How to Use a Competency Matrix for Successful Business Outcomes?
Do you know what does competency mean? Competency can be defined as a set of individual’s observable skills and abilities. The various skills and abilities are categorized as- functional, managerial and behavioral. It is extremely important to measure the skills, interests and abilities of the staff members within the organization to assess the performance of the individuals and meet the objectives of the company. As the famous saying goes- what gets measured, get done. Hence, to measure the performance of an individual , creating a competency matrix is necessary.
What is a Competency Matrix?
As the name suggests, a competency matrix is a tool which is used to measure the competencies of an individual. This tool is used to define the competencies of individuals to reach to important decisions related to their suitability for the job, performance assessment, etc.
Categorization of Competency Matrix
A competency matrix can be categorized into three types, which are mentioned as below:
Functional- The hard skills or technical competencies of the individual are categorized as a functional matrix. This will help you know the technical strengths of an individual. For instance, an accountant would be good at economics, a web developer would be good at programming languages or a designer would be at HTML or CSS. This helps the management to assign the right person to the right job at the right time.
Managerial- The managerial skills of the individuals are classified into various categories such as- organizational, people-related and role-related. This includes tracking the different types of skills such as- staff management, time management, resource management, decision-making, etc.
Behavior- The interpersonal skills of the individual are referred to as behavioral skills. The behavioral skills include- adaptability, teamwork, leadership, motivation, dynamism, etc.
Benefits of Competency Matrix
Competency matrix helps you understand the strengths and weaknesses of your staff members. It helps you know the areas for improvements.
By keeping a record of the skills and capabilities, you can identify the areas requiring training and enhancements. These areas will be clearly identified in the competency matrix.
The business authorities would be able to understand which employees should be employed to which projects, where they can work individually and where they require assistance from others.
With the help of a competency matrix, businesses can work towards achieving the goals of the company. This helps the companies know where they are heading.
As mentioned earlier, with the help of skills management through competency matrix, one can identify who is best suited for the job.
The above-mentioned advantages must have cleared your doubts regarding competency management. It would help you know what is the required competency level for each job and where you need to fill the gap. Competencies help businesses reach to informed decisions for successful business outcomes. It gives vision to your business. You can identify which areas of your business you are good at and which areas require attention and concentration.