What are skills inventories?
Business and technology are evolving at a dizzying rate, making it imperative for companies to have a bird’s-eye view of their whole skill set. Moreover, it is essential to know about future abilities and the means by which to cultivate them within. The journey begins with a skills inventory.
An essential element for any high-performing organization’s success, a skills inventory is more of a strategic business tool than an administrative exercise. Exactly what is a skills inventory, and how does one go about developing one?
A skills inventory is an exhaustive catalog of an organization’s personnel’s educational background, work experience, and professional abilities. It usually relies on either the employees’ own evaluations of their own abilities or the organization’s own evaluations of those skills, or some mix of the two. With the use of skills inventories, businesses can determine whether their present staff has the necessary abilities to achieve their objectives and, if not, where the gaps are.
Additionally, it aids HR professionals in directing the company in strategic workforce planning, learning and development, talent management, and recruitment. Organizational leaders and decision-makers can benefit from a skills inventory since it details the best ways to invest in people.
How can a skills inventory be used?
You may get a good feel for a company’s capabilities with the help of a skills inventory. This has many advantages, including:
Development and training
With the use of a skills inventory, you may identify where your staff are lacking knowledge and then train them accordingly. Organizations can plan ahead and allocate funds for training initiatives thanks to this.
Take PWC’s digital fitness app as an example. Through the same software, they were able to gauge staff members’ level of technological proficiency and then deliver targeted company-wide training.
Hiring top talent
If you keep tabs on the abilities of your current staff, you can find qualified candidates to cover any holes in your company’s skill set. During the hiring process, hiring managers might base their selections on data. Companies can also find and hire people with the skills they’ll need in the future.
Comprehensive workforce strategy
In order to achieve both immediate and long-term goals, businesses can model and position themselves strategically. If a company sees that data analytics is a hot commodity, for instance, they might assess their present staff to see if they possess the necessary expertise. If it isn’t possible, they can coach current staff to become proficient in certain areas and find new talent to send to high-priority missions. If there are any urgent needs, they can also determine if contingency staff might be helpful.
Staff retention rate
Organizations that take the initiative to create a skills inventory are more likely to hold on to their personnel. More chances for growth should arise as a result of the skills inventory. Formal (schooling, classes, etc.) and informal (learning on the job, mentorship, coaching) forms of training could make up different parts of these development activities.
Employees are more likely to stay around if they have opportunities to advance in their careers, and skill inventories are a great tool for figuring out what kinds of training and education your company should offer.
Mobility within the company
Another way to get a feel for a company’s capabilities is to look at their talents inventory. As a result, workers are able to move freely across the company and collaborate on different projects and divisions. Organizations can save money by relying less on third-party vendors when workers have the necessary capabilities.
Additionally, it aids in the detection of skill adjacencies, or the development of expertise in domains that are directly relevant to a person’s present job. As an example, it’s not uncommon for social media managers who focus on Twitter promotion to also become adept in Facebook promotion.
What is the process for making a skills inventory?
To develop a skills inventory for your company, follow these seven steps:
- Choose the abilities you wish to highlight.
From your company’s plan, the first thing you need to do is choose what kinds of skills you want to add to your inventory. Technical abilities, soft skills, and leadership qualities are three ways to classify these talents.
Employees’ listed abilities should be applicable, future-proof, and relevant to their current role in the company. Begin with a single division to see if you can see how a skills inventory can benefit the entire company. You might begin with broad categories and then hone in on certain abilities.
- Evaluate the present proficiency level
Next, you should elaborate on the criteria you would use to evaluate these abilities. Some methods for gauging an employee’s proficiency are as follows:
Examination: This is the gold standard when it comes to evaluation methods. In order to gauge their level of expertise, workers are required to complete a test. While this works well for gauging general knowledge, it isn’t necessarily the best technique to check for specific abilities.
Self-assessment: This is a fantastic tool that lets staff members evaluate their own abilities and expertise. An excellent tool for taking stock of one’s abilities, a self-assessment invites participation from both the individual and the company as a whole. Workers also have the opportunity to say which abilities they want to develop more.
360-degree feedback: This method works well for obtaining a comprehensive picture of a worker’s abilities. Receiving feedback on an employee’s skill levels from coworkers, managers, and indirect reports is a great way to gauge their performance.
Gamification—A new strategy is to make the whole thing more like a game. To do this, you’ll need to design a number of games that assess the abilities your company values. It adds lightness to evaluations, and workers feel less pressured to do well.
Applying a mix of these strategies is the way to go. Which assessment methods are most suitable should, of course, be based on the talent you are trying to gauge.
- Make a skills matrix to see all the different levels and abilities at a glance.
There are multiple ways to display a skills matrix. One terrific way for a company to show off its capabilities matrix is via a technological solution. With this kind of solution, it’s easy to make dashboards, tables, and charts, which speeds up the decision-making process.
Making a skills matrix is a breeze when you can use a scale to assess competencies and talents. For instance, a company might decide that a 10-point scale, with zero indicating no expertise and ten indicating expert skill, is appropriate.
- Find ways to improve your abilities
The next step, after pinpointing where your skills are lacking, is to find ways to fill them. Making the most of your current skill set while also identifying areas for growth is the primary objective of a skills inventory. Numerous opportunities exist for skill development, such as mentorship, micro-learning, online courses, etc.
It is the duty of businesses and HR to offer employees opportunities to upgrade their abilities when they become aware of their shortcomings. The 70-20-10 model is a fantastic lens through which to view potential avenues for growth. This divides education as follows: 70% via hands-on experience, 20% via social interaction, and 10% through classroom instruction.
- Revise and update your skills inventory often.
Regular updates are essential if you want your skills inventory to be of any use. You can then use that information to schedule your training more efficiently and address any gaps in your skills. As staff members acquire new abilities, you have the option of viewing their progress on a real-time organizational dashboard.
In addition, workers should be able to visit their dashboard to monitor their own skill development and progress. Adding a gamification element to further motivate people to continuously better themselves would be a great next step.
- Think about developing a unique inventory of leadership skills.
A distinct section for leadership could be useful. While self-leadership is essential, not every employee has managerial responsibilities or decision-making authority. You can evaluate the qualities of your present leadership base in comparison to other departments and sectors by creating a distinct leadership skills inventory.
The fact that data on leadership abilities is not gathered in the same manner as data on other abilities is another rationale for developing a distinct inventory. A 360-degree assessment, as well as detailed comments on leadership abilities from subordinates, might be part of a leadership inventory. You may create a strong leadership pipeline and leadership development programs for your staff based on the results of the leadership skills inventory.
- Notify the appropriate parties of the skills inventory.
Sharing the results with the appropriate stakeholders within the company is crucial after data is compiled and suitably acted upon. It would be wise to inform the management and leadership team about the findings. By doing so, they can gauge the extent to which the organization’s capabilities match those of its people. It also provides management with resources to use when having discussions with employees on their performance and development, which is a responsibility that falls mostly on their shoulders.
Workers also need detailed comments about the procedure as a whole. Everyone should understand that this is not a punishment program, but rather an attempt to help workers improve their abilities. Additionally, frame it as a team effort in which workers, supervisors, and HR professionals work together to design individualized strategies for professional growth.
Since no two people’s skill sets are identical, a one-size-fits-all strategy for improvement would be inappropriate here. On the contrary, the company could close its skills gap faster with a tailored strategy.
Now it’s your turn
Keeping your skills inventory up-to-date is crucial for effective workforce optimization, recruiting, and learning and development planning. In summary, you can maximize the value of your skills inventory by putting in place a procedure to ensure that it is current and that the appropriate individuals have access to it.
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