4 mandatory competencies for government employees

The Dubai Government Human Resources Department stated that the procedural guide for the performance management system for Dubai government employees has identified four mandatory competencies that Dubai government employees must work with, which are: evoking and transmitting positive energy, serving the community, responding to the needs of its individual clients, and excellence in carrying out their work.

The department explained to Emirates Today that the procedural guide for the performance management system for Dubai government employees addressed the issue of the employee’s behavioral competencies, and showed that the basic and leadership competencies include two levels of competencies: the first is the mandatory competencies, which must be available to all employees of government agencies, The second is additional competencies, which enjoy a degree of flexibility in application, as government agencies are allowed to choose between a set of behavioral competencies, and they do not necessarily have to be identical.

She added that the basic behavioral competencies include: mandatory competencies and additional competencies. Among the mandatory competencies are evoking and transmitting positive energy, serving the community and responding to the needs of its individual customers, and excellence in implementation, while additional competencies include familiarity with financial affairs, institutional understanding, innovation and creativity. Leadership competencies are further divided into mandatory and additional. Mandatory leadership competencies include leading and inspiring others, supporting and enabling change, and additional competencies include strategic thinking, developing employees, and making sound decisions and judgments.

The procedural guide for the performance management system for Dubai government employees stated that when determining behavioral competencies, the employee’s individual goals are taken into account, by determining the competencies, their levels of proficiency and their required indicators, with the participation of both the direct supervisor and the employee, provided that the number of these competencies does not exceed the limits set for them, and that the president clarifies How to apply the competency to the job’s tasks and responsibilities, and how to monitor the employee’s performance in these competencies through multiple mechanisms and methods, such as personal interviews, discussion, and tangible evidence, and monitoring positive and negative behaviors, and for the direct manager to inform the employee of the behavioral competencies, and the approved and required performance indicators. Achieved by the employee, to be approved no later than the second week of February of the evaluation year.

The department indicated that the procedural guide dealt with the performance management system for Dubai government employees, in its fourth chapter, “End of the performance planning stage,” which is approved by the direct supervisor and the reviewing director, after reviewing the individual goals and behavioral competencies and determining the learning and development plan with the employee’s participation, and after approving A copy of the performance plan is given to the employee, and a copy to the human resources department in the department. The direct manager keeps the original copy of the performance plan, in order to continuously monitor performance and provide feedback, guidance and direction.

The department confirmed that the periodic review stage is one of the most important stages of the performance management cycle, in which the employee’s performance is monitored and the percentage of progress he has accomplished in the tasks assigned to him is measured. Given the operational and organizational specificity of government agencies and the differences in their activities, two mechanisms have been designed to review performance, which provides the necessary flexibility. For government agencies to keep pace with developments and work requirements, the department must choose either of these two mechanisms to evaluate the employee’s performance in a way that suits its operational and organizational needs, provided that only one mechanism is applied for each employee during the evaluation year. The first mechanism is the continuous review of performance, and the second mechanism is the semi-annual review.

The department said that the stage of continuous review of the employee’s performance aims to enable the direct supervisor and the employee to determine the level of achievement, and to accurately follow the progress of work, through follow-up periodically throughout the evaluation year, especially since some government departments have activities and tasks that require the formation of work teams or assignments. Its employees can complete more than one project or task during the evaluation year, and continuous review is carried out by following several steps, the first of which is for the direct manager, periodically, to follow up on the employee’s performance at the end of each stage of the evaluation year, through sessions held every two or four weeks. With the aim of determining the achievement percentages agreed upon under the performance plan and the quality of outputs (individual goals, technical and behavioral competencies, and their approved performance indicators), as well as identifying challenges and obstacles, and taking corrective measures in light of that to achieve the targeted achievement percentages in a timely manner, and providing guidance to the employee in a constructive and positive manner, And identifying opportunities for learning and development based on the results of the evaluation during this stage.

As for the second step of continuous review, during which the employee commits to conducting the initial evaluation of his performance, before the follow-up and review session, by reviewing and evaluating the percentages of achievement, in accordance with the approved performance plan, identifying the challenges and factors affecting achievement, and supporting his initial results with documents and evidence. In the third step, the direct manager, with the employee’s participation, adjusts the goals and their weights if necessary, in accordance with the requirements of the workflow and the requirements of the organizational unit’s operational plan. As for the fourth step, the same procedures are followed for the review session described in the semi-annual review stage, and it takes place at the end of each quarter of the year. Evaluation, determining the result of the quarterly evaluation, and this result is counted among the employee’s final evaluation result. The second mechanism for employee evaluation is the semi-annual review, which begins in mid-June. The direct manager conducts a review of the level of performance and achievement of his employees, according to individual goals, behavioral competencies and their approved performance indicators. During this stage, the employee learns about the strengths and aspects that need to be developed in order to improve his level of performance. And making any necessary and justified amendment to the objectives and indicators. The semi-annual review is carried out by following several steps, the first of which is for the Human Resources Department, in mid-June of the evaluation year, to circulate to all organizational units, notifying them of the beginning of the semi-annual review phase, specifying the time period for its completion. In the second step, the direct manager undertakes the process of reviewing the objectives, behavioral competencies and performance indicators approved with the employee’s participation, with the aim of reviewing the employee’s performance and the agreed upon completion rates for the objectives, competencies and performance indicators, in accordance with the performance plan, and changing or modifying any of the objectives or their weights, in accordance with the requirements of the workflow. The challenges faced by the employee, if any, are also identified in an attempt to solve them quickly, and learning and development needs are reviewed.

The third step of the semi-annual review is for the employee to conduct the initial evaluation and send it to the direct manager, and then hold a review session between the direct manager and the employee as a fourth step, with the aim of achieving several things, including: determining the percentage of actual achievement of individual goals and behavioral competencies, as well as recording the president’s notes. The direct manager and the employee in the performance plan form, and supporting the review session with documents and evidence that clarify the actual percentages of achievement, and then the direct manager and the employee sign the performance plan, and present it to the reviewing director to approve the amendments, if any, and then the direct manager provides the employee and the human resources department with a copy of the plan. The updated performance, and the employee’s evaluation result at this stage is counted as part of his final evaluation result.

When determining behavioral competencies, the employee’s individual goals and proficiency levels are taken into account.

Periodic review in which the employee’s performance is monitored and his progress in completing his tasks is measured.

A dialogue session to consolidate the culture of innovation

The Dubai Government Human Resources Department organized a dialogue session, entitled “Champions of Innovation,” as part of the initiatives of the Department’s Innovation and Research Center, to learn about the success stories of departments holding the banner of the Hamdan bin Mohammed Smart Government Programme. The session, which was held at the headquarters of the Dubai Government Human Resources Department, was attended by the Director General of the Dubai Government Human Resources Department, Abdullah Ali bin Zayed Al Falasi, and a number of officials in the department and participating entities.

Al Falasi stressed that the UAE attaches great importance to the issue of innovation, sponsors innovators, adopts their innovations, and encourages talented people in various sectors, in order to enhance Dubai’s position and maintain its global competitiveness.