I plan on making a few posts on the topic of "talent management system provisioning." I want to cover the topic at a high-level before focusing on integration of competency content and other details.
Here, I'm using "talent management system" to refer to integrated TM suites as well as discrete TM components, such as performance management, compensation, learning management systems, succession planning, etc. "Provisioning" broadly describes processes for providing systems the data they require before they can be used productively. This data can be thought of as the "inputs" to talent management processes.
There is great variation in requirements around TM system provisioning. Requirements vary based on the particular TM components that an employer has deployed, the degree of built-in integration among components, and the sophistication of the particular employer's TM programs. However, the major categories of data of concern in TM system provisioning are:
- Organizational structures. This includes information describing an organization's sub-entities or "organization units", relationships among organization units and between organizational units and parent entities, the positions within each organizational unit, reporting relationships among positions, and the sometimes identifiers referencing position incumbents.
- Position profiles. A position profile (or sometimes "position competency model") associates a collection of competency and process accountability information with a position. A position profile includes references to individual competencies and to groups of competencies that are associated with a position. For each competency group and individual competency, proficiency levels (required or desired proficiencies) and weightings among competencies/groups can be specified.
- Competency content. This type of competency content is generalized and is not yet presented in the context of a particular position. Competency content includes definitions as well as the description of behavioral indicators of particular competencies. Additionally, interview questions designed to reveal behaviors and underlying competencies are sometimes included.
- Participant data. This refers to the "people data." Talent management systems obviously need to be provisioned with information about participants within talent management processes. Usually, this is a broad set of information about the person, their roles (employee, supervisor, candidate, etc.), their employment, and their deployment within particular positions and assignments within an organization. This would also include a wide variety of demographic and other personal details required for compliance or administration of TM programs.
So broadly what I'm describing are steps under which a TM system is provided with (1) information about the employer's organizational structure; (2) information about the positions within that structure; (3) information about the competencies relevant to positions; and (4) information about the persons who participate within TM processes and the roles they play.
I'll come back to examine some of the above categories in a bit more detail in future posts.
