Before starting
Whether you are deploying it independently or making full use of the Skills feature, these FAQs are intended to:
- answer your various questions
- help you understand and resolve certain stumbling blocks
Structuring and updating of the skills framework
In addition to the responses below, there is a guide to the framework in this help sheet.
Can skill categories be customised?
No, the 4 categories in the list are the only ones available. We use the recommendations of the Employment office. However, you do not have to use all the categories. If you do not use the “knowledge” category, for example, it will not be displayed.
What is the difference between knowledge, hard skills and soft skills?
Knowledge: expertise acquired through learning or experience. It can be expressed in the following way: “I know... / I learnt ...”.
Examples: business law, the principles of management
Hard skills: practices that enable employees to apply knowledge. It can be expressed in the following way: “I know how to... "
Examples: carry out an audit, produce a balance sheet, launch a call for tender
Soft skills: soft skills are an attitude. It can be expressed in the following way: “I am ... "
Examples: autonomous, able to adapt, flexible
Is it possible to have subcategories?
No, it is not possible to create sub-categories.
Example:
| Category | Sub-category | Name | Activity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hard skills | Tool management | Excel | Creating Excel dashboards |
| Creating TCDs | |||
| Creating macros… | |||
| Hard skills | Tool management | PowerBI | Creating dashboards |
| … |
Here are 2 workarounds if the subcategory is essential for you:
- Workaround 1: a more “macro” assessment where the skill is “Tool management” and the tools are added to the description of the skill. The advantage of this is a very simple framework.
Illustration:
- Workaround 2: write the sub-category in square brackets at the beginning of the skill name. The name in brackets should stay short so that you can easily read the real name of the skill (for [Management] we would advise writing [Mgt])
Illustration:
Can I customise the rating scale (levels)?
The name of descriptions (beginner, intermediate etc.) can be customised and it is possible to deactivate certain levels. However, it is not possible to have more than 5 levels on the rating scale.
Our business experts have found that the majority of companies have 4 skill levels and more than 5 runs the risk of making skills grids illegible.
I want to add a skill to a job but I don’t want it to appear in all the grades, how do I do this?
Simply put the expected level in the grades (qualification) in question. In the example below, the skill located in the hard skills section will not appear in the employee review for the first four qualifications.
Do not enter the "not acquired" level as this would have the effect of showing the skill in the review. The skill appears in the review as soon as an expected level is filled in.
An employee is asked to assess a skill when it is not applicable to their situation, how do I go about this?
In the event that the employee feels that the skill is "not applicable" to their situation at the time of the review (for example, if they only recently arrived at the company), they must follow this procedure:
- do not click on any of the skill levels
- explain in comments why the skill is not applicable
Are duplicate skill names detected?
No, there are no restrictions on skill names, so you need to be careful not to create duplicates. However, if you end up with duplicate skills, you can archive the skill that you are not using.
Can I have different frameworks between establishments?
It is possible to only use certain skills in certain establishments, however, the frameworks are visible and usable by all the administrators in all the establishments: they cannot be compartmentalised.
Also, all employees will see all the grids (regardless of the establishment).
Examples of what is not possible:
I am an employee of establishment A, I do not need to see the skills grid of job X because it only exists in establishment B / I am an administrator of establishment A, I do not need to modify the grids of job X because it only exists in establishment B.
Workarounds:
- Make skills consistent across establishments: If there is a "project management" skill in establishment A with description X and a "project management" skill in establishment B with description Y -> merge them.
- If you do not want to merge the skills, specify in the name of the skill to which establishment it refers.
Example: [Lucca FR] Project Management/[Lucca ESP] Project Management)
⚠️ We do not recommend this solution, but technically it is possible.
Structure of the qualifications framework
I have two very similar job titles in my company, how do I know if I need to create 1 or 2 jobs in my qualifications framework?
You can find a guide to definitions in this help sheet.
Our recommendation is to rationalise the number of jobs by looking at the skills for these 2 positions: if at least 50% of the skills are similar between the 2 positions, this often means that you should create one job.
Example:
You have a Marketing Director in your company and you're hesitating between two potential scenarios:
- If the Marketing Director position has more than 50% skills in common with other marketing positions, it's best to add “Marketing Director” as the last qualification in the “Marketing” job.
- If the Marketing Director position has less than 50% skills in common with the other marketing positions, it's better to create a “Marketing Management” job separate from the “Marketing” job.
I've got employees in several positions at once. What should I do in this situation?
An employee can only have one qualification at a time in the Skills module. Depending on how you operate, we offer three solutions:
- Attach the employee to the qualification that occupies more than 50% of their time.
- Create a specific qualification for these employees that brings together all the skills of the positions they occupy.
- Mention skills that do not belong to the qualification on the review form. To do this, select the “Other skills” question type when setting up the form.
Skills assessment
Is it possible to update an employee’s skill level outside of a review campaign?
No, the employee level can only be updated via a review campaign at present. However, you can launch campaigns dedicated to updating skills at any time during the year, so you don’t have to wait for your next annual campaign.
How do I assess employees on skills that are not linked to their qualification?
When you configure a review campaign form, you can select the "Specific skills" question type and select any skills you want from your framework. Your entire campaign population will then be assessed on this/these skill(s).
💡 Tip: If you want to assess the skills of only part of your campaign population, you can use filters for the questions and sections (Link to help sheet)
I do not want an employee to be assessed on a skill but it is displayed in their review, why?
The reason is probably the level entered in this skill for the qualification concerned. When you do not want a skill to be displayed, do not enter an expected level. For example, putting "not acquired" means that the employee will be assessed on this skill.
An upgrade to include a "Not applicable" level is planned.
Can I see a reminder of the old skill assessment when I conduct a review?
No, at the moment this is not possible. However, you can check the employee’s level directly in their last review or on their “My skills” page.
Can I give a manager access so that they can edit their skills grid?
By giving a manager this access, you give them access to all of the skills grids in your company. We believe that editing skills grids is a sensitive issue that should remain in the hands of administrators. So we recommend sharing an Excel file with your employees so that they can enter their comments on the grids, and then you can edit the grids accordingly.
Skills analysis
When I look at my skills, why can't I display a radar chart for a skill category?
If the number of skills in a category is less than 3 or more than 10, the default display is "List" mode to ensure that the information is clearly legible.
What is the "Last assessment" legend in the graphs?
This is the last assessment conducted by a third party, the most recent. If you hover your mouse over a point on the graph, you will see the date of the assessment and the name of the person who performed it. The employee's self-assessment is not displayed.
Is it possible to compare their current level with the expected level for a qualification other than ours?
Yes, that is possible. In the “My skills” view, you can select a qualification other than your own from the drop-down list. Here is what happens:
- the skills and expected levels are updated
- if the employee has already been assessed on the skills of the new qualification, their level is displayed in the graphs
How can I see the progress of an employee on a given skill over time?
By going to the "My skills" page and clicking on "Download all my assessments" you can find all the assessments for an employee in one file. By filtering on the right skill and sorting reviews chronologically, you can easily trace the employee’s assessments.
NB: In both the tabs on the "My skills" page, the level from the last (most recent) assessment is always displayed.
Billing
Is there an additional cost with the Skills module?
There is no additional cost in the subscription, it is included in the price of Poplee Performance.
The module is deployed independently based on the content in this help sheet.