What is a Competency Framework? Meaning and Example

What a competency framework looks like

Competencies usually fall into three groups: core competencies expected of everyone, such as integrity and customer focus; functional competencies for a job family, such as credit appraisal for lending staff or patient care for nurses; and leadership competencies for people who manage others. Each competency has a definition and three to five levels described through observable behaviour. For planning, level 1 might read 'plans own day and meets deadlines', while level 4 reads 'builds a quarterly plan for a department and shifts resources when priorities change'.

Competencies vs KRAs

KRAs and KPIs measure what a person delivered. Competencies describe how they delivered it and what they are ready for next. A sales manager might hit every revenue KRA while losing three team members through poor people management; competencies catch that. Many Indian companies split the appraisal between results and competencies, for example 70 percent KRAs and 30 percent competencies, with the competency share rising at senior levels. In ZeniaHR's Performance module, a goal can be typed as a competency and weighted alongside KRA and KPI goals.

Building one without overdoing it

A framework bought off the shelf rarely fits. The words 'drives results' mean different things in a hospital ward and a software team, so rewrite the behaviours in your own workplace's language, with examples your managers will recognize.

• Start with four to six core competencies, not thirty
• Write each level as behaviour a manager can observe
• Test drafts with managers from two or three departments
• Map each designation or grade to the level it should reach
• Use the same framework in interviews, appraisals and training plans

Frequently asked questions