Process driven Competence Management: A Case Study at
Hilti Corporation
Sandra Hintringer1, Martin Nemetz²
1
Faculty of Computer Science
Department of Knowledge and Business Engineering
University of Vienna
1210 Vienna, Austria
sandra.hintringer@univie.ac.at
²Hilti Befestigungstechnik AG
Gruenaustrasse 1a
9470 Buchs SG, Switzerland
martin.nemetz@hilti.com
Abstract: In light of the focus on competence in Hilti’s Champion 3C strategy
(customer, competence and concentration) 1 and their lived process organization the
following paper proposes a modeling method for a process driven competence
management (PCM) approach that combines a process and a person-centered view
on competences. Processes provide the context in which competences are
identified, managed, evaluated and further developed. In the person-centered view
identified competences are further defined and associated to job profiles and
periodically assessed based on Hilti’s Situational Leadership® model. Assessment
results are linked to training and coaching initiatives to ensure that competence
targets are met adequately and in consequence lead to better process performance
The implemented PCM prototype on ADOxx® is based on the application scenario
for the customer service center at Hilti.
Keywords: Process driven competence management, competence modeling
method, business process management, meta modeling, ADOxx®
1 Introduction – Competence management
Competence management (CM) is strongly anchored in Hilti’s Champion 3C strategy
(customer, competence and concentration) and is regarded as vital to compete in the
highly dynamic international market. Competences are in general recognized as
extremely important for the achievement of company goals [BH05] and can be
considered as a key component of business excellence, therefore contributing to
excellent business execution.
1
All relevant terms including Hilti and its business strategy are protected by copyright.
287
Most definitions of competence highlight the importance of the specific context of the
competence [CC05], [HR06]. As a process oriented company with well defined end-to-
end processes and responsibilities, Hilti’s business processes provide this context. It is
the business processes, for which currently required competencies are managed and
future competencies are identified. Therefore we curtail and adapt the definition of
[BH05] and define competence as a way to put in practice the knowledge inside a
process.
CM is embedded in a field of similar disciplines. Hence, it cannot be regarded as solely
definable concept, but needs to be carefully integrated with other domains of an
organization (figure 1). In our approach process management and process performance
management provide the context in which competences need to be managed. Human
resource management (HRM) and knowledge management (KM) are closely connected
to CM in a sense that CM identifies HRM and KM needs. HRM and KM on the other
hand provide artifacts to improve competencies. Intellectual capital management,
managing structural, human and relational capital [Ne09] can be seen as the embracing
method.
Figure 1. Competence management (CM) in the context of other management disciplines
Many proposed CM approaches support personal competence management in an HRM
view by providing methods, e.g. for competence gap analysis on job profiles [Co07] or
talent management [Ba99]. CM concepts that link to processes management [Va10]
[BH05] are rare and don’t provide specific modeling methods. However, modeling
methods do exist for process based KM (e.g. [GF06], [He06], [WK05]) that also cover
parts of CM. Most of those approaches however are too detailed for the practical
applicability required by the case study and therefore led to the conceptualization of the
PCM modeling method and its prototypical implementation.
288
The concept presented in this paper has been elaborated in a cooperation project between
the University of Vienna and Hilti Corporation and encourages a process driven
competence management (PCM) that is described in the following section. The case
study environment at Hilti and the application scenario order tool via customer service
center are described in section 3. Section 4 shows a prototypical implementation of the
PCM modeling method on the ADOxx®2 platform.
2 Process driven competence management method – Conceptual view
The process driven competence management (PCM) approach provides a modeling
method that has been conceptualized according to the concepts of meta modeling and the
M³ framework [KK02]. The M³ framework defines modeling methods as consisting of a
modeling language, a process model and mechanisms & algorithms. The language and
process model are described in the following, mechanisms & algorithms are subject to
further research.
2.1 PCM modeling language
The PCM modeling language is related to the IEEE Draft Standard for Learning
Technology [IE07] that defines a data model for reusable competence definitions (RCD)
and shows how they integrate with competence data. An approach in developing a meta
model for modeling competence gaps aligned with the IEEE definition has been
presented e.g. by [Co10]. The PCM modeling method refines previous work by initiating
the context of the IEEE model with process. Evidence is presented through defined
process indicators and competences are expressed in terms of proficiency level as
dimension (figure 2).
Figure 2. PCM instantiation of the IEEE Standard for Learning Technology
Additionally to these concepts the PCM meta model (figure 3) is extended by the
elements role, person and actions. Role refers to required competences (to-be), person to
possessed competences (as-is). Actions are introduced to improve competences. Actions
can be training/coaching (mid- to long-term) or on the job support (short-term).
Individual training and coaching roadmaps are based on the associated training actions
for competences and the assessed competences of a person. Short-term actions (on the
job support) are triggered according to predefined thresholds of process indicators.
2
ADOxx® is a registered trademark by the BOC AG and can be used free of charge for developing modeling
methods under the Open Models Initiative (www.openmodels.com).
289
Figure 3. Meta model of the PCM approach: An overview
2.2 PCM process model
To define a process model for the PCM approach we streamlined the proposed
competence processes of [BH05] and [HM05] resulting in a PCM process that can be
divided in a process centered and a people centered view (figure 4). The overall CM is
influenced by the general business strategy and business environment that both trigger
changes in business processes and therefore changed competences. These changed
competence requirements are managed in the person centered competence view. Finally,
the CM process ends with an evaluation of the competence on the business processes.
Figure 4. The PCM process model
290
In the first step competence identification, required competences are identified based on
business process models. Competences derived out of the business process have to be
possessed by the employees carrying out a certain process and therefore job competence
profiles have to be set up in the competence definition step to ensure that the staff fulfills
the competence requirements for carrying out the processes. Through a competence
assessment the actual competences of the current employees are assessed periodically,
based on associated process indicators. Competence analysis & action focuses on
analyzing the competence gaps and setting up actions to improve the individual and
organizational competences. Competence evaluation is based on process performance
that is seen as direct or indirect result out of the actions set in the competence analysis
step.
3 The case study environment – A Hilti case
3.1 Hilti as production and direct marketing organization and the 3C strategy
The Hilti Corporation has been founded in 1941 in Schaan (Liechtenstein) and is the
worldwide market leader in the area of fastening technologies with a revenue of 3.6
billion Swiss Francs in 2009. Hilti has got subsidiaries in more than 120 countries by
applying its direct distribution model. The Hilti system solutions, services, and products
are produced in eight Hilti plants whereas the vertical range of manufacture is high:
Starting from basic research via product development up to manufacturing and
distributing the products directly to the customer. Thereby, the daily number of customer
orders is reaching 50’000 including more than 150’000 order lines. Typically a customer
order is delivered within 24 hours of order reception to the respective customers. The
Hilti sales force realizes more than 200’000 customer contacts per day, whereas the
customer database comprises 12 million customer records.
Hilti’s business strategy is named Champion 3C strategy, whereas the three C’s are
stemming from the main focus of the strategy: (1) Customer: Hilti aims to be the best
partner for its customers, whereas the customers’ needs determine Hilti’s activities. (2)
Concentration: Hilti is concentrating on products and markets, in which a leading
position can be reached and maintained. (3) Competence: Hilti is known for its ground-
breaking innovations, holistic quality, direct customer relationships and effective
marketing.
3.2 The importance of competence management at Hilti
The importance of CM for the Hilti Corporation can be easily derived from the afore-
mentioned business strategy. As based on the focus of selling and distributing Hilti
products it is essential to have direct customer contact to be able to demonstrate and/or
explain the offered system solutions, individual services and products directly to the
customer. Hereby, the need for an efficient knowledge and competence transfer from the
sales force towards the potential customer is of high importance.
291
Specifically, as based on the partly complex nature of the corresponding knowledge a
high level of competence of the Hilti sales force is essential. Finally, a highly efficient
and economically sustainable direct distribution strategy can only be maintained by
highly competent employees. Therefore Hilti puts special focus on competence
management and initiated a half-year project to design an approach for competence
management and measurement. First results are described in this paper.
3.3 The application scenario – Order tool via customer service center
As application for the PCM method the process order tool via customer service center
was selected due to its role as one of the key customer processes that has just been
reengineered and rolled out into Hilti’s country organizations. The business process
consists of the following aggregated process steps: preparing and accepting a call,
consulting the customer, processing the order, ending the call and post processing and
has amongst others the following process indicators e.g. number of entered orders
received by phone, quality of order entry and incomplete sales orders. Each activity of
the process is linked to the responsible role. Literally, in this case the only internal role
in the process is the inside sales specialist. Furthermore, the complexity of all activities
within the business process has been rated on a three level scale (low, medium, high).
Step 1: Competence identification. Required competencies have been identified within
the business process and associated to a certain proficiency level. The categorization of
the competences follows a Hilti internal so-called read thread guide encompassing
functional expertise, team work, self development and others. The respective ratings
match to the development levels of the Situational Leadership Model® II 3 from level D1
to D4 (low to high competence). For each defined competence, training and coaching
actions are associated and process performance indicators linked as evidence for the
competence assessment. Key competences (D4) identified in the use case business
process have been e.g. SAP order processing, available sector/product knowledge,
telephone/questioning skills, active listening and positive language skills.
Step 2: Competence definition. Based on the identified competences within the afore-
mentioned business process, job profiles have to be streamlined for outlining the
competence requirements. Therefore, roles are linked with the required competencies
with a certain proficiency level.
Step 3: Competence assessment. At Hilti, annual discussions between team leaders and
team members are institutionalized. Those discussions also include the competence
assessment, where the team leader rates the as-is competences based on associated
evidence and personal observations. In the use case a team member with the role inside
sales specialist should have e.g. the SAP order processing competence on level D4.
3
Situational Leadership® is a registered trademark of Leadership Studies, Inc. It was created by Paul Hersey.
292
Step 4: Competence analysis & actions. In this step, actions to improve competences
are planned. Based on the information before-hand, competences have clearly associated
training and coaching actions, e.g. a training on SAP order processing. A competence
performance report shows the current competence status of team members as well as
actions to improve the respective competence.
Step 5: Competence evaluation. From the perspective of the business process and
associated competence related process indicators the business process performance is
evaluated in regards to excellent competence. The business process itself is continuously
monitored to detect changed business needs and therefore changed competence
requirements, triggering another cycle of the PCM process.
4 Implementation of the application scenario – The PCM prototype
Based on the above described use case the PCM approach has been prototypically
implemented on the ADOxx® meta modeling platform. Other work done for developing
modeling languages on this platform are e.g. provided by [BS10], [Sc10], [Li02], [Fi05].
PCM is based on the ADONIS® BPMS method [KK01] for business process
management. It compromises the following model types: competence catalogue model,
company map model, business process model, job profile model and the working
environment model (figure 5). As outcome a competence performance report of team
members is automatically generated by the system, providing an overview of
competence gaps and easy access to training materials and actions to improve the
competences.
Figure 5. The PCM prototype: Model visualization and competence performance report
5 Conclusion and further research
Establishing CM as an integrative management approach has been identified as vital for
further thriving towards business excellence. The PCM concept delivers a working
approach in the form of a combination of a process and person centered view on CM in
five steps. Further research will be done in refining the concept, especially in elaborating
how to manage competence related measurements in the context of the PCM approach.
293
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