J. MAYKELS and A. ELLIS, AUTHOR et al.
‘Developing and implementing a
Competence Framework within
a nuclear new build organisation
to support a learning culture’
J. MAYKELS
NuGeneration Limited
Manchester, United Kingdom
Email:
- ELLIS
NuGeneraiton Limited
Manchester, United Kingdom
Email:
Abstract
It has been well documented by the IAEA that the development of an Organisational Competence Framework has numerous benefits. One key benefit is that it can be used to develop overall organisational capability, to ensure the right people are in the right place at the right time to carry out required activities. A Competence Framework will help establish a benchmark against which to evaluate performance, set criteria for recruitment, support succession planning and can also be used by individual employees to evaluate themselves against a defined set of requirements. This helps them understand what they need to do to improve their performance and work more effectively, as well as how to create their own career development plans. Taking the UK based new build organisation NuGeneration (NuGen) and its Moorside Project as a case study, the paper outlines an approach to the development and implementation of an organisational Competence Framework which defines the competencies required by the business during the different phases of the Moorside project. The NuGen Values and Leadership competencies are embedded in the Competence Framework, defining the behaviours needed in establishing a learning culture. The paper will show that by using a systematic approach to specify, record, and report the competence of employees against required activities, the resulting output can be used to plan for future business capability requirements. This, together with the establishment of required qualifications and training for each post, allows for a gap analysis to be used to develop appropriate interventions to meet business needs and support NuGen in establishing adequate arrangements. The paper concludes with a summary of lessons learned to date and the next steps in embedding this process to ensure a capable organisation is established to ensure the right skills are developed at the right time at each phase of the project.
1.Introduction
1.1.Competence Framework strategic drivers
NuGen have developed an Organisational Competency Framework which will be the analytical basis from which we will establish adequate arrangements to ensure that all Nuclear Baseline [1] and Organisational Roles are performed by Suitably Qualified and Experienced People (SQEP).
The Competency Framework defines all competencies (encompassing skills, knowledge, behaviours and experience) required across the business, and will be adapted for the different phases of the Moorside project, the Competency Framework will be activity based not time based.
Competencies are mapped to both Nuclear Baseline & Organisational Roles, as the Nuclear Baseline roles are allocated to the relevant organisation posts. The view of competence requirements at a post level will be captured in the Competence Tool, NuGen are utilising the NS4Pwhich was developed by the National Skills Academy for Nuclear (NSAN) in partnership with UK Nuclear Employers [2].
1.2.The Moorside Nuclear New Build Project
NuGen is a UK nuclear new build company with a mission to build an organisation to safely develop, construct and operate the Moorside Power Station, near Sellafield in west Cumbria in the UK. As the largest ever private sector investment in Cumbria, Moorside Power Station will employ around 1,000 people in operation, with a construction workforce numbering many thousands for the anticipated ten-year construction period.
1.3.Competence Framework Development
The following principles were used to guide and steer the development or the Competence Framework:
—The framework was organised around areas of professional competence, not organisation structure, in order to allow for the framework to be utilised across roles within the business and facilitate through dynamic change to Target Operating Models
—The framework was developed using NuGen subject matter experts (owners) to ensure buy-in from across the business
—Priority areas were identified to ensure critical safety roles could be assessed first
—A clear plan, taking account of dependencies with other work activities was developed
—The framework was written using competency authors to ensure consistency of language and style
—The framework includes competencies written to embed NuGen values & Leadership behaviours
Key stakeholders were identified at each stage of development to validate & review allowing for amendments as necessary. Engagement activity included;
—Competence Owners (SMEs) identified to drive the development of each competence area.
—CompetenceAuthors identified to promote consistency.
—Workshops held with SMEs and other stakeholders required to support development.
—The Nuclear Safety Committee was consulted with regards to roles which impact nuclear safety.
—Peer review sessions were held with a wider group who understand the wider impactof the work.
—A final peer review was undertaken once the framework was complete.
—The framework was published and uploaded to the competence assessment tool.
2.Implementing the Competence Framework
2.4.Competence Assessment Process
The competence assessment process is a systematic approach to assessing staff against the relevant competencies, at the required level. This helps ensure that all staff have the required level of competence to safely perform routine and emergency roles, to meet compliance with nuclear site Licence conditions, environmental permits, and other industry standards as well as driving business goals.
The first step included identifying the organisational posts required for the current and near future activities, then taking the initial nuclear baseline and assigning competencies to the nuclear baseline roles before assigning these to the posts, for posts without a nuclear baseline role, competencies are allocated to the post using the job description as a starting template. This then gives you a competence profile for each post which can be assessed using a 5-level assessment criterion which in simplest terms equates to 0 = no competence to 4 = expert etc.The competence assessment process identifies competence gaps in the organisation which in turn, inform the resourcing strategy. The use of the competencies to support competence based interviews also form part of the recruitment process. In addition, the process identifies SQEP who are ready to assume new roles and fill key business leadership positions. This supports NuGen in allocating roles to competent individuals on an ongoing basis, informing succession planning whilst also supporting capability questions (highlighting vulnerabilities and initiating mitigations). See Figure 1
Fig 1 Developing the Assessment process
2.5.The Competence Assessment tool
NuGen have implemented the NS4P[1] tool across the organisation to deliver a systematic approach to assessing staff against the relevant competencies. The NS4P tool is being used to automate the assessment process, assessments are sent automatically via the NS4P tool to individuals and line managers in line with business requirements. The results of the competence assessments are captured in the NS4P tool and reports from the system directly feed into the training design process.The NS4P tool holds information for the required Qualifications and Training for each post, as well as personal development requirements. This allows for timely interventions that support the business needs and individual aspirations.
Line Managers in the NS4P tool can run a variety of reports against the individuals and the team(s) they have permission to manage.Reports provide information about team and/or individualtraining and competence against a post or nuclear baseline roles undertaken.
Fig 2 Example report output - Radar diagram
Competence results can be displayed as a radar diagram (see figure 2) showing self-assessments against the target score for a named job role. Individual competencies and scores can be displayed, showing any evidence provided by the individual or reviewer, an action plan is then produced to show mitigation against specific competencies, which may include training, receiving mentoring, coaching, or gaining on-the-job experience etc. reports can be exported from the system in a range of formats including, excel, word and PDF.
3. LESSONS LEARNED
3.6.Leadership support is vital
It is vital that one does not underestimate the amount of active sponsorship needed to support the delivery of a new competence process within the business, although the benefits become clear towards the end of the project ensuring you get buy-in in the early days is essential. Leadership support helps focus the engagement and leaders who lead by example drive success in any project. The NuGen leadership team were the first to be assessed using the new process and this has had a positive impact on the role-out of the competence framework/assessment process across the business
3.7.Engagement & Communication
Although engagement with SMEs from the organisation formed part of the development and roll-out, on-going communication and engagement with all employees is critical to embed both the on-going refresh of the competence framework and the use of the outputs from the competence assessments. Implementing the process and the tool so that it becomes business as usual requires buy-in and commitment from all departments within the business.
3.8.How the outputs from competence assessments can support Professional Membership
The ability to utilise the completed competence assessments for a variety of purposes is a strong driver and motivator for both the individuals and the business. As well as to support compliance requirements and business drivers the output from the assessments can be used as evidence to support professional membership. An example of this was highlighted when piloting the mapping an individual’s assessment against the assessment criteria for the UK’s Nuclear Institutes (NI)Nuclear Delta®[3]. The initial pilot was successful with all evidence to support upgrade of the NI membership from Associate to Member found in the individuals competence assessment, although feedback from the NI suggested that a streamlined approach to the mapping would have been beneficial. This feedback suggests that how you order and record the evidence can make additional usage more practical, grouping or tagging the competencies that support specific Nuclear Safety/Security requirements might equate to a more streamlined approach.
4.Next Steps
The next steps in the development and implementation of the competence framework will include;
—Using the outputs from the completed competence assessments and training gap analysis to deliver a forward training plan which will increase competence and ultimately performance to positively impact business results
—Linking the assessment process to succession planning andcareer pathways will support individual motivation and establishment of a continual improvement mindset across the business
—Decentralising the reporting function to allow line managers/head of departments/directors to report on their teams and support decision making on recruitment, training & development, talent cycles and, succession planning which in turn supports a positive learning environment
—Looking at how NuGen can utilise both the competence framework & the NS4P tool to support future supply chain development activities will be key for the next phase of the project
5. Conclusions
The development and implementation of a competence framework gives an organisation the ability to plan and predict future capability needs, supporting career pathways to further organisational growth. The outputs from the assessment process ensure increased accuracy on budget planning to support learning and development activities. The outputs also provide increased line manager awareness, enabling effective development planning, recruitment, and succession planning across the business. Embedding the values and leadership competencies in the framework to define the behaviours needed in establishing a learning culture will improve performance and positively impact business results.
6.references
[1] SAFETY DIRECTORS FORUM, “Nuclear Baseline and the Management of Organisational Change”,A Nuclear Industry Code of Practice, Publisher, Second Edition (2014).
[2] NATIONAL SKILLS ACADEMY NUCLEAR, ns4p (2018),
[3] NUCLEAR INSTITUTE,Nuclear Delta® (2018),
1
[1]The NS4P is a secure on-line tool with the ability to record & report on qualifications, training and competence across the business.