an Evidence Report (Number 67) by Penny Tamkin, Linda Miller and Joy Williams (Institute for Employment Studies) and Paul Casey (UK Commission for Employment and Skills) published by UKCES (March 2013)
Occupational regulation is a policy mechanism which can raise skill levels via the introduction of minimum prescribed skills standards into an occupation or an aspect of it. Previous research published by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills suggests that occupational regulation, in certain forms, is one means by which workforce skills in the UK can be improved. It can do this by providing incentives for individuals or firms to invest in human capital, specific to the occupation they operate in, thereby raising skill levels. Whilst there is evidence of the positive effects of introducing occupational regulation (which increase in likelihood the stricter the form of regulation applied) there is little information on schema design or the motivations for their introduction or amendment. This report addresses some of these gaps.
The Institute for Employment Studies explores this through a series of ten case studies of occupational regulation schemes. Covering mandatory and voluntary occupational regulation the case studies reflect a variety of different rationales for establishing regulation, covering a varied geographical and sectoral focus, as well as different kinds of jobs and different skill levels. Via a mainly qualitative approach, the report explores the rationale, characteristics, and impact of occupational regulation. It also provides useful schematic pointers to those seeking to design and implement forms of occupational regulation.
Full text (PDF 140pp)
Showing posts with label competency_frameworks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label competency_frameworks. Show all posts
Thursday, 18 April 2013
Monday, 30 July 2012
Computing with competencies: Modelling organizational capacities
an article by Elena García-Barriocanal, Miguel-Angel Sicilia and Salvador Sánchez-Alonso
(University of Alcalá, Madrid, Spain) published in Expert Systems with Applications Volume 39 Issue 16 (15th November 2012)
Abstract
The notion of competency provides an observable account of concrete human capacities under specific work conditions. The fact that competencies are subject to concrete kinds of measurement entails that they are subject to some extent to comparison and even in some sense, calculus.
Then, competency models and databases can be used to compute competency gaps, to aggregate competencies of individuals as part of groups, and to compare capacities.
However, as of today, there is not a commonly agreed model or ontology for competencies, and scattered reports use different models for computing with competencies. This paper addresses how computing with competencies can be approached from a general perspective, using a flexible and extensible ontological model that can be adapted to the particularities of concrete organizations.
Then, the consideration of competencies as an organizational asset is approached from the perspective of particular issues as competency gap analysis, the definition of job positions and how learning technology can be linked with competency models. The framework presented provides a technology-based baseline for organizations dealing with competency models, enabling the management of the knowledge acquisition dynamics of employees as driven by concrete and measurable accounts of organizational needs.
Highlights
► We review the current state of competency models and the needs for more complex competency schemas.
► We present a general model for expressing competencies and how it is expressed in the form of an ontology.
► We describe how that model can be used for different tasks involving computation and inference with competencies.
Hazel’s comment:
Some readers will remember the post I wrote last week about dropping some journals from my regular reading list. I have also been looking at the number of journals for which I receive alerts. I know that these individually do not take as long to deal with as the hard copies in the British Library but there are significantly more of them. There is, moreover, a limit to how long I can sit and look at article titles, decide whether to read the abstract, decide whether to blog and then reformatting and checking – I have to get up and go do something else such as housework for a while before coming back to the cerebral activity. This journal was one I very nearly dropped – and what a gem I would have missed. I've not read the full article but an ontology of competence has got me really excited (sad person that I am).
Abstract
The notion of competency provides an observable account of concrete human capacities under specific work conditions. The fact that competencies are subject to concrete kinds of measurement entails that they are subject to some extent to comparison and even in some sense, calculus.
Then, competency models and databases can be used to compute competency gaps, to aggregate competencies of individuals as part of groups, and to compare capacities.
However, as of today, there is not a commonly agreed model or ontology for competencies, and scattered reports use different models for computing with competencies. This paper addresses how computing with competencies can be approached from a general perspective, using a flexible and extensible ontological model that can be adapted to the particularities of concrete organizations.
Then, the consideration of competencies as an organizational asset is approached from the perspective of particular issues as competency gap analysis, the definition of job positions and how learning technology can be linked with competency models. The framework presented provides a technology-based baseline for organizations dealing with competency models, enabling the management of the knowledge acquisition dynamics of employees as driven by concrete and measurable accounts of organizational needs.
Highlights
► We review the current state of competency models and the needs for more complex competency schemas.
► We present a general model for expressing competencies and how it is expressed in the form of an ontology.
► We describe how that model can be used for different tasks involving computation and inference with competencies.
Hazel’s comment:
Some readers will remember the post I wrote last week about dropping some journals from my regular reading list. I have also been looking at the number of journals for which I receive alerts. I know that these individually do not take as long to deal with as the hard copies in the British Library but there are significantly more of them. There is, moreover, a limit to how long I can sit and look at article titles, decide whether to read the abstract, decide whether to blog and then reformatting and checking – I have to get up and go do something else such as housework for a while before coming back to the cerebral activity. This journal was one I very nearly dropped – and what a gem I would have missed. I've not read the full article but an ontology of competence has got me really excited (sad person that I am).
Friday, 6 July 2012
Competency frameworks
Each fortnight IDS (Incomes Data Services) publishes IDS HR Studies. I read this publication in the British Library since there is no online information available without buying a subscription!
Normally I have no difficulty in thinking something like: “Hmm, ‘employee share schemes’, a career or employment adviser is not likely to need to know much about that”. Just occasionally, as has just happened, I take the box off the shelf, look at what has arrived since I last looked into the box and think some inappropriate words. Number 967 (June 2012) is titled as above.
Looking at the competency frameworks which are used within a company from the company perspective allowed me to see the framework from a different angle. [A personal anecdote: I was involved with writing competences for the Youth Training Scheme back in the 1980s.]
The best I can do for you is to bring you extracts.
Developing competence
Competencies describe the employee behaviours and qualities an organisation values and considers will help it achieve its corporate objectives. Competencies are usually gathered together in competency frameworks that provide a convenient structure for their use in a range of HR functions. A well-designed framework may take time to develop and require input and support from stakeholders. To keep competencies relevant and ensure they contribute to high performance, it is important that frameworks are regularly reviewed.
Applying competency frameworks
Many organisations recognised the benefits of deploying competency frameworks as part of performance management systems and to underpin their HR processes in general. We examine the issues that organisations need to consider when designing and launching a framework, or reviewing and making revisions to an existing model. We also look at the way competencies are used in, for example, role profiles, recruitment, and learning and development.
There are five case studies of organisations that have introduced and use competency frameworks with varying degrees of success at different levels within the organisation.
The important thing that a career or employment adviser needs to be aware of when talking with clients is that the larger organisations are likely to have a competency framework in place that is unique to that organisation – which will be in addition to any competences set out by awarding bodies for qualifications.
Normally I have no difficulty in thinking something like: “Hmm, ‘employee share schemes’, a career or employment adviser is not likely to need to know much about that”. Just occasionally, as has just happened, I take the box off the shelf, look at what has arrived since I last looked into the box and think some inappropriate words. Number 967 (June 2012) is titled as above.
Looking at the competency frameworks which are used within a company from the company perspective allowed me to see the framework from a different angle. [A personal anecdote: I was involved with writing competences for the Youth Training Scheme back in the 1980s.]
The best I can do for you is to bring you extracts.
Developing competence
Competencies describe the employee behaviours and qualities an organisation values and considers will help it achieve its corporate objectives. Competencies are usually gathered together in competency frameworks that provide a convenient structure for their use in a range of HR functions. A well-designed framework may take time to develop and require input and support from stakeholders. To keep competencies relevant and ensure they contribute to high performance, it is important that frameworks are regularly reviewed.
Applying competency frameworks
Many organisations recognised the benefits of deploying competency frameworks as part of performance management systems and to underpin their HR processes in general. We examine the issues that organisations need to consider when designing and launching a framework, or reviewing and making revisions to an existing model. We also look at the way competencies are used in, for example, role profiles, recruitment, and learning and development.
There are five case studies of organisations that have introduced and use competency frameworks with varying degrees of success at different levels within the organisation.
The important thing that a career or employment adviser needs to be aware of when talking with clients is that the larger organisations are likely to have a competency framework in place that is unique to that organisation – which will be in addition to any competences set out by awarding bodies for qualifications.
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