Note in the above two examples that the KSAs are prerequisites for developing the competency--you cannot be a competent golfer if you do not know how to grip the club or know which club to use. Yet having the KSAs does not ensure that someone has the competency. An individual might be a "student of the game" of golf yet not be able to hit a golf ball twenty feet. The same is true with the financial trading example.

 Organizations should be measuring, developing and rewarding competencies, not KSAs or personality traits. You want employees who can make money generating financial trades and not merely have a knowledge of finance. It is what is done with the underlying knowledge which is critical. As a consequence of focusing on competencies, the organization will become more competent and successful. But it is only by defining, developing and rewarding the competencies that this is all possible.

 There is no harm in defining KSAs or traits in addition to job competencies. Several companies have done this after their competencies were defined. They basically determine, for each job competency, what types of KSAs or traits are prerequisites for mastering the competency. This is desirable information to have. It can help in career development coaching if the employee lacks the prerequisites for building a job competency. However, when only KSAs are known, there is greater difficulty in implementing the various HR programs described earlier.

 Table 2 helps distinguish between the different types of "competencies" that are in existence. Bear in mind that merely calling something a competency does not make it a competency. Most of the factors organizations label as competencies would be better described by the terms in the left-hand column.

 Presented next are additional competencies from a large corporation. Like the preceding example on financial trading, these are technical competencies pertaining to jobs in the treasury function of the company. Notice that each competency is very behavioral, specific, and makes up a portion of the job. No one job requires all of these competencies, which are from a set of twenty-five. In addition to technical competencies, leadership and business competencies are also needed for jobs in the treasury area.

Technical Competencies--Treasury

Synthesize Financial Market Data
Collects financial market data from a variety of sources including on-line computerized information services, banks, and newsletters. Analyzes the individual pieces of information to separate the important from the less important. Synthesizes all of the information collected to develop a new view of the market. Must sort out different opinions of experts who interpret the same data in different ways. With the new view of the market in hand, presents this information to others and influences their perception of the market. Recommends strategies that will take advantage of changing market conditions.

Table 2. Factors erroneously called "competencies."