Leadership Competencies for Competency Models

Much has been written about leadership, leadership competencies, and what it takes to be a great leader. Do an internet search for “leadership competencies” and you will find countless lists, such as “The 5 Most Important Competencies” “Top 10 Leadership Competencies”, “How to Develop Google’s Top 7 Leadership Competencies”, etc., etc.

There is no standard, correct list. In each organization, the competencies of effective leaders vary with the industry, business and governmental environment, business strategy and goals, mission and culture. So there is no standard, off-the-shelf competency model for leaders.

Still, it might be of interest to students of leadership to see one more list of leadership competencies, one based on Workitect’s experience in building models for leaders at all multiple levels in multiple organizations. Our model example includes competencies that have been identified most frequently in models we have built. This is the model, with competencies drawn from the thirty-five competencies in our competency dictionary.

Leadership Competencies

Definition of Each Competency

COMPETENCIES BY LEVELS

Many leadership competencies can be observed and developed in lower levels of managers. Having competencies and their behavioral
indicators described by level of job role and level of proficiency can be particularly helpful when the models applied to succession planning. Example: BUILDING COLLABORATIVE RELATIONSHIPS competency.

EXAMPLES OF COMPETENCY MODELS FOR LEADERSHIP POSITIONS

Company Vice Presidents who are presidents of operating divisions of a major manufacturing company.

Project Managers for high-technology company.

DEVELOP A COMPETENCY FRAMEWORK FOR THE ORGANIZATION

A leadership competency model developed for senior management can include the identification of two to six leadership competencies that employees need to demonstrate in order for the organization to achieve its objectives and mission. These “core”competencies help answer the question of “what kind of company do you want our company to be?” Customer Orientation is an example for some organizations. The competencies are then included in the job competency models for all positions in the organization.

TALENT MANAGEMENT APPLICATIONS

Identifying the leadership competencies for an organization serves no purpose unless the competencies are applied to processes for selecting, developing, and retaining talent.

AVAILABLE FROM WORKITECT: AN INTEGRATED SET OF TOOLS FOR SELECTING, DEVELOPING, AND RETAINING LEADERS

Questions for Discussion

LEADERSHIP COMPETENCIES OF U.S. PRESIDENTS – 

What leadership competencies should a competent President possess?

To what extent do the 2024 candidates exhibit those competencies?

Workitect helps organizations build and implement competency models, frameworks, and applications. Contact me at edward.cripe@workitect.com , call 800-870-9490, or complete this contact form.

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