BUILDING ROBUST COMPETENCIES

Paul C. Green

Book Review By PDhotre

Preface
This book, Building Robust Competencies, aims at linking the human resource systems of an
organization to its purpose. The book gives insights into the process of aligning the human resources of an
organization with the vision and mission of the same. It tries to chart out the differences between the core
competencies of an organization and the individual competencies of an employee. This may seem to be a
trivial issue, but for many it is very difficult to recognize this difference.
The underlying theme of the book is to use the behavioral language to build robust core competencies, core
values, priorities and skills that describe, guide and link the actions at work. Describing what was done
helps performance measurement, describing what is being done helps training and describing what should
be done helps define selection standards and performance goals.
As mentioned earlier, the other message that this book tries to convey is about having the employees of the
organization align their actions with the organizational identity and goals. The most effective way of
achieving the same is to allow the concerned employees to participate in the process of strategic decisionmaking. This participation generates a sense of belonging among the employees towards the organization
and they feel motivated to work towards achieving the goals that the organization may have set for itself. A
very effective way of building alignment is to behavioral language to convert the vision and mission
statements into clear actions, which need to be performed and conveying these actions to the employees.
The employees can be involved with the framing of the vision and the mission statements. It can help if all
the employees speak the same language, i.e. they have the same interpretation of the ultimate goals of the
organization. Using the vision and mission statements in the selection procedures can do this. This allows
an initial filter, which allows only those people who fit into the mould of the organization to join in.
Book Review
Identity, process and strategy are crucial for survival in todays world of cutthroat competition. Conceptual
leadership is becoming more crucial and the time available for critical thinking is diminishing by the day.
The need of the day is of robust solutions to practical problems. Robust solutions are those, which work in
the face of adversities. Behavioral competencies can be an asset to any organization. They are robust and
are useful but can be hampered by abstract language and personality traits. Therefore it becomes imperative
that the building of robust human resource competencies should be preceded by explicit explanation of the
same such that everyone is able to easily understand.
There may arise many situations where there is a lot of ambiguity. In such situations, simple decisions
become difficult and ineffective. To avoid this state, one needs to be very clear about the existing situation
and equally lucid about the course of action to be adopted from thereon to resolve the situation.
Competencies help develop the required clarity.

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Here one needs to understand what is meant by the term competency. Competency means different things to
different people based upon their perception and context of application. In the field of Human Resources,
competencies often deal with the characteristics of a person. An individuals competency is defined as a
written description of measurable work habits and personal skills used to achieve a work objective. To
make the description clearer, following are a few points to keep in mind:

An individual competency is different from the organizational competencies, capabilities, values

and priorities

A written description communicates exactly what the term competency means

Measurable work habits and personal skills implies that competencies are a fair measure of an
individuals actions

Individual competencies contribute to achieving a common work objective

Competencies are looked at differently by different people depending upon their context of work. Human
Resources professionals look at competencies more on an individual level but business strategist
concentrate more on the organizational competencies. Core competencies are stores of technical knowledge
and skills which gives the organization an edge over other organizations and makes an impact on its
services and products. Individual competencies along with organizational competencies help in avoiding
and solving people problems. Capabilities are other things that the organization is capable of doing to
achieve its goals. Currently, there is a high degree of discontent regarding individuals not being able to meet
their targets. This discontent can be taken care of by improving the selection procedures, performance
appraisal systems and coaching schedules according to the individual competencies of the employee. Thus
task allocation should be done in accordance with the competencies of the concerned individual.
Competencies define the coaching schedules. On the basis of individual competencies, one can decide to
what extent the individual should be trained and what should be the contents of the training. Thus
competencies, by helping correct job allocation, helps avoid the ambiguity and hence increase productivity.
The best way to express competencies is by the use of behavioral language. It allows a clear ad
understandable description of the actions needed to be performed in order to achieve the organizational
goals. Individual competencies can also help diffuse conflicts and disagreements because they help put
forward the situation in a very lucid format and give a different perspective to the entire matter. Behavioral
language allows easy communication of standards, expectations, goals and objectives, thus making it the
ideal way to build robust competencies.
Competency models comprise of groups of competencies. Some models are generic lists of individual
characteristics that can be used in HR systems. Other competency models are specially designed for a
particular organization. The primary reason for constructing a competency model was to link the processes
like interviews, appraisals, training and compensation to vision, mission, values and culture. Some other
reasons were planning to grow newer skills within the organization, communicating the behaviors that are
desired in the organization and clarifying the leadership focus. The gist of the matter is competencies help
managers and other employees to link, plan, communicate and clarify.
There are certain problems related to competency models though. Expensive competency model not being
applied or off-the-shelf competency models which do not fit the bill of the specific organization in terms of
correctly defining the uniqueness of the jobs or the organization. Expense incurred in getting the
competency model designed, developed and installed can be prohibitive. Acceptance of the model is

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another common problem that the competency models may face. A competency model thus has to be
developed very carefully. There are some challenges involved with the development and installation of the
model. These challenges can be listed as participation, measurement, negative feedback, job-relatedness and
expense.
One of the major challenges is participation. There may be two types of competency developments. One,
which is faster and the other which is better. The faster model of development may be efficient in terms of
the time taken for the development of the competency model, but eventually it may turn out to be more
expensive. Executives sitting behind a closed door trying to formulate the competencies required and the
competency model is not a feasible idea since the employees who are going to be subjected to that change
might not like the model and refuses to use it. Participation is absolutely critical for acceptance and
application of the competency model. Participation is not a manipulative ploy, but a mechanism for making
your competencies more reflective of the true cause of performance. For the model to persist in the
organization there should be broader participation in terms of multiple opinions and the ability to think and
argue. Participation becomes a huge factor in the successful implementation of the competency system.
Behavioral language is used to link what needs to be done with individual actions. Competencies become
tools for direction and change. Assimilation of competencies into the everyday communications helps
specific and explicit expression of feelings and opinions.
The next challenge is measurement. Measurement is very crucial since the progress of a project or the
performance of an employee can be tracked only when it is measured. Also in situations where the
employee demands an explanation the only way out is by having hard evidence on our hands. This evidence
is provided by measurements. Measurement can be used to fathom the skill level of any employee which is
being selected for a particular assignment. Measurement systems though have to be validated before they
are pout into action. For this purpose, they are put through a battery of test and the results observed to check
whether they are in keeping with the characteristics observed.
Negative feedback and the way it is taken is another big challenge that any organization may face. Some
employees may not take a negative feedback constructively and cause harm to the organizational goals.
Therefore the organization should have the courage to face the conflict that would arise when negative
feedback is given. It is extremely important to have accurate performance measures when it influences
compensation, promotion and career opportunities. Many managers shy away from giving negative
feedback because of the awkwardness or the fear of a legal battle. To resolve these matters, there is models
which have a cap on how low the measurements can go or there are a few other models which use a
threshold of minimum acceptable performance. These models may avoid the unpleasantaries but at the cost
of overlooking and actually accepting negative or undesirable performance into the organization. Thus,
negative measurement or feedback though extremely necessary, should be handled with care since it is very
difficult to accept.
Individual competencies help map the characteristics of a person and therefore decide the suitability of that
person for a particular job. Individual competencies can be used to structure specific questions which can be
used in constructing the interviews that would help objectively choose the right kind of a person for the job
under consideration. This task is becoming tougher and tougher by the day because in todays dynamic
environment the job descriptions are changing very fast. Nonetheless, competency systems should be jobrelated.
The one other challenge that the competency system must face is that of the expense incurred in designing
and implementing the system. Development of competency systems which may function as performance
appraisal systems and their implementation is an expensive option and should be exercised only after taking
all the considerations. These days the use of computers is relaxing the stranglehold of price on such

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systems. Softwares are being developed to automate and handle each and every task like structuring the
interviews or groupware to encourage the groups to work on a problem and find the solution collectively.
To fully garner the benefits of the competency system, they need to be in sync with the current requirements
of the organization and its goals. Competencies when in service of customers are powerful business tools.
But it is extremely imperative to understand the meaning of the term competency in the given context. The
competency scope does just that. It outlines what needs to be done in order to meet the requirements of the
customers. In a competency scope, competencies are discussed with special attention on two factors; viz:
the LEVEL factor which specifies how an organization can be effective in the marketplace or how an
individual can be effective in doing a particular job and the TYPE factor which distinguishes between the
use of concepts.
The competency scope relates to the KSAO model. The KSAO model is as outlined under: KSAO stands for Knowledge, Skill, Ability and Other.
Knowledge: The specific information acquired typically through formal education to perform a particular
job.
Skill: The proficiency of using a tool or equipment. Skills are acquired in an educational environment or an
informal one.
Ability: Ability refers to specifics such as intelligence, spatial orientation, reaction time and stamina.
Abilities are often measured by tests that provide estimate the extent to which a person has the specific
ability to perform a given task.
Others: Additional characteristics needed for doing a job well. Include performance skills, attitude,
personality, etc.
K and S organize into technical skills, A and O translate into performance skills.
Coming back to the core competency model, it is partitioned into four parts: Slice I: Core Competencies and Capabilities
The combination of knowledge and skills with tools is reflected at the organizational level in core
competencies and capabilities. A core competency is a unique bundle of technical know-how that is central
to the organizations purpose. A capability is also important to the organizations effectiveness and is
perceived to be valuable by customers. It is a set of business processes strategically understood. Core
competencies and capabilities are ideally expressed in a mission statement that specifically communicates
what the organization will do for its customers.
Slice II: Core values and priorities
Core values complement the technical aspects of work by explaining why the work is performed. At one
level it encourages shared beliefs of people in the organization and its culture, including norms on how to
act. Priorities reflect an organizations emphasis on the use of individual competencies such as working
habits and people skills to make business processes and work systems more efficient or effective. It is
different from capabilities that emphasize the deployment of technical know-how, physical or financial
resources to improve performance. An important priority lies in an organizations willingness to use

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participation to improve performance and create a competitive advantage. This priority is seen in the
commitment to encourage associates to express their opinions on work issues. In addition, managers must
be willing to listen to others opinions, accept them when appropriate and disagree when necessary. There
always this uncertainty while distinguishing between a business process that defines a capability and the
people skills that define a priority. When people can easily be asked to join a business process, they are
supporting a business capability. On the other hand, when the process requires a person with a specific set
of skills, it is an organizational priority that is being dealt with. A statement of core values and priorities
describes how people actually do their work. It expresses norms and boundaries of acceptable behavior and
business practices.
Slice III: Technical knowledge and job skills
Individuals use their technical knowledge and skills with tools to carry out their job responsibilities.
Technical knowledge and job skills should be in support of the organizations core competencies and
capabilities. Technical skills provide a logical way fro an organization to maintain and extend its core
competencies and capabilities.
Slice IV: Performance skills and competencies
Performance skills and competencies include work habits, communication styles, leadership and teamwork.
They are easily transferred across different industries and jobs and they reflect a persons efficiency or
effectiveness in using technical knowledge and skills. Commitment to a task is a performance skill that
shows the extent to which a person will work hard to get results. A performance skill can be directly
observed and described at a behavioral level. A competency involves an inference about what a person is
like.
Organizational characteristics:
When the slices I and II are combined, the organizations identity is reflected, including the work context in
which the individual is to perform. The more familiar components of organizational identity include vision,
mission, values and culture. Core competencies provide the basis for an organization to define itself beyond
its specific end products. Core values and priorities are quite different from core competencies.
Individual characteristics:
Slices III and IV pertain to the skills used by the individuals to perform their specific jobs. They reflect the
job content including specific tasks to be performed and the individual characteristics needed to carry them
out. Assessment technology offers a perspective that distinguishes between a performance skill and a
competency. The behavioral approach to assessment would say that a performance skill can be directly
observed and described in terms of the things a person is observed to say or do.
It is very important to describe operational skills in very clear and precise words. In many instances the
organization successfully draws its competency model but fails to clearly mention the actions to be taken in
order to achieve the organizational goals. Consequently, even though the organization competency model is
ready and in place, it does not deliver the expected returns. Therefore, it becomes imperative to put down
the steps to be taken by an employee to be explicitly mentioned in the competency plan so that there is no
haziness or ambiguity in the understanding of the model. The statements of the competency plan should be
put down in the form of operational definitions, which explain a concept in the form of steps to be taken to
observe it. However, defining a statement in terms of operational definition is not the job a single person. It
becomes necessary to involve others in the process of defining the steps to perform a certain task.

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Generally, behavioral language is used to define the actions and whenever a higher degree of detail is
required operational definitions are used. Behavioral language is very concrete. It describes what one can
see or hear being done. A performance skill written in behavioral language is the sequence of actions to be
performed to the job well. Behavioral language is robust because the actions required to perform the task
can be defined through the written or the spoken word such that any other person wanting to understand the
action can do so, very easily and reasonably accurately. Verification in the case helps by showing the extent
to which two or more people agree on a behavioral description.
A performance skill is more concrete than personality traits or abilities. A competency system based on
personality traits is not preferred because it would use terms which may be ambiguous. The tangible nature
of performance skills means that it is helps reduce the influence of biases on people. The focus is on making
reasonable inferences about people, based on verifiable information.
Performance skills and descriptive rating scales are the foundation of the behavioral approach in objective
decision-making. The three steps of the behavioral approach are:
Step I: Observe what a person says or does. Snap judgments are not allowed. Only observation is what one
is supposed to do.
Step II: Describe what is observed in relation to the performance skill. The real test of the second step is
whether another person can verify what has been described.
Step III: Draw an inference from the description. The thumb rule is that this expansion of the description
should be reasonable in light of what was observed and subsequently described.
The perception of a person depends upon the reactions of one towards that person. But with the behavioral
approach, perception is not reality. The three steps of behavioral approach enable the development of a
reasonable understanding of the other person by substituting observation, description and inference for
perception. A robust performance skill supports the steps of the behavioral approach. It will not contain
abstract words and references.
One of the major challenges facing organizations today involves alignment i.e. getting all the employees
working in the same direction towards the same goal. A clear understanding of the direction in which the
organization is headed is extremely essential. One effective approach is to help individuals see how their
personal goals overlap the goals of the organization. This is called personal alignment and is achieved
through participation and open discussion. Another type of alignment can be developed by using behavioral
language to link HR systems to an organisations identity including its core competencies and capabilities,
values and priorities. This is what is called structural alignment. Structural alignment can be carried out
only when there is a clear description of the identity of the organization. The process is made easier when
the organisations identity is expressed in behavioral language.
The identity of an organization is a critical target for creating a structural alignment of the HR systems. This
is achieved by expressing an identity statement in behavioral language and then using it in the forms and
procedures prevalent in the Human Resources.
There are two types of identities viz. behavior-based and virtue-based. A behavior-based identity statement
describes what a person needs to do to be in alignment to the organisations vision, mission, values and
culture. A virtue-based identity statement may have supporting information that converts the virtues into
actions to take. Behavioral language can be used with each of the components of an identity statement. An
organisations vision, mission, values and culture can be described as individual actions to be taken rather

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than desirable qualities and attributes. The mission should reflect core competencies and capabilities as well
as priorities. The vision could be expected to align with core values and priorities.
A behavior-based vision statement is a word picture that describes the future statement for work and the
actions that associates will take in it. The ideal mission statement includes movement. The behavior-based
vision is more dynamic than static.
A behavior-based mission statement explains why the organisation exists in terms of its overall purpose, the
nature of its business and the principles that it follows when doing business. A behavior-based mission
statement describes purpose and priotity in a way that suggests the direction for most of the people in the
organisation to take.
A mission statement provides a sense of identity and direction, thus unifying individuals and establishing
the basis for future actions.
There should be a reciprocal relationship between a mission statement and core competencies, each should
influence the other.
A behavior-based value-statement describes the shared beliefs and norms that characterize the organization.
Often the shared values can be traced to the business philosophy held by the founders and the opinion
leaders. An organisations culture is a reflection of these shared values. They represent one of the important
components of the same. One challenge in generating a value statement involves going beyond feelings
about the work situation. The statement must use behavioral language to describe what people will do when
they are using the value.
When an identity statement is written in behavioral language, there is an opportunity to align it with the
organizational level of the competency scope. Many HR systems are practical are tactical. They respond to
governmental regulations and specific needs. They become more strategic however when connected with
the organisations identity through behavioral language. When this is done one can say that the organisation
has a strategic HR system that reinforces its identity in day-to-day decisions about people. When the content
of an identity statement is reflected in the content of HR forms and processes, it is said that content linkage
exists. A cramped vision restricts the scope of an organisation while an open vision can help align more and
more people with the organisations goals.
There are four organizational approaches that influence the type of Human Resource systems that are put
into place. The four approaches can be summarized as follows :
1. Perception-driven
2. Experience-driven
3. Attribute-driven
4. Behavior-driven
Perception-driven :The perception-driven organisation is more intuitive and feeling-oriented. The HR
system in this organisation places less emphasis on being specific, gathering information and measuring. Its
HR efforts will rely on gut-feel interviews, likeability appraisal, motivational coaching and smile training.
There is a de-emphasis on structured job-related HR systems.
Experience-driven : The experience-driven organisation uses work-experience in an intuitive way. A few
features that characterize this approah are :
- conversational interviews
- counsellor appraisal
- mentor coaching

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hands-on training

Attribute-driven : A organisation that emphasizes attributes uses trait words to describe people. All of a
persons characteristics are considered regardless of the extent to which they are used in a current work
assignment. A few features that characterize this approach are :
- trait interviews
- recognition appraisal
- personal growth coaching
- instrument training
Behavior-driven : When an organisation adopts the behavior-driven strategy, it emphasizes organization,
description and cautious inferences about people. One of the most difficult challenges faced by a new
interviewer is to go beyond the gut-feeling and gather behavioral information about a candidates jobrelated skills. A second challenge faced by todays interviewer is to avoid the temptation to asses only a
candidates fit to the organisation. An interview that is based on only the candidates fit ot the organisation
will not measure the skills needed to do the job itself. The behavior-based interviewing strategy can asses
the extent to which a person is both a fit for the organisation and able to do a particular job.
Taking a look at various approaches to interviewing, following are the few that fit into the models explained
above.
1.
2.
3.
4.

Gut-feel interviews
Conversational interviews
Trait interviews
Behavior-based interviews

Gut-feel interviews : This person-oriented intuitive approach uses the interviewers gut-feel as the standard
for assessing the candidate. The interviewer does not use a structured interview with job-related questions.
Instead questions are spontaneously asked in light of the interviewers reaction to the candidate. In this type
of interview subjective criteria are used to interpret the answers and impressions serve as the basis for
selection. A major disadvantage with this approach is that the decision is highly influenced by the
interviewers perceptions and beliefs.
Conversational interviews : This approach involves an unstructured interview with a focus on a candidates
job-experience and job skills. It resembles a conversation between two equals. A disadvantage of this
approach is that the conversational interviewer must be a very capable person who knows the job very well.
Also failure to use a structured interview weakens the defensibility of the selection process.
Trait interviews : A trait interview uses a structured approach that is oriented to the total person. It measures
key personality traits. The questions relate more to the personal characteristics of the total person than to
specific work-related skills. With a structured approach, a trait interview can be effective in assessing
crucial personality traits needed for a specific job. But a good trait interviewer needs more training than a
manager typically gets.
Behavior-based interviews : A behavior-based interview is structured like the trait interview and job
focused like the conversationalist. The structured interview form asks singular open-ended questions about
past events in the candidates work experience. The interviewer takes descriptive notes during the interview
and rates the candidates skills for doing the job by comparing examples of past performance to skill
definition. The interviewer then bases the selection decision on the overall match of the skills to job
requirements.

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There are many reasons for using the behavior-based interviewing strategy. First there is evidence that the
technique is both reliable and valid. Secondly, the behavioral language provides the basis for linking
orgnisational identity to the interviewing system.
Benefits of using a systematic approach to interviewing :
-

Avoid subjective gut-feel decisions

Helps interviewers avoid asking the same questions of each candidate
Enables the standardization of the perceptions of the interviewers about the candidates
Makes the linkage of interviewing to other HR systems possible
Suggests information to be covered in interview training

There are five steps in behavior-based interviewing :

1. Skills analysis
2. Select and edit skill definitions
3. Create a structured interview
4. Gain behavioral examples
5. Rate skills
1.

Skill Analysis : It is a systematic process of identifying the technical skills and the performance
skills important for doing a job well. There are several important elements of a skills analysis.
Identify job experts : Job experts are able to give an accurate description of what needs to
be done to do the job well. This approach is very different from the in-depth study of high
performers.
Assemble job information : A skill analysis co-ordinator collects existing information on
the job and organization, documents the qualifications of job experts and directs the job
experts on the steps of the work analysis. This enables the job experts to include
information systematically on the work context and the job content in the skills analysis.
Identify important work activities : The most frequently rated activities are combined into
skill definitions. These statements are then linked to performance skills and questions for
easy selection by interviewers.
Specify essential job functions : Essential functions are the fundamental job duties of the
employment positions that the individual holds.

2.

Select and Edit Skill Definitions : There are two ways to develop skill definitions. In the first
approach the job experts pool the activities and tasks that are important in doing the job well and
then build the skill definitions and other relevant data pertaining to the job and the organization
around these pools. The second approach is much quicker and yields comparable results. Here a
questionnaire is used to generate a job profile and then customize the generic skill definitions.
These definitions are edited so that they are aligned with the identity statement of the organisation
as well as the specific job requirement. A disadvantage to this approach is that the more the
performance skill is edited the less does it benefit from the research responsible for developing
genric vision.

3.

Creating a Structured Interview : A Structured Interview is also called a patterned interview. In this
approach a list of pre-planned questions is present with an interviewer from which he may select
his questions. Each answer to the question is scored by comparing it to the scoring guides. Such a
technique is called a linear interview. Such an interview has to be structured failing which it loses
its effectiveness.

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4.

Gain Behavioral Examples : Behavioral examples are a candidates description of past instances
when he used a skill. Behavioral examples provide events from the candidates background to
compare to job-related skill definitions. The selection decision can be based on the extent to which
the person has the skills needed for the specific job. Thus not the entire person but only his jobrelated skills are assessed.

5.

Rate Skills : In this final step, the interview responses are evaluated by a process called
triangulation. The three steps that comprise this process are as follows :
Read the skill definition specifying what to measure
Read all the notes taken in the interview
Compare the notes taken in the interview to the skill definitions by using the rating scale
After the ratings are completed the pattern of the ratings along with other candidate information is
used to make the selection decision.

Skill definitions can be used to link performance discussions with selection interviews and organisations
identity. This linkage can be achieved through a task-based appraisal system that uses behavioral narratives
to provide a sample of what a person did during a performance period. The comparison of this information
to either skill definitions or task statements provides the basis for a meaningful performance discussion. A
rating matrix is then used to describe the extent to which the individuals actions and measured outcomes
met the expectations.
A similar approach can be used for coaching. This linkage is achieved by converting phrases in skill
definitions and task statements into goal statements. Goal-based coaching enables a manager to use a
systematic job-related approach to individual development. It begins with the manager describing and
modeling work expectations. Once areas for improvement are jointly selected, the managers help the job
holders to convert the phrases in job-related competencies or tasks into goal statements. The job holder uses
the statements for self-monitoring.
Behavior based performance skills can be used to develop instructional objectives that reflect the skills to
be learnt in doing particular jobs in a particular work context. This enables the linkage between instructional
objectives and organizational identity including core competencies, capabilities, core values and priorities.
This book thus looks into the matter of what competencies are all about and what the organizations should
do so as to ensure that their core competencies are put into place as well as that of their employees are built
in a manner, which are in alignment with the organizations identity and helps the organization achieve its
goals.
- Prabhanjan Dhotre,

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