Competency mapping in the field of Human Resources (HR) refers to a process through which the skills, knowledge, abilities, and attributes of an employee (or potential employee) are identified and mapped against the requirements of a specific job role or position.
Here are some objectives of competency mapping:
Find out how to map competencies of employees
This is the first step where the HR team identifies the key responsibilities and tasks associated with a particular job role. You can do that by looking at competitors and talking to managers of the role.
After understanding the job requirements, the competencies (skills, knowledge, behavior, attributes) required to perform the job efficiently are identified.
In this step, an organization might develop a standardized competency framework, which lists all competencies required across different roles in the organization. This can be used to set OKRs or any method of performance evaluation.
Employees or candidates are assessed based on the identified competencies. Various tools can be used for this, including assessment centers, assignments, interviews, psychometric tests, 360-degree feedback, and more.
After the assessment, employees or candidates' competencies are mapped against the required competencies for the job role. This helps in identifying gaps, scope and strengths.
If competency gaps are identified, training and development programs are designed to bridge those gaps, enabling employees to perform their roles efficiently. This is done in collaboration with Learning and Development team or managers.
Competency mapping can also be integrated with performance appraisal systems, helping managers evaluate employee performance against the established competency benchmarks. This also helps managers see the growth of individuals over time towards meeting the competency requirements.
Read: Guide to effective performance management
By understanding the competencies of employees at various levels, organizations can plan for future leadership roles and positions, ensuring a smooth transition and reducing risks associated with key position vacancies.
As business environments change, job roles might evolve. It's essential to periodically review and update the competency framework to ensure its relevance.
You can use more than one method to perform competency mapping as one method may be sufficient to eliminate bias and get concrete results. Here are some commonly used methods:
Description: Involves a detailed examination of job roles to determine the required tasks, responsibilities, skills, outcomes, and attributes.
Tools & Techniques: Structured interviews, questionnaires, observation, and functional job descriptions.
Description: Involves gathering feedback about an individual's performance and behavior from multiple sources – peers, supervisors, subordinates, and self.
Tools & Techniques: Customized questionnaires, online feedback tools, and facilitated sessions.
Description: A collection of various exercises designed to simulate the activities employees would encounter in a particular job. These exercises help assess the competencies required for that job.
Tools & Techniques: Role-plays, in-basket exercises, group discussions, and situational judgment tests.
Description: An in-depth interview technique where the interviewee is asked to describe specific events or situations in their career where they exhibited particular behaviors.
Tools & Techniques: Open-ended, behavior-focused questions.
Description: Standardized tests that measure an individual's aptitude, personality traits, and cognitive abilities.
Tools & Techniques: Personality inventories, aptitude tests, and cognitive ability tests.
Description: Focuses on specific incidents that led to particularly effective or ineffective job performance. These incidents are then analyzed to determine the underlying competencies.
Tools & Techniques: Incident logs, structured interviews.
Description: Direct assessment of an individual's technical or functional skills required for a job role.
Tools & Techniques: Practical tests, skill demonstrations, technical questionnaires.
Description: Direct observation of employees while they perform their roles.
Tools & Techniques: Checklists, structured observation guides.
Description: Individuals assess their own competencies based on their perception of their strengths and areas of improvement.
Tools & Techniques: Self-assessment questionnaires, reflection journals.
Description: Discussions among experts or focus groups to derive and validate competencies for specific roles.
Tools & Techniques: Structured group discussions, Delphi method.
Here is an example of competency mapping for a specific skill – Leadership.
Skill: Leadership
Definition: Team Leadership refers to the ability of an individual to guide, inspire, influence, and manage a group of people to achieve common goals and tasks effectively.
Skill: Problem solving in the engineering team
Definition: Problem Solving refers to the ability of an individual to identify, analyze, and find solutions to complex challenges or issues in software development.
Here are some tools that are commonly used for competency mapping in India
To hire, train and evaluate employee performance – these are the main purposes of competency mapping in a company.
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