Introducing Competency Management at ESA

1 IntroducingCompetencyManagement at ESAI ntroducingCompetencyManagement at ESA Competency Management is central toevery organisation s ability to maintainand enhance its human resources. Thisapproach is directly linked to improvingcompetitiveness organisations need to stayat the forefront of technology, starting with thedevelopment of their human capital. IntroductionThis overviewofESA s research and understanding of competencymanagement introduces the workconducted so far on the ESA CompetencyManagement Project, in particular theGeneric Competency Model and theTechnical Competency Model.

2 TheHuman Resources (HR) Department isnow consolidating the positive resultsand experience gained to date to developits Technical Competency Model furtherand extend its potential on lessons-learned, we presentsuggestions as how best to extend theproject to encompass the whole is Competency -Based Management ? Competency -Based Management (CBM)is a set of theories and processes aimedat identifying, classifying and managingthe competencies that people need toperform specific jobs. It sets a conceptualand practical framework that drives themanagement of human resources tocontribute efficiently and effectively to theresults ofan organisation.

3 Paolo Donzelli, Nuria Alfaro, Fiona Walsh& Stijn VandermissenESTEC Human Resources Division, Directorateof Resources Management , ESTEC, Noordwijk,The Netherlandsesa bulletin 126 - may 200673 Competency ManagementBy linking human resources processesto desired competencies, organisationscan shape the capabilities of its work-force and achieve better results. In short,CBM is a means of ensuring that thereis the right person in the right positionat the right time. In the recruitmentprocess, it helps, in a structured manner,to define the selection criteria thatidentify the competencies required for agiven position as the basis for selectingthe best person for the job.

4 Competencymanagement can also be used to supportcareer Management by ensuring thatemployees are aware of the competenciesneeded for a particular career path. It isalso very important to ensure thatemployee competencies are maintainedand/or improved, which contributes tostaff competencies can be managed,they should first be classified and theirscope ofapplication defined. Initially, theycan be divided into two types: behaviouraland technical. The behavioural competen-cies include all those soft skills thatenable a person to perform well in aspecific function, such as communicatingeffectively, achieving tangible results andcreative problem-solving.

5 These aregeneric because they can be applied to avariety of different functions and technicalspecialties. Accuracy, for example, couldbe as essential for flight dynamicsengineers as for payroll officers, but lessimportant for some scientific andengineering roles. The capacity to lead andmotivate others is independent of domain;it could be equally important whether youhead a team of scientists or a section ofcontract competencies are specific toa given function. Depending on the job,this could range from knowledge of therules and regulations related to payroll andthe software that transfers the money to your bank account, to knowledge ofMaxwell s laws and the software for theelectromagnetic compatibility analysisof some are many models of behaviouralcompetencies that can be applied widely todifferent specialties.

6 However, the classifica-tion oftechnical competencies could beunique to a specific sector or, in somecases, to a specific organisation. Somecommon general principles apply to mostofthese classifications. The most common principle is thetop-down approach. This means firstidentifying the broader categories andthen refining them into sub-groups. Inthe case ofscientific and technicalorganisations like ESA and NASA,three main levels have been identified: Level 1:the broad job communities, suchas Engineering, Scientists, Astronautsand Administrative Services; Level 2:the job families, such as ElectricalSystems Engineering, Space Science,Project Management and Audit; Level 3:specific jobs, such as AvionicsEngineer, Planetologist, Ground Seg-ment Manager and Auditor.

7 An additional Level 4 further details thespecific technical and behavioural skillsrequired for the given job. Once defined,Level 4 competencies may also be rankedaccording to proficiency levels (such asexpert, master, junior) and can be used todefine both the requirements of a job aswell as the degree to which the personhas mastered the various ESA Generic Competency ModelThe development ofa Competency modelwithin the Agency started in 2001 withthe definition ofthe ESA GenericCompetency Model and its associatedrecruitment and assessment tools.

8 This model describes the cognitiveand behavioural skills identified asimportant and relevant to the Agency. It identifies four broad categories ofskills: cognition (thinking), relations(interacting), actions (doing) andcorporate identity (being). Each categorycontains four specific skills. These 16skills do not necessarily apply to all postsand a selection is made depending on thenature and characteristics of the model was based on the feedbackfrom interviews and focus groups of over120 staff members. The intention of thismodel was to use it as a foundation for HRpractices such as self-assessment, training,recruitment, career Management develop-ment and mobility.

9 It has been used as thebasis for two concrete tools: theResourcesesa bulletin 126 - may ESA Behavioural and Cognitive Competency ModelCompetency-Based Interview RecruitmentTool, and the Competency -Based Tool forSetting and Assessing BehaviouralCompetencies. While the first model iswidely used in the recruitment process,the second is being promoted for staffassessment and the ESA Technical Competency ModelCompetency-Based Management cannotrely alone on cognitive/behavioural skillsbut must accompany and be integratedwith technical aims to support ESA s goalsbyidentifying staffwith the requiredcompetencies for a given project or post, as well as identifying potentialopportunities best suited to individualcompetencies.

10 Knowing the capabilitiesofESA s internal resources is all the morecritical now given the expected departuresof a large number of experienced staffand experts in the near future. Feasibility studyAstudy on the technical competencies ofthe Agency was launched in September2004 with the objectives to: define a methodology to describe thetechnical competencies associated withthe various posts and/or required byfuture needs; assess the reusability of the ESAC ompetency Dictionary developed inrecent years and used by someDirectorates for manpower planning.