Optimal Launch of Full Competency Implementation Plan

 

Case Includes:

Interviewing Sr. Exec	IP License Derivatives
Organization Capabilities	High Potential Development
Profiling Critical Positions	Involving Stakeholders

Situation:

Staff explored all viable options for a competency framework and identified Korn Ferry’s content and processes as their selection.

Several discussion meetings yielded a sequence of events to bring aboard key stakeholders and a 2 year timeline (which became 3). Roles identified and materials ordered.

Action:

First, we interviewed the senior executives and presented back their learning from experience—to introduce the competencies, how they were established & validated; how the treasury of content were configured as development and interviewing.

Then they were receptive to examining and rating their organization capabilities: futures state needed for the strategy and current strength—which clarified several GAPS. The future state was translated into the overall leadership competencies needed to create and sustain the future state capabilities.

Executives agreed to milestones for a year-long action learning project for high potentials; nine teams examined one GAP area each; and two explored verifying the “High Current: High Needed” capabilities. Participants were invited to self asses with learning agility and create self development plans to strengthen their learning from experience during this unprecedented, cross- functional team challenge. Final presentations from the teams included recommendations that the senior leaders are still determining how to create and assimilate into the organization in order to strengthen the organization capabilities needed to bring the strategy to fruition.

Parallel to this effort was the HR initiation of role profiling for the most critical position in the company, expanded to include that job’s manager and the three positions which served as pipeline to it. From the onset, they realized that they would need to have the intellectual property (IP) license for the competency definitions and the development remedies. In fact they wanted the a full array: legacy set of Lominger 67 & 19, the KFLA 38 & 10, plus the Four Stages of Contribution BARS.

Currently, the focus is on developing the managers of the critical positions, bringing skill development to them that they had not had to be accountable for until now. To bring the content into everyday language, IP derivatives were created using large numbers of individuals who were both thoroughly learning the competency framework at the same time as they were creating customized SKILLED and LESS SKILLED definitions for all KFLA 38, and plan to further customize development remedies, especially the 70-20-10 experiences.

Also, coaching leaders in creating competency based individual development plans is underway, as is “testing out” competency based interviewing with select openings along the pipeline for the top critical position.

The senior staff are using process Maturity Models and anticipate when they will be able to define KPIs.

Surprises:

Initially, skeptical but cooperative top leaders have become advocates for the competency framework, thus inviting us to work with them on their succession planning processes.

Conclusion to Share:

Do not underestimate the many opportunities you have to bring a talent mind-set to stakeholders?