The journey to (successfully) becoming a skills-based organization is neither quick nor simple – but it is very much worth the effort. Listed below are some key questions to think about and activities to prioritize in preparation for this transition:

• Organizational Skills: Do you know what it takes to do the different jobs in your organization well? Who in your organization knows that and is it documented well? Is it documented at all? Developing a strategic view on skills that are critical to the future success of your organization can seem daunting, but it is the cornerstone of your future model. Make sure you set aside enough time to do this well and keep in mind that different approaches could work for different organizations – maybe you are used to operating in an agile environment and can divide the work into smaller stages with a bottom-up approach, or maybe it makes sense to create a more top-down program of work. In any case, keep in mind that this work is not “one & done” and that keeping your organizational skills up to date will continue to be an investment of time even after the initial effort is completed.
• Individual Skills: How do you know that someone has a particular skill? Do you just ask them or do you test them? Can you use other data sources to make assumptions and suggestions? What about their manager’s or peers’ ratings? These questions are just a very small selection of questions we have come across in our work and are a foundation to any measured and considered approach to handling, maintaining, and utilizing individual skill data. Remember, one size does not fit all – some industries (like healthcare or manufacturing) have regulatory commitments in relation to skill building and maintenance, while others (like tech and marketing) can take a more flexible approach. Whatever your organizational circumstances might be, it is considered best practice to regularly use multiple data points to assess the skill levels of your workforce and keep your skills inventory as accurate and up to date as possible.
• Technology Architecture: Do you know what your HR Tech strategy is – near, mid and longer term? Are you leveraging the power of one centralized platform or are you committed to best-in-class niche technology providers? How and where do you analyse your HR data and what outcomes are you looking to achieve? Understanding the technological landscape is increasingly becoming a key skill for senior HR professionals, and a transition to a more skills-based organization is a great opportunity to review and refresh your technology ecosystem and strategy. Broadly speaking – utilizing scalable and integrated HR technologies that support skills tracking and analysis is critical to ensuring that skill data is accessible to key stakeholders in an easily digestible and actionable way.
• Culture: Is your company culture genuinely supportive of continuous development? Do your employees trust you with their data? Do leaders really make data-based decisions on key moments that matter to employees, like career progression? So often overlooked, real culture shift towards answering all of those questions with a “yes” is critical to the success of any and all Skills initiatives. Foster a corporate culture that values continuous learning and skill development, encouraging employees to take ownership of their professional growth and walking the talk when it comes to data-based decision making.

It’s also important to recognize that not all the activities listed will be relevant to all organizations – some organizations might need to focus more on their technology ecosystem and architecture, and some might need more business buy-in and culture work – what good preparation looks like is always going to be closely linked to your unique circumstances. However, the one thing that is universally true is that recognizing the importance of investing effort in transformation towards a skills-based organization is just the first of many steps in this journey.