Behaviour versus Competence
As we come to the close of another calendar year it is a good time to reflect on our organisations performance and whether we have the right people in the right positions. Once we know we have designed the positions correctly and have the right competence in the employees then we will have the “people power” we need. The obvious next question is: “are we paying our people correctly?” – this role sizing and position evaluation will be the subject of another blog.
You will probably have noticed the global trend of focussing on “behaviour” of the employees including a recent AHRI LinkedIn “… Dealing with Employees Defensive Behavior”.
Maxumise has found that in most cases the “behaviour” issues are a result of a lack of competence. The lack of competence often comes from, firstly a poorly designed position and therefore not recruiting the “right position”. Then once the ideal position is designed properly we can recruit the right person or assess the incumbent to see if we have the right person in the right position. If gaps exist (and they often do) then we provide and/or arrange for the competency development.
The defensive or other behavioural issues is usually directly associated with a lack of competence and the employee compensating for this lack of competence. We recently completed an assessment and development program for potential “CEO’s” in an organisation (sponsored by the Board) and when the assessment results came out one Manager was written-off due to the gap in competence but more for the low attribute score – aggressive. It was decided to continue with phase 1 of the development (largely competence development). As we developed the competence in this manager the attitude changed dramatically to the extent CEO, Board, customers and even family members commented on the change over [...]