are often used as an auxiliary source of information that allows you to supplement the created competency profile with new competencies that could not be fixed at other stages of the profile development.
4. Method of repertory grids
The head organizes employees into groups according to some of the signs, which he himself defines as an important characteristic of the successful completion of work. Thus, qualities are revealed that are inherent only in high-performing employees.
5. Analysis of the work task
Employees or supervisors list in great detail each task, function, or action that an employee performs while doing work. This method provides very detailed job descriptions, useful for analyzing some of the competencies when developing a competency profile. For example, a specification of the terms of reference required for a job can be used to establish the cognitive skills required for a job.
6. Direct observation
Employees performing work tasks are observed with a written record of the behavior indicators that they demonstrate when performing these tasks. This is a good way to identify or test the competencies proposed by expert groups in reviews or case study interviews. However, this method is expensive and inefficient for the initial collection of behavioral examples.