Example of Process for Building One Job Competency Model

The steps typically required for a Workitect consultant to build a competency model are:  

Step 1. Kick Off/Planning Meeting

This is a meeting with the organization’s project team.  The purpose of the meeting is to:

• Help the team gain understanding of the competency modeling process, applications and payoffs.
• Determine the modeling approach (single job, one-size-fits-all, or multiple jobs) and number of models. Discuss and prioritize desired applications (performance management, selection, training and development, succession planning, etc.). Complete planning worksheet.
• Discuss details of carrying out each step of the modeling process, plan communications to people who will participate in the process, establish accountabilities, and agree on a schedule. An immediate step will be to plan the resource panel.

 Step 2. Hold Expert/Resource Panel 

A resource panel comprised of five competent incumbents of the target position, three of their supervisors, and other interested stakeholders selected by the project team, will be convened for a 4-6 hour session. The purposes of the meeting are to explain the need for the model and how it will be used, to gather information that will be used in developing the model, and to identify superior performing incumbents for interviews. The agenda for the resource panel will include:

• Explaining the goals of the model building session

• Conducting a “future scan” to identify and discuss forces for change, that may impact the position (e.g., changes in the industry and marketplace, regulatory changes, changes occurring within the organization).

• Identifying 4-7 main responsibilities for the position

• Identifying for each main responsibility:

- the key tasks

- performance indicators or measures

- skill/knowledge requirements

• Reviewing and rating the importance of a set of 34 generic competencies identified on the basis of previous research, for management, professional, technical, and sales jobs.

Step 3. Conduct Behavioral Event & Job Analysis Interviews

a) We conduct two-four 60-minute job analysis interviews with managers.  The objective of these interviews is to understand the job and what makes people successful or unsuccessful from the bosses’ perspective.  

b) We conduct four-five 90 minute behavioral/key event interviews with superior-performers in the target position. These individuals should be carefully selected, based on nominations from multiple sources. The interviewer asks the person to describe several successful events and one or two events in which the person encountered problems. For each event, the interviewer asks how the person became involved and what he/she did, thought and said at key points along the way. These confidential interviews are tape-recorded. The chief value of the interviews is in identifying specific behaviors associated with superior performance. These specific behaviors may be unique to the role and describe what superior performers do to achieve outstanding results.

Step 4. Analyze Interviews and Observations

This step involves analyzing transcripts of the interviews, and identifying behaviors and themes associated with effectiveness.

Step 5. Prepare Job Model

We integrate data from the resource panel and from analysis of the interviews to prepare a draft job model. Note that this job model will include more than a set of competencies with definitions and behaviors; the full job model will include:

Main responsibilities of the position

For each responsibility:

- Key tasks

- Performance indicators and measures

- Skill/Knowledge requirements

Competencies needed for superior performance

For each competency:

-       A definition

-       Specific behaviors demonstrated by superior performers

Step 6. Review and Revise Model, and Plan Applications

A key step in validating the model is to review it with an appropriate group of the organization’s staff such as the project team.  At a two-four hour meeting, we will review the job model and agree on any needed changes.  (After the meeting we will revise the job model as needed.) 

Discuss and plan steps to apply the model to various HR processes (performance management, selection, training and development, succession planning, etc.).