The first channels of expertise emerged between the late 80s and mid-90s. In a particular context of post-crisis recovery, new requirements in terms of financial management of activities and budget steering of resources have been put in place to monitor and measure the efficiency of organizations. This has resulted not only in more structured management and traceability of activities, but also in an intensification of production rates and a constant search for optimization.
Against this backdrop, a number of observations have been made, particularly with regard to career development. Indeed, the classic route to recognition and advancement in companies is to take on managerial responsibilities. This means that employees promoted to managerial positions have to divide their time between their new management responsibilities and the development of their technical expertise. This dual activity soon led to a decline in quality and performance, both technical and managerial. Faced with this trend, companies are identifying a major new need, namely to securing strategic skills and retaining employees with a high level of expertise to ensure business continuity and sustainability. Expertise channels have been introduced to offer a new path to recognition and advancement, while at the same time enhancing and securing critical areas of expertise directly linked to the company’s performance.
Here are a few best practices to help you set up or revitalize your expertise network. These recommendations are based on an in-depth study we carried out with a number of players in French industry who have set up expertise networks, including: Arcelormittal, Safran Group, Air Liquide, IRSN, Alstom, Framatome, Thales, Liebherr Aerospace, Engie, Orano, Airbus Commercial and Schneider Electric. This study identified key success factors, recommendations to follow and risks to anticipate in a process of valorizing expertise and managing technical knowledge.
In order to create an expertise pathway that preserves know-how and knowledge while offering rewarding career development opportunities, it is first necessary to identify the experts concerned by the pathway, as well as to understand each of the areas of expertise to be addressed in the approach.
On average, in the study, experts represent between 8 to 15% of the company population, and are mainly scientific and technical managers, engineers and R&D staff. What’s more, in addition to their technical skills, experts are also selected on the basis of their interpersonal skills, their ease of communication, their ability to pass on information and train their teams, etc.
Among the selection criteria taken into account to enter the expertise field, we can cite the following:
In the study panel, there are no formal age or number-of-years-of-activity constraints for entering the sector or moving up a level. However, a minimum amount of practice and experience is required to meet the prerequisites of the expertise criteria and the expected level of mastery. Selection must be based on merit and on criteria defined upstream by the group, to ensure the credibility of the chain.. However, it is recommended that a policy be implemented to encourage the creation of a pool of experts, as part of the company’s gender diversity policy (gender equality, geographical location, etc.).
Identifying areas of expertise is a key element in setting up a network: the aim is to map the areas of expertise that are critical to the company’s business continuity or development, so that experts can be entrusted with securing them. This mapping is fed by the company’s medium- and long-term strategy.
Cartography is concerned with areas of knowledge and know-how that are specific and unique, and therefore need to be secured. It allows you to select priority areas in which to assign and commission one or more experts.
This mapping of expertise thus represents a genuine strategic steering tool in the process of appointing experts, and facilitates the governance of the sector.
Setting up an expertise network involves defining a few rules of organization and project management.
In the first instance, concerning the selection process beyond the identification criteria mentioned in the previous section, recruitment campaigns can take place over annual or annual or biennial. The application must be voluntary on the part of the expert, but supported by management. In some companies, it must also be supported by internal or external recommendations.
When it comes to the length of time experts are appointed to the expertise network, practices differ from one country to another.. Some of the organizations surveyed define a limited, renewable term (with an average duration of 2 to 5 years). On the other hand, a second group of companies has not defined an allocation period. In the second case, the constraint is to be able to challenge the expert over time.
To enable the expertise sector to meet its objective of enhancing and securing areas of expertise, we need to establish coherent means of recognition for experts. Practices can be heterogeneous. Some companies adopt a centralized, governance-driven approach, while others opt for a decentralized, recommendation-based approach, with implementation left to the discretion of managers and HR.
However, a good practice here is to remuneration (fixed or variable) equivalent to the existing managerial progression, depending on the expert’s level. For example, the Senior Expert’s remuneration is equivalent to that of a top manager. We also recommend add a bonus for each level upgrade or in the event of renewal of the title, to encourage stakeholder involvement in knowledge management and transmission. Finally, in order to strengthen the policy of retaining expertsHR and managers can also set up additional incentives such as specific annual increases, target-based bonuses and specific support for experts to facilitate their development within the Group.
Concerning hierarchical organizationA number of common practices have been identified. The first is to understand expertise as a mission and not as a position in its own right. In fact, the expert generally remains associated with his or her position, and retains his or her hierarchical position by joining the expertise network. His commitment to the industry implies responsibilities that complement his position. These new responsibilities can be formalized in a mission statement.
A second best practice is to avoid combining the role of expert with that of manager. Indeed, the aim of creating the expertise stream is to offer a parallel career path to the management stream, and to encourage candidates to make a choice in order to carry out one or other of their missions successfully and to the full. However, they will be able to move from one stream to another if they meet the integration criteria. This means that experts at the highest level of the industry, with their experience and knowledge, can occupy strategic, central and cross-functional positions with high levels of responsibility, close to management committees.
To best support the process it is essential to appoint a governance committee supported by a high-level sponsor (members of management) and operational relays within each entity. This lends credibility to the sector and encourages its development. Members of the Governance Committee include HR representatives to ensure consistency in recognition and development procedures, top manager representatives who are the guarantors of the strategic stakes, they also ensure that the supply chain meets the business and managerial vision, and they exploit the knowledge generated by the supply chain, and finally top-level experts who help define the industry’s direction in line with its strategic vision, and ensure its smooth operation and development.
The expertise chain is only viable if it is regularly animated. In fact, the Governance Committee brings it to life on a daily basis, piloting various actions to ensure that it bears fruit on an ongoing basis. Its actions include regular monitoring of experts’ achievements making sure they are in line with the company’s expectations. There are also tools that are essential for steering the industry, such as a directory of expertise which is regularly updated as skills evolve. It must be accessible and available to all.
Training is also an essential animation activity, particularly at the entry level, to raise awareness of the expert’s role and mission, and the importance of good knowledge management and transmission. It can also be done on a more regular basis, according to levels and needs, to ensure that experts develop their leadership skills and share their knowledge.
It’s a good idea to liven up the sector with events such as days dedicated to expertise, which are a good way of bringing experts together and enriching each other’s thinking and projects. As a result, experts maintain a sense of community and belonging, which helps to build loyalty. In addition, it is also a good idea to organize time for exchanges between experts and managers, in order to communicate on the sector’s projects, share managerial issues and ensure that the sector’s actions are aligned with the overall strategic vision. The organization of the expertise sector must encourage experts to become representatives of their field, to disseminate their knowledge to teams and to support employee skills development.
A final best practice in the organization of expertise channels is to set up an expertise charter or expertise company policy. This provides a framework and formalizes the various structural elements of the expertise network.
Defining the expertise and strategic areas concerned
This charter is an effective way of clarifying the fundamentals, and gives credibility to the sector. What’s more, it provides all stakeholders with a common frame of reference for their objectives, as well as for the best practices to follow and those to avoid.
In conclusion, this study has highlighted several best practices to guide you in the process of identifying and selecting experts, as well as areas of knowledge. In addition, it offers advice on the operational implementation of the sector, covering its organization, structuring and activities.
It is now possible to summarize the process of setting up an expertise network through essential building blocks such as domain mapping, the expertise charter, levels of expertise and assessment criteria, the application and upgrade process, the recognition system, expert support, industry leadership, the governance committee, progression rhythms and paths, and deployment, which includes transformation, communication and indicators.
These elements are developed and fine-tuned in line with your strategic orientations and objectives, making the expertise chain approach part of a continuous improvement plan to adopt an agile model that evolves in response to the various needs of the organization.
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