COMPETENCY

DICTIONARY
 COMPETENCY
DICTIONARY

2 3
 Working together as the “Standard
WHY WE Profil Family”, we identified a set

DID IT? of observable and quantifiable

knowledge, skill and attitude, which
plays a key role in the performance
of our company and employees.

4 5
 As a result of 25 workshops with the
161 participants overall, “Standard Profil
Competency Dictionary” is created.
For further contribution, surveys
are conducted with the employees
of all SP Group companies to We would like to
receive their feedbacks express our gratitude
and suggestions.
to all employees whose
contributions added value to
the project.

6 7
 Customer
Focus

Top
Management

OUR CORE Quality Strategic

COMPETENCIES Orientation
Administrative Leader
Support
Continous

AND COMPETENCY
Improvement
Team Operational
Leader
Member

families Practical
Operational
Specialist Leader
Team Leader
Building
Trust
Building
Partnerships

8 9
 TEAM LEADER
WHICH COMPETENCY Employees below CEO-4 level in charge of teams of white and/or blue collar

FAMILY AM I IN?
employees: e.g. responsible, specialist, or engineer.

SPECIALIST
Senior specialists, specialists, responsible, engineers, assistants, assistant
specialists, etc. who have no subordinates reporting directly to them.
Top Management
Vice Presidents

TEAM MEMBER
StrategIc Leader Employees who work in positions tasked with continuously or periodically
CEO-2 conducting activities that comprise the core operations of a specific
Directors, Plant GMs function of the company.

OperatIonal Leader ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT

CEO-3 Personnel such as drivers, janitors, etc. who provide administrative and
Managers logistical support to individuals, projects, divisions and teams in order to
ensure smooth and efficient operation of company functions.
PractIcal OperatIonal Leader
CEO-4
Team Leaders, Area Responsibles, Coordinators

10 11
 Dear Colleagues,
We continue to set up the principles of Standard Profil Thanks to this project, we have created a common language, special to us, in line
Group starting from early 2014. In the environment with the values of SP Group.
of tough competition, we need to move on and grow These standards will improve our abilities of objective performance assessment
our capacity to strengthen our presence in the market and career management. The common language we’ve created together, will help
through the priorities like sustainable development the teams conduct same kind of analyzes and work with standardized systems.
processes, communication and standardization. So, our This will not only to facilitate our internal communication, but also to accelerate
main focus has to be our most valuable resource: “our our processes.
people”. Our modelling includes 41 competency; 5 of which are related to our core values
In December 2014, we’ve started “Competency and the rest 36 to the job/role competencies. All the competencies are defined
Modelling” project as a consequence of this focus. The separately according to the job family. I highly recommend you to carefully read
project is completed with the participation of sample this booklet created uniquely for SP Group with involvement of you all.
groups representing all Standard Profil Group companies This library will support us to further improve our competencies. On the other
Turhan Semizer / CEO and its job families. The workshops are organized both hand, it will highlight our way towards our corporate and individual destinations.
in Istanbul and Logrono in 25 sessions with 161 SP We are a big global family; we’re learning and growing together, prospering by our
members. The results are shared via surveys with all SP differences, flourishing with our values and getting stronger and stronger with
Group members for a final review. In conclusion of all this team spirit. We shall continue to progress and achieve our common targets.
efforts, we managed to create our Competency Library
as of April 2015. I would like to thank you all for your Best Regards,
contribution on this challenge.

12 13
 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY..................16 OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY.......... 54 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY......................... 89 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY............................103
CHANGE LEADERSHIP..........................................................................17 BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL TEAM......................................................55 BUILDING TRUST.................................................................................. 90 BUILDING TRUST.................................................................................104
TEAM DEVELOPMENT.......................................................................... 18 FACILITATING CHANGE........................................................................56 GAINING COMMITMENT....................................................................... 91 GAINING COMMITMENT.....................................................................105
HIGH IMPACT COMMUNICATION........................................................20 HIGH IMPACT COMMUNICATION........................................................57 COMMUNICATION..................................................................................92 COMMUNICATION................................................................................106
CULTIVATING NETWORKS....................................................................21 DELEGATING RESPONSIBILITY..........................................................58 WORK STANDARDS...............................................................................93 QUALITY ORIENTATION...................................................................... 107
COACHING AND DEVELOPING OTHERS..........................................22 BUILDING TRUST.................................................................................. 60 MANAGING WORK (INCLUDES TIME MANAGEMENT)..................94 MANAGING WORK (INCLUDES TIME MANAGEMENT)................108
CUSTOMER ORIENTATION...................................................................24 GAINING COMMITMENT....................................................................... 61 BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS..................................................................95 DECISION MAKING................................................................................110
PASSION FOR RESULTS........................................................................25 BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS..................................................................62 DECISION MAKING.................................................................................96 CUSTOMER FOCUS................................................................................111
ESTABLISHING STRATEGIC DIRECTION..........................................26 DECISION MAKING.................................................................................63 CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT...........................................................97 BUILDING STRATEGIC WORKING RELATIONSHIPS..................... 112
SELLING THE VISION............................................................................27 COACHING...............................................................................................64 CUSTOMER FOCUS................................................................................98 CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT..........................................................113
DRIVING EXECUTION............................................................................28 CUSTOMER FOCUS................................................................................65 FOLLOW-UP...........................................................................................100 CONTINUOUS LEARNING...................................................................114
EXECUTIVE PRESENCE....................................................................... 30 PLANNING and ORGANIZING..............................................................66 ADAPTABILITY...................................................................................... 102 ADAPTABILITY.......................................................................................116
BUILDING ORGANIZATIONAL TALENT.............................................32 DRIVING FOR RESULTS........................................................................68
EMPOWERMENT/DELEGATION..........................................................34 CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT...........................................................70 TEAM MEMBER COMPETENCY FAMILY....................... 117
BUILDING TRUST..................................................................................118
STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY............... 35 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY........... 72 COMMUNICATION................................................................................ 120
HIGH IMPACT COMMUNICATION........................................................36 BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL TEAM......................................................73 MANAGING WORK (INCLUDES TIME MANAGEMENT)................ 122
BUILDING TRUST...................................................................................37 DELEGATING RESPONSIBILITY..........................................................74 QUALITY ORIENTATION...................................................................... 123
CHANGE LEADERSHIP.........................................................................38 BUILDING TRUST...................................................................................75 BUILDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY...................................................... 124
TEAM DEVELOPMENT......................................................................... 40 GAINING COMMITMENT.......................................................................76 BUILDING STRATEGIC WORKING RELATIONSHIPS.................... 125
BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS.................................................................. 41 COMMUNICATION..................................................................................78 APPLIED LEARNING............................................................................ 126
BUSINESS SAVVY...................................................................................42 COACHING...............................................................................................79 ADAPTABILITY...................................................................................... 127
COACHING AND DEVELOPING OTHERS..........................................44 BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS................................................................. 80
CUSTOMER ORIENTATION...................................................................45 DECISION MAKING.................................................................................82 ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT COMPETENCY FAMILY.......... 128
EMPOWERMENT/DELEGATION..........................................................46 CUSTOMER FOCUS................................................................................84 BUILDING TRUST................................................................................. 129
OPERATIONAL DECISION MAKING....................................................48 PLANNING and ORGANIZING..............................................................85 COMMUNICATION................................................................................130
PASSION FOR RESULTS........................................................................49 DRIVING FOR RESULTS........................................................................86 MANAGING WORK (INCLUDES TIME MANAGEMENT).................131
DRIVING EXECUTION............................................................................50 CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT...........................................................87 QUALITY ORIENTATION...................................................................... 132
LEADING THROUGH VISION AND VALUES......................................52 ADAPTABILITY........................................................................................88 BUILDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY......................................................134
BUILDING ORGANIZATIONAL TALENT.............................................53 BUILDING STRATEGIC WORKING RELATIONSHIPS....................135
ADAPTABILITY......................................................................................136
APPLIED LEARNING............................................................................138

14 15
 Top Management CHANGE LEADERSHIP

Competency Family
Continuously seeking (or encouraging others to seek) opportunities for
different and innovative approaches to addressing organizational problems
and opportunities.

• Recognizes opportunities - Actively seeks alternative solutions;

LEADERSHIP BUSINESS
recognizes problems as opportunities for process improvement.

• Change Leadership
• Team Development
MANAGEMENT • Values sound approaches - Consistently remains open to ideas
offered by others; recommends and uses good ideas from sources outside
• Customer Orientation
• Coaching & Developing Others the immediate environment to solve problems.
• Establishing Strategic Direction
• Selling the Vision
• Driving Execution • Encourages boundary breaking - Encourages individuals
• Empowerment / Delegation
• Building Organizational Talent to question established work processes or assumptions and to ask why
regularly; encourages others to seek alternative solutions.

• Addresses change resistance - Helps individuals overcome

INTERPERSONAL resistance to change (even when the future is unclear); shows empathy with
PERSONAL those who feel loss or fear as a result of change.
• High Impact
Communication ATTRIBUTES • Drives for improvement - Strives for continuous improvement in

• Cultivating Networks • Passion for Results process and business results; sets and encourages others to set continually
• Executive Presence higher goals; strives to achieve a best practice approach.

16 17
 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

TEAM DEVELOPMENT
Using appropriate methods and interpersonal styles to develop, motivate,
and guide a team toward successful outcomes and attainment of
business objectives.
• Builds team - Evaluates resource needs and recruits, attracts, selects, and retains talented
individuals; works to develop teams both locally and across organizational boundaries.

• Establishes team expectations - Works collaboratively with colleagues and team members to
establish performance expectations necessary to achieve objectives.

• Clarifies roles, responsibilities, and objectives - Works with and involves team
members in clarifying the team roles and responsibilities necessary for success.

• Encourages team - Looks for and capitalizes on opportunities to motivate, celebrate, and reward
successful team performance.

• Monitors team performance - Stays close to team performance; helps to keep the team on
track; facilitates adjustments when necessary.

• Provides team support - Offer the team own personal time; helps in overcoming barriers; provides
ongoing feedback and appropriate guidance.

18 19
 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

HIGH IMPACT COMMUNICATION CULTIVATING NETWORKS

Clearly and succinctly conveying information and ideas to individuals and Initiating and maintaining strategic relationships with stakeholders inside and
groups in a variety of situations; communicating in a focused and compelling outside the organization (e.g., customers, peers, cross-functional partners,
way that drives others’ thoughts and actions. external vendors, and alliance partners) to advance business goals.
• Delivers clear messages - Conveys messages logically,
simply, succinctly, and at the right pace; does not digress; is in command • Identifies partnership opportunities - Scans the internal and external environment to
of the message. identify the relationships that should be initiated or improved to achieve business goals.

• Communicates with impact - Focuses communications to have a • Reaches out - Initiates collaborative relationships with key stakeholders; cultivates a network of
positive effect on others; uses forceful and compelling language and tone those with the knowledge and influence to advance business goals.
to stimulate others’ thinking and actions; uses analogies, illustrations, • Supports partners - Offers valuable
or colorful expressions to create mental images; uses visual aids when information and resources to
appropriate to enhance impact of the content. business partners; works together
• Uses language appropriately - Uses correct grammar and with partners to create
punctuation; uses a format and terminology appropriate to the topic and win/win outcomes.
audience.

• Ensures understanding - Checks the audience’s understanding;

presents messages in different ways to enhance their understanding.

• Conveys a professional presence - Exhibits a presence that

commands attention and respect; demonstrates an air of self-confidence.

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 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

COACHING AND DEVELOPING OTHERS

Providing feedback, instruction, and development guidance to help others excel
in their current and future job accountabilities; planning and supporting the
development of individual skills and abilities
• Clarifies performance - Seeks information and opinions about an individual’s current performance as well
as longer-term development needs.

• Provides timely feedback - Gives timely, specific, and appropriate feedback about performance,
development needs, and development progress; reinforces efforts and progress.

• Conveys performance expectations and implications - Communicates high expectations; links

performance improvement and skill development to relevant personal and business goals; checks for understanding of
and commitment to performance and development goals as well as follow-up activities.

• Evaluates skill gaps - Diagnoses gaps in knowledge, experience, skills, and behavior that underlie current
and future performance; continually modifies evaluation based on new information.

• Provides support - Offers personal time; provides appropriate amount of guidance, instruction, positive
models, and opportunities for observation to help others develop skills; provides ongoing feedback.

• Shows empathy - Listens and responds to the affect and content of concerns.

• Champions positive results - Looks for opportunities to celebrate the accomplishments of individuals.

22 23
 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

CUSTOMER ORIENTATION PASSION FOR RESULTS

Ensuring that the customer perspective is a driving Driving high standards for individual, team, and organizational
force behind business decisions and activities; accomplishment; tenaciously working to meet or exceed challenging goals;
crafting and implementing service practices that deriving satisfaction from goal achievement and continuous improvement.
meet customers’ and own organization’s needs.
• Creates performance tension - Identifies gaps between current reality and expected business
• Seeks to understand customer - Actively seeks information to understand customer results; sets challenging goals and high performance standards for self and others; initiates action and
circumstances, problems, expectations, and needs. moves others toward envisioned outcomes.

• Identifies customer service issues - Identifies breakdowns in internal processes and • Persists to completion - Corrals energy day-to-day to maintain momentum and a sense of
systems that directly impact customer service and retention; expresses concerns to others. urgency toward desired results; continually focuses others on performance gaps; works relentlessly to
overcome obstacles; is dissatisfied until results have been achieved.
• Creates customer-focused practices - Uses understanding of customer needs to
institute systems, processes, and procedures to ensure customer satisfaction and to prevent service
issues from occurring; promotes customer service as a value.

• Assures customer satisfaction - Makes sure that customer solutions, practices, and
procedures are carried out and achieve their objectives.

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 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

ESTABLISHING STRATEGIC DIRECTION SELLING THE VISION

Establishing and committing to a long-range course of action to accomplish a Passionately selling an organizational strategy; creating a clear view of the
long-range goal or vision after analyzing factual information and assumptions; future state by helping others understand and feel how things will be different
taking into consideration resources, constraints, and organizational values. when the future vision is achieved.
• Gathers information - Identifies/Recognizes the need for additional information and obtains it by clearly
• Paints the picture - Vividly describes organizational
describing what needs to be known and the means to obtain it; asks relevant and specific questions to verify facts and
strategy in a way that helps others see and feel the vision.
obtain additional information.
• Organizes information - Organizes qualitative information and data to identify/explain trends, problems, • Influences movement - Influences others through
and their causes; compares, contrasts, and combines information to identify underlying issues; sees associations sound rationale and persuasiveness in a way that encourages
between seemingly independent problems or events to recognize trends, problems, and possible cause-effect movement toward the vision.
relationships.
• Compels action - Conveys the opportunities of the
• Performs data analysis - Organizes and manipulates quantitative data to identify/explain trends and
vision in a way that energizes team members and business
problems and their causes.
partners to actions.
• Evaluates/Selects strategies - Generates options to achieve a long-range goal or vision; develops
decision criteria considering relevant factors (e.g., cost, benefits, risks, timing, buy-in, and organizational goals and • Leads through vision - Uses the vision as a reference
values) and the decision’s impact on employees, the organization, and customers; considers the opportunities and risks point in conducting own day-to-day activities; translates the
associated with various options; selects the course of action with the highest probability of success. vision for employees by describing how what they do on a day-
• Gains commitment - Involves those affected by a decision/action in a manner that demonstrates to-day basis impacts customers.
understanding of their needs and gains their commitment to the action; builds consensus when appropriate.
• Develops timelines - Analyzes short- and long-term strategic goals and determines long-range objectives;
develops broad, initial timelines based on these strategic goals.
• Executes plans - Identifies the critical tasks and resources (including people) necessary to achieve the desired
objectives; takes action to ensure superior execution.

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 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

DRIVING EXECUTION
Translating strategy into operational reality. Breaking down strategies or
business initiatives into key tasks and identifying accountabilities. Aligning
communication, people, culture, processes, resources and systems to ensure
effective implementation and delivery of required results.
• Determines key tasks - Determines tasks and actions required to implement a specific strategy or business initiative.
Breaks down long-term goals into short and medium term milestones. Adjusting tasks and activities as circumstances change.
• Establishes communication strategy - Clearly conveys strategy, plans, information and ideas
to individuals or groups in a manner that engages and motivates people and helps them understand their role in
implementing the strategy. Develops process and systems that enable the communication relating to the strategy
implementation to flow back and forth.
• Defines actions for execution - Defines required action steps and critical milestones; adapts action plans
according to changing circumstances.
• Focuses on key tasks -Translates strategic priorities into specific tasks and actions required to implement a
strategic priority or business initiative; breaks down long-term goals into short- and medium-term milestones; adjusts
tasks and activities as circumstances change.
• Ensures skills and readiness - Identifies and develops people capability to drive specific strategies and
objectives which may include training and/or acquisition of needed skills and knowledge. Coaches people in areas where
skills are not strong.
• Aligns systems and process - Identifies and aligns systems and process to support implementation of
specific strategies.
• Creates measurement discipline - Establishes criteria and systems to track implementation steps and
results, including both lead and lag measures.

28 29
 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

EXECUTIVE PRESENCE
Championing the organization’s mission and values in an authentic
manner; demonstrating a poised and confident demeanor that reassures
others and commands respect.
• Advocates for organization - Champions organizational decisions and values when interacting
with senior management and other stakeholders; balances individual interests with commitment to employees,
stakeholders, and the organization’s mission.
• Conveys authenticity - Discloses information accurately and completely; keeps commitments;
behaves consistently; acts in accordance with ethical and professional guidelines, regulations, and organizational
values and policies.
• Manages stress - Remains calm, controlled, and action oriented when confronted by work-related stress or
opposition from others; does not overreact or become defensive.
• Manages conflict - Uses appropriate interpersonal styles and methods to reduce tension or conflict between
two or more people
• Exudes confidence - Exhibits a presence that commands attention and respect and instills confidence in one’s
actions and outcomes.
• Demonstrates excitement - Feels and demonstrates excitement towards organization goals; acts as a role
model with his energy and encourages others.
• Invites feedback - Stays open and Aaccepts feedback;, seestakes feedback as a tool to identify areas for
development opportunity.
• Demonstrates interpersonal diplomacy - Builds trust by demonstrating sensitivity to others’ needs,
maintaining self-esteem, showing empathy, involving others, and offering support.

30 31
 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

BUILDING ORGANIZATIONAL TALENT

Attracting, developing, and retaining talented individuals; creating a learning
environment that ensures associates realize their highest potential, allowing
the organization as a whole to meet future challenges.
• Diagnoses capability and developmental needs - Determines the mix and level of capability
required by the business to support current and future objectives; assesses the key strengths and development
opportunities of groups.

• Scans environment for developmental assignments - Identifies developmental assignments

and the potential learning in the assignment; matches assignments with individual developmental opportunities.

• Champions talent management - Provides high visibility to individuals with potential; offers challenging
managerial assignments that build confidence and credibility; provides such individuals with a personal vision for
this future.

• Creates a learning culture - Aligns support systems, accountabilities, and incentives, which ensures a
learning environment.

• Ensures differential reward systems and processes - Supports and advocates deserving
individuals; actively pursues appropriate recognition, rewards, and resources for strong performers; when
necessary, defends strong performers, even in the face of challenges.

• Emphasizes retention - Establishes organizational systems to encourage talented individuals to remain

within the organization; addresses individuals’ needs for flexibility within the organizational structure; provides a
clear career path for talented individuals that provides challenge and career satisfaction.

32 33
 TOP MANAGEMENT COMPETENCY FAMILY

EMPOWERMENT/DELEGATION Strategic Leader

Competency Family
Using appropriate delegation to create a sense of ownership of higher-level
organizational issues and encouraging individuals to stretch beyond their
current capabilities.
• Chooses targets - Gives work to the

LEADERSHIP BUSINESS
most appropriate person based on time,
skills, experience, position, and growth
opportunities. • Change Leadership MANAGEMENT
• Defines latitude - Defines latitude • Team Development • Business Acumen
of action and boundaries that provides • Coaching & Developing Others • Customer Orientation
enough autonomy in decision making to • Leading Through Vision & Values • Operational Decision Making
encourage ownership of tasks; pushes • Empowerment / Delegation • Driving Execution
decision making and autonomy downward • Building Organizational Talent
through the organization.

• Promotes accountability - Delegates; provides encouragement and support to others in INTERPERSONAL

accepting responsibility with accountability; promotes risk taking, explores the reasons for mistakes, and PERSONAL
• High Impact
learns from them.
Communication ATTRIBUTES
• Provides guidance - Checks for understanding; provides instruction, resources, and guidance as • Building Partnerships • Building Trust
appropriate to support success without undermining the individual’s full ownership of issues. • Driving for Results

• Follows up - Builds follow-up and accountability into organizational processes to monitor issues.

34 35
 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

HIGH IMPACT BUILDING TRUST

COMMUNICATION Interacting with others in a way that gives them confidence in
one’s intentions and those of the organization.
Clearly and succinctly conveying information
and ideas to individuals and groups in a variety of • Operates with integrity - Demonstrates honesty; keeps commitments; behaves in a
situations; communicating in a focused and compelling consistent manner.
way that drives others’ thoughts and actions. • Discloses own positions - Shares thoughts, feelings, and rationale so that others
• Delivers clear messages - Conveys messages logically, simply, understand personal positions.
succinctly, and at the right pace; does not digress; is in command of the message. • Remains open to ideas - Listens to others and objectively considers others’ ideas and
• Communicates with impact - Focuses communications to have a opinions, even when they conflict with one’s own.
positive effect on others; uses forceful and compelling language and tone to stimulate • Supports others - Treats people with dignity, respect, and fairness; gives proper
others’ thinking and actions; uses analogies, illustrations, or colorful expressions to credit to others; stands up for deserving others and their ideas even in the face of resistance or
create mental images; uses visual aids when appropriate to enhance impact of the content. challenge.
• Uses language appropriately - Uses correct grammar and punctuation; uses a
format and terminology appropriate to the topic and audience.

• Ensures understanding - Checks the audience’s understanding; presents messages

in different ways to enhance their understanding.

• Conveys a professional presence - Exhibits a presence that commands

attention and respect; demonstrates an air of self-confidence.

36 37
 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

CHANGE LEADERSHIP
Continuously seeking (or encouraging others to seek) opportunities
for different and innovative approaches to addressing organizational
problems and opportunities.
• Recognizes opportunities - Actively seeks alternative solutions; recognizes problems as
opportunities for process improvement.

• Values sound approaches - Consistently remains open to ideas offered by others;

recommends and uses good ideas from sources outside the immediate environment to solve problems.

• Encourages boundary breaking - Encourages individuals to question established work

processes or assumptions and to ask why regularly; encourages others to seek alternative solutions.

• Addresses change resistance - Helps individuals overcome resistance to change (even

when the future is unclear); shows empathy with those who feel loss or fear as a result of change.

• Drives for improvement - Strives for continuous improvement in process and business
results; sets and encourages others to set continually higher goals; strives to achieve a best practice
approach.

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 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

TEAM DEVELOPMENT BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS

Using appropriate methods and interpersonal styles to develop, Identifying opportunities and taking action to build
motivate, and guide a team toward successful outcomes and strategic relationships between one’s area and other
attainment of business objectives. areas, teams, departments, units, or organizations to
help achieve business goals.
• Builds team - Evaluates resource needs and recruits, attracts, selects, and retains talented
individuals; works to develop teams both locally and across organizational boundaries.
• Identifies partnership needs - Analyzes the organization and own area to identify key
• Establishes team expectations - Works collaboratively with colleagues and team members relationships that should be initiated or improved to further the attainment of own area’s goals.
to establish performance expectations necessary to achieve objectives.
• Explores partnership opportunities - Exchanges information with potential partner
• Clarifies roles, responsibilities, and objectives - Works with and involves team areas to clarify partnership benefits and potential problems; collaboratively determines the scope and
members in clarifying the team roles and responsibilities necessary for success. expectations of the partnership so that both areas’ needs can be met.
• Encourages team - Looks for and capitalizes on opportunities to motivate, celebrate, and reward • Formulates action plans - Collaboratively determines courses of action to realize mutual
successful team performance. goals; facilitates agreement on each partner’s responsibilities and needed support.
• Monitors team performance - Stays close to team performance; helps to keep the team on • Subordinates own area’s goals - Places higher priority on organization’s goals than on
track; facilitates adjustments when necessary. own area’s goals; anticipates effects of own area’s actions and decisions on partners; influences others to
support partnership objectives.
• Provides team support - Offer the team own personal time; helps in overcoming barriers;
provides ongoing feedback and appropriate guidance. • Monitors partnership - Implements effective means for monitoring and evaluating the
partnership process and the attainment of mutual goals.

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 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

BUSINESS SAVVY
Using economic, financial, market, and industry data to understand and improve
business results; using one’s understanding of major business functions,
industry trends, and own organization’s position to contribute to effective
business strategies and tactics.
• Analyzes - Uses economic, financial, market, and industry data to assess current business strategies
and tactics or to evaluate specific business opportunities; identifies trends and anticipates their impact.

• Integrates - Integrates economic, financial, market, and industry data from multiple sources to
identify critical business issues; articulates the implications of business trends for own department or
team as well as the broader organization.

• Understands business functions - Understands the nature and interdependencies of

business functions and supporting processes (R&D, marketing, finance, operations, etc.).

• Understands the industry - Understands the industry in which the organization operates
(trends, customers, competition, market share, etc.).

• Leverages one’s understanding - Uses understanding of business, industry, and own

organization’s performance to maximize results, limit risk, and effectively direct own department, team, or
the organization.

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 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

COACHING AND DEVELOPING OTHERS CUSTOMER ORIENTATION

Providing feedback, instruction, and development guidance to help others excel Ensuring that the customer perspective is a driving force behind business
in their current and future job accountabilities; planning and supporting the decisions and activities; crafting and implementing service practices that
development of individual skills and abilities meet customers’ and own organization’s needs.
• Clarifies performance - Seeks information and opinions about an individual’s current performance • Seeks to understand customer - Actively seeks
as well as longer-term development needs. information to understand customer circumstances, problems,
expectations, and needs.
• Provides timely feedback - Gives timely, specific, and appropriate feedback about performance,
development needs, and development progress; reinforces efforts and progress. • Identifies customer service issues - Identifies
breakdowns in internal processes and systems that directly impact
• Conveys performance expectations and implications - Communicates high
customer service and retention; expresses concerns to others.
expectations; links performance improvement and skill development to relevant personal and business goals;
checks for understanding of and commitment to performance and development goals as well as follow-up • Creates customer-focused practices -
activities. Uses understanding of customer needs to institute systems,
processes, and procedures to ensure customer satisfaction
• Evaluates skill gaps - Diagnoses gaps in knowledge, experience, skills, and behavior that underlie
and to prevent service issues from occurring; promotes customer
current and future performance; continually modifies evaluation based on new information.
service as a value.
• Provides support - Offers personal time; provides appropriate amount of guidance, instruction,
• Assures customer satisfaction - Makes sure that
positive models, and opportunities for observation to help others develop skills; provides ongoing feedback.
customer solutions, practices, and procedures are carried out and
• Shows empathy - Listens and responds to the affect and content of concerns. achieve their objectives.

• Champions positive results - Looks for opportunities to celebrate the accomplishments of

individuals.
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 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

EMPOWERMENT/DELEGATION
Using appropriate delegation to create a sense of ownership of
higher-level organizational issues and encouraging individuals to
stretch beyond their current capabilities.
• Chooses targets - Gives work to the most appropriate person based on time, skills, experience,
position, and growth opportunities.

• Defines latitude - Defines latitude of action and boundaries that provides enough autonomy
in decision making to encourage ownership of tasks; pushes decision making and autonomy downward
through the organization.

• Promotes accountability - Delegates; provides encouragement and support to others in

accepting responsibility with accountability; promotes risk taking, explores the reasons for mistakes, and
learns from them.

• Provides guidance - Checks for understanding; provides instruction, resources, and guidance as
appropriate to support success without undermining the individual’s full ownership of issues.

• Follows up - Builds follow-up and accountability into organizational processes to monitor issues.

46 47
 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

OPERATIONAL DECISION MAKING PASSION FOR RESULTS

Relating and comparing; securing relevant information and Driving high standards for individual, team, and organizational
identifying key issues; committing to an action after developing accomplishment; tenaciously working to meet or exceed challenging goals;
alternative courses of action that take into consideration deriving satisfaction from goal achievement and continuous improvement.
resources, constraints, and organizational values.
• Creates performance
• Seeks information - Identifies/Recognizes information gaps or the need for additional information and tension - Identifies gaps between current
obtains it by clearly describing what needs to be known and how it can be obtained; makes relevant, clear, and reality and expected business results; sets
specific inquiries to verify facts and obtain additional information. challenging goals and high performance
standards for self and others; initiates
• Performs data analysis - Organizes and manipulates quantitative data to identify/explain trends, action and moves others toward envisioned
problems, and their causes. outcomes.
• Develops and considers alternatives - Generates and encourages others to generate options • Persists to completion - Corrals
for action to address an issue or problem; develops decision criteria based on factors that affect customers, energy day-to-day to maintain momentum
employees, and the organization; compares options to criteria by considering the opportunities and risks; and a sense of urgency toward desired results;
selects the best course of action. continually focuses others on performance
• Gains commitment - Involves those affected by a decision/action in a manner that demonstrates gaps; works relentlessly to overcome
understanding of their needs and gains their commitment to the action; builds consensus when appropriate. obstacles; is dissatisfied until results have
been achieved.
• Demonstrates decisiveness/action - Takes or initiates action to address an issue, prevent a
problem from arising, or solve a problem.

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 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

DRIVING EXECUTION
Translating strategy into operational reality. Breaking down strategies or business initiatives into
key tasks and identifying accountabilities. Aligning communication, people, culture, processes,
resources and systems to ensure effective implementation and delivery of required results.
• Determines key tasks - Determines tasks and actions required to implement a specific strategy or business
initiative. Breaks down long-term goals into short and medium term milestones. Adjusting tasks and activities as
circumstances change.
• Establishes communication strategy - Clearly conveys strategy, plans, information and ideas
to individuals or groups in a manner that engages and motivates people and helps them understand their role in
implementing the strategy. Develops process and systems that enable the communication relating to the strategy
implementation to flow back and forth.
• Defines actions for execution - Defines required action steps and critical milestones; adapts action plans
according to changing circumstances.
• Focuses on key tasks - Translates strategic priorities into specific tasks and actions required to implement a
strategic priority or business initiative; breaks down long-term goals into short- and medium-term milestones; adjusts
tasks and activities as circumstances change.
• Ensures skills and readiness - Identifies and develops people capability to drive specific strategies and
objectives which may include training and/or acquisition of needed skills and knowledge. Coaches people in areas where
skills are not strong.
• Aligns systems and process - Identifies and aligns systems and process to support implementation
of specific strategies.
• Creates measurement discipline - Establishes criteria and systems to track implementation steps and
results, including both lead and lag measures.

50 51
 STRATEGIC LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

LEADING THROUGH VISION AND VALUES BUILDING ORGANIZATIONAL TALENT

Keeping the organization’s vision and values at the forefront of associate Attracting, developing, and retaining talented individuals; creating a learning
decision making and action. environment that ensures associates realize their highest potential, allowing
• Communicates the importance of the vision and values -
the organization as a whole to meet future challenges.
Helps others understand the organization’s vision and values and their importance. • Diagnoses capability and developmental needs - Determines the mix and level of capability
required by the business to support current and future objectives; assesses the key strengths and development
• Moves others to action - Translates the vision and values into day-to-day opportunities of groups.
activities and behaviors; guides and motivates others to take actions that support the vision
and values. • Scans environment for developmental assignments - Identifies developmental
assignments and the potential learning in the assignment; matches assignments with individual developmental
• Models the vision and values - Takes actions, makes decisions, and shapes team opportunities.
or group priorities to reflect the organization’s vision and values.
• Champions talent management - Provides high visibility to individuals with potential; offers
challenging managerial assignments that build confidence and credibility; provides such individuals with a personal
vision for this future.
• Creates a learning culture - Aligns support systems, accountabilities, and incentives, which ensures a
learning environment.
• Ensures differential reward systems and processes - Supports and advocates deserving
individuals; actively pursues appropriate recognition, rewards, and resources for strong performers; when necessary,
defends strong performers, even in the face of challenges.
• Emphasizes retention - Establishes organizational systems to encourage talented individuals to remain
within the organization; addresses individuals’ needs for flexibility within the organizational structure; provides a clear
career path for talented individuals that provides challenge and career satisfaction.

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 Operational Leader BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL TEAM
Using appropriate methods and a flexible interpersonal style to help build

Competency Family a cohesive team; facilitating the completion of team goals.

• Develops direction - Ensures that the purpose and importance

LEADERSHIP BUSINESS
of the team are clarified (e.g., team has a clear charter or mission
statement); guides the setting of specific and measurable team goals
• Building a Succesful Team
• Facilitating Change
MANAGEMENT and objectives.
• Decision Making • Develops structure - Helps to clarify roles and
• Delegating Responsibility
• Customer Focus responsibilities of team members; helps ensure that necessary steering,
• Coaching
• Planning & Organizing review, or support functions are in place.
• Continous Improvement
• Facilitates goal accomplishment - Makes procedural or process suggestions for achieving
team goals or performing team functions; provides necessary resources or helps to remove obstacles to
team accomplishments.
INTERPERSONAL
PERSONAL • Involves others - Listens to and fully involves others in team decisions and actions; values and uses
• Communication
ATTRIBUTES
individual differences and talents. Informs others on team-Shares important or relevant information with
• Gaining Commitment the team.
• Building Partnerships • Building Trust
• Models commitment - Adheres to the team’s expectations and guidelines; fulfills team
• Driving for Results
responsibilities; demonstrates personal commitment to the team.

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

FACILITATING CHANGE HIGH IMPACT COMMUNICATION

Encouraging others to seek opportunities for different Clearly and succinctly conveying information and ideas to individuals
and innovative approaches to addressing problems and and groups in a variety of situations; communicating in a focused and
opportunities; facilitating the implementation and compelling way that drives others’ thoughts and actions.
acceptance of change within the workplace. • Delivers clear messages - Conveys messages logically, simply, succinctly, and at the right pace;
does not digress; is in command of the message.
• Encourages boundary breaking - Encourages associates to
question established work processes or assumptions; challenges • Communicates with impact - Focuses communications to have a positive effect on others; uses
associates to ask “why” until underlying cause is discovered; involves forceful and compelling language and tone to stimulate others’ thinking and actions; uses analogies,
stakeholders in continuous improvement actions and alternatives. illustrations, or colorful expressions to create mental images; uses visual aids when appropriate to enhance
impact of the content.
• Values sound approaches - Consistently remains open to ideas
offered by others; supports and uses good ideas to solve problems or address issues. • Uses language appropriately - Uses correct grammar and punctuation; uses a format and
terminology appropriate to the topic and audience.
• Rewards change - Recognizes and rewards associates who make useful changes.
• Ensures understanding - Checks the audience’s understanding; presents messages in different
• Addresses change resistance - Helps individuals overcome resistance to change; shows ways to enhance their understanding.
empathy with people who feel loss as a result of change.
• Conveys a professional presence - Exhibits a presence that commands attention and respect;
• Manages complexity and contradictions - Tries to minimize complexities, demonstrates an air of self-confidence.
contradictions, and paradoxes or reduce their impact; clarifies direction and smoothes the process of
change.

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

DELEGATING RESPONSIBILITY
Allocating decision-making authority and/or task responsibility to appropriate
others to maximize the organization’s and individuals’ effectiveness.

• Shares appropriate responsibilities - Allocates decision-making authority and/or task

responsibility in appropriate areas to appropriate individuals (considering positive and negative impact,
organizational values and structures, and the enhancement of the individual’s knowledge/skills).

• Defines parameters - Clearly communicates the parameters of the delegated responsibility,

including decision-making authority and any required actions, constraints, or deadlines.

• Provides support without removing responsibility - Suggests resources and

provides assistance or coaching as needed; expresses confidence in the individual.

• Stays informed - Establishes appropriate procedures to keep informed of issues and results in
areas of shared responsibility.

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

BUILDING TRUST GAINING COMMITMENT

Interacting with others in a way Using appropriate interpersonal styles and techniques to gain
that gives them confidence in one’s acceptance of ideas or plans; modifying one’s own behavior to
intentions and those of the organization. accommodate tasks, situations, and individuals involved.
• Opens discussions effectively - Describes expectations, goals, requests, or future
states in a way that provides clarity and excites interest.
• Operates with integrity - Demonstrates honesty;
keeps commitments; behaves in a consistent manner. • Clarifies the current situation - Seeks, gives, and summarizes information; ensures
that the situation/issue at hand is understood.
• Discloses own positions - Shares thoughts, feelings, and rationale so that others
understand personal positions. • Develop others’ and own ideas - Presents own ideas; seeks and develops suggestions of
others; makes procedural suggestions.
• Remains open to ideas - Listens to others and objectively considers others’ ideas and opinions,
even when they conflict with one’s own. • Facilitates agreement - Uses appropriate influence strategies (such as demonstrating
benefits or giving rewards) to gain genuine agreement; persists by using different approaches as
• Supports others - Treats people with dignity, respect, and fairness; gives proper credit to needed to gain commitment.
others; stands up for deserving others and their ideas even in the face of resistance or challenge.
• Closes discussions with clear summaries - Summarizes outcomes of discussions
and establishes next steps if needed.

• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel
valued, appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves,
discloses, supports).

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS DECISION MAKING

Identifying opportunities and taking action to Identifying and understanding issues, problems, and opportunities; comparing
build strategic relationships between one’s area data from different sources to draw conclusions; using effective approaches for
and other areas, teams, departments, units, or choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; taking action
organizations to help achieve business goals. that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable consequences.
• Identifies issues, problems, and opportunities - Recognizes issues, problems, or opportunities
• Identifies partnership needs - Analyzes the organization and own area to identify key and determines whether action is needed.
relationships that should be initiated or improved to further the attainment of own area’s goals.
• Gathers information - Identifies the need for and collects information to better understand issues,
• Explores partnership opportunities - Exchanges information with potential partner areas to problems, and opportunities.
clarify partnership benefits and potential problems; collaboratively determines the scope and expectations of
the partnership so that both areas’ needs can be met. • Interprets information - Integrates information from a variety of sources; detects trends, associations,
and cause-effect relationships.
• Formulates action plans - Collaboratively determines courses of action to realize mutual goals;
facilitates agreement on each partner’s responsibilities and needed support. • Generates alternatives - Creates relevant options for addressing problems/opportunities and achieving
desired outcomes.
• Subordinates own area’s goals - Places higher priority on organization’s goals than on own
area’s goals; anticipates effects of own area’s actions and decisions on partners; influences others to support • Chooses appropriate action - Formulates clear decision criteria; evaluates options by considering
partnership objectives. implications and consequences; chooses an effective option.

• Monitors partnership - Implements effective means for monitoring and evaluating the partnership • Commits to action - Implements decisions or initiates action within a reasonable time.
process and the attainment of mutual goals. • Involves others - Includes others in the decision-making process as warranted to obtain good information,
make the most appropriate decisions, and ensure buy-in and understanding of the resulting decisions.

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

COACHING CUSTOMER FOCUS

Providing timely guidance and feedback Making customers and their needs a primary focus of one’s actions;
to help others strengthen specific developing and sustaining productive customer relationships.
knowledge/skill areas needed to
accomplish a task or solve a problem. • Seeks to understand customers - Actively seeks information to understand customers’
circumstances, problems, expectations, and needs.

• Educates customers - Shares information with customers to build their understanding of

issues and capabilities.
• Clarifies the current situation - Clarifies expected behaviors, knowledge, and level of
• Builds collaborative relationships - Builds rapport and cooperative relationships
proficiency by seeking and giving information and checking for understanding.
with customers.
• Explains and demonstrates - Provides instruction, positive models, and opportunities
• Takes action to meet customer needs and concerns - Considers how actions
for observation in order to help others develop skills; encourages questions to ensure understanding.
or plans will affect customers; responds quickly to meet customer needs and resolve problems; avoids
• Provides feedback and reinforcement - Gives timely, appropriate feedback on overcommitments.
performance; reinforces efforts and progress.
• Sets up customer feedback systems - Implements effective ways to monitor and
• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel evaluate customer concerns, issues, and satisfaction and to anticipate customer needs.
valued, appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves,
discloses, supports).

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

PLANNING and ORGANIZING

Establishing courses of action for self and others to ensure that
work is completed efficiently.
• Prioritizes - Identifies more critical and less critical activities and assignments; adjusts priorities
when appropriate.

• Determines tasks and resources - Determines project/assignment requirements by

breaking them down into tasks and identifying types of equipment, materials, and people needed.

• Schedules - Allocates appropriate amounts of time for completing own and others’ work; avoids
scheduling conflicts; develops timelines and milestones.

• Leverages resources - Takes advantage of available resources (individuals, processes,

departments, and tools) to complete work efficiently; coordinates with internal and external partners.

• Stays focused - Uses time effectively and prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from
interfering with work completion.

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

DRIVING FOR RESULTS

Setting high goals for personal and group accomplishment; using
measurement methods to monitor progress toward goal attainment;
tenaciously working to meet or exceed those goals while deriving satisfaction
from the process of goal achievement and continuous improvement.

• Targets opportunities - Systematically evaluates business opportunities and targets

those opportunities with the greatest potential for producing positive business results.

• Establishes stretch goals - Establishes stretch goals for self and others that are
designed to achieve positive business results.

• Achieves goals - Works tenaciously toward and derives satisfaction from achieving stretch
goals related to positive business results.

• Stays focused - Remains self-disciplined; measures progress and evaluates results;

reprioritizes as appropriate; prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from interfering with timely
completion of important tasks.

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 Operational Leader Competency Family

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT
Originating action to improve existing conditions and processes;
using appropriate methods to identify opportunities, implement
solutions, and measure impact.
• Assesses opportunities - Reviews processes to identify gaps between requirements
and current outputs.

• Determines causes - Identifies potential conditions that contribute to gaps or key

variances; explores relationships between conditions and effects; distinguishes causes from
symptoms and identifies primary causes.

• Targets improvement ideas - Generates ideas for solutions; analyzes the effect or
impact of each solution; selects appropriate solutions.

• Implements effective improvements - Tests solutions; gathers feedback on

effectiveness; reviews impact on baseline measures; modifies solutions as appropriate to ensure
effectiveness.

70 71
 Practical Operational Leader BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL TEAM
Competency Family Using appropriate methods and a flexible interpersonal style to help build a
cohesive team; facilitating the completion of team goals.
• Develops direction - Ensures that the purpose and importance of

LEADERSHIP
the team are clarified (e.g., team has a clear charter or mission statement);
BUSINESS guides the setting of specific and measurable team goals and objectives.
• Leading a Succesful Team
• Delegating Responsibility
MANAGEMENT • Develops structure - Helps to clarify roles and responsibilities
• Decision Making of team members; helps ensure that necessary steering, review, or support
• Coaching
• Customer Focus functions are in place.
• Planning& Organizing
• Facilitates goal accomplishment - Makes procedural or
• Continous Improvement
process suggestions for achieving team goals or performing team functions;
provides necessary resources or helps to remove obstacles to team
accomplishments.
INTERPERSONAL
PERSONAL • Involves others - Listens to and fully involves others in team decisions
• Communication and actions; values and uses individual differences and talents. Informs others
• Gaining Commitment ATTRIBUTES on team-Shares important or relevant information with the team.
• Building Partnerships • Building Trust
• Models commitment - Adheres to the team’s expectations
• Driving for Results
and guidelines; fulfills team responsibilities; demonstrates personal
• Adaptability commitment to the team.

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

DELEGATING RESPONSIBILITY BUILDING TRUST

Allocating decision-making authority and/or task responsibility to appropriate Interacting with others in a way that gives them confidence in one’s
others to maximize the organization’s and individuals’ effectiveness intentions and those of the organization.
• Shares appropriate responsibilities - Allocates decision-making authority and/or task • Operates with integrity - Demonstrates honesty; keeps commitments; behaves in a
responsibility in appropriate areas to appropriate individuals (considering positive and negative impact, consistent manner.
organizational values and structures, and the enhancement of the individual’s knowledge/skills).
• Discloses own positions - Shares thoughts, feelings, and rationale so that others
• Defines parameters - Clearly communicates the parameters of the delegated responsibility, understand personal positions.
including decision-making authority and any required actions, constraints, or deadlines.
• Remains open to ideas - Listens to others and objectively considers others’ ideas and
• Provides support without removing responsibility - Suggests resources and opinions, even when they conflict with one’s own.
provides assistance or coaching as needed; expresses confidence in the individual.
• Supports others - Treats people with dignity, respect, and fairness; gives proper
• Stays informed - Establishes appropriate procedures to keep informed of issues and results in credit to others; stands up for deserving others and their ideas even in the face of resistance or
areas of shared responsibility. challenge.

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

GAINING COMMITMENT
Using appropriate interpersonal styles and techniques to gain acceptance
of ideas or plans; modifying one’s own behavior to accommodate tasks,
situations, and individuals involved.

• Opens discussions effectively - Describes expectations, goals, requests, or future

states in a way that provides clarity and excites interest.

• Clarifies the current situation - Seeks, gives, and summarizes information; ensures
that the situation/issue at hand is understood.

• Develop others’ and own ideas - Presents own ideas; seeks and develops suggestions
of others; makes procedural suggestions.

• Facilitates agreement - Uses appropriate influence strategies (such as demonstrating

benefits or giving rewards) to gain genuine agreement; persists by using different approaches as
needed to gain commitment.

• Closes discussions with clear summaries - Summarizes outcomes of discussions

and establishes next steps if needed.

• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel
valued, appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves,
discloses, supports).

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

COMMUNICATION COACHING
Clearly conveying information and ideas through a variety of media to Providing timely guidance and feedback to help others strengthen specific
individuals or groups in a manner that engages the audience and helps knowledge/skill areas needed to accomplish a task or solve a problem.
them understand and retain the message .
• Clarifies the current situation - Clarifies expected behaviors, knowledge,
and level of proficiency by seeking and giving information and checking for understanding.
• Organizes the communication - Clarifies purpose and importance; stresses major points;
follows a logical sequence. • Explains and demonstrates - Provides instruction, positive models, and
opportunities for observation in order to help others develop skills; encourages questions to
• Maintains audience attention - Keeps the audience engaged through use of techniques such ensure understanding.
as analogies, illustrations, humor, an appealing style, body language, and voice inflection.
• Provides feedback and reinforcement - Gives timely, appropriate feedback
• Adjusts to the audience - Frames message in line with audience experience, background, and on performance; reinforces efforts and progress.
expectations; uses terms, examples, and analogies that are meaningful to the audience.
• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping
• Ensures understanding - Seeks input from audience; checks understanding; presents message people feel valued, appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem,
in different ways to enhance understanding. empathizes, involves, discloses, supports).
• Adheres to accepted conventions - Uses syntax, pace, volume, diction, and mechanics
appropriate to the media being used.

• Comprehends communication from others - Attends to messages from others; correctly

interprets messages and responds appropriately.

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS
Identifying opportunities and taking action to build strategic relationships
between one’s area and other areas, teams, departments, units, or
organizations to help achieve business goals.

• Identifies partnership needs - Analyzes the organization and own area to identify key
relationships that should be initiated or improved to further the attainment of own area’s goals.

• Explores partnership opportunities - Exchanges information with potential partner

areas to clarify partnership benefits and potential problems; collaboratively determines the scope and
expectations of the partnership so that both areas’ needs can be met.

• Formulates action plans - Collaboratively determines courses of action to realize mutual

goals; facilitates agreement on each partner’s responsibilities and needed support.

• Subordinates own area’s goals - Places higher priority on organization’s goals than on
own area’s goals; anticipates effects of own area’s actions and decisions on partners; influences others to
support partnership objectives.

• Monitors partnership - Implements effective means for monitoring and evaluating the
partnership process and the attainment of mutual goals.

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

DECISION MAKING
Identifying and understanding issues, problems, and opportunities; comparing
data from different sources to draw conclusions; using effective approaches for
choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; taking action
that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable consequences.
• Identifies issues, problems, and opportunities - Recognizes issues, problems, or opportunities
and determines whether action is needed.

• Gathers information - Identifies the need for and collects information to better understand issues,
problems, and opportunities.

• Interprets information - Integrates information from a variety of sources; detects trends, associations,
and cause-effect relationships.

• Generates alternatives - Creates relevant options for addressing problems/opportunities and achieving
desired outcomes.

• Chooses appropriate action - Formulates clear decision criteria; evaluates options by considering
implications and consequences; chooses an effective option.

• Commits to action - Implements decisions or initiates action within a reasonable time.

• Involves others - Includes others in the decision-making process as warranted to obtain good information,
make the most appropriate decisions, and ensure buy-in and understanding of the resulting decisions.

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

CUSTOMER FOCUS PLANNING and ORGANIZING

Making customers and their needs
Establishing courses of action for self and others to ensure that
a primary focus of one’s actions;
work is completed efficiently.
developing and sustaining productive
customer relationships. • Prioritizes - Identifies more critical and less critical activities and assignments; adjusts
priorities when appropriate.
• Seeks to understand customers - Actively seeks information to understand customers’
circumstances, problems, expectations, and needs. • Determines tasks and resources - Determines project/assignment requirements by
breaking them down into tasks and identifying types of equipment, materials, and people needed.
• Educates customers - Shares information with customers to build their understanding of issues
and capabilities. • Schedules - Allocates appropriate amounts of time for completing own and others’ work;
avoids scheduling conflicts; develops timelines and milestones.
• Builds collaborative relationships - Builds rapport and cooperative relationships with
customers. • Leverages resources - Takes advantage of available resources (individuals, processes,
departments, and tools) to complete work efficiently; coordinates with internal and external
• Takes action to meet customer needs and concerns - Considers how actions or
partners.
plans will affect customers; responds quickly to meet customer needs and resolve problems; avoids
overcommitments. • Stays focused - Uses time effectively and prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from
interfering with work completion.
• Sets up customer feedback systems - Implements effective ways to monitor and evaluate
customer concerns, issues, and satisfaction and to anticipate customer needs.

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

DRIVING FOR RESULTS CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

Setting high goals for personal and group accomplishment; using Originating action to improve existing conditions and processes;
measurement methods to monitor progress toward goal attainment; using appropriate methods to identify opportunities, implement
tenaciously working to meet or exceed those goals while deriving satisfaction solutions, and measure impact.
from the process of goal achievement and continuous improvement.
• Assesses opportunities - Reviews processes to identify gaps between requirements
• Targets opportunities - Systematically and current outputs.
evaluates business opportunities and targets those • Determines causes - Identifies potential conditions that contribute to gaps or key
opportunities with the greatest potential for producing variances; explores relationships between conditions and effects; distinguishes causes from
positive business results. symptoms and identifies primary causes.
• Establishes stretch goals - Establishes • Targets improvement ideas - Generates ideas for solutions; analyzes the effect or
stretch goals for self and others that are designed to impact of each solution; selects appropriate solutions.
achieve positive business results.
• Implements effective improvements - Tests solutions; gathers feedback on
• Achieves goals - Works tenaciously toward and effectiveness; reviews impact on baseline measures; modifies solutions as appropriate to ensure
derives satisfaction from achieving stretch goals related to effectiveness.
positive business results.

• Stays focused - Remains self-disciplined; measures

progress and evaluates results; reprioritizes as appropriate;
prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from interfering
with timely completion of important tasks.

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 PRACTICAL OPERATIONAL LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

Team Leader
Competency Family
ADAPTABILITY
Maintaining effectiveness when
experiencing major changes in work
tasks or the work environment;
adjusting effectively to work within LEADERSHIP BUSINESS
new work structures, processes,
• Follow-Up
MANAGEMENT
Decision Making
requirements, or cultures. •
• Customer Focus
• Managing Work
• Tries to understand changes - Tries to understand changes in work tasks,
situations, and environment as well as the logic or basis for change; actively seeks information • Continous Improvement
about new work situations.

• Approaches change or newness positively - Treats change and new situations

as opportunities for learning or growth; focuses on the beneficial aspects of change; speaks INTERPERSONAL
positively about the change to others. PERSONAL
• Communication
• Adjusts behavior - Quickly modifies behavior to deal effectively with changes in the • Gaining Commitment ATTRIBUTES
work environment; readily tries new approaches appropriate for new or changed situations; does • Building Partnerships • Building Trust
not persist with ineffective behaviors. • Work Standards
• Adaptability

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 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

BUILDING TRUST GAINING COMMITMENT

Interacting with others in a way that gives them confidence in one’s Using appropriate interpersonal styles and techniques to gain
intentions and those of the organization. acceptance of ideas or plans; modifying one’s own behavior to
accommodate tasks, situations, and individuals involved.
• Operates with integrity - Demonstrates honesty; keeps
commitments; behaves in a consistent manner. • Opens discussions effectively - Describes expectations, goals, requests, or future states in
a way that provides clarity and excites interest.
• Discloses own positions - Shares thoughts, feelings,
and rationale so that others understand personal positions. • Clarifies the current situation - Seeks, gives, and summarizes information; ensures that
the situation/issue at hand is understood.
• Remains open to ideas - Listens to others and
objectively considers others’ ideas and opinions, even when they • Develop others’ and own ideas - Presents own ideas; seeks and develops suggestions of
conflict with one’s own. others; makes procedural suggestions.
• Supports others - Treats people with dignity, respect, • Facilitates agreement - Uses appropriate influence strategies (such as demonstrating
and fairness; gives proper credit to others; stands up for deserving benefits or giving rewards) to gain genuine agreement; persists by using different approaches as needed
others and their ideas even in the face of resistance or challenge. to gain commitment.

• Closes discussions with clear summaries - Summarizes outcomes of discussions and

establishes next steps if needed.

• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel
valued, appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes,
involves, discloses, supports).

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 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

COMMUNICATION WORK STANDARDS

Clearly conveying information and ideas through a variety of media Setting high standards of performance for self and others; assuming responsibility
to individuals or groups in a manner that engages the audience and and accountability for successfully completing assignments or tasks; self-imposing
helps them understand and retain the message . standards of excellence rather than having standards imposed.
• Sets standards for excellence - Establishes
• Organizes the communication - Clarifies purpose and importance; stresses major points; criteria and/or work procedures to achieve a high level of
follows a logical sequence. quality, productivity, or service.
• Maintains audience attention - Keeps the audience engaged through use of techniques such • Ensures high quality - Dedicates required time and
as analogies, illustrations, humor, an appealing style, body language, and voice inflection. energy to assignments or tasks to ensure that no aspect of the
• Adjusts to the audience - Frames message in line with audience experience, background, and work is neglected; works to overcome obstacles to completing
expectations; uses terms, examples, and analogies that are meaningful to the audience. tasks or assignments.

• Ensures understanding - Seeks input from audience; checks understanding; presents message • Takes responsibility - Accepts responsibility for
in different ways to enhance understanding. outcomes (positive or negative) of one’s work; admits mistakes
and refocuses efforts when appropriate.
• Adheres to accepted conventions - Uses syntax, pace, volume, diction, and mechanics
appropriate to the media being used. • Encourages others to take
responsibility - Provides encouragement and support
• Comprehends communication from others - Attends to messages from others; correctly to others in accepting responsibility; does not accept others’
interprets messages and responds appropriately. denial of responsibility without questioning.

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 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

MANAGING WORK BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS

(INCLUDES TIME MANAGEMENT) Identifying opportunities and taking action to build
strategic relationships between one’s area and
Effectively managing one’s time and resources to ensure that work is
other areas, teams, departments, units, or
completed efficiently.
organizations to help achieve business goals.
• Prioritizes - Identifies more critical and less critical activities and tasks; adjusts priorities when
appropriate. • Identifies partnership needs - Analyzes the organization and own area to identify key
relationships that should be initiated or improved to further the attainment of own area’s goals.
• Makes preparations - Ensures that required equipment and/or materials are in appropriate
locations so that own and others’ work can be done effectively. • Explores partnership opportunities - Exchanges information with potential partner
areas to clarify partnership benefits and potential problems; collaboratively determines the scope
• Schedules - Effectively allocates own time to complete work; coordinates own and others’ and expectations of the partnership so that both areas’ needs can be met.
schedules to avoid conflicts.
• Formulates action plans - Collaboratively determines courses of action to realize mutual
• Leverages resources - Takes advantage of available resources (individuals, processes, goals; facilitates agreement on each partner’s responsibilities and needed support.
departments, and tools) to complete work efficiently.
• Subordinates own area’s goals - Places higher priority on organization’s goals than
• Stays focused - Uses time effectively and prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from on own area’s goals; anticipates effects of own area’s actions and decisions on partners; influences
interfering with work completion others to support partnership objectives.

• Monitors partnership - Implements effective means for monitoring and evaluating the
partnership process and the attainment of mutual goals.

94 95
 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

DECISION MAKING CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

Identifying and understanding issues, problems, and opportunities; comparing Originating action to improve existing conditions and processes; using appropriate
data from different sources to draw conclusions; using effective approaches for methods to identify opportunities, implement solutions, and measure impact.
choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; taking action
that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable consequences. • Assesses opportunities - Reviews processes to identify gaps between requirements
and current outputs.
• Identifies issues, problems, and opportunities - Recognizes issues, problems,
or opportunities and determines whether action is needed. • Determines causes - Identifies potential conditions that contribute to gaps or key
variances; explores relationships between conditions and effects; distinguishes causes from
• Gathers information - Identifies the need for and collects information to better understand issues, symptoms and identifies primary causes.
problems, and opportunities.
• Targets improvement ideas - Generates ideas for solutions; analyzes the effect or
• Interprets information - Integrates information from a variety of sources; detects trends, impact of each solution; selects appropriate solutions.
associations, and cause-effect relationships.
• Implements effective improvements - Tests solutions; gathers feedback on
• Generates alternatives - Creates relevant options for addressing problems/opportunities and effectiveness; reviews impact on baseline measures; modifies solutions as appropriate to ensure
achieving desired outcomes. effectiveness.
• Chooses appropriate action - Formulates clear decision criteria; evaluates options by considering
implications and consequences; chooses an effective option.

• Commits to action - Implements decisions or initiates action within a reasonable time.

• Involves others - Includes others in the decision-making process as warranted to obtain good information,
make the most appropriate decisions, and ensure buy-in and understanding of the resulting decisions.

96 97
 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

CUSTOMER FOCUS
Making customers and their needs a primary focus of one’s
actions; developing and sustaining productive customer relationships.
• Seeks to understand customers - Actively seeks information to understand customers’
circumstances, problems, expectations, and needs.

• Educates customers - Shares information with customers to build their understanding of issues
and capabilities.

• Builds collaborative relationships - Builds rapport and cooperative relationships with

customers.

• Takes action to meet customer needs and concerns - Considers how actions or
plans will affect customers; responds quickly to meet customer needs and resolve problems; avoids
overcommitments.

• Sets up customer feedback systems - Implements effective ways to monitor and evaluate
customer concerns, issues, and satisfaction and to anticipate customer needs.

98 99
 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

FOLLOW-UP
Monitoring the results of delegations, assignments, or projects,
considering the skills, knowledge, and experience of the assigned
individual and the characteristics of the assignment or project.

• Communicates time frames - Builds due dates into assignments and task delegations;
effectively communicates milestones and expected results.

• Gathers appropriate information - Asks questions to obtain relevant information;

convenes meetings to review progress and share information; gets feedback on results from those
directly involved.

• Evaluates results - Meets formally with peers, associates, and others to review
the results of an assignment, project, or delegated task.

100 101
 TEAM LEADER COMPETENCY FAMILY

Specialist
Competency Family
ADAPTABILITY
Maintaining effectiveness when experiencing major changes in work
tasks or the work environment; adjusting effectively to work within new
work structures, processes, requirements, or cultures.
BUSINESS
• Tries to understand changes - Tries to understand changes in work tasks, situations, MANAGEMENT
and environment as well as the logic or basis for change; actively seeks information about new work • Decision Making
situations. • Customer Focus
• Approaches change or newness positively - Treats change and new situations • Managing Work
as opportunities for learning or growth; focuses on the beneficial aspects of change; speaks • Continous Improvement
positively about the change to others.

• Adjusts behavior - Quickly modifies behavior to deal effectively with changes in the work
environment; readily tries new approaches appropriate for new or changed situations; does not INTERPERSONAL
persist with ineffective behaviors. • Communication
PERSONAL
• Gaining Commitment ATTRIBUTES
• Building Partnerships • Building Trust
• Quality Orientation
• Continous Learning
• Adaptability

102 103
 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY

BUILDING TRUST GAINING COMMITMENT

Interacting with others in a way that gives them confidence in one’s Using appropriate interpersonal styles and
intentions and those of the organization. techniques to gain acceptance of ideas or plans;
modifying one’s own behavior to accommodate
tasks, situations, and individuals involved.
• Operates with integrity - Demonstrates honesty; keeps commitments; behaves in a
consistent manner.

• Discloses own positions - Shares thoughts, feelings, and rationale so that others • Opens discussions effectively - Describes expectations, goals, requests, or future states in a
understand personal positions. way that provides clarity and excites interest.

• Remains open to ideas - Listens to others and objectively considers others’ ideas and • Clarifies the current situation - Seeks, gives, and summarizes information; ensures that the
opinions, even when they conflict with one’s own. situation/issue at hand is understood.

• Supports others - Treats people with dignity, respect, and fairness; gives proper credit to • Develop others’ and own ideas - Presents own ideas; seeks and develops suggestions of
others; stands up for deserving others and their ideas even in the face of resistance or challenge. others; makes procedural suggestions.

• Facilitates agreement - Uses appropriate influence strategies (such as demonstrating

benefits or giving rewards) to gain genuine agreement; persists by using different approaches as
needed to gain commitment.

• Closes discussions with clear summaries - Summarizes outcomes of discussions and

establishes next steps if needed.

• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel valued,
appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves, discloses, supports).

104 105
 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY

COMMUNICATION QUALITY ORIENTATION

Clearly conveying information and ideas through a variety of media to Accomplishing tasks by considering all areas involved, no matter how
individuals or groups in a manner that engages the audience and helps small; showing concern for all aspects of the job; accurately checking
them understand and retain the message . processes and tasks; being watchful over a period of time.
• Follows procedures - Accurately and carefully follows established procedures for
• Organizes the communication - Clarifies purpose and importance; stresses major points; completing work tasks.
follows a logical sequence.
• Ensures high-quality output - Vigilantly watches over job processes, tasks, and
• Maintains audience attention - Keeps the audience engaged through use of techniques such work products to ensure freedom from errors, omissions, or defects.
as analogies, illustrations, humor, an appealing style, body language, and voice inflection.
• Takes action - Initiates action to correct quality problems or notifies others of quality
• Adjusts to the audience - Frames message in line with audience experience, background, and issues as appropriate
expectations; uses terms, examples, and analogies that are meaningful to the audience.

• Ensures understanding - Seeks input from audience; checks understanding; presents message
in different ways to enhance understanding.

• Adheres to accepted conventions - Uses syntax, pace, volume, diction, and mechanics
appropriate to the media being used.

• Comprehends communication from others - Attends to messages from others; correctly

interprets messages and responds appropriately.

106 107
 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY

MANAGING WORK (INCLUDES TIME

MANAGEMENT)
Effectively managing one’s time and resources to ensure that
work is completed efficiently.
• Prioritizes - Identifies more critical and less critical activities and tasks; adjusts priorities when
appropriate.

• Makes preparations - Ensures that required equipment and/or materials are in appropriate
locations so that own and others’ work can be done effectively.

• Schedules - Effectively allocates own time to complete work; coordinates own and others’
schedules to avoid conflicts.

• Leverages resources - Takes advantage of available resources (individuals, processes,

departments, and tools) to complete work efficiently.

• Stays focused - Uses time effectively and prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from
interfering with work completion

108 109
 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY

DECISION MAKING CUSTOMER FOCUS

Identifying and understanding issues, problems, and Making customers and their needs a primary focus of one’s actions;
opportunities; comparing data from different sources developing and sustaining productive customer relationships.
to draw conclusions; using effective approaches for
choosing a course of action or developing appropriate • Seeks to understand customers - Actively seeks information to understand customers’
solutions; taking action that is consistent with available circumstances, problems, expectations, and needs.

facts, constraints, and probable consequences. • Educates customers - Shares information with customers to build their understanding of issues
and capabilities.
• Identifies issues, problems, and opportunities - Recognizes issues, problems, or opportunities • Builds collaborative relationships - Builds rapport and cooperative relationships with
and determines whether action is needed. customers.
• Gathers information - Identifies the need for and collects information to better understand issues, problems,
and opportunities. • Takes action to meet customer needs and concerns - Considers how actions or
plans will affect customers; responds quickly to meet customer needs and resolve problems; avoids
• Interprets information - Integrates information from a variety of sources; detects trends, associations, and
overcommitments.
cause-effect relationships.
• Generates alternatives - Creates relevant options for addressing problems/opportunities and achieving • Sets up customer feedback systems - Implements effective ways to monitor and evaluate
desired outcomes. customer concerns, issues, and satisfaction and to anticipate customer needs.
• Chooses appropriate action - Formulates clear decision criteria; evaluates options by considering
implications and consequences; chooses an effective option.
• Commits to action - Implements decisions or initiates action within a reasonable time.
• Involves others - Includes others in the decision-making process as warranted to obtain good information,
make the most appropriate decisions, and ensure buy-in and understanding of the resulting decisions.

110 111
 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY

BUILDING STRATEGIC CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

WORKING RELATIONSHIPS Originating action to improve existing conditions and processes;
using appropriate methods to identify opportunities, implement
Developing and using collaborative relationships to
solutions, and measure impact.
facilitate the accomplishment of work goals.
• Assesses opportunities - Reviews processes to identify gaps between requirements and
• Seeks opportunities - Proactively tries to current outputs.
build effective working relationships with other people.
• Determines causes - Identifies potential conditions that contribute to gaps or key variances;
• Clarifies the current situation - Probes for explores relationships between conditions and effects; distinguishes causes from symptoms and
and provides information to clarify situations. identifies primary causes.
• Develops others’ and own ideas - Seeks and expands on original ideas, • Targets improvement ideas - Generates ideas for solutions; analyzes the effect or impact
enhances others’ ideas, and contributes own ideas about the issues at hand. of each solution; selects appropriate solutions.
• Subordinates personal goals - Places higher priority on team or organization goals than on • Implements effective improvements - Tests solutions; gathers feedback on
own goals. effectiveness; reviews impact on baseline measures; modifies solutions as appropriate to ensure
• Facilitates agreement - Gains agreement from partners to support ideas or take effectiveness.
partnership-oriented action; uses sound rationale to explain value of actions

• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel valued,
appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves, discloses, supports).

112 113
 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY

CONTINUOUS LEARNING
Actively identifying new areas for learning; regularly creating and taking
advantage of learning opportunities; using newly gained knowledge and
skill on the job and learning through their application.

• Targets learning needs - Seeks and uses feedback and other sources of information to identify
appropriate areas for learning.

• Seeks learning activities - Identifies and participates in appropriate learning activities (e.g.,
courses, reading, self-study, coaching, experiential learning) that help fulfill learning needs.

• Maximizes learning - Actively participates in learning activities in a way that makes the most of
the learning experience (e.g., takes notes, asks questions, critically analyzes information, keeps on-the-job
application in mind, does required tasks).

• Applies knowledge or skill - Puts new knowledge, understanding, or skill to practical use on the
job; furthers learning through trial and error.

• Takes risks in learning - Puts self in unfamiliar or uncomfortable situation in order to learn; asks
questions at the risk of appearing foolish; takes on challenging or unfamiliar assignments.

114 115
 SPECIALIST COMPETENCY FAMILY

ADAPTABILITY Team Member

Maintaining effectiveness when experiencing major changes in work
tasks or the work environment; adjusting effectively to work within
new work structures, processes, requirements, or cultures.
Competency Family
• Tries to understand changes - Tries to understand changes in work tasks, situations, BUSINESS
and environment as well as the logic or basis for change; actively seeks information about
new work situations.
MANAGEMENT
• Building Customer Loyalty
• Approaches change or newness positively - Treats change and new situations • Managing Work
as opportunities for learning or growth; focuses on the beneficial aspects of change; speaks
positively about the change to others.

• Adjusts behavior - Quickly modifies behavior to deal effectively with changes in the work
environment; readily tries new approaches appropriate for new or changed situations; does not

INTERPERSONAL
persist with ineffective behaviors.
PERSONAL
• Communication
• Building Partnerships ATTRIBUTES
• Building Trust
• Quality Orientation
• Adaptive Learning
• Adaptability

116 117
 Team Member Competency Family

BUILDING TRUST
Interacting with others in a way that gives them confidence in
one’s intentions and those of the organization.
• Operates with integrity - Demonstrates honesty; keeps commitments; behaves in a
consistent manner.

• Discloses own positions - Shares thoughts, feelings, and rationale so that others
understand personal positions.

• Remains open to ideas - Listens to others and objectively considers others’ ideas and
opinions, even when they conflict with one’s own.

• Supports others - Treats people with dignity, respect, and fairness; gives proper
credit to others; stands up for deserving others and their ideas even in the face of resistance or
challenge.

118 119
 Team Member Competency Family

COMMUNICATION
Clearly conveying information and ideas through a variety of media to
individuals or groups in a manner that engages the audience and helps them
understand and retain the message .

• Organizes the communication - Clarifies purpose and importance; stresses major points;
follows a logical sequence.

• Maintains audience attention - Keeps the audience engaged through use of techniques such
as analogies, illustrations, humor, an appealing style, body language, and voice inflection.

• Adjusts to the audience - Frames message in line with audience experience, background, and
expectations; uses terms, examples, and analogies that are meaningful to the audience.

• Ensures understanding - Seeks input from audience; checks understanding; presents message
in different ways to enhance understanding.

• Adheres to accepted conventions - Uses syntax, pace, volume, diction, and mechanics
appropriate to the media being used.

• Comprehends communication from others - Attends to messages from others; correctly

interprets messages and responds appropriately.

120 121
 Team Member Competency Family

MANAGING WORK QUALITY ORIENTATION

(INCLUDES TIME MANAGEMENT) Accomplishing tasks by considering all areas involved, no matter how
small; showing concern for all aspects of the job; accurately checking
Effectively managing one’s time and resources to ensure that work is
processes and tasks; being watchful over a period of time.
completed efficiently.
• Prioritizes - Identifies more critical and less critical activities and tasks; adjusts priorities when • Follows procedures - Accurately and carefully follows established procedures
appropriate. for completing work tasks.
• Ensures high-quality
• Makes preparations - Ensures that required equipment and/or materials are in appropriate
output - Vigilantly watches over job
locations so that own and others’ work can be done effectively.
processes, tasks, and work products to
• Schedules - Effectively allocates own time to complete work; coordinates own and others’ ensure freedom from errors, omissions, or
schedules to avoid conflicts. defects.

• Leverages resources - Takes advantage of available resources (individuals, processes, • Takes action - Initiates action to
departments, and tools) to complete work efficiently. correct quality problems or notifies others
of quality issues as appropriate
• Stays focused - Uses time effectively and prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from interfering
with work completion

122 123
 Team Member Competency Family

BUILDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY BUILDING STRATEGIC WORKING

Effectively meeting customer needs; building productive customer relationships; RELATIONSHIPS
taking responsibility for customer satisfaction and loyalty
İş hedeflerinin gerçekleştirilmesine yardımcı olmak amacı ile
• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel valued, işbirlikleri geliştirmek.
appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves, discloses, supports).
• Seeks opportunities - Proactively tries to build effective working
• Acknowledges the person - Greets customers promptly and courteously; gives customers full relationships with other people.
attention.
• Clarifies the current situation - Probes for and provides
• Clarifies the current situation - Asks questions to determine needs; listens carefully; information to clarify situations.
provides appropriate information; summarizes to check understanding.
• Develops others’ and own ideas - Seeks and expands on
• Meets or exceeds needs - Acts promptly in routine situations; agrees on a clear course of original ideas, enhances others’ ideas, and contributes own ideas about the
action in nonroutine situations; takes opportunities to exceed expectations without making unreasonable issues at hand.
commitments.
• Subordinates personal goals - Places higher priority on
• Confirms satisfaction - Asks questions to check for satisfaction; commits to follow-through, if team or organization goals than on own goals.
appropriate; thanks customer.
• Facilitates agreement - Gains agreement from partners to
• Takes the “heat” - Handles upset customers by hearing the customer out, empathizing, apologizing, support ideas or take partnership-oriented action; uses sound rationale to
and taking personal responsibility for resolving customer problems/issues. explain value of actions

• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships

by helping people feel valued, appreciated, and included in discussions
(enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves, discloses, supports).
124 125
 Team Member Competency Family

APPLIED LEARNING ADAPTABILITY

Assimilating and applying new job-related information in a timely manner. Maintaining effectiveness when experiencing major changes in work
tasks or the work environment; adjusting effectively to work within
• Actively participates in
new work structures, processes, requirements, or cultures.
learning activities - Takes part
in needed learning activities in a way
that makes the most of the learning • Tries to understand changes - Tries to understand changes in work tasks, situations, and
experience (e.g., takes notes, asks environment as well as the logic or basis for change; actively seeks information about new work situations.
questions, does required tasks).
• Approaches change or newness positively - Treats change and new situations as
• Quickly gains knowledge, opportunities for learning or growth; focuses on the beneficial aspects of change; speaks positively about
understanding, or skill - the change to others.
Readily absorbs and comprehends new
• Adjusts behavior - Quickly modifies behavior to deal effectively with changes in the work
information from formal and informal
environment; readily tries new approaches appropriate for new or changed situations; does not persist
learning experiences.
with ineffective behaviors.
• Applies knowledge or
skill - Puts new knowledge,
understanding, or skill to practical use
on the job; furthers learning through trial
and error.

126 127
 Administrative Support BUILDING TRUST
Competency Family Interacting with others in a way that gives them confidence in
one’s intentions and those of the organization.

• Operates with integrity - Demonstrates honesty;

BUSINESS keeps commitments; behaves in a consistent manner.
MANAGEMENT • Discloses own positions - Shares thoughts, feelings,
and rationale so that others understand personal positions.
• Building Customer Loyalty
• Managing Work • Remains open to ideas - Listens to others and
objectively considers others’ ideas and opinions, even when they
conflict with one’s own.

• Supports others - Treats people with dignity, respect,

and fairness; gives proper credit to others; stands up for
INTERPERSONAL
PERSONAL deserving others and their ideas even in the face of resistance or
• Communication challenge.
• Building Partnerships ATTRIBUTES
• Building Trust
• Quality Orientation
• Adaptive Learning
• Adaptability

128 129
 ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT COMPETENCY FAMILY

COMMUNICATION MANAGING WORK (INCLUDES TIME

Clearly conveying information and ideas through a variety of media to MANAGEMENT)
individuals or groups in a manner that engages the audience and helps
Effectively managing one’s time and resources to ensure that work is
them understand and retain the message .
completed efficiently.
• Organizes the communication - Clarifies purpose and importance; stresses major points;
follows a logical sequence. • Prioritizes - Identifies more critical and less critical activities and tasks; adjusts priorities when
appropriate.
• Maintains audience attention - Keeps the audience engaged through use of techniques
such as analogies, illustrations, humor, an appealing style, body language, and voice inflection. • Makes preparations - Ensures that required equipment and/or materials are in appropriate
locations so that own and others’ work can be done effectively.
• Adjusts to the audience - Frames message in line with audience experience, background, • Schedules - Effectively allocates own time
and expectations; uses terms, examples, and analogies that are meaningful to the audience. to complete work; coordinates own and others’
• Ensures understanding - Seeks input from audience; checks understanding; presents schedules to avoid conflicts.
message in different ways to enhance understanding. • Leverages resources - Takes advantage
• Adheres to accepted conventions - Uses syntax, pace, volume, diction, and mechanics of available resources (individuals, processes,
appropriate to the media being used. departments, and tools) to complete work efficiently.

• Comprehends communication from others - Attends to messages from others; • Stays focused - Uses time effectively and
correctly interprets messages and responds appropriately. prevents irrelevant issues or distractions from
interfering with work completion

130 131
 ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT COMPETENCY FAMILY

QUALITY ORIENTATION
Accomplishing tasks by considering all areas involved, no matter how
small; showing concern for all aspects of the job; accurately checking
processes and tasks; being watchful over a period of time.
• Follows procedures - Accurately and carefully follows established procedures for
completing work tasks.

• Ensures high-quality output - Vigilantly watches over job processes, tasks, and work
products to ensure freedom from errors, omissions, or defects.

• Takes action - Initiates action to correct quality problems or notifies others of quality
issues as appropriate.

132 133
 ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT COMPETENCY FAMILY

BUILDING CUSTOMER LOYALTY BUILDING STRATEGIC WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

Effectively meeting customer needs; building productive Developing and using collaborative relationships to facilitate
customer relationships; taking responsibility for customer the accomplishment of work goals.
satisfaction and loyalty
• Seeks opportunities - Proactively tries to build effective working relationships with other people.
• Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal
• Clarifies the current situation - Probes for and provides information to clarify situations.
relationships by helping people feel valued, appreciated, and included
in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves, • Develops others’ and own ideas - Seeks and expands on original ideas, enhances others’ ideas,
discloses, supports). and contributes own ideas about the issues at hand.
• Acknowledges the person - Greets customers promptly • Subordinates personal goals - Places higher priority on team or organization goals than on
and courteously; gives customers full attention. own goals.
• Clarifies the current situation - Asks questions to determine needs; listens carefully; • Facilitates agreement - Gains agreement from partners to support ideas or take partnership-
provides appropriate information; summarizes to check understanding. oriented action; uses sound rationale to explain value of actions
• Meets or exceeds needs - Acts promptly in routine situations; agrees on a clear course of • Uses Key Principles - Establishes good interpersonal relationships by helping people feel valued,
action in nonroutine situations; takes opportunities to exceed expectations without making unreasonable appreciated, and included in discussions (enhances self-esteem, empathizes, involves, discloses, supports).
commitments.

• Confirms satisfaction - Asks questions to check for satisfaction; commits to follow-through, if

appropriate; thanks customer.

• Takes the “heat” - Handles upset customers by hearing the customer out, empathizing, apologizing,
and taking personal responsibility for resolving customer problems/issues.

134 135
 ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT COMPETENCY FAMILY

ADAPTABILITY
Maintaining effectiveness when experiencing major changes in work tasks
or the work environment; adjusting effectively to work within new work
structures, processes, requirements, or cultures.

• Tries to understand changes - Tries to understand changes in work tasks,

situations, and environment as well as the logic or basis for change; actively seeks information about
new work situations.

• Approaches change or newness positively - Treats change and new situations as

opportunities for learning or growth; focuses on the beneficial aspects of change; speaks positively
about the change to others.

• Adjusts behavior - Quickly modifies behavior to deal effectively with changes in the work
environment; readily tries new approaches appropriate for new or changed situations; does not persist
with ineffective behaviors.

136 137
 ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT COMPETENCY FAMILY

APPLIED LEARNING
Assimilating and applying new job-related information in a timely manner.

• Actively participates in learning

activities - Takes part in needed learning
activities in a way that makes the most of the learning
experience (e.g., takes notes, asks questions, does
required tasks).

• Quickly gains knowledge,

understanding, or skill - Readily absorbs
and comprehends new information from formal and
informal learning experiences.

• Applies knowledge or skill - Puts new

knowledge, understanding, or skill to practical use on
the job; furthers learning through trial and error.

Comics on this booklet were drawn by Can Barslan for the exclusive use of SP.
138
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