Let’s be honest: Somewhere out there, another organization has a competency model that feels cleaner, sharper and more actionable than yours.

The roles are clearly defined. Skills, behaviors and proficiency levels are transparent. Development paths make sense. There are learning programs that support it. Managers actually use it. Employees understand it.

And meanwhile, in your organization … the competency model is either generic, outdated, overly complex, inconsistently applied, or still sitting somewhere in draft form.

If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone.

The Quiet Struggle Behind Competency Models

Competency models sit at the intersection of strategy, talent and behavior, which is exactly why they’re so hard to get right.

They’re expected to:

• Define what “good” looks like
• Align with business strategy
• Be usable for hiring, development and performance
• Work across roles, levels, and geographies

That’s a tall order.

Much like change management, organizations often jump to the visible elements — wordsmithing competencies or building frameworks — without first building the underlying structure that makes them usable and sustainable.

The result? Models that look great on paper but don’t drive results.

So, if you’ve ever felt “competency model envy,” you’re not alone. Most organizations are still figuring this out. That’s why we spoke to Shari Chernack, Chief People Officer at Isaacson, Miller and advisor on talent and transformation, who has seen a lot of competency models succeed and fail. She revealed that the best competency models have seven elements in common.

What the Best Competency Models Get Right

Strong competency models are designed for action. Here’s a practical framework to guide you:

1. Clarity Over Completeness

The best competency models resist the urge to include everything.

Organizations often start with a core set of competencies but gradually add technical competencies and role-specific requirements until the framework becomes too large and difficult to use. Strong competency models focus on:

• 6-12 core competencies per role or level
• Clear, distinct definitions
• Minimal overlap
• Consistent organizational needs

If managers can’t explain the competencies without looking them up, the model is too complex.

If your organization needs a more sophisticated model, start small and evolve it over time. Progress matters more than perfection. Set the right foundation, then iterate.

2. Behavior-Based (Not Buzzword-Based)

“Strategic thinking”
“Collaboration”
“Leadership presence”

These sound valuable, but without observable behaviors, they are difficult to apply consistently.

Competencies can oftentimes be so broad and high level that employees don’t even know what they mean. Employees need clarity on what competencies mean within their specific roles.

Strong models define:

• What the competency looks like in practice
• What strong performance looks like
• What falling short of expectations looks like

This is where models shift from abstract to usable.

For example, “strategic thinking” becomes: “Anticipates future conditions and translates insights into priorities, trade-offs, and actions that drive performance.” Or “Weighs short-term wins against long-term impact and makes explicit trade-offs.”

3. Connected to Organizational Values and Differentiators

One of the most common challenges organizations face is understanding where competency models fit within the broader talent ecosystem.

Organizations already have mission and vision statements, core values, skills taxonomies and business goals. Without clear alignment, competency models can feel like just another framework layered on top of existing processes.

Competency models operationalize your values. Or, as Chernack says, “The values are how we live and the competencies are how we work.”

Competencies translate values into specific, observable behaviors that employees can understand, apply and develop. Competencies answer the question: What does this value look like in action?

Strong competency models make this connection explicit. For example, Chernack recalls a time where she rolled out a competency model in-house. “It actually laddered right up to our core values,” she said. “So it was the behaviors underpinning the values and then everything that we did around leadership development was tied to those competencies.”

The best competency models also reflect what makes an organization uniquely successful.

Organizations should avoid borrowing external competency frameworks or relying on generic industry language. The result is a model that could belong to almost any company, and that’s not what you want. Competency models should reflect what drives success inside the organization itself.

To identify those differentiators, organizations can examine top performers and ask:

• What do our best people do differently?
• What behaviors led to our biggest successes?
• What behaviors do we want others to replicate?

Behavioral interviews and structured discussions with high performers can help uncover these patterns.

When competency models align with both organizational values and real drivers of success, they become more than a framework. They become a system that connects culture, performance and strategy.

4. Aligned to Real Work

Competencies should be specific and grounded in practical examples and role-specific expectations. They should reflect how work gets done. That means:

• Grounding competencies in real job tasks
• Incorporating input from high performers
• Reflecting the realities of different employee groups

For example, what “communication” looks like for a corporate employee may be very different from someone in the field, and your model should reflect that.

A broad communication competency might read: “Conveys information clearly, concisely and with intent. Adapts message, tone and medium to drive understanding and action.”

For a corporate executive: “Synthesizes complex information into clear messages that align diverse stakeholders and drive decisions and execution.”

For a field team lead: “Delivers clear, timely and actionable information that drives team understanding, performance and consistent execution.”

5. Scalable Across Levels

A strong model shows progression. Instead of rewriting competencies for every level:

• Use consistent competency categories
• Differentiate by depth, scope, and complexity
• Show how expectations evolve from entry-level to leadership

This creates clarity around growth and makes career paths visible.

For example, a new leader’s strategic thinking competency might be, “Recognizes patterns in day-to-day operations and makes proactive adjustments to improve near-term performance and team effectiveness.”

For a senior leader, it could be: “Interprets broader business trends and cross-functional dynamics to set direction, allocate resources, and drive long-term performance across multiple teams or locations.”

6. Launched, Adopted, Integrated

If your competency model lives only as a PDF, it’s already failing.

Chernack has seen good competency models go to waste. Many organizations invest in developing competencies, but they don’t invest in rolling them out. This is where change management helps. Employees and managers need to understand the purpose of the model and how to use it.

It is also helpful to involve people closest to the work during development and rollout. Competency models built without input from employees and managers often struggle to gain traction.

The best models are integrated into:

• Hiring and interview guides
• Performance management processes
• Learning and development programs
• Succession planning efforts

Think of competency models as infrastructure, not documentation.

7. Easy to Use Daily

The ultimate test to determine if a competency model is good is whether a manager can use it in a one-on-one conversation without preparation. If not, simplify. Because adoption is what drives value.

How to Get Started

You don’t need a six-month project to build a better competency model. In fact, speed can be your advantage. Here’s a practical way to get traction fast:

Step 1: Start with one role (or job family).

Pick a high-impact role or a role undergoing change. Build your model there first, then expand.

Step 2: Identify top performers.

Ask:

• What do the best people in this role do differently?
• What behaviors drive success?

Focus on reality, not theory.

Step 3: Define core competencies.

Group knowledge, skills, abilities and behaviors into themes:

• Decision-making
• Communication
• Execution
• Collaboration
• Leadership (if applicable)

Keep it tight.

Step 4: Write observable behaviors.

For each competency:

• Define 3-5 clear behaviors
• Make them specific and actionable
• Avoid jargon

If you can’t observe it, it’s not a behavior.

Step 5: Validate with managers.

Before rolling anything out:

• Test it with people leaders
• Ask: Does this accurately reflect what we want for this role? Would this be valuable in hiring or performance management?
• Refine based on feedback

Remember: usability beats elegance.

Step 6: Pilot and iterate.

Treat your model like a product:

• Launch it in one area
• Gather feedback
• Improve it

The best competency models are built over time, not in a single workshop.

Progress Over Perfection

Competency models often feel like something organizations need to “get right” before launch. They don’t.

Organizations that make the most progress treat competency models the same way they treat any change. They start with a clear structure, focus on what matters most, and build momentum through use.

Success doesn’t come from winning over everyone immediately or perfecting every detail upfront. It comes from building something practical that employees and managers will actually use.

So, if you’re feeling competency model envy, take it as a signal — not of failure, but of opportunity.

Because the gap between “what exists today” and “what is needed tomorrow” is exactly where better design (and better outcomes) begin.