How to build a skills map

Skills mapping is the operational foundation of any GEPP. It consists of identifying the skills actually held in the organization, those that will be needed tomorrow, and the gap between the two. Without it, GEPP negotiation deals with intentions and the training plan with intuitions. A useful mapping is alive, connected to real jobs, regularly updated, and directly usable to build career paths. A dead mapping, produced once and then forgotten, is a cost with no return.

What it is used for, and what it is not

It answers three questions every management should be able to handle: what can we do today, what will we need to know in three years, and how do we get from one to the other.

It is not an org chart, which describes positions and not skills. It is not a set of job descriptions, which describe theoretical expectations and not actual holdings. It is not an individual performance evaluation tool, even though it draws on aggregated individual data.

The four steps

Step 1, job inventory. Identify the jobs actually performed, grouped into coherent families. The trap is to reuse the administrative listing without questioning it: obsolete titles produce a false mapping from the start.

Step 2, the skills framework. Define, for each job, the required skills and their expected level. This is the most time-consuming step and the one where the quality of the whole is decided.

Step 3, assessment of holdings. Measure the skills actually held, through self-assessment, managerial assessment, tests, or a combination. Each method has its biases, which the approach must acknowledge rather than ignore.

Step 4, projecting future needs. Anticipate the skills required in three years, based on strategic orientations, technological and regulatory changes, and market trends. The gap between current holdings and future needs is the final output of the mapping.

The main trap: granularity

Too fine, the mapping becomes unmanageable. Hundreds of elementary skills, impossible to assess and update, produce a complex system no one maintains. Too coarse, it says nothing usable: knowing that a team masters customer relations does not allow building any career path.

The right level is generally between fifteen and thirty skills per job, formulated in observable terms. A skill must be assessable by someone who knows the actual work.

Sensitive positions

The mapping must allow the identification of threatened jobs, jobs in tension, and emerging jobs. From this identification flow GEPP's priorities: where to invest in training, where to organize mobility, where to recruit.

This identification is politically sensitive and must be conducted with method and dialogue; otherwise, it is received as an announcement of layoffs.

Updates, or death

An unupdated mapping loses its value in about eighteen months, under the effect of staff movements, job evolution, and organizational changes. A mapping built for a negotiation and then abandoned costs a lot and serves nothing.

Plan the update process from the design stage: who, when, with what effort. A simpler but maintained mapping is infinitely better than an exhaustive but dead one.

The mapping directly feeds the skills development plan: it's the next link in the GEPP chain.

FAQ

How long does it take to build a skills map? It depends on the size and complexity of the organization. The limiting factor is not the tool but the availability of managers to define and assess skills.

What tool to use? The tool comes after the method. A well-maintained spreadsheet is better than sophisticated software fed with false data.

Should we use an in-house framework or an existing standard? Industry frameworks and existing standards save time on generic skills. Skills specific to your activity must be defined internally.

How often should it be updated? An annual update is a minimum, with a revision of the frameworks every two to three years.

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