Comprehensive curriculum management: taking a business engineering group from declining to emerging skill sets - a holistic approach

A business direction can suddenly change course based upon the current and emerging market conditions leaving a workforce over-supplied with declining skill sets and under-supplied with emerging skills. The reactive urge to quickly implement a framing blitz without competencies and skills data must be resisted. In order to meet this challenge, the necessary skills need to be systematically identified and assessed for gaps. This process includes defining those skills in a measurable and objective manner (What is it they need to know, and how do we know they know it?) and assessing the prioritized gaps quantifiably. Only then, can the plans be identified to address the gaps. Once learning resources are identified, gaps are addressed through various methods including but not limited to training. Optimization of this process can be achieved through the use of an automated tool which assesses skills, analyzes and identifies gaps. The tool also maintains records of assessments, automatically generates an individual development plan (IDP), and provides management reports on organizational training health. This paper presents a case study of one quality and reliability business group's holistic approach to adapt to the business direction change and supply the emerging skills to the existing workforce, including data and cost savings realized. This includes the methods and tools used to identify skills, assess the organization, prioritize the expertise gaps, and then close the gaps.