Penn Competency Library

Competencies are observable and measurable skills and behaviors that contribute to workplace effectiveness and career success.

This competency library was licensed from Korn Ferry, an organization with over 30 years of research on competencies and organizational effectiveness, including research by level (entry/support level contributor, professional level individual contributor, first-level leader or supervisor, and manager of managers) and by global region (North America, Asia, Australia/New Zealand, and Europe).

While organizations also need technical knowledge to be successful, this library represents the critical competencies that most organizations need to be successful regardless of industry and culture. Download the Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales (BARS) for each competency below.