How Do We Identify the Core Skills and Competencies Required for Success in Your Organization?
Written by Salary.com Staff
April 28, 2023
It can be tricky for some organizations to know how they can identify the core skills and core competencies required for success. Some core skills and core competencies are unique to your organization, while others will be needed by many companies. As this is the case, it is important to identify which ones matter most to you.
Core skills and core competencies are central to your hiring practices. They enable your organization to create a strong team who will be the foundation for your success. By the end of this article, you’ll know how to identify the core skills and core competencies required for success in your organization.
Understanding Your Organization’s Goals
The first step in finding out which core skills and core competencies are required for success is to understand your organization’s goals. Organizations want to create an environment where they create value for customers and stakeholders. It is necessary to have the right team of employees to achieve this.
It is important to focus on individual job descriptions, but it is also vital to align what you need with the overall vision of your organization. This can help you see which core skills and core competencies are most beneficial. As well as this, it can save your organization money by reducing employee turnover and the need for training as you can hire the right person for the job from the start.
For example, one of your organization’s goals could be to increase customer satisfaction. If this is the case, you will want to employ people with strong problem-solving and communication skills. Doing this effectively can help you narrow down the list of potential core skills and core competencies that your organization should focus on.
If you are struggling, start by creating a list of key performance indicators (KPIs) that map back to your business goals. These KPIs will inform you how to measure success. Working back from these KPIs should enable you to see which competencies and skills are required to meet these goals.
Identify Your Core Skills and Core Competencies
Before looking at how to identify your core skills and core competencies, let’s take a look at some definitions. Skills are specific abilities you need to perform a job successfully. Competencies are the level of a person’s knowledge, behaviors, and abilities that enable them to be successful in a specific position.
When identifying the core skills and core competencies required for success in your organization, you need to ask some questions. What kind of performance do you need from your employees? What do you expect them to offer you on a daily basis?
You can break down the answers to these questions into skills and competencies. Think about how these answers align with your overall organizational goals, as well as individual job descriptions. Uncover as many skills and competencies as you can that will contribute to your organization being successful.
When building this list, you can begin to diagnose the core skills and core competencies that are necessary for success. You should be able to see which ones stand out amongst the rest. You can label these as your organization’s core skills and core competencies.
When you’re doing this, you need to be aware that these may not remain as your core skills and core competencies as these may change over time. Conduct a regular review of any changes that may arise over time. Fail to do this and you may find that your efforts are misguided.
As well as this, don’t forget to factor in external trends. These may include industry developments or technology advancements. Doing this effectively can help sustain your organization’s success in the long run.
Measuring Your Employees’ Performance to Find Core Skills and Core Competencies
Measuring your employee’s performance is another effective way of identifying core skills and core competencies. Tracking this can help you see what your employees spent most of their time doing. Here are some things to look for:
You can use productivity metrics to track efficiency in your organization. For example, the number of tasks completed, employee attendance, and customer service scores. Tracking metrics such as these can help identify which core skills and core competencies your organization values most.
Using assessments, you can measure an employee’s job knowledge or competency within their role. You can choose to create tests of different varieties and different depths depending on the size of your organization. Draft up questions that are relevant to your organization’s practices to see which skills and competencies are most important to your employees.
If your organization provides a product or service, you can collect customer satisfaction surveys to measure employee performance. Questions can range from quality of service to if they would recommend the product or service to anyone else. Be sure to measure the results if you choose this option.
Conclusion
Identifying and cultivating the core skills and core competencies needed for success in your organization can take some effort, but it’s worth it. Understanding and aligning your organization’s values and goals with core skills and core competencies can give your organization the best chance of success. When doing this, however, be proactive and you will build a team that has the right people with the right skills and competencies in place.
Transform Your Talent Management How adopting a Skills & Competency Model will help fill the skills gap, reduce turnover, and improve employee retention. https://www2.salary.com/l/250572/2023-01-04/2vpdn3y/250572/1672940586n6ZkuI2z/FINAL_Skills___Comp._Whitepaper_Edit_010523.pdf
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