Competencies - The Essential Evil

A reader yesterday mailed me asking me what roles competencies play and how important they are in the current environment.
Good Question Sanjeev, your question got me thinking on two lines

1. What have organizations done to implement competency models ?
2. Have they done it correctly and how best they are using it ?

First of all competencies in itself is a very intricate subject, just like Balanced Score Cards (something i would be talking about soon in my next posts)
First for the uninitiated, a very simple definition of competencies is

Competencies are Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes that define a successful behaviour at Workplace.

So there are three elements (KSA), Successful, behaviour which can define what a competency is. Organizations face a tough challenge defining competencies on their own. Once they have done that, the next big issue is identifying and quantifying those successful behaviours and rating them.
Once an organization tries to achieve this, the next challenge lies with identifying and rating these behaviours with the individuals who occupy these positions. So for ex : If there are 10 managers, each of them has to be rated on these behaviours. QUITE A TASK !!!!
Why then are competencies at all important ?
Well if you look at the Talent issues that organizations face today, competencies form an essesntial toolset to identify, deploy, develop and retain talent.
How do organizations go about setting a competency based system. Some of the essentials are

1. Begin Small - Its a change in the way you measure, first take a few jobs. Set up the model for them and then take it to other jobs.

2. Have your own structure - Many versions exist, Competency tree, competency unit, competency, behaviours. Choose the one that best suits your requirements.

3. Use your own definitions - Definitions of behaviours are important as they need to be consistent with the business of the organization.

4. Use a suitable scale - What works good for others may not be good for you, chose your own scale - Weighted, rating, evaluation.

5. Strike a balance between Soft Skills and Job related skills - You would definitely want the best guy in your organization to have a combination of both.

Lastly, do seek professional help. Competency Management is a domain area where lot of HR Consulting folks are doing a lot of work. Its best to use their skills than venture onto a trip of your own.