The Skills Catalogue is basically a complete library of all possible skills that are needed for the business or part of the business. Typically these skills are grouped together in a logical way. The Skills Catalogue forms the heart of the Competence Assurance programme and is developed in a common format for all skills. Alignment between the different disciplines ensures that unique definitions and consistency across the business are used. Because of the unique nature of each task in the Skills Catalogue, individuals from different disciplines and levels will need to "borrow" skills from tasks belonging to other disciplines (where appropriate) as well as select them from common tasks (e.g. HS&E, Team & Self, Business). Line Management will ensure that appropriate tasks are in the Task List and that the description of skills provide sufficient guidance to assessors and individuals on evidence required. As tasks can be added or deleted at will, it is possible to use the Skills Catalogue for all positions in the business, upstream (incl. LNG) and downstream (incl. FPSO's).

The Skills Catalogue forms the basis of each individual Job Profile. With the Skills Catalogue Line Management and his staff have all the information required to develop and agree Job Profiles appropriate to all jobs subject to assessment. Tasks can be added or the required proficiency levels for each task can be raised/lowered to meet specific requirements. For each part of the business specific tasks may be added, as long these are in line with the principles of Competence Assurance. Job Profiles shall identify the minimum professional, HS&E and managerial skills that are relevant, and define the required proficiency levels in terms of "Awareness", "Knowledge" or "Skill". On no more than a single A3 sheet it is possible to capture the essentials of each position. In Competence Assurance all skills are equally important and when selected in the Job Profile equally contribute to "Competence".

Tasks from the Skills Catalogue in itself are not suitable to be used directly for assessing individuals. For assessment purposes (collecting evidence) it is necessary to further expand the skills descriptions into Proof Points. These are detailed enough to be able to collect valid and reliable evidence. Agreed levels of proficiency are included. Line Management shall ensure that appropriate Proof Points provide sufficient guidance to assessors and individuals to be assessed. The level of detail of the descriptions under Awareness, Knowledge and Skill is rather limited. The main reason is to give supervisors and assessors the freedom to interpret the prescribed levels of proficiency in a pragmatic and professional way.

Evidence that will be used for assessment purposes needs to be sufficient, relevant, current and authentic. As competence is a delicate combination of skill, knowledge and attitude it is absolutely vital that the presented evidence contains elements of all three of them. There are many people who have contact with the person to be assessed and who, therefore, can provide evidence of his performance. However, all sources must be carefully considered in terms of the quality of evidence provided. To make best use of these resources, there need to be clear lines of communication. People need to know that they have a role in providing evidence. There are 3 distinct methods of collecting evidence:
Evidence of Performance - obtained through end results, e.g. records, reports or deliverables of previous work done
Evidence of Knowledge - obtained through the understanding of e.g. principles and procedures
Evidence of Attitude - obtained through observable behaviour

The purpose of this web page is to share the latest information how organisations in the oil and gas industry can benefit from a fresh approach towards "Competence".
It should be the policy of every organisation, small or large, to ensure that all position are filled by demonstrable competent staff. In real terms this means that all staff can discharge their responsibilities successfully, efficiently and safely at all times and at all locations.
The principles of "Competence" have been applied for many years already, but as most Competence Management systems on offer are too cumbersome and time/money consuming, many organisations choose to ignore the potential benefits of it. One of the many definitions of "Competence" is the ability to perform activities to specified standards. Key in this process is a clear understanding of the required activities and a clear understanding of the specified standards.
Many providers of Competence Management systems make the mistake to be too detailed in their descriptions of activities and specified standards. This results in many cases in a paper exercise that is more aimed at satisfying the Organisation than to ensure that the workforce is demonstrable competent to carry out their work.

Competence Assurance is the process of ensuring that the results of assessments are consistent and auditable through internal or external verification. The different components that form the Competence Assurance process will be discussed in detail below.
The different components are:

• Skills Catalogue
• Job Profiles
• Proof Points
• Evidence Collection
• Assessments
• Training

All these elements contribute to the assurance of having a competent workforce in place.

Process of generating and collecting evidence of an individual's performance, knowledge, attitude and judging this against specified Levels of Performance There are several ways of collecting evidence for assessment purposes:

• Self-Assessment
• Supervisor Evaluation
• Work Simulation
• Projects, Assignment & Case Studies
• 360 Feedback
• Observation of Work Performance
• Written Questions
• Structured Interview

Once an individual has been assessed as "competent" by this process, a re-assessment of competence against his Job Profile need not take place until the competence requirements change.

Individuals, together with their Asset/Line Management, are responsible for ensuring that they develop the necessary skills for their role/position. Line Management shall ensure that appropriate training and development requirements are included in the Personal Development Plans of individuals. Personal Development Plans should be targeted at ensuring that candidates will acquire sufficient training, develop sufficient skills, and have documented evidence of carrying out the activities required to meet the agreed Levels of Performance.