PLACEMENT PREPARATION
MATERIAL
Managerial Competencies and Career Development
DECEMBER 12, 2015
AMAN BHATNAGAR
Contents
Competency ............................................................................................................................................ 2
Competency Models ............................................................................................................................... 2
Thresh hold and differentiating competencies................................................................................... 2
Contents of competency model.......................................................................................................... 2
Levels of competency model .............................................................................................................. 3
Ways to build competency model ...................................................................................................... 3
Assessment centres (AC)......................................................................................................................... 3
Key characteristics .............................................................................................................................. 3
AC process ........................................................................................................................................... 3
Validity coefficients ............................................................................................................................. 4
Career...................................................................................................................................................... 4
Holland’s theory of occupational choice ................................................................................................ 4
Career Anchors........................................................................................................................................ 5
Life-span life-space approach (Super’s theory) ...................................................................................... 6
Competency
An underlying characteristic of an individual which is causally related to criterion referenced
effective or superior performance.
Competencies can be:
Motive: Underlying need or thought pattern that drives, directs and selects an individual’s
behaviour. Eg need for achievement
Trait: A general disposition to behavior respond in a certain way; for instance with self-
confidence, self-control, stress resistance
Self-concept: What they think they value, what they think they do or interested in doing
Knowledge: Content knowledge
Cognitive or behavioural skills: Either covert or overt
It should be discriminating and measurable
Values becomes competencies if they directly impact the performance
Upper ones are clearly visible; and
are easily changed/trained
Lower ones are not very visible;
difficult to train. Therefore hire on
the basis of those
Competency Models
Competencies that set high performers apart from average performers
Competency model should be:
Vertically aligned: aligned with and flowing from the organization’s objectives and culture
Horizontally aligned: The competency model should lend itself to multiple HR programs
including recruitment and selection, performance management, and training
Thresh hold and differentiating competencies
Thresh hold – basic competencies that are required by everyone in that job
Differentiating competencies – Distinguish superior performers from non-superior
performers
Contents of competency model
List of competencies
Definition of competency
Scale rating and definition of each rating
o Competency scaling can be done impact, complexity, effort, completeness of action
Behavioural indicators
Levels of competency model
Can be position, job function and organization
We can have certain organization wide competencies and other job function specific
competencies
o Create three positional levels: individual contributor, managerial, & executive
Ways to build competency model
Generic models
Adapted generic model
Survey driven
Expert panels
Behavioural event interviews
o Idea behind BEI is identifying thoughts, feelings and actions behind critical incidents
o Critical incident interview -> behavioural codes -> classification of to competencies
to get dominant competencies
Repertory grid
o Take 3 high performers and 2 average performers; compare on what factors high
performers are common and differ from the average performers
Assessment centres (AC)
Key characteristics
Multiple Participants
Multiple Methods
Stress on Situational Methods
Multiple Assessors
Behaviourally Based
Founded Competencies
Integration of Data
AC process
1. Candidates participate in a series of exercises that simulate on-the-job situations
2. Trained assessors carefully observe and document the behaviors displayed by the
participants. Each assessor observes each participant at least once
3. Assessors individually write evaluations reports, documenting their observations of each
participant’s performance
4. Assessors integrate the data through a consensus discussion process, led by the center
administrator, who documents the ratings and decisions
5. Each participant receives objective performance information from the administrator or one
of the assessors
Validity coefficients
AC 0.65
CBI 0.45
Interview 0.19
Career
More than just a job. It’s a life’s work.
Three things to judge our decisions:
Tone – Do we feel good about ourselves; aliveness as an organism
Resonance – do we feel good about our relations
Perspective – Do we feel good about our choices
Holland’s theory of occupational choice
Career choices of expression of a person’s personality; Occupation is a reflection of his
knowledge, skill, personality and behaviour
Workplace comprised of six major work environments and a populace comprised of six personality
types. The matching process is a two-way street; people search for work environments that are
compatible with their personalities, and work environments are created to attract certain types of
people. Six personality types include:
Realistic: Has narrow range of interests and possesses traditional values
o Comfortable working within institutional restraints
o Values being practical-minded
o Perceives self as lacking ability in human relations
o Has confidence in realistic skills but may have low self-esteem
o Pilot, systems designer
Investigative: Aversion to persuasive, social, and repetitive activities
o Values scientific or scholarly activities and achievements
o Is open to new ideas and experience
o Sees self as analytical, curious
o Seeks challenging problems
o Software engineer, economist
Artistic: Aversion to systematic, and structured activities
o Values being imaginative but not being obedient, logical, or responsible
o Very open to feelings and ideas, and to others
o Writer, fashion designer
Social: Prefers activities aimed to train, develop, cure, or enlighten others
o A deficit in manual and technical competencies
o Aspires to become a competent parent or teacher
o HR manager, psychologist, doctor
Enterprising: Values economic and political achievement: controlling others, and being
ambitious
o Aspires to becoming a leader in business, influential in public affairs.
o Perceives self as aggressive, self-confident, sociable but lacking scientific ability
o Would find holding a position of power most gratifying
o Sales manager, R&D scientist
Conventional: Preference for activities entailing structured, systematic manipulation of data
o Believes in becoming an expert in finance or commerce, leading a comfortable life
o Prefers to work within the structure of an organization
o Believes it is desirable to be ambitious, obedient, and polite
o CA, investment analysis
Career Anchors
Career anchor is a pattern of self-perceived talents, motives and values that serve to guide,
constrain, stabilize and integrate individual careers.
Different career anchors are (TMASCLESD):
Technical/Functional
o Competence is a specific area; wants to stay in that area and grow in that area
Managerial
o Want to manage, coordinate, be responsible for work of others
Autonomy
o Desire maximum control over their work lives. Primary concern is personal freedom
and autonomy
Security
o View security/stability as the most important factor in their career. Main concern is
to achieve a sense of having stabilized one’s career so that one can relax
Challenge
o Want to work on solutions to seemingly unsolvable problems, winning out over
tough opponents, or to overcoming difficult obstacles
Lifestyle
o They have three major domains in life: career, self-development, and relationships.
o View their work as very important, but will not sacrifice it in the long-term for the
other dimensions of their lives.
Entrepreneurial
o Would not give up the opportunity to create an enterprise of one’s own, built on
own abilities
o Willingness to take risks and to overcome obstacles
Service
o Key is the opportunity to pursue work that achieves something of value
Duty
o Would not give up on opportunities to put happiness on the face of significant elders
by one’s career decisions
Life-span life-space approach (Super’s theory)
Life Span
Choosing one’s life work is not a single point-in-time event, but a long-term process, beginning in
early childhood and progressing through adulthood; and career consists of much more than work.
Donald Super’s work consists of five stages: growth (childhood), exploration (adolescence), and
establishment (early adulthood), and maintenance (middle adulthood) and decline (later adulthood).
Growth (birth to 15): Development of capacity, attitudes, interests, and needs associated with self-
concepts
Exploration (15-24): Choices are narrowed but not finalized
Establishment (25-44): Trial and stabilization through work experiences
Maintenance (45-64): Continual adjustment process to improve working position and
situation
Decline (65+): Preretirement considerations, reduced work output, and eventual retirement
Life Space
Mass career customization
Letting a person determine his work one 4 basic dimensions:
Pace - Addresses how quickly an employee is slated to progress to increasing levels of
responsibility and authority.
Workload - Addresses the quantity of work performed, typically measured in units of hours
or days per week, pay cycle or month.
Location/schedule - Where works gets done (Location) and when works get done (Schedule)
are combined in this career dimension. Location and schedule define much of the day to day
experience of how works get done.
Role - It refers to the category of an employee’s position, job description, and
responsibilities. It can range from an individual contributor to a manager.
Career Pathing
A career path is the sequence of work positions or roles that a person holds over the span of a
lifetime. A career path comprises:
Sequential list of positions or roles
Qualifications required @ each level
Competencies required @ each level
Critical development experiences required @ each level
Career success factors
Job Sculpting
