What are competencies?
Competency Assessments are used to determine the ability of a worker to perform a task competently. It lists the skills required by the worker to do a job safely and allows supervisors to evaluate the worker's performance against these requirements after observing the worker.
There are lots of methods for ensuring competency out there, but at Workhub we focus around task-based competency. That means when you create your competency you'll want to name it the title of the task being assessed. A few examples might be Unloading a Skid Steer or Changing a Flat Tire.
What is the difference between a procedure and a competency?
Determining Competency levels is done via observation by a worker who is already competent in the task, while procedures are focused on the how-to of performing those tasks. Competencies assess how accurately a worker follows the necessary procedure when completing the task. There may be additional criteria, like knowledge based questions, which may not be present on an instructional procedure. You may also have policies and procedures which a worker must review prior to performing a task. This does not make the worker competent in the task, but it is part of the due diligence that companies need to maintain.
What is an assessor?
On Workhub, there are three statuses Workers are set to when assessed for a Competency - Requires Supervision, Competent and Instructor Assessor. An Assessor is someone who is qualified to assess other workers on the competency. They can either have been assessed on the competency and given the status of Instructor/Assessor, or prequalified by an admin.
What if I have workers that are already competent?
If you already have workers who are competent to perform certain tasks in their job, you can use our Prequalification tool to mark these workers as competent or allow them to be able to assess other workers on the competencies. You can add a date or a note here as well.
If you would like to begin using the component and would like guidance on building a Competency, you can follow along with our article on Creating and Administering Competencies.
If you have Competencies already in use and want some guidance on how to perform assessments, you can check out our article on Performing a Competency Assessment.