What is competency based testing and why is it so important?

The ImproveMe Online Personal Improvement Assessment is designed to identify the competencies (skills, talents and abilities) you possess and have practiced (knowingly or unknowingly) to a given level.

Competencies focus on the personal attributes or inputs of an individual. They are the behaviour that lies behind competent performance. In other words, competencies are the skills and technical attributes that individuals must have, or must acquire, to perform effectively at work.1

How is this different to a personality test or behavioural based testing?

A personality test or behavioural questions are trying to find out more about your personality. They aim to find out your personal preferences and what drives you to behave in a certain way. They help to assess whether you would fit the culture of a certain job or organisation, based on your personality and things like your communication and your decision-making style.2

Why is it important to understand your own competencies?

There is an old saying that “you don’t know what you don’t know”. Whether you’re a professional athlete, a school/university student or an everyday person on the street, you possess a range of skills and technical attributes (competencies) that you have developed over the course of your life. However you may not be fully aware of what your competencies are, or how a skill you learned in one area of your life would apply in a working environment. ImproveMe can greatly help with your self-awareness in this area.

Why is competency based testing important in today’s business environment?

With a continuously evolving employment environment driven by rapid advancements in technology, the most significant competitive advantage for the businesses of tomorrow are the skills, talents and contributions of the people who work there.

Competency frameworks are a rapidly emerging step to ensure people are adequately prepared for this changing workforce. Competency based assessments introduce a more scientific approach to pinpointing individual skills and strengths, which can be used to identify those people who are best placed to help an organisation grow and reach its potential.

In turn, this creates individuals who become both accountable and responsible for their personal growth and development, and allows them to be better prepared for an evolving future.

Take the first step to understanding your key competencies today!

 

1 https://www2.cipd.co.uk/hr-resources/factsheets/competence-competency-frameworks.aspx
2 https://www.abintegro.com/public/behavioural-vs-competency-based-interviews