5-Step Guide to Effective Competency Profiling (+ Tips for Implementation)

Every leader, manager, HR professional, and visionary is on the hunt for "the top talent."

But the chase isn't for any talent. It's for talent that aligns, that resonates, that fits. And there lies the challenge.

That's where competency profiling enters the scene.

Competency profiling isn't just about listing out skills or qualifications. It's about capturing a role's essence, core, and DNA and mapping them to the individual employee.

This article we discuss:

• What is competency profiling.
• What are the steps to start competency profiling from scratch. 
• How you can benefit by completing competency profiling for our workforce.
• How can Zavvy help you in this process.

🕵️‍♀️ What is competency profiling in HR?

Competency profiling is often confused with competency mapping. 

Competency mapping is defining what competencies are needed for a role. 

On the other hand, competency profiling is determining what competencies an individual currently possesses. 

A competency profile is an in-depth exploration of an individual's competencies. It identifies an employee's strengths and areas for improvement by evaluating their skills, knowledge, and behaviors in their current role.

Let's understand this with an example.

Organization ABC did competency mapping for their web developer role. It gives them a competency model for the role with core and technical competencies, shown in the first row below.

Further, they did competency profiling of all web developers against this ideal competency profile. They found what levels they are currently at.  

Competency mapping sets benchmarks. Competency profiling evaluates the employees based on these benchmarks and sets clear expectations. 

So now Emma and Frank know they have to work on their Angular JS skills. 

‼️ Another important point to note is competency profiling is not a one-time exercise. 

Priorities can change from time to time.

Let's retake the above example. The same organization is shifting towards React JS to build web applications, and Angular JS applications will slowly become obsolete. So, they did competency mapping and profiling again. The revised competency profiles are as follows:

React JS is now a new entry in the profile, and employees do have some minimal mastery of the skill but are not up to the expectations.

Organization ABC can plan further employee training based on these revised profiles for a smooth transition.

Regular competency profiling keeps organizations on top of their current skills and where they need to invest. 

✍️ 5 Steps to start competency profiling as an absolute beginner

Suppose you are just starting with implementing a competency model at your organization. In that case, the first step is to complete competency mapping. This step is more of a prerequisite. 

Once you have the ideal competency map for all roles, you can start the profiling process.

➡️ Wondering how to get the mapping done? Get our free competency mapping template for a shortcut.

We interviewed Ilam Padmanabhan, a seasoned leader and coach with 20 years of experience in the Tech/Financial services industry, who shared the steps to start competency profiling from scratch.

Start with the information you have

Review the employee's profile or any other relevant documents in your existing HR systems to assess their education, experience, and existing skills (could be via their CV). It's a good starting point rather than beginning with a blank page.

Plan hard skills assessments (Optional) 

You can also conduct tests or simulations to evaluate employees' hard skills and knowledge.

This step is optional as it may not be possible for every organization, and it totally depends on the scale and availability of resources or platforms to conduct these tests. 

Collect (360) feedback

This step is the core of the competency profiling exercise. 

We recommend collecting feedback on employee work performance against expected skills from multiple sources. Include the opinions of supervisors, peers, clients, and the employees' self-evaluations.

Multiple points of view will ensure a more well-rounded evaluation of an employee's competencies.

💡 Tip: Conducting 360 feedback is vital to keep the profiles updated. One way to ensure it happens regularly is by coupling this feedback with performance reviews. Bonus if you link the reviews to competencies.

➡️ Learn how to conduct a competency-based performance review and get 15+ sample questions. 

Schedule a calibration meeting

Reviewing based on competencies could be a new exercise for managers and employees.

It's good to conduct a calibration meeting where all the reviewers can come together and discuss based on what parameters they evaluated competencies. It brings a standardized approach to evaluation and overcomes bias. 

Discuss results and next steps with employees

The last step is to have a review meeting with employees. The objective of the meeting is to discuss where an employee stands at present and what competencies they should work on for successful performance. Managers can further assign targeted development plans to help employees improve these competencies. 

🌟 Learn how to create competency development plans for a stronger workforce.

🏆 5 Benefits of effective competency profiling

The competency profiling process helps in all key areas of talent management. Here's how.

Efficient recruitment

Competency profiling allows you to make better hiring decisions by seeing whether an employee fits into the ideal profile for the role. Firstly, a job description with expected competencies states requirements clearly. Further, competency-based interview questions can help evaluate whether a candidate is a good fit for the role. 

Targeted learning and development initiatives

With an evaluation in hand on what level employees are at for any competency, it's easy for managers and Learning and development (L&D) teams to assign specific competency-based training to employees.

Improved performance management

Competency profiling sets clear expectations for both employees and managers. 

"At no point should an employee have to 'wonder' what is expected of them, nor should they be surprised during review time," says Marla J. Albertie, an executive coach. ‍

Managers also have a benchmark against how to measure employees. 

Better succession planning

Having competency profiles of all employees makes succession planning for critical roles easier.

For example, when Amazon did succession planning for their CEO role, they kept track of what skills the company would need in a future CEO. On further shortlisting based on these skills, Andy Jassy was chosen. 

Effective rewards

This is another underutilized benefit where organizations can plan more meaningful rewards according to competency development. 

For example, Swati Sinha, an HR strategist, shares that every employee gets a checklist of behavioral and functional competencies (based on their role) at her organization. They reward employees for achieving any learning milestones and growing these critical competencies. 

➡️ Zavvy: Your one-stop-shop for everything competency

With Zavvy, you can integrate competencies in all the top areas of talent management. Ideally, implementing a competency model will look something like this:

1. Single out all the relevant competencies for your organization.

2. Conduct competency mapping for all roles.

3. Schedule competency-based evaluations for your employees.

4. Complete competency profiling for all teams.

5. Plan competency-based learning for further employee growth and competence development.

Let's look at how you can implement each step with Zavvy.

🌟 Defining departmental and company-wide competencies

Single out all the relevant competencies for your organization:

• core;
• ‍functional;
• technical;
• ‍leadership competencies.

This is a big task,so make sure you enlist the help of major stakeholders across your departments and leadership team.

⚠️ Stuck on a black page, worried about writing lengthy explanations of each competency? With Zavvy AI, you can define each competency with specific descriptions for each role and each level. 

🗺️ Competency mapping

Now it's time to map competencies to departments.

With Zavvy, you get a collection of competencies in the competency database to start with the mapping journey. You never start from a blank page.

One of our experts guides you through the entire competency mapping process. So you are never left out to do it all alone. 

📈Competency evaluations 

The primary step of competency profiling is conducting competency reviews. 

Step 1: Start creating a feedback cycle. Name it and add a description. 

Step 2: Choose the reviewers from the list: self, peer, upward, and downward. 

Step 3: Define the assessment questions.

Step 4: Select the tiny checkbox that links the competency model to the appraisal form.

For example, "To what extent would you say that you meet your role expectations?"

For example, a web developer has five competencies set for the role: Angular JS, Github, Creativity, Teamwork, and Communication.

Then, by selecting the option, this question can be asked five times. (But you have the freedom to choose which competencies to include for specific questions)

• To what extent would you say you meet your role expectations per Angular JS competency?
•  To what extent would you say you meet your role expectations per Github competency?
•  To what extent would you say you meet your role expectations per Creativity competency?
•  To what extent would you say you meet your role expectations per Teamwork competency?
•  To what extent would you say you meet your role expectations per Communication competency?

Make this change in all reviews: self, peer, upward, and downward. 

🏃 You can skip these steps by starting from a Zavvy template.

Step 5: Define anonymity settings.

Can reviewers see who can view their responses?

Also, add an option for reviewers to see further details about the reviewee, like growth plans. This context helps them assess better.

Step 6: Define when the review will start. You can add a specific date if it's the first time profiling.

Step 7: Define timelines for the process: peer selection, writing reviews, and final discussion post review.

Step 8: Activate the cycle. You are good to go. 🎊

📃 Competency profiles

Competency profiles get automatically generated at the end of each feedback cycle. You get up-to-date profiles for all your reviewees.

🌟 No extra clicks, setups, or approvals are required.

And the best part is that you get more than individual competency profiles. You also get insights at the team level, department level, or for the entire organization. All you need to do is play around with the filters.

🌱 Competency-based learning

Lastly, Zavvy also provides an extensive LXP that can help you create custom courses and give access to 10000+ courses, books, videos, events, and articles.

So your employees have all the resources at their fingertips to improve their competency profiles.

📅 Book a demo now and implement competency frameworks in the entire employee lifecycle.

❓ FAQs

What is the purpose of a competency profile? 

A competency profile is a detailed overview of the skills and personal attributes required to perform a particular role. By understanding an individual's competencies in-depth, organizations can make more informed decisions regarding placements, promotions, and training, leading to better alignment between employee capabilities and organizational needs.

What is the difference between job profile and competency profile?

A job profile describes the specific responsibilities, tasks, and duties of a particular job. It outlines what needs to be done in a job. On the other hand, the competency profile describes the skills, knowledge, and behaviors that an individual should possess to successfully perform their job. Every leader, manager, HR professional, and visionary is on the hunt for "the top talent." But the chase isn't for any talent. It's for talent that aligns, that resonates, that fits. And there lies the challenge.