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Newsletter -March 2011
Assessing interpersonal skill competency
Competency in a range of interpersonal skills, from basic communication skills, to people management skills to complex skills such as negotiation and conflict management, can be critical to an individual's performance.
There are a multitude of methodologies for assessing competence, however in its simplest form, assessment of interpersonal skill competency comes down to answeringthree basic questions;
1. Does the person understand when and why to use the skill?
2. Does the person understand and can they enact the steps of application of the skill, from end to end?
3. Can the person achieve the purpose of the skill, even in difficult situations?
When and why to use the skill
Competent users of interpersonal skills know when to useeach skill to best effect. Learning to apply the skill of feedbackis only useful if you understandthat it should be used whenever you observe someone doing something well or poorlyand would benefit from insight into the skills and behaviours they are using(or not using),andtheir impact.The why (or purpose) of giving feedback is to ensure that the person can repeat good performance or improve on poor performance.
Conversely, giving feedback where poor attitude, not skills and behaviours, are leading to poor performance, would be inappropriate. The attitude itself and the consequences of continuing it, need to be confronted. Effective use of a skill in an inappropriate situation is counter productive.
Understand and apply the skill steps
It is criticalboth to understand the intent of the application of each skill step and to be able to apply each step effectively. The first application step for feedback is to state the content and purpose of the feedback i.e. what you want to talk about and why. The intent of this step is to set a constructive agenda for the discussion to follow. Leave out the why e.g. to enable the receiver to perform better next time, and you run the risk that the receiver will assume that the agenda is a disciplinary one and take a defensive position.
Step two in feedback requires the giver todescribe the skills and behaviours they observed the receiver use, and their impact on the situation. The skill in application hereis in the giver being concise and specific in their description, so that the receiver gains real insight into their own performance.
It is also important to be able to apply all the steps end to end, seamlessly and without missing any. Step three requires the giver to invite the receiver to respond to their feedback. The intent of this step is to guage whether the receiver is on the same page as the giver about their performance and if necessary reconcile differing views. To omit this step may mean thatthegiver is trying to get the receiver to agreeactions they can take to improve performance, when the receiverdoesn't even think they performed poorly.
Achieving the purpose of the skill
Clearly the ultimate test of the competency of an individual in applying a skill is whether they can achieve the purpose of the skill i.e. get the outcome they desire. The purpose of the feedback skill is to have the receiver agree and commit to actions they can take in future to sustain or build on good performance, or to improve poor performance.
What differentiates a person with basic competence from another with superior competence is their abilty to achieve the purpose of the skill even in the most difficult circumstances. In the case of the feedback skill this may mean when giving feedback about a complex or sensitive scenario. Alternatively itmay mean achieving commitment to improve performance from a receiver who was intitiallyin denial that their performance was poor, or who was unwilling or reluctant to change their behaviour.
How can you use competency assessment?
There are fourways you can use competency assessment:
1. To assess your own competency so that you can improve your own application of an interpersonal skill. You can do this by reflecting on your application of the skill on the job, or by practicing in a role play situation with a skilled colleague and getting feedback from them.
2. To assess the competency of others to identify their suitability for a specific role. You can do that by observing them applying the skill on the job, or by conducting role plays with them.
3. To assess the competency of others for coaching or development purposes. Identifying any weaknesses in their current skill application gives focus to the development activities. Again observation and role play are the best assessment tools.
4. To coach a person in learning a new skill. The assessment questions give you a pathway for the coaching. First ensure they understand when and why to use the skill. Then ensure they understand and can apply each skill step from end to end. Finally test whether they can achieve the purpose of the skill, starting with simple situations and thenin increasingly difficult situations. Role play in the coaching sessions and assigned practice 'on the job' are the best ways to build competence in this situation.
To learn more about assessing competency and effective skills coaching, go to:
www.developmentinpractice.com.au/solutions/effective-coaching.html
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