The Online CMO by Philip Hallenborg

Have you ever wondered why there are so many people in organizations that hold jobs that are out of their league? Some people would point to politics but I have an alternative explanation. I call it “The Relevant Competency Theory”.  

Three levels of competency

There are three core levels of competency that you will find in most organizations. I like to organize them in a pyramid similar to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. They are independent competencies, but in order to reach the top level, contextual competency, you need to first have the below levels.

Relevant Cognitive Competency

This is the basic and first level of competency. There are two parts here. First and most important is experience and knowledge of the specific organization and industry in which you act. It cannot be stressed enough how important it is to talk the talk and to understand acronyms, organization culture, industry specific terms and formal and informal decision makers in your organization. Secondly, general business and financial acumen, as well as social skills, would come in here. So would previous experience in a similar business or function.

Analytical Competency

This competency obviously has cognitive elements. This competency is in essence intellectual horsepower and raw intelligence. The analytical competency is a scarce resource in many organizations as it cannot be easily acquired. It is normally distributed in most organizations meaning few in the top decile.

Contextual Competency

This level of competency is the rarest competency in any organization. It requires a high level of cognitive and analytical competency. This is where you will find the smartest and most experienced people. They see patterns that only years of experience and a highly developed analytical competency will reveal.

Implications for the corporate ladder

So the question was – why are seemingly incompetent people placed in competent roles?

On all levels of an organization the answer can be found using this theory. The winners are the people that have developed their Relevant Cognitive Competency. They know the org, the decision makers and metrics and they talk the talk. They have often served many years and seen a number of roles by which they can become key influencers. And because of lengthy tenure they are often in the right place at the right time.

The problem with many of the Relevant Cognitivists is that they often lack developed analytical competencies. This in turn makes them over attribute the importance of their own competencies. Who hasn’t heard managers say “you haven’t done X, you haven’t Y, so you can’t do Z” etc etc.   

People that only boast analytical competencies e.g. those having worked as a consultant for several years before entering an organization, will find themselves in a more difficult position. Firstly, these people are often highly competitive and have been born and bred on comparing performance and formal merits. When faced with the reality of relevant cognitive competencies they will often feel confused and ultimately demotivated in what is perceived as a nepotestic and unfair system.

Secondly, there is a catch 22 in acquiring Relevant Cognitive Competency from the Analytical Competency perspective; you often need to start in very unqualified roles which normally wouldn’t be attractive for people with well developed analytical ability.

In most organizations you will find many strong Relevant Cognitivists that have leading middle and senior management roles. However, the analytical competency, including its typical artifacts such as academic brand names and typcial highpo career paths, will develop to be a de facto glass ceiling for Relevant Cognitivists.

The analysts on the other hand will need to acquire tenure and enough relevant cognitive competencies to get onto the promotion and accelerated short lists.

For those who manage to combine both awaits the final contextual competency level. You know that someone has a contextual competency when they find patterns that others don’t. They excel on the strategic level and can easily prioritize in the noisy information flow.

So if you want success in organization there is one trick that will never fail. Stay in the same company for a long period of time. If you happen to be gifted with the analytical competencies chances are you have a bright future.