Retain & Reward

HATC Competency Escalator

Within many development and regeneration teams, there is a constant turnover of personnel as good staff, seeking to improve their earning-power and status, move to other organisations. Reducing this ‘churn’ has significant benefits to the employer:

• project control is improved;
• scheme delays, cost over-runs and reputational damage are diminished;
• disruption to programme delivery is reduced;
• and recruitment costs are slashed.

The HATC Competency Escalator helps employers retain good staff by offering the opportunity of increased salary and internal promotion through improved competency in a specific role.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

HATC’s extensive experience in all aspects of training within the development and regeneration sector, has enabled us to develop our Knowledge Matrix. This forms the basis for the HATC Competency Escalator, which comprises:

a competency framework for development, regeneration and asset management staff, covering the knowledge and skills needed for the roles of assistant, officer  and senior management;

assessment methods for each of the areas implemented by the relevant manager,

a scoring system, providing a pre-determined number of credits for each competency;

a structure for determining when a promotion is due.

Quite simply, if a member of staff demonstrates they have acquired additional competencies, they earn credits that are translated into increased salary and (where applicable) promotion.  Staff are offered the opportunity for a review meeting on a cycle set by the employer, typically two or three times a year.

The HATC Competency Escalator can easily be tailored to match the skills and knowledge that you require in your teams so you reward the competencies that you value most.

IS THIS THE RIGHT TIME?

The hiatus in the housing market means that many organisations are drawing breath and assessing their teams.  This is the time to establish mechanisms so that you have the right people in place when the up-swing in the market returns.

IS THERE A RISK OF TOO MANY HIGHLY PAID, OVER-QUALIFIED, SENIOR OFFICERS?

It is extremely unlikely that the HATC Competency Escalator will eliminate staff turnover completely – there will always be reasons for people to leave – but by using it you are minimising the risk of good people leaving simply because other organisations offers better prospects.  With the Competency Escalator you are in control: if the team is becoming ‘top-heavy’, you simply replace a departing senior with an assistant; or turn your highly-competent team into fee-earners by taking on development agency work.

The Competency Escalator offers you the key benefit of better programme control, which massively outweighs any risk of over-competence. It has the potential to be one of the most cost-effective management tools in which you will ever invest.