Best Practices for Using Skill Profiles in OpenAir
Imagine you’ve got a new client that needs a resource to come to their location to do some work. You find the perfect resource and book them, only to find out they are in another state or country. Or, after signing with the client, you discover that while you have six potential resources available, only one of them has experience with the specific technology the client requested – and they aren’t available for four months.
OpenAir skill profiles are a powerful feature that can prevent these situations. With skill profiles, you can record, see, and search for a host of information that isn’t immediately obvious based on a resource’s position. Regardless of the size of your company or your industry, skill profiles are incredibly useful.
However, if you don’t use them correctly, they can also be cumbersome and challenging. To effectively use skill profiles for visibility into your resource pool and assist with scheduling, you need to know what they are, how to use them, and best practices for tracking information and keeping them updated.
What are skill profiles and why use them?
The simple description of the OpenAir skill profiles is that it allows you to track criteria to help you find available resources that meet the criteria for a task or set of tasks. Frequently, we find that organizations are already tracking this type of information, but they are doing so in a spreadsheet. Skill profiles are a better solution – they are searchable, reportable, and immediately available.
It’s important to note the use of the word “criteria” above, not skills. That’s because, despite the name, these profiles are useful in tracking a wide range of information.
When and where are skill profiles used?
Skill profiles can be used by any organization that has a need to track specific information about its resources. However, it’s especially useful for large or global businesses where resources are shared, but not everyone knows what each segment of the organization is doing, who is available, and what skills they have or don’t have.
While they are called skill profiles, the word skill in this context is meant in a very general sense. A myriad of criteria can be stored in a skill profile, simplifying resourcing when there is a particular need.
What you should keep track of in skill profiles (and what you shouldn’t)
To better understand what can be tracked in a skill profile, here are some examples of attributes that we’ve seen defined:
– Passport or visa expiration
– Certifications
– Travel preferences
– Product experience (database, hardware, software)
– Software packages
– Industry experience
– Job roles (can allow for multiple roles for a single resource
– Languages spoken or understood
– Programming languages
What can be problematic to track is soft skills. Because things like presentation or writing skills can be very subjective, it’s hard to quantify if someone is skilled at the task. If someone is a good writer, are they good at technical writing? At writing presentations? At writing blogs or whitepapers? You may have a need or a desire to track these things, but skill profiles tend not to be the optimum place for this information.
Versions are another thing to avoid identifying with profiles. This is generally not a gating issue for a project, and it’s also very difficult to keep up to date.
Tips for keeping skill profiles up to date
Keeping skill profiles up to date needs to be a concern when planning to use this tool. Some effort and ownership need to be part of the process for profiles to be useful. OpenAir doesn’t have automatic reminders for skill profile updating out of the box, although Top Step has built custom scripts to help with profile reminders. Additionally, you can run a report on profiles to see when a category was last updated.
Another effective strategy is to include profile updating as part of a performance review process. This can be done quarterly, semi-annually, or annually as best suits your business. You can require that skill profiles be updated before review meetings and use the skill profiles to review areas where employees can grow and add training or experience.
Skill profiles in OpenAir
Skill profiles in OpenAir can be a very useful feature. Like designing any business process, it is important to set it up with how it will be utilized. And just as importantly, implement a process that ensures the information is updated regularly.
Wondering how to get the most out of skill profiles for your organization? We have helped many organizations set up skill profiles that align with their specific needs and business processes. Start by checking out all of the information in our webinar, Skill Profiles and Scheduling Techniques in OpenAir. You can also contact us with any questions you may have.
