Building an Innovative Learning Organization

Chapter 5Creating Competency Models

Sarder Framework: Building the Learning Organization

A competency model is a framework for organizing a collection of observable skills, behaviors, and attitudes 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.¹

—Melissa Noonan

For every job…the No. 1 thing we look for is general cognitive ability, and it's not I.Q. It's learning ability. It's the ability to process on the fly. It's the ability to pull together disparate bits of information.²

—Laszlo Bock

Imagine a theater without people who can act or build sets; a hospital without people who can care for patients, handle admissions, and prepare meals; or a software company without people who can develop new products and sell them. Organizations accomplish their goals through the combined efforts of individuals. They can succeed only if they have individuals with the necessary competencies: the right knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, and attributes.

The idea of using competencies to predict success has been around for more than half a century. As early as 1959, psychologists observed that “without clear competency criteria, recruiters select, managers manage, trainers train, and career planners plan to different (and sometimes even conflicting) images of the capabilities ...