Keys to Successfully Creating a Competency-Based Training Curriculum

To build a competency-based training and development system or to map existing courses to a competency model, you must be mindful of the four keys to success:
• Training should only include competencies that can be effectively developed (i.e. hard-wired traits that don't significantly change over time won't change as a result of some fabulous training class)
• Students must be able to apply the lessons learned while on the job in observable or measurable ways (if the benefits of training cannot be measured then training will not be valued)
• Courses should teach more than one competency (competencies do not live in isolation so teach clusters of common skills together, e.g. planning, prioritizing, and decision making)
• Courses should be followed by on-the-job application and feedback and bring the manager into the developmental cycle (create job aids for the bosses of the students so that the bosses can hold the students accountable for what was learned)

The Steps Required to Build a Strategic Human Capital Asset Management Team

There is an accurate and applicable body of research on how to determine what differentiates the best performers from all others. This research has been put into practical use in several companies and had a terrific impact on performance at the company and individual level. Whether it is called competency-based HR practices, human capital management systems, talent management, or some other buzz word term, the steps for determining what differentiators are and how to leverage them to improve performance is known and can be applied at any company.