COMPETENCY MODEL:

Competency model is a set of competencies that include the key behaviors required for excellent performance in a particular role.

DESIGN DECISION

In term of grand design, competency model should be guided by firm’s strategy which is shaped by four factors: vision & mission, stakeholder requirements, market realities and core capabilities of the firm.
In a more technical design, competency model development should be determined in the process of design decision. In this stage, one should discuss the design of the model with clients, based on their specific needs and expected outcomes of the competency model.
The following are some factors that need to be considered in deciding the design of the competency model.

1.CONTEXT:

Competencies are actually context bound. They answer the question ‘What does a superior performer look like in a specific setting?’ In other words, effective competencies are linked to a particular organizational target or goal. Therefore, depending on the context, the design of models may be geared toward:
• the total organization (e.g., core competencies or values)
• an entire function (e.g., finance, human resources)
• a specific role (e.g., HR generalist)
• a specific job (e.g., compensation analyst)

2.LEVEL OF ORIENTATION:

This factor deals with the level of orientation of the model: will the model reflect future or current job requirements. The degree of future orientation depends on how the organization plans to apply the model and the pace and nature of changes occurring within the organization. If an organization decides that their model will be based on future requirements, they might use future performance needs (i.e., benchmark data; best practices) to create competencies.

3.LEVEL OF COMPLEXITY:

Two other critical factors should be considered in developing competencies the length of models and the degree of complexity and detail described in behavioral indicators. Frequently, competency initiatives fail because models are too long and too detailed or because organizations spend too much time and too many resources researching and editing behaviors. Consequently, organizations fail to provide a simple framework to users in a timely manner. Models that work best follow the 80-20 rule. They provide the 20% of behaviors that drive 80% of excellent performance.

4.THE MODEL SHOULD BE LINKED TO STRATEGY:

Effective competency models support and contribute to the company's and the function's strategy and goals. For instance, if a goal of the company is to transcend functional barriers, the model needs to describe the behaviors that demonstrate that competency. Likewise, if a goal is ensuring that all employees communicate and work together effectively, the model should describe the behaviors that demonstrate that competency.

5.THE MODEL SHOULD BE COMPANY SPECIFIC:

Unlike many job descriptions, competency models are not easily transferable among companies. Competencies needed for a company are determined by the company's unique characteristics, such as culture, strategy, size, and industry. This is true even of the competencies needed for a position common to many companies, such as the job of a financial analyst. The competencies required of a financial analyst at an automobile manufacturer are vastly different from those required of a financial analyst at a health care company, for instance.

6.THE DEVELOPED MODEL SHOULD BE FLEXIBLE:

A good competency model functions as a performance management tool. It provides enough detail to distinguish between employees who are operating at different levels of proficiency. It also helps a company articulate why an employee is at the current level and the competencies needed to advance. In this sense, a competency model is prescriptive, yet it must not be too binding. It needs to be flexible enough to accommodate differing approaches to success, simple enough to be easily understood, and readily adaptable to changing business environments.

7.THE MODEL SHOULD BE FUTURE-ORIENTED:

Competency models with a forward-looking perspective stimulate organizational change. Rather than defining competencies in the context of "tasks," or how a job has traditionally been carried out, useful competencies articulate how the job is evolving and will best be performed in the future. Not only does this approach increase a model's shelf life, it ensures that employees have enough time to understand what the required competencies are and to develop them.