Evaluating human capital of an IT company using SFIA criteria
What is the main resource of any company? According to modern concepts, of course, these are people. Yes, very often it can only be formal statements, profanation is a man above all else, orientation towards personnel, our people everything and so on.
Of course, everything very much depends on the industry, market and the external environment as a whole.
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It is no secret that the IT sector is most dependent on the quality of staff. And if in conditional retailing (yes, yes, I know that you can argue with this), due to the competent adjustment of all processes, it is possible to substantially lessen the influence of personnel, then it is much more difficult to do the same in, say, software development.
Competition in the information technology market, in my opinion, is closest to perfect. This means that the quality of the services provided and the degree of customer satisfaction play a pivotal role. To ensure victory in the competition can only competent and motivated staff.
So, people are the main asset of an IT company. This statement is doubly true for a service provider company, such as, for example, ICL Services. The service is usually provided on the customer's infrastructure, its IT assets are relatively small and the main role in ensuring the quality of the services provided is played by the company's employees: engineers, architects, programmers, IT managers.
But how to evaluate this major asset?
The answer to this question depends on the size of the business. Working in a relative small company, when all employees are visible, the use of any formal procedures and criteria may not be too justified. But when the bill goes to hundreds and even thousands of people, this problem begins to require a solid approach.
It is relatively easy to calculate tangible and financial assets. We always know what is the distribution of money by accounts, we can calculate the amount of this or that equipment, classifying it by type and characteristics.
But what to do with people? To some extent professional certification can help. However, working in modern matrix structures, so-called soft skills come to the fore - the ability to establish horizontal interaction with other people, leadership, and understanding of the problems of the business as a whole.
Developing a set of criteria that allows a comprehensive assessment of an employee is a non-trivial task and hardly a lifting task for an individual company.
Working including on the international market, our company tries to use the best world practices in the field of personnel management. To meet the high requirements for the quality of work, we turned to the international experience - the system of professional standards in the IT sector of the digital economy SFIA (Skills Framework for the Information Age) .
Unfortunately, everything looks like that in Russia almost no one uses these standards. At least search in the RuNet gives out extremely limited number of links in Russian.
The first SFIA was developed in the UK in the early 2000s for the information age, and the current sixth version meets the requirements of the digital economy. Now in development is the 7th version.
To some extent, SFIA can be correlated with the register of professional standards of the Ministry of Labor of Russia. SFIA is focused exclusively on IT, does not affect specific technologies and products, but at the same time, SFIA is distinguished by consistency, global application in various countries and continuous support in terms of development.
SFIA allows line management, HR and employees to speak the same language.
Let us dwell on what is the SFIA.
SFIA operates in the following categories:
According to the definition, a skill is an action brought to automatism by repeated repetitions. Those. SFIA focuses on practical skills, not on theoretical training.
Each skill can be demonstrated at seven levels of responsibility.
These levels can be used in two ways.
On the one hand, SFIA defines each level of responsibility using the following attributes:
So, for example, for the first level the picture will look as follows.
SFIA, on the other hand, provides a systematic skill set, described for each level of responsibility in terms of behavioral characteristics, knowledge and skills.
In total, the 6th version of SFIA contains a description of 97 skills, classified into 6 categories and several subcategories.
You should not compare SFIA categories with descriptions of organizational roles, functional teams or personal responsibility areas. This grouping was made more likely for the convenience of those who will use SFIA to describe the profile of a particular position.
Take for example the skill “IT strategy and planning (ITSP)” in the category “Strategy and architecture” of the subcategory “Information Strategy”.
Note that this category contains only 3 levels: 5,6,7. This feature is typical for almost all skills. Obviously, there is no and cannot be any planning for an IT strategy at low levels of responsibility.
In general, the picture is as follows.
As we have seen, SFIA, first of all, provides a structured set of skills that can be demonstrated by specialists. SFIA does not contain role descriptions. All this falls on the shoulders of a particular company, which, focusing on the needs of the business and its own maturity, will form a unique set of job profiles, using the SFIA skills system as original building blocks.
Let's take a look at how job profiles can look, taking advantage of research conducted by the Australian computer society ACS (Australian computer society).
During the survey, more than 5,000 respondents were surveyed. As a result, 25 job profiles were compiled.
Interviewees had to determine the basic level of responsibility (in the ACS study, this is called the job size), as well as the main and up to 5 additional skills for each profile.
Let's look, for example, on a profile of the project manager.
Job Size Alignment: SFIA 5/6
Most commonly identified skills at job size SFIA 6
From the graph it is clear that the voices of the respondents in the sample of 251 respondents were divided approximately equally as to what level of responsibility the 5th or 6th should include the profile of the project manager. Therefore, the highest sixth level was chosen to identify the skills.
The ACS study assumes that all skills identified for the job profile should be demonstrated at the same level of responsibility. However, in general, this is not the rule. So the company may well set different levels for one or another skill. In addition, we can accept several skills as primary skills.
In general, I would not recommend this study as a guide to action. It contains quite a lot of controversial points and, by and large, reflects a certain average representation of IT companies in Australia (rather, in their mass, different) as to what competencies certain specialists should possess. But as a basis for the formation of its own structure of official roles, this study has the right to life.
We in the company ICL Services reasonably believe that in addition to the primary skill Project management (PRMG) in determining the profile of the project manager must be present: Stakeholder relationship management (RLMT) and Business risk management (BURM). While Program Management (PGMG) will be related to the Senior Project Manager profile, well, or, obviously, to the Program Manager.
Many will say that for evaluating project management professionals there is an IPMA ICB (Individual Competence Baseline) standard, which in this subject area will be an order of magnitude more developed than the SFIA. I agree. Giving the example described above, I chose what is closer to me at the moment, focusing on my own experience. The value of SFIA is that it offers a common value system for evaluating a wide range of professionals. However, nothing prevents us from attracting certain specialized standards, including IPMA ICB, to enhance certain fragments of the intracorporate matrix of skills and competencies.
We turn to the most interesting. How to assess the compliance of an employee of his position? Again, it is quite simple to assess technical competencies, knowledge of specific products and technologies. You can rely on existing certificates or develop your own test system.
But what to do with the skills? Do not forget that skill is first and foremost a practical skill. Check it using simple tasks with answer choices is not possible. Definitely need an expert opinion.
By and large, how to evaluate the work of a person can only be watching him in the process of solving practical professional problems. In real life, there are a huge number of factors that are not able to take into account even one of the most sophisticated testing.
However, it is not always possible to conduct field observations. So when applying for a job, we only have a few hours to determine the level of the applicant. Yes, and in daily activities, current tasks do not always give an employee the opportunity to show their best professional skills.
Therefore, the assessment of compliance with the official profile should be carried out in a fairly short time, but in an environment as close as possible to the real one.
We use for this one of the methods of situational analysis - the case method. The subject is given a description of the real business situation and it is proposed to analyze from the point of view of the assessed job profile, understand the nature of the problems, suggest possible solutions and, finally, choose the best one.
Time to solve the problem is very limited. Thus, not only professional skills are tested, but also the psychological characteristics of the employee, the ability to work under pressure, under conditions of limited time, etc.
So, for a project manager, on the basis of a case, connected, as a rule, with decision-making at one of the stages of the project life cycle, it is required to make a presentation that includes:
The presentation is evaluated by an expert or a group of experts for the application of key skills defined for this particular job profile.
As I mentioned above, such an assessment is carried out not only for new employees, but, which in my opinion is no less important, for existing ones in the process of fulfilling their duties.
The results obtained are used both for evaluating and managing human capital in general, and for developing recommendations for further professional development of personnel, developing training programs, adjusting internal processes and standards, and improving the bonus system.
Of course, everything very much depends on the industry, market and the external environment as a whole.
')
It is no secret that the IT sector is most dependent on the quality of staff. And if in conditional retailing (yes, yes, I know that you can argue with this), due to the competent adjustment of all processes, it is possible to substantially lessen the influence of personnel, then it is much more difficult to do the same in, say, software development.
People as an asset of an IT company
Competition in the information technology market, in my opinion, is closest to perfect. This means that the quality of the services provided and the degree of customer satisfaction play a pivotal role. To ensure victory in the competition can only competent and motivated staff.
So, people are the main asset of an IT company. This statement is doubly true for a service provider company, such as, for example, ICL Services. The service is usually provided on the customer's infrastructure, its IT assets are relatively small and the main role in ensuring the quality of the services provided is played by the company's employees: engineers, architects, programmers, IT managers.
But how to evaluate this major asset?
The answer to this question depends on the size of the business. Working in a relative small company, when all employees are visible, the use of any formal procedures and criteria may not be too justified. But when the bill goes to hundreds and even thousands of people, this problem begins to require a solid approach.
It is relatively easy to calculate tangible and financial assets. We always know what is the distribution of money by accounts, we can calculate the amount of this or that equipment, classifying it by type and characteristics.
But what to do with people? To some extent professional certification can help. However, working in modern matrix structures, so-called soft skills come to the fore - the ability to establish horizontal interaction with other people, leadership, and understanding of the problems of the business as a whole.
Developing a set of criteria that allows a comprehensive assessment of an employee is a non-trivial task and hardly a lifting task for an individual company.
Skills Framework for the Information Age - SFIA
Working including on the international market, our company tries to use the best world practices in the field of personnel management. To meet the high requirements for the quality of work, we turned to the international experience - the system of professional standards in the IT sector of the digital economy SFIA (Skills Framework for the Information Age) .
Unfortunately, everything looks like that in Russia almost no one uses these standards. At least search in the RuNet gives out extremely limited number of links in Russian.
The first SFIA was developed in the UK in the early 2000s for the information age, and the current sixth version meets the requirements of the digital economy. Now in development is the 7th version.
To some extent, SFIA can be correlated with the register of professional standards of the Ministry of Labor of Russia. SFIA is focused exclusively on IT, does not affect specific technologies and products, but at the same time, SFIA is distinguished by consistency, global application in various countries and continuous support in terms of development.
SFIA allows line management, HR and employees to speak the same language.
Let us dwell on what is the SFIA.
SFIA operates in the following categories:
- skill;
- level of responsibility.
According to the definition, a skill is an action brought to automatism by repeated repetitions. Those. SFIA focuses on practical skills, not on theoretical training.
Each skill can be demonstrated at seven levels of responsibility.
These levels can be used in two ways.
On the one hand, SFIA defines each level of responsibility using the following attributes:
- Autonomy (autonomy);
- Influence (influence);
- Complexity;
- Business skills.
So, for example, for the first level the picture will look as follows.
SFIA, on the other hand, provides a systematic skill set, described for each level of responsibility in terms of behavioral characteristics, knowledge and skills.
In total, the 6th version of SFIA contains a description of 97 skills, classified into 6 categories and several subcategories.
You should not compare SFIA categories with descriptions of organizational roles, functional teams or personal responsibility areas. This grouping was made more likely for the convenience of those who will use SFIA to describe the profile of a particular position.
Take for example the skill “IT strategy and planning (ITSP)” in the category “Strategy and architecture” of the subcategory “Information Strategy”.
Note that this category contains only 3 levels: 5,6,7. This feature is typical for almost all skills. Obviously, there is no and cannot be any planning for an IT strategy at low levels of responsibility.
IT strategy and planning ITSP (ITSP)
General description of the skill
Create and maintain up-to-date strategies to ensure that IT plans are aligned with business goals. Development of plans for the implementation of IT strategy in life. Work with all stakeholders to implement strategic management through clear goals, a reporting system and monitoring progress.
Level 7
He heads the formation and implementation of a strategic management structure. Provides information sharing with all interested parties. Manages the creation and regular updating of IT strategies and plans to support strategic business requirements.
Level 6
Creates policies, standards and guidelines that determine how to develop IT strategy and planning. Manages the creation and review of an IT strategy relevant to the requirements of the business. Develops, organizes the interaction of all stakeholders and implements processes that ensure the inclusion of strategic IT management in the strategic and operational plans of the organization.
Level 5
Ensures that all interested parties adhere to the approach and schedule defined by the IT strategy. Maps information and generates reports to support strategic IT management processes. Develops plans for the implementation of the strategy. Participates in the development of policies, standards and guidelines that determine how to develop IT strategy and planning.
In general, the picture is as follows.
Job profiles
As we have seen, SFIA, first of all, provides a structured set of skills that can be demonstrated by specialists. SFIA does not contain role descriptions. All this falls on the shoulders of a particular company, which, focusing on the needs of the business and its own maturity, will form a unique set of job profiles, using the SFIA skills system as original building blocks.
Let's take a look at how job profiles can look, taking advantage of research conducted by the Australian computer society ACS (Australian computer society).
During the survey, more than 5,000 respondents were surveyed. As a result, 25 job profiles were compiled.
Interviewees had to determine the basic level of responsibility (in the ACS study, this is called the job size), as well as the main and up to 5 additional skills for each profile.
Let's look, for example, on a profile of the project manager.
Job Size Alignment: SFIA 5/6
Most commonly identified skills at job size SFIA 6
| Primary skill | Project management (PRMG) |
|---|---|
| 2nd Skill | Program management (PGMG) |
| 3rd skil | Systems development management (DLMG) |
| 4th skill | IT management (ITMG) |
| 5th skill | Consultancy (CNSL) |
| Job Size Defniton: SFIA 6 Initate, in uence | |
|---|---|
| Autonomy | This includes the technical and financial aspects. Establishes organizational objectives and delegates responsibilities. It is accountable for self and subordinates. |
| In fl uence | Objectives of business specialism to business objectives. In fl uences a significant part of own organization. Developers influential relationships, including industry leaders, including industry leaders. Makes decisions that have reached a goal of organizational objectives and financial performance. |
| Complexity | Performs highly complex work activities covering technical, financial and quality aspects. Contribute to IT strategy. Creatively applies a wide range of technical and / or management principles. |
| Business skills | Technical and non-technical audiences. Assesses and evaluates risk. Understands the implications of new technologies. Demonstrates clear leadership and ability to influence and persuade. It is a broad understanding of all aspects of IT. Understands and communicates compliance with relevant legislation. It’s a challenge to take the initiative. |
From the graph it is clear that the voices of the respondents in the sample of 251 respondents were divided approximately equally as to what level of responsibility the 5th or 6th should include the profile of the project manager. Therefore, the highest sixth level was chosen to identify the skills.
The ACS study assumes that all skills identified for the job profile should be demonstrated at the same level of responsibility. However, in general, this is not the rule. So the company may well set different levels for one or another skill. In addition, we can accept several skills as primary skills.
In general, I would not recommend this study as a guide to action. It contains quite a lot of controversial points and, by and large, reflects a certain average representation of IT companies in Australia (rather, in their mass, different) as to what competencies certain specialists should possess. But as a basis for the formation of its own structure of official roles, this study has the right to life.
We in the company ICL Services reasonably believe that in addition to the primary skill Project management (PRMG) in determining the profile of the project manager must be present: Stakeholder relationship management (RLMT) and Business risk management (BURM). While Program Management (PGMG) will be related to the Senior Project Manager profile, well, or, obviously, to the Program Manager.
Many will say that for evaluating project management professionals there is an IPMA ICB (Individual Competence Baseline) standard, which in this subject area will be an order of magnitude more developed than the SFIA. I agree. Giving the example described above, I chose what is closer to me at the moment, focusing on my own experience. The value of SFIA is that it offers a common value system for evaluating a wide range of professionals. However, nothing prevents us from attracting certain specialized standards, including IPMA ICB, to enhance certain fragments of the intracorporate matrix of skills and competencies.
Job Compliance Assessment
We turn to the most interesting. How to assess the compliance of an employee of his position? Again, it is quite simple to assess technical competencies, knowledge of specific products and technologies. You can rely on existing certificates or develop your own test system.
But what to do with the skills? Do not forget that skill is first and foremost a practical skill. Check it using simple tasks with answer choices is not possible. Definitely need an expert opinion.
By and large, how to evaluate the work of a person can only be watching him in the process of solving practical professional problems. In real life, there are a huge number of factors that are not able to take into account even one of the most sophisticated testing.
However, it is not always possible to conduct field observations. So when applying for a job, we only have a few hours to determine the level of the applicant. Yes, and in daily activities, current tasks do not always give an employee the opportunity to show their best professional skills.
Therefore, the assessment of compliance with the official profile should be carried out in a fairly short time, but in an environment as close as possible to the real one.
We use for this one of the methods of situational analysis - the case method. The subject is given a description of the real business situation and it is proposed to analyze from the point of view of the assessed job profile, understand the nature of the problems, suggest possible solutions and, finally, choose the best one.
Time to solve the problem is very limited. Thus, not only professional skills are tested, but also the psychological characteristics of the employee, the ability to work under pressure, under conditions of limited time, etc.
So, for a project manager, on the basis of a case, connected, as a rule, with decision-making at one of the stages of the project life cycle, it is required to make a presentation that includes:
- SWOT analysis of the current situation;
- Identify key stakeholders;
- Identification of key product requirements;
- Setting assumptions and assumptions;
- Identification and analysis of existing risks with the compilation of the registry;
- Development WBS (Work breakdown structure);
- Making recommendations for a project steering committee or corporate management.
The presentation is evaluated by an expert or a group of experts for the application of key skills defined for this particular job profile.
As I mentioned above, such an assessment is carried out not only for new employees, but, which in my opinion is no less important, for existing ones in the process of fulfilling their duties.
The results obtained are used both for evaluating and managing human capital in general, and for developing recommendations for further professional development of personnel, developing training programs, adjusting internal processes and standards, and improving the bonus system.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/353040/
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