COMPETENCY MAPPING

DEFINITION:

According to Boyatzis(1982) A capacity that exists in a person that leads to behavior that meets the job demands within parameters of organizational environment, and that, in turn brings about desired results

competency mapping examines two areas: emotional intelligence and strengths of the individual in areas like team structure, leadership and decisionmaking

THE STEPS INVOLVED IN COMPETENCY MAPPING WITH AN END RESULT OF JOB EVALUATION INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

1) Conduct a job analysis). The primary goal is to gather from incumbents what they feel are the key behaviors necessary to perform their respective jobs. 2) A sample of a competency based job description generated. 3) The competencies of the respective job description become the factors for assessment on the performance evaluation. 4) additional development or training. This will help you focus your training needs on the goals of the position and company and help your employees develop toward the ultimate success of the organization.

HCL technologies, has a successful competency-based HR system. Recruitment, training, job rotation, succession planning and promotions-all are defined by competency mapping Competencies are enhanced through training and job rotation. When the company started competency mapping the whole process took eight months for six roles and two variations. Eventually, 16-18 profiles were worked out

The general steps involved in this process can be described as follows: Every employee is asked to fill up a questionnaire that asks them what they are doing and what skills and abilities are needed to have to perform it well. Having discovered the similarities in the questionnaires, a competency based job description is crafted and presented to the personnel department for their agreement and additions, if required. The final step involves mapping of an employee's abilities to the benchmarks and deciding his future accordingly.

BENEFITS OF USING COMPETENCY MODEL There are some useful benefits of using competency model for the company, managers, and employees as well. FOR THE COMPANY Reinforce corporate strategy, culture, and vision.

Establish expectations for performance excellence, resulting in a systematic approach to professional development, improved job satisfaction, and better employee retention. Increase the effectiveness of training and professional development programs by linking them to the success criteria (i.e., behavioral standards of excellence). Provide a common framework and language for discussing how to implement and communicate key strategies. Provide a common understanding of the scope and requirements of a specific role. Provide common, organization-wide standards for career levels that enable employees to move across business boundaries.

FOR MANAGERS:

Identify performance criteria to improve the accuracy and ease of the hiring and selection process. Provide more objective performance standards. Clarify standards of excellence for easier communication of performance expectations to direct reports. Provide a clear foundation for dialogue to occur between the manager and employee about performance, development, and career-related issues.

FOR EMPLOYEES:

Identify the success criteria (i.e., behavioral standards of performance excellence) required to be successful in their role. Support a more specific and objective assessment of their strengths and specify targeted areas for professional development. Provide development tools and methods for enhancing their skills.

Article: Competency mapping not only acts as a useful tool for the organisation but also aids an individual's competency.

It has been a general observation that hard work, sincerity, knowledge, intelligence alone does not make a person a star performer in his/her profession. There are other factors that help an individual excel in his job. Good managers are generally aware about different qualities a person must possess to do a job effectively, and they make use of their knowledge to select and train their subordinates. Organisational psychologists have refined this understanding and converted it into a structural and formal process called Competency Mapping. It has emerged as one of the most powerful tools aiding the improvement for the HR professionals in finding the right employee for a job and development of the employed person in doing the assigned job effectively. Thus, Competency Mapping can be defined as a process through which one assesses and determines one's strengths as an individual worker and in some cases, as part of an organisation.

Generally speaking, competency mapping examines two areas: emotional intelligence and strengths of the individual in areas like team structure, leadership and decision-making. Large organisations frequently employ some form of competency mapping to understand how to most effectively employ the competencies of strengths of workers. Competency-based HR is considered the best HR. In India, however, this process has gained force only during the last couple of years. Companies like Zensar Technologies and L&T InfoTech follow competency mapping. Other big companies like TCS, HCL Technologies, SBI, Idea Cellular, Exide Industries, Birla Cellulosic, etc. have got their employees trained in competency mapping course but it remains unclear if they strictly follow the line. According to Lynette D'Silva, manager-HR, learning & development, Zensar Technologies, "Competency mapping helps identify the success criteria required for individuals to be successful in their roles.

Competency mapping not only acts as a useful tool for the organisation but also aids an individual's competency. But, organisations strictly following the process of competency mapping do face some hurdles in achieving overall efficiency. Firstly, the organisations do the ultimate mistake of realising the map as the desired end result. The map is nothing but a colossal waste of time and money without proper analysis. Secondly, the mission must be to sustain a knowledge flow that is more profitable to the organisation. If the organisation is already rich beyond wildest dreams then the mission should be to measure against the current "ideal" knowledge flow. Lastly, incorrect assessments of results lead to flawed decisions and cause a big damage to the concern. Competency mapping tailored to an organisation is necessary to train, define and retain talent in a company. As a result of competency mapping, all the HR processes like talent induction, appraisals and training yield much better results.