Leadership competency models: roadmaps to success

Competency models, a combination of identified skills, knowledge and attributes required for successful role performance, lend a roadmap for success to leaders of today and the new leaders of tomorrow. In healthcare, where the environment is ever-changing, and the pool of qualified leaders is limited and shrinking, competency models help to identify required areas of strength for success in performance. The Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) underwent a leadership reorganization in 2001, structuring all leaders into positions based on a corporate competency model. Leaders completed self-assessment portfolios and were shifted into roles emphasizing job-person fit, competencies, personal preference and organizational principles and accountabilities. The literature suggests that evaluations are rarely performed after corporate reorganizations, and when they are, they rarely measure indicators that are directly related to outcomes. In response to this, PRHC has structured an evaluation of the reorganization in two phases. The first phase is focused on process changes that are a direct result of the reorganization. The second phase, ongoing over 24 months, is focused on outcomes that are resulting from the reorganization.