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Competency Models for Human Resource Development: Case of Egyptian Software Industry
Abstract
It is now widely recognized that software technologies are the glue binding together communications, electronics, multimedia, and many other hi-technology products and services, and that the software industry is one of the largest and most pervasive global industries. The accelerated growth in this industry has created tremendous opportunities, but it has also presented a number of very tough challenges to the participants - for example, to ensure the supply of adequately developed human resources, to cope with speed-of-light technology changes. Hence, human resources and their development are becoming one of the main determinants of competitive advantage in the software industry. This paper is in quest of building a competency model, or a group of preferred skills, for each of three selected roles in the software industry, namely junior software developers, senior software developers and project managers. Feedback from industry and academic professionals in Egypt was considered when constructing these models. The developed models can be used in matching people with the right competency profile to the right job, planning their career path as of their studied abilities and developing their competency profile as planned. As concluded from the developed models by the study, it is apparent that core competencies of software professionals, like mental skills, attitudes and aptitudes, usually differentiate superior performers from less proficient ones on the job. Development of these skills and competencies should be given higher attention rather than the sole focus on acquirement of current technical knowledge or just the assurance of having the proper exposure to some specific knowledge. Developing the modeled competencies would guarantee having the aimed for software professionals that developing countries can leverage to build some competitive market position in the highly challenging software industry.
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