Integrating HR &

Talent Management
Processes
Using Competency
Assessment
Technology
to Attract, Develop,
and Retain Talent

Succession
Planning

Competencies
Human Critical Assessment
Resource characteristics that And
Development cause or predict
outstanding Selection
performance

Performance
Management

©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 Contents
Background....................................................................................... 3

What Are Competencies..................................................................... 3

Competency Levels............................................................................. 3

Using the Competency Process to Drive Change................................. 4

Creating an Integrated Talent Management System............................ 4

Benefits of an Integrated Human Resource System............................. 5

How to Develop Competency Models................................................. 5

Designing a Model Building Process Tailored to Your Needs............... 7

Application: Succession Planning........................................................ 7

Application: Recruitment and Selection............................................... 7

Application: Performance Management.............................................. 8

Application: Training.......................................................................... 9

Published by:
Workitect, Inc.
(800) 870-9490
www.workitect.com

©2004, Workitect, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be .
reproduced by any means without the permission in writing .

2 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 Background The More Complex the Job…
Workitect, Inc. provides research-based human resource
assessment and development consulting .
services to help organizations to improve their performance
Competencies

Relative Importance
and to attract, develop, and retain talent.
Workitect uses a unique technology called “job
competency assessment,” which focuses on identification
of the competencies of superior performers in key jobs in a
client’s organization. The best people in .
positions to make the most difference provide the best
templates for assessment and development of incumbents Task Mastery
or candidates in similar positions. Emphasis on a firm’s most
important job families offers the highest potential return to Simple Difficult
the firm. Job Complexity
Workitect undertakes projects with a view to helping
clients develop an integrated Talent Management System …The More Important the Competencies
(ITMS). In brief, this means working to ensure that Workitect’s
work fits with other parts of a client’s HR system. Competency Levels
Workitect works to transfer its competency assessment Job competencies do not discriminate on the basis of race or
technology to clients’ HR professionals to ensure sex (Austin, et al., 1986). To fully understand the capability
implementation of programs recommended and increase the that a person must bring to a job, we distinguish between the
firm’s long-term capabilities. various levels and types of competencies. These distinctions
have implications for selection, assessment, and development
What Are Competencies?
systems and programs. They also affect how each type of
Over the past 15 years, Workitect has worked with numerous competency is measured or assessed.
client organizations to create competency models for various Different types of competencies predict the ability
positions. In effect, these models are the “blueprints” for to demonstrate job behaviors. For example, a planning
outstanding performance – both in thought and action – in competency predicts specific actions such as setting goals,
any given job. assessing risks, and developing a sequence of actions to reach
Workitect uses Job Competence Assessment (JCA) to a goal. An influence competency .
create “job blueprints.” This research technique . predicts specific actions such as having an impact on others,
systematically identifies the critical characteristics . convincing them to perform certain activities, and inspiring
that cause or predict outstanding job performance. them to work toward organizational objectives.
Competencies include personal characteristics, . Competencies exist at various levels. As shown in the
motives, self-concept, knowledge, and behavioral skills. The graph below, skills and knowledge exist at the behavioral
more complex the job, the more important the competencies. or outermost level; social role and self-image exist at an
intermediate level; and motives and traits exist at the deepest,
or core, level.

SKILL

SOCIAL ROLE

TRAIT
MOTIVE

SELF-IMAGE

KNOWLEDGE
MOST MOST
EASILY DIFFICULT
DEVELOPED TO DEVELOP

3 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 Examples of competency levels are as follows: from what had been important in the past. In fact, the process
of developing competency models may indirectly force the
Behavioral
organization to think through its strategy.
• Skills: An individual’s ability to do something well. Example: In order to carry out the strategy, it then becomes critical
Demonstrating a product. to build human resource support systems that enable the
• Knowledge: Usable information that an individual has organization to:
in a particular area. Example: In-depth information about • assess the competencies of current employees,
competitors.
• fill positions with people possessing the required
Self-concept: Attitudes And Values competencies,
• Self-Image: An individual’s perception of his or her identity. • reward employees who meet job goals and develop
Example: Seeing oneself as a “professional” (individual competencies, and
contributor) or a “manager.”
• provide training and development experiences that build the
• Occupational Preference: The work an individual values and key competencies.
enjoys. Example: working with people versus things.
Creating an Integrated Talent Management System
Personal Characteristics
An Integrated Talent Management System is a comprehensive
• Traits: A typical way of behaving. Example: Being a good set of human resource functions and programs which:
listener.
• Share a common architecture or “language”; and
• Motive: Natural and constant thoughts in a particular
• Are organized to complement and reinforce one another.
area that determine outward behavior. Example: Wanting
to influence the behavior of others for the good of the This integration of HR information systems and programs
organization. contrasts with the typical system in which functions do not
share a common language or complement one another:
Workitect’s competency models identify competency types and
e.g., in which selection decisions are made on one set of
levels for the job being assessed.
criteria, performance is appraised on a second set of criteria,
“Core” motive and trait competencies are hard to develop;
the training function teaches a third set of skills, etc. An
it is most cost-effective to select for these characteristics.
integrated use of the competency assessment process is
Knowledge and skill competencies are relatively easy to
shown below.
develop; training is most cost-effective for these abilities. Self
concept, attitude, and value competencies can be changed,
albeit with more time and difficulty; these attributes are most
cost effectively addressed by training with developmental job Integrated Uses Of
assignment. Job Competency Assessment
Using the Competency Process to Drive Change
Competencies which differentiate superior from average HOW SHOULD WHAT ARE
JOBS BE VALUED? APPROPRIATE
performance (differentiating competencies) and are hard to PERFORMANCE
STANDARDS?
develop are most important for selection. Competencies more
Performance
easily developed (minimal competencies) are less important for Compensation Appraisal
selection.
Minimal and differentiating competencies for a given JOB
job provide a template for personnel selection, succession COMPETENCY Selection

planning, performance appraisal, and development.

The process of identifying job requirements and required Development
Job HOW SHOULD
competencies means that the organization must first be clear EMPLOYEES BE
IDENTIFIED?
about its short and long range direction. Once the direction
is clear, it is important to determine the competencies that WHAT ARE THE
RELEVANT DEVELOPMENT
HOW SHOULD
JOBS BE STRUCTURED?
will be key to carrying out the organization’s strategy and & TRAINING REQUIREMENTS?

reaching its long range goals. These competencies may differ

4 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 Job Elements: in some organizations), a competency-based integrated
The “nucleus” of an ITMS is a set of core data about: human resource system provides a supportive linkage to the
organization’s strategic direction. Selecting and developing
• Purpose
competent people produces a competent organization. A
• Content: tasks, responsibilities, and functions competent organization is more likely to survive in a highly
• Performance: standards and measures competitive global economy.

• Measurement: points for compensation • Cost Savings/Increased Productivity: Separate functions do

not develop and maintain duplicate (and often competing)
• Competency requirements: the skills and characteristics that data bases, training and administrative overhead.
predict effective and superior performance in the job
• Empowered Management: The tools and language of HR
• Employee competencies: the skills and characteristics management are clearly defined and communicated; by
individuals bring to their jobs understanding more of it, managers use more of it.
Benefits of an Integrated Human Resource System • Employee Participation and Reinforcement: Employees
Job elements are determined by a firm’s strategy and structure participate in the studies that define selection, compensation,
(design). Job element variables in turn drive the firm’s appraisal, and development criteria; each and every employee
human resource planning and human resource management contact with the HR system consistently communicates and
functions: recruitment, selection and placement, performance reinforces these criteria.
appraisal, development, succession planning, and support How To Develop Competency Models
activities. We suggest focusing on one critical job family – to be
Development of an Integrated Talent Management System identified by the company – and utilizing this as a pilot
usually begins with two initial steps: program. We would also demonstrate how to replicate this for
1. Organization Strategy: other job families and develop a long-range implementation
Definition of success criteria for the firm, at present and over plan.
the next 5-10 years, and plans for how the firm will attain A Workitect Job Competence Assessment consists of the
its goals. For example, a firm may project significant amount following steps.
of future growth — and this growth is dependent on the 1. Define Performance Effectiveness Criteria. To identify
firm’s ability to attract, develop and retain good people in key superior job incumbents, it is first necessary to define
positions. measures of performance effectiveness in a given job. Ideal
criteria are “hard” outcome measures such as sales or
2. Organization and Job Design: productivity data. In the absence of such criteria, supervisor,
Definition of how the firm will organize itself to carry out its peer (where peers have an opportunity to observe one
plans, with emphasis on identifying critical jobs: the value- another’s performance), subordinate and/or customer ratings
added “make or break” positions and people which will make can be used.
the biggest difference in whether the firm succeeds or fails. 2. Identify A Criterion Sample. Job incumbents who are
Human resource management is most cost-effective when it consistently rated superior on a number of different
focuses on these jobs. performance criteria provide a “template” standard for
Steps 1 and 2 are usually performed by reviewing a firm’s comparison analysis with a sample of average performers in
business plans and interviewing its leadership. In situations the following steps of the research process.
where detailed strategic and human resource plans already
exist, Workitect will collect the data necessary during an initial Criterion samples for job families should include superior and
project planning meeting. average performers at key ascension levels, e.g., from Trainee
to Branch Manager:
• Enabler of Cultural Change and Organizational
Improvement: Rather than being a barrier to change (as is
the perception of human resource systems and functions

5 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 Level Superior Average cognitive style, e.g., achievement motivation or convergent-
thinking ability. (Studies by Winter (1981) and Boyatzis
1. Trainee 4 2 (1982) indicate that BEI protocols can be scored as projective
2. 4 2 instruments with high inter-rater reliability (r=.8 to .9), and
that competencies coded from such interviews surpass those
3. 4 2 of regular projective tests in predictive validity (Winter, 1981).
4. Branch Manager 4 2 Properly conducted, the BEI makes interview-protocol data
usable as a psychometric test.)
Totals 16 8 BEI protocols also provide a wealth of data for the
3. Expert Panels. Managers and knowledgeable employees identification of competencies and very specific descriptions
are asked to identify for key jobs the career paths which of critical job behaviors in specific situations. Interviewees’
typically lead to the job, and the competency requirements career paths can be mapped and it can be determined when,
(behaviors and characteristics) employees need to perform at where, and how they acquired key competencies. A significant
an adequate or “threshold” level, and at a superior level in by-product of these interviews is the generation of numerous
the job. situation and problem narratives that can be used to develop
Use of expert panels to define job elements offers a highly relevant training materials, e. g., case studies, role
number of benefits. Panels collect much valuable data quickly plays, and simulations.
and efficiently. Participation in panel sessions educates panel Advantages of the BEI method include: Empirical
members in HR assessment methods and variables, and identification of competencies beyond or different from those
through involvement develops consensus and support for generated by panels. Precision about what competencies are
overall project findings and recommendations. and how they are expressed in specific jobs and organizations
4. Job Competency Requirements Survey (JCRS): A (e.g., not only “use of influence” but examples of how
representative sample of managers and employees in the influence is used to deal with specific job situations).
target jobs are asked to complete a survey on competencies 6. Thematic Analysis and Development of a “Competency
required for threshold and superior performance in the job. Model” for the Job: Data from the expert panels, surveys,
Surveys permit collection of sufficient data to do statistical expert system, and BEIs are content-analyzed to identify
analysis and have the added value of broad employee behaviors and personality characteristics that distinguish
participation, which builds support for survey findings. superior from average job incumbents. Two or more analysts
(one from Workitect, one or more from the client company)
5. Behavioral Event Interviews: Twenty-four individuals examine the data and identify candidate competencies
(sixteen superior and eight average incumbents from entry and that are present or absent in superior as compared with
mid-career jobs in the designated job family) are interviewed average performers. These elements are refined until they
using the BEI technique to assess competencies. The BEI asks can be recognized with acceptable inter-rater reliability. A
interviewees to: detailed competency dictionary and codebook is prepared to
A. Identify the most critical situations they have encountered guide empirical coding of interview, assessment center, or
in their jobs and to describe these . other operant data from job incumbents or candidates. This
situations in considerable narrative detail: dictionary/codebook provides the competency model for the
job.
• What led up to the situation?
The output of the Job Analysis step will be comprehensive
• Who was involved? Job Competency Models, which include:
• What did the interviewee think about, feel, and want to A. Purpose and content of the job: tasks, responsibilities and
accomplish in dealing with the situation? performance measures for the job rated as to level, frequency,
and importance in a form which can be used to compare the
• What did he or she actually do?
job’s content with other jobs.
• What was the outcome of the incident? B. Competency requirements: the skills and characteristics
B. Identify the key developmental steps and experiences in required for adequate and superior performance in the job.
their careers which led to their current job.
The BEI includes thematic apperception test probes,
which elicit data about the interviewee’s personality and

6 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 C. Career paths for the job, with focus on when, . • Development planning forms;
where, and how key competencies for the jobs are developed.
• A workshop on development planning, during which
Designing a Model Building Process Tailored to your participants receive competency feedback and training on
Needs development planning;
Where appropriate, other sources of data can be used to • A developmental assessment center, where participants
create a competency model. These include: engage in assessment activities such as a case analysis and
• Interviews with people in similar jobs in other oral interview, an in-basket, role plays, a leaderless group
companies. discussion, etc., and also receive training in development
• Interviews with subordinates, supervisors or customers of planning.
persons in the target job.
• Focus groups of job incumbents. Application: Assessment and Selection
• Review of competency models of similar jobs in other Competency-based recruiting systems usually focus on
organizations. screening methods used to winnow a small number of strong
• Literature searches. candidates from large numbers of applicants quickly and
A model can often be built quickly and at low cost efficiently. Assessing recruits involves special challenges, e.g.,
through interviews with superior performers, a panel session recruiters must screen many applicants a short period of time
with managers and incumbents, and/or a focus group of job (30-minute interviews), applicants straight from college may
incumbents. Another consideration is that with re-engineering, have little work experience on which to base judgments.
new jobs are being created for which there are few, if any, Competency-based recruiting systems developed by
precedents. This is another reason to design a model building Workitect, therefore, stress identification of four to ten core
process that meets the specific needs of each client. competencies that meet the following criteria:

Application: A. Competencies that applicants will have had the opportunity

to develop and demonstrate in their lives to date, e.g.,
Succession Planning initiative.
The objective is to provide senior management with a system B. Competencies that are likely to predict candidates’ long-
for providing and identifying a pool of ready replacements for run career success and which are hard to develop through
key jobs, and to provide professionals with a clearly defined employer training or job experience, e.g., such master
career path and a process to optimize their advancement. competencies as Achievement motivation that are more cost-
We will work with the client organization to develop and effective to select for than to develop.
implement these systems. Key components can include:
C. Competencies that can be reliably assessed using a short,
• Detailed career paths with key job steps and profiles; targeted Behavioral Event Interview developed for this
• A process to identify ready replacements for next level jobs; purpose.
• Development-rotational and temporary assignments, tasks, The underlying principal of the BEI method is that the best
and training; predictor of what people will do is what they have done in the
most similar, critical experiences in their lives. The BEI asks
• Communication packages for management and
interviewees to identify the most critical situations they have
professionals;
encountered in their jobs or lives and describe these situations
• Development of a 360° feedback tool based on the in some narrative detail: what led up to the situation; who
competency model; was involved in it; what the interviewee thought about, felt,
• A resource guide that participants and their managers can and wanted to accomplish in dealing with the situation; what
use to guide development planning; he or she actually did; and the outcome of the incident.
BEI responses can be coded for the presence or absence
• Questions to guide participants through analysis of their of interviewee competencies with high inter-rater reliability
assessment data and ultimately to a development plan; and predictive validity. For example, if “collaborative team
leadership” is a competency a company is looking for,
interviewees might be asked, “Tell me any group experience
in which you have been involved.” Their responses would be
coded for consensus-building versus adversarial behaviors.

7 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 Applications for the recruiting function can include: Workitect’s approach to performance management is to
• Integration of competencies with profiles developed by identify:
recruiting and selection task force. A. Job performance standards and measures.
• Training for company recruiters to conduct and code B. Job behaviors required to accomplish specific job tasks and
Behavioral Event Interviews to make screening decisions. meet job responsibilities.
• Integration of applicant competency, tracking and C. Competencies demonstrated by average and .
administration information in the IHRS data base, including superior performers in key jobs.
follow-up evaluation of new hires to ensure recruiting system Most performance appraisal systems assess one or more
effectiveness. of these variables. Effective performance appraisal turns on
• Tools to support an entire selection system, including forms the proper use of each type of data given the objectives of the
to use in screening interviews . system and the degree of control the employee has over his or
and forms to use in comparing and deciding among her performance on variables assessed.
candidates. Performance results data are usually used for decisions
about rewards, e.g., merit bonuses based on sales or
Application: Performance Management production quotas. If, however, an employee has little
individual control over results, outcomes, e.g., in a team
An additional human resource function which bears in
production setting, rewards based solely on results can
important ways on development, retention, and career paths,
demotivate superior people. In these cases, some portion of
is performance management. Competency assessment data
rewards might better be based on job behaviors.
can contribute to performance .
Competency and job behavior data are usually used for
management systems in several ways.
decisions about development, e.g., if manager A is appraised
as lacking group leadership skills, he or she might be advised
to attend a leadership course to develop this skill. Skill-based
compensation systems also explicitly tie rewards to skills
developed. As noted, this is particularly appropriate when
employees have little control over performance results.

Organization OBSERVE &

Objectives DOCUMENT
PERFORMANCE

1 C 2 Organization &
O
Define Job A Document Performance
C
Responsibilities H
and Expectations I Revise Work Expectations
N
G as Necessary

3
Evaluate and
Document
Performance
on Forms

Performance Career Pay for

Review Planning Performance

4 5 6
Performance Competencies Performance
vs. vs. vs.
Job Expectations Job Competency Merit Pay Guidelines
Requirements

Performance Review Development/ Salary

and Development Career Discussion
Discussion Planning

8 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490

 Applications planning for a company’s performance • Training and practice for managers to help the direct report
management function can include: analyze his/her behavior on key job tasks and identify ways
• Identification of job responsibilities, performance standards that the competencies were applied or could have been
and measures, and competencies to be appraised for applied.
employees in the target jobs. • A demonstration video showing how to conduct a
• Development of appraisal methods and training of performance management interview.
managers as needed. • Separate training on how to prepare for and hold a
The entire process can be woven into a comprehensive performance review meeting, and training on how schedule
performance management process (part of the IHRS) depicted and conduct FOCUS Coaching sessions.
on page 16.
Application: Human Resource Development
A performance management program (for managers of
persons in the target job) usually includes: The competency template translates into the target
for training activities. The competency modeling process
• Some training and/or exercises to familiarize provides a framework for a thorough analysis of training
managers with the competency model. needs. The training needs analysis can then be used as a
• Materials that clearly link the model to key job tasks and to basis to develop a curriculum to help people acquire key
performance standards. competencies. Workitect has developed a process entitled the
• Training in a BEI like process that the manager uses to Competency Acquisition Process (CAP) for managing training
get the direct report to talk in detail about how he/she efforts through increasing levels of of competencies. The CAP
approached key job tasks in specific instances. consists of the seven steps outlined below.

4. Practice
The individual
practices new competencies
in job-related applications.
3. Observation 5. Feedback
and Study The individual
Examples or models receives
of superior performance constructive
are observed and feedback and
studied. Supporting reinforcement
background on how he or
information is she is doing.
provided to aid
in comprehension.

2. Assessment 6. Goal-Setting
The individual Specific goals
assesses his or and action
her current job plans are set
situation and by the
competencies, individual
compares them for applying
to examples of the new
superior perfor- competencies
mance, and back on the job.
decides where
improvement
would contribute
to effectiveness.

1. Identification 7. On-the-Job
of Required Support
Competencies The supervisor and
The competencies required for the work environment
superior performance of a job or reinforces and supports the
group of jobs are identified. individual's demonstration

Goal: of the newly acquired skills

on-the-job.
Improved
Performance
9 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490
 SUMMARY
The output of a typical project includes:
• A comprehensive model of outstanding performance for a
critical job family;
• A succession planning and career pathing system;
• System utilization of the model to enhance recruiting,
selection, performance assessment, training, and
development;
• Transfer of the technology to internal staff;
• Game plan for utilization of the process for other job
families.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, by any means without permission in writing by
the publisher.

10 ©2006, Workitect, Inc. www.workitect.com • 800.870.9490