Competency Framework 3 G The vocabulary of job

Competency Framework 3 G: The vocabulary of job performance Los Angeles County Office of Education PERSONNEL COMMISSION

Outline 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 2 Competencies and competency modeling Competencies as a common language for transformational HR and OD The LACOE methodology (and example) Historical background and professional opinions LACOE Competency Framework 3 G as a modeling framework for job performance and personnel assessment Discussion

What is a Competency? 3 ¢ A hypothetical construct ¢ A category, characteristic, or label of related work behaviors ¢ Enact the strategies, goals, values, culture of the organization ¢ Account for substantial variability in job performance ¢ Observable, measurable, and malleable (can develop or atrophy) ¢ Transferable across a wide range of occupations and organizational levels ¢ Often explicated in a “dictionary” or “model” tailored to the organization

Competencies are… 4 ¢ Prescriptive of desired/expected behavior rather than descriptive of established ways of working. ¢ Defining of excellence in performance rather than typical performance. ¢ Focused on the job holders role and contribution in the larger organization or the system rather than the job in isolation. ¢ Enablers of organizational effectiveness, development, and change rather than maintenance of the status quo

Competency Modeling Systematic approach to identifying the competencies that enable goal achievement LEVELS OF ANALYSIS l Organization • strategic workforce planning and change management l Job/Role • performance expectations and performance management l Individual • career development 5

So, what problems do Competencies and Competency Modeling help solve? 6

Problem: Traditional HR Functional Silos Classification and Compensation ¢ Employee Selection Procedures ¢ Performance Appraisal and Feedback ¢ Training Needs Analysis and Program Development ¢ Leadership Development ¢ Succession Planning ¢ Career Planning ¢ Workforce Planning ¢ 7

High Variability in Terminology Across Functions ¢ Worker requirements in job descriptions ¢ Abilities and other characteristics in selection analysis ¢ Factors and dimensions assessed with ratings (interviews, performance appraisals, 360 feedback, performance tests) ¢ Training areas in training needs analysis Across Occasions ¢ Across job classifications ¢ Within job classifications over time ¢ Among analysts within the same functions ¢ With the same analyst from analysis to analysis Are we reinventing the same constructs over and over? Confusing those we “serve? ” 8

Why Competencies? Workforce Needed To Meet Organizational Objectives (now and for the future) 9

TJA vs CM Traditional Job Analysis 10 Competency Modeling Task level breakdown (100+) Duty/Job Component breakdown (10+/-) Micro-KSA listing (100+) Macro-level competency selection (10+/-) KSAs specifically defined for job Competencies pre-defined Task and KSA groupings for manageability Task and KSA specifics drilled down later as need Huge linkage matrix (1000 cells) Manageable matrix (100 cells) SME – driven (JA amateur) Analyst-SME collaborative Varying levels of abstraction Controlled levels of abstraction Low reproducibility High reproducibility Jobs studied in isolation (Industrial Psychology) Jobs studied as part of a system and organizational culture (Organizational Development)

What is LACOE “Competency Modeling” 1. 2. 3. 4. Identifying the essentially duties and objectives of a job classification Identification of a parsimonious set of competencies that drive performance Linking the competencies to the duties and objectives of the job Weighting the competencies in proportion to their contribution to overall performance The end result is the “competency model” 11

Benjamin Franklin (only slightly paraphrased) Tell me and I’ll forget. Show me and I’ll remember. Involve me and I’ll understand. 12

Ocean Lifeguard Duties 13 CRIT FREQ POJ Monitor beach activity for unsafe or illegal activity 3 3 26% Administer first aid to public 3 2 18% Identify and remove or isolate hazards 2 3 18% Coordinate safety and law enforcement activities with local law enforcement agencies, fire protection, and coast guard 2 2 12% Provide public with information related to beach activities, resources, and weather/surf conditions 2 2 12% Rescue swimmers in distress 3 1 9% Maintain watchtower and rescue equipment 1 2 6%

Let’s do it! Pick a “dealer” ¢ Shuffle cards and deal them out ¢ Evaluate your hand ¢ Play your best card ¢ Decide as a group which is the “high” card ¢ Put it aside and do another round ¢ Stop at 5 rounds ¢ 14

Where did competency models come from? 15

Understood for some time… 16

Modern Roots (50’s – 90’s): ¢ ¢ ¢ 17 Early worker-oriented job analytic methods: PAQ, Fleishman Taxonomy, Synthetic/Job Component Validation Mc. Clelland, David (1973). Testing for competence rather than for intelligence. American Psychologist. Mc. Clelland, D. C. & Boyatzis, R. E. (1982). Leadership motive pattern and long term success in management. Journal of Applied Psychology, Prahalad, C. K and Hamel, G. (1990) The Core Competencies of the Corporation. Harvard Business Review. Goleman, Daniel, (1995) Emotional Intelligence

Zeitgeist of the 90’s ¢ ¢ 18 80’s - 90’s: Propelled by several trends such as TQM, BPRE, SHRM, EIQ, “End of the Job, ” “War for Talent, ” core competencies of the corporation, 360 feedback, assessment centers, etc. O-NET: Replaced Dictionary of Occupational Titles with “Worker-oriented” rather than “task-oriented” job analysis -- “behavioral dimensions” Adopted by consulting firms (e. g. , PDI, DDI, AON, Hay, CCL, Mercer) as an alternative to more labor intensive duty & task based analysis – linkages to business strategies Going strong and evolving in 2000’s – several SIOP & IPAC presentations include CM.

SIOP Task Force Findings (Pearlman, 1997, SIOP Symposium) ¢ Somewhat sceptical view ¢ ¢ 19 Term competency has no widely recognized definition. Varies by whoever is deploying a framework. Traditional job analysis is likely to be more rigorous on 9/10 variables that can impact the quality of the resulting information. But… Competency modeling has stronger links with business goals and strategies

SIOP Task Force follow-up (Schippmann, et al 2000, Personnel Psychology) “What the future might hold is a blurring of borders as the competency modeling and job analysis approaches evolve over time. Thus the next generation of approaches in each case may result in a blending of best practices such that there are more similarities than the differences that exist today. ” 20

2004 SIOP Principles (4 th Edition) ¢ ¢ 21 “Organizations that experience rapid changes… may find traditional jobs no longer exist. In such cases, considering the competencies or broad requirements for a wider range or type of work activity may be appropriate. When [competency models] are intended to support the underlying validity or use of a selection procedure these Principles apply. ” “The focus for conducting an analysis of work may include different dimensions or characteristics of work including work complexity, work environment, work context, work tasks, behaviors and activities performed, or worker requirements …[KSAO’s]”

Themes In the Professional Literature ¢ ¢ ¢ 22 “Despite all the hype surrounding the practice of competency modeling…it appears to be a form of worker-oriented job analysis that focuses on the broader characteristics of individuals and on using these characteristics to inform HR practice. ” (Sackett and Laczo, 2003) “Blending competency modeling efforts and task-related information increased both inter-rater reliability among SMEs and their ability to discriminate among jobs” (Lievens, et al. , 2004) “A competency model must be developed from a job analysis and a content validation process based on an organization’s strategic goals with the competencies defined at the behavioral level and including criteria for differentiating between different levels of expertise” (Catano, et al, 2007)

Themes In the Professional Literature Sanchez & Levine, 2009 “Contrary to the claim that CM does not achieve anything that TJA cannot accomplish, we believe that CM is much better suited to the task of influencing employee behavior along strategic lines than TJA is. “Competency models should be easy to understand communicate to anyone in the organization, regardless of job title. In contrast. TJA is usually burdened with long lists of tasks and psychologically-worded…KSAOs” 23

Professional Consensus 24 ¢ Competency modeling is a legitimate alternative or supplement to traditional job analysis. ¢ To be professionally defensible, the basic conditions of the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures and the SIOP Principles for the Validation and Use of Employee Selection Procedures must still be met.

How we started 25

A “Roughly Right” Competency Set ¢ LAUSD was the starting place. l ¢ Selected the “Best of the Breed” l l l ¢ ¢ 26 Project Team of 5 I/O psychologists Conceptual clarity and distinctiveness Relevance to the organization Comprehensive Paraphrased/restated for relevance Developed descriptive behavioral statements Reviewed by PC analysts for relevance and practicality Use -> Feedback -> Improvement Cycle

Source Material and Best Practices For Example… 27 ¢ Competency Architect Card Set (Lominger LTD. , Inc. ) ¢ Polaris Competency Card Set (OSI) ¢ Profilor (Personnel Decisions Inc. ) ¢ Hay Group Competencies Framework ¢ Assessment Center Dimensions (e. g. , DDI) ¢ SCANS (Department of Labor) ¢ O-NET ¢ State of Georgia ¢ State of Montana ¢ Sempra Energy ¢ Numerous 360 degree feedback models (Upward Feedback Forum) ¢ LAUSD Job Analysis/Exam Plan Folders, Class Descriptions, Etc.

Evolution Through Continuous Improvement 2003 “Roughly Right” Version 1. 0 2007 Behavior and Task Levels 2010 Version 2. 0 2014 Version 3 G 28

Where we are now: 3 G 29

54 Competencies in 7 Groupings 30 1. INFORMATIONAL: Competencies that enable the use of information, data, or stimuli to make a response suitable to an objective, problem, or situation 2. OCCUPATIONAL: The knowledge and skills of an occupational group acquired through education, training, and experience 3. PERSONAL EFFECTIVENESS: Competencies that enable the effective application of one’s skills and abilities 4. COMMUNICATION: Competencies that facilitate the exchange of information 5. INTERPERSONAL: Competencies that establish and maintain effective working relationships 6. GROUP: Competencies that facilitate group effectiveness and contribute to teams and workgroup performance 7. ORGANIZATIONAL: Competencies that help make whole organizations and systems effective

Competency List (3 rd generation) 31 Informational (7) Analyzing and Interpreting Data Critical Thinking Decision Making Fact Finding Mathematical Facility Mechanical Insight Reading Comprehension Occupational (9) Design Sense Environmental Exposure Tolerance General Physical Ability Industry Awareness Legal and Regulatory Navigation Manual Dexterity Professional/Technical Expertise Using Technology Safety Focus Personal Effectiveness (8) Action & Results Focus Adaptability Attention to Detail Handling Stress Innovation Integrity and Ethics Learning Agility Self Management Communication (6) Bilingual Facility Informing Listening Oral Communication Presentation Skill Writing Interpersonal (7) Customer Focus Handling Conflict Influencing Involving Others Negotiating Professional Impact Relationship Building Group (8) Assessing Talent Delegating Developing Others Group Facilitation Leadership Managing Performance Teamwork Valuing Diversity Organizational (9) Allocating Resources Leveraging Technology Managing Change Organizational Design Organizational Savvy Org. Systems Thinking Business Process Analysis Project Management Strategic View

“Pyramid” Hierarchy 32

Pyramid “Theory” 33 ¢ Widening Scope of Impact: Vertical position represent broader scope of direct and indirect effect. ¢ Cumulative: Foundation competencies are implicated in upper ones. (built on lower tier elements – “Informational” is the cornerstone) ¢ Structural Integrity: Strength, degree, complexity of foundation competencies increases to support the higher ones

Structure of a Competency ¢ Group: Personal Effectiveness ¢ Name: Attention to Detail ¢ Tag: Focusing on the details of work content, work steps, and final work products ¢ Effective: Shows a high level of care and thoroughness in handling the details of the job. Selects critical details to focus on. Checks work to ensure completeness and accuracy. Makes few, if any, errors. Maintains focus and quality under distracting working conditions, high workload, or opportunities to take shortcuts. Detects and addresses errors and omissions in others' work or team projects. ¢ Ineffective: May be careless, making numerous mistakes when working. May not check work before passing it on to others. May be overwhelmed with trivial details. Work may need to be regularly reviewed for accuracy and completeness. May not detect errors, flaws, or omissions in the work of others when reviewing or observing it. May struggle to maintain attention to one's work. May show ridged perfectionism sacrificing timeliness for excessive checking and review. 34

Competency Levels BEHAVIOR LEVEL ¢ Action – Something one does ¢ Instance of the competency ¢ What may be learned, trained, or practiced ¢ Upper levels required mastery of lower levels ¢ 4 Ds l l 35 Discipline & Development Discernment & Discretion TASK LEVEL ¢ A characteristic of the subject matter, situation or people involved. ¢ What one has to deal with, act upon, or respond to ¢ Span of influence or scope of impact ¢ Job evaluation indicators ¢ 4 Ss l l Subject Matter & Stimuli Situation & Scope

Dimensionality of Levels (Underlying continua) Behavior Processes (4 D) Task Characteristics (4 S) Discipline & Development Subject Matter & Stimuli Ad-hoc Mastered, skilled techniques Common sense Formal learning Quick study Life-long, cumulative learning Comprehension Synthesis, integration Discretion & Discernment Rule-based, rote Judgment, weighing the odds Linear thinking and action Contingency and recursive thought and action Externally Regulated Self-directed Application Adapt and create Recognition Insight/Foresight Reaction Anticipation 36 Concrete Abstract Few stimuli or factors Many factors Repetitive/cyclical Unique/unpredictable Simple, sequential Complex, simultaneous Homogeneous Diverse Complete data Missing, ambiguous data Closed domain Open domain Situation & Scope Strong behavior cues/structure Weak cues Structured Unstructured Short cycle/focus Long cycle/sustained focus Convergent Divergent forces Rational/dispassionate Emotional/chaotic forces Tractable Entrenched forces Direct control Indirect control (Multi-layered with accountability through others) Individual role Representative role Minor impact/consequences Major impact/consequences

Competency Levels Behavior Levels 1. May show ongoing vigilance to review work, observe, detect, and correct errors or flaws. May minimize introducing errors or flaws in work. 2. May show care and thoroughness in adhering to process and procedures that assure quality. May apply knowledge and skill in recognizing and evaluating details of work. 37 May differentiate between important details and trivial ones. May apply judgment and insight in discerning and evaluating details of work. May put skilled, artful, or insightful final touches on products or performances that differentiate fine quality from acceptable quality. (Also see Design Sense) Task Levels 1. Details may be observed through use of the senses through comparison to a physical or objective standard. Imperfections or errors may be objective. Material may be structured and consistent in type and complexity. 2. Details may be embedded in complex text, calculations, tables, images, objects, etc. which makes them difficult to discern or detect. Materials may show variation in kind, size, and complexity. Opportunities for error may be numerous and varied. Context of details may involve tight deadlines, high workload, distractions, multi-tasking, or interruptions. 3. Details may show subtle variation and nuance. There may be no physical or objective standard for determining errors or imperfections. The quality of final products may on the basis of impact, utility, or overall aesthetics rather than absence of errors. Context may be continuously multi-tasking with interruptions, very high pressure and consequence.

Lens Model OF Work Behavior: (Stimulus ->Process -> Response) 38

9 Possible Combinations of Levels Behavior Requirements 39 3 -Higher 3 6 Level 9 2 -Middle 2 4 6 1 -Lower Level 1 2 3 1 -Lower 2 -Middle 3 -Higher Task Demands

May Peak at Various Career/Organizational Levels 40

Exam Development 41

Enhances Exam Development ¢ Interview question database l Searchable by competency Pre-set forms and instructions (Rater App) ¢ Framework for developing parallel forms ¢ • “Deep structure” ¢ Theory for Situational Judgment and Performance test development. • Performance variation in situations is in the application of the wrong competency or the wrong level. 42

Extended Applicability ¢ Class & Comp: • • • ¢ Listed in our Class Specifications (Name and Tag) Complementary data for Factor Evaluation System Benchmark levels with prototypical jobs or benchmark jobs in occupational hierarchies Performance Management: • • • Link Competencies to Duties Evaluate Duty Performance directly But use competencies to “diagnose” poor performance, explicate performance expectations, and coach for excellent performance • Enable capacity-building feedback • Focus for development objectives and development opportunities 43

Applicability ¢ Training and Development: • Top-level learning objectives for needs analysis and instructional design • Benchmark levels with existing and future courses • Career planning • Succession planning ¢ Leadership Development: • • • 44 Leadership profiles Succession Planning Coaching Lessons from experience (target competencies and task levels) Culture development; e. g. , safety-focus culture (Exxon); customer -focused culture (Ritz-Carlton); innovation culture (3 M)

Here to stay? 45

Table Talk 46 1. What are you now doing in this area? 2. What are the possibilities? 3. What are the obstacles or critical issues?