Unlock Talent Potential: Master Skills Taxonomy for Business Growth

Have you ever wondered how companies determine the skills and competencies required for distinct roles? Skills taxonomies are frameworks that help organizations do that. Thankfully, this guide explains skills taxonomies, why they matter, and how to use them in your organization. After reading this post, you will understand skills taxonomies and be able to build competency models for business growth.

What Is a Skills Taxonomy?

A skills taxonomy is a classification system that organizes skills, abilities, and competencies into a logical structure. They provide a common language to define and understand the skills required for a role.

Types of Skills Taxonomies

There are two main types: job-specific and universal. Job-specific taxonomies focus on the skills for a particular role like a software engineer. Universal taxonomies contain a comprehensive set of skills that apply across jobs and industries. The most well-known is the Skills Framework for the Information Age or SFIA. It provides a common reference model for describing digital skills and competencies.

Why Do Skills Taxonomies Matter?

They enable standardized skill definitions and leveling across an organization. This makes it easier to write job descriptions, evaluate skill proficiency, and identify skills gaps. They facilitate mobility between roles by providing transparency into the skills required for contrasting functions. Skills taxonomies improve workforce planning, talent management, and professional development.

In today’s digital world, skills taxonomies provide an essential foundation for managing talent.  When leveraged, they enable a skills-based approach to developing and deploying your workforce.

Why Are Skills Taxonomies Important for Businesses?

Skills taxonomies provide clarity and standardization. They give everyone a common language to talk about skills, talents, and abilities. This makes it easier for businesses to communicate what they need and for people to understand what is required for a role.

Improves Talent Management

Skills taxonomies support talent management and recruitment efficiency. Companies can use them to define job requirements, evaluate candidates, and assess current employees. People looking for work can see what skills are in demand and work to develop them.

Promotes Workplace Success

Educational institutions benefit, too. They can design curricula and learning objectives based on the skills businesses value. Students will graduate with knowledge and abilities that prepare them for success in the workplace.

Offers Insights on Future Skills

For planning, taxonomies provide insight into future skills needs. By tracking trends in taxonomy usage, companies can anticipate what abilities they will require in years to take action to build them. Individuals can see opportunities to develop skills that will be in high demand down the road.

Skills taxonomies improve clarity, process efficiency, and future planning. That is why businesses and individuals need them today. Taxonomies help you build a skilled, competitive, and future-ready organization.

Common Types of Skills Taxonomies Used by Organizations

There are several common skills taxonomies used by organizations to define and categorize the skills of their workforce.

O*NET

The O*NET program provides a standardized taxonomy of worker attributes and job characteristics. It contains information on hundreds of standardized and occupation-specific descriptors.

European Skills, Competences, Qualifications and Occupations (ESCO)

ESCO is a multilingual classification of European qualifications and occupations. It provides a common language to describe skills and competences relevant for the EU labor market and education.

Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA)

SFIA is a two-dimensional framework for describing and managing skills and competences in the digital world. It provides a vocabulary for skills and a mechanism for summarizing skills profiles. SFIA enables individuals and organizations to understand current skills and plan future skills requirements.

LinkedIn Skills & Endorsements

Add skills and endorsements to your LinkedIn profile with Skills & Endorsements. Members can choose from thousands of skills to represent their professional expertise and experience. You can endorse others for the skills they are most proficient in as well.

Salary.com's Skills Library

Salary.com's Skills Library provides a comprehensive taxonomy of workplace skills. With this tool, you can identify specific skills needed for certain jobs. Recruiters can use the skills library to enhance their company’s growth with the best talents. It is integrated with Job Architect, a job description management software helping hiring managers improve skills inventory in one go.

Creating and Implementing an Effective Skills Taxonomy

To make a skills taxonomy work, start with the skills critical to your organization's success. Group similar skills together under skill categories and skill sets. Name each category and set clearly.

1. Keep your taxonomy simple. Too many levels confuse people. Three or four levels are typical. Broad at the top, narrowing down. Arrange the categories and sets in a logical flow or hierarchy.
2. Involve subject matter experts to verify and provide input. They know the skills and competencies required for various roles. Get buy-in from executives and managers. Explain how a skills taxonomy benefits recruiting, learning, and career development.
3. Launch your taxonomy with communication and training. Show how to use the taxonomy for job profiles, learning paths, performance reviews, recruiting, and more. Provide examples and templates. Offer follow-up support.
4. Review and revise the taxonomy periodically. Skills change over time. Make sure it continues to meet organizational needs. Update as needed to keep it current and add value.

A well-designed skills taxonomy is a strategic tool to align skills with business goals and workforce needs. When implemented properly, it fosters a shared skills language across the organization.

Conclusion

You now have a better understanding of skills taxonomies and how they can be useful. The key is finding one that aligns with your needs and applying it thoughtfully. Keep in mind, no taxonomy is perfect or comprehensive, so you may need to adapt it for your situation. The most important thing is to start organizing and categorizing your skills in a structured way.

A skills taxonomy gives you a framework to build upon and can help open your eyes to skills or levels you did not consider before. Take your time exploring different options, think about your goals, and choose a taxonomy that resonates with you. With regular use, it will become second nature.

You got this! Now go out there and achieve your potential.