A competency model is a framework for organizing a collection of observable skills, knowledge, and personal attributess that impact the quality of work that people do. It describes what people need to know and be able to do in order to execute on their responsibilities effectively. It can be developed for a job, job groups, organisation, or industry. Competency models are the foundation for important human resource functions such as recruitment and hiring, training and development, and performance management.
When done right, competency models enable an organization to align employees’ performance with the overall business strategy. If the strategy is the “what” for the organization, the competency model describes “how” employees should execute in order to deliver on the strategy. And the impact is cumulative across the organization – the most effective competency models are designed and implemented with the intent not only to raise individual performance results, but also to increase the levels of proficiency throughout the enterprise.