The Competency Tree

An organization can have many competencies, which is why the Competency tree exists in PeopleSoft HCM. The Competency tree facilitates the location and classification of competencies in PeopleSoft HCM and PeopleSoft Resource Management.

Competency types are created as nodes on the Competency tree. Competencies are detailed values that are associated with nodes. You can select competencies or competency types from the tree to associate with resources.

The Competency tree that is delivered with the PeopleSoft system has multiple nodes. Each node represents a competency type, and the detail values (or competencies) are dynamically identified. Each time that you create a new competency, it automatically appears on the tree—as long as you associate the competency with a competency type that exists on the tree.

Important:

You can export the Competency tree that exists in the HCM database and import it into the Financials database. Alternatively, you can create your own Competency tree in the Financials database. The tree must be named COMPETENCY and use the structure ID named COMPETENCY.

The TreeMover Application Engine process (TREEMOVER) exports the Competency tree from PeopleSoft HCM and imports it into PeopleSoft Resource Management. Trees are not synchronized using application messages because trees are maintained in PeopleTools tables, and there are different portions of trees that can be synchronized between databases.

During PeopleSoft Resource Management implementation, export the Competency tree from the HCM database by using TreeMover, which exports the blueprint for the tree to a file. Then import the Competency tree in the Financials database using the TreeMover process to extract the tree from the PeopleSoft HCM export file and load it into the Financials database. After the initial synchronization of the tree, periodically perform the export and import steps to update the PeopleSoft Resource Management Competency tree with the latest changes from the PeopleSoft HCM Competency tree.

To determine how frequently to update the tree:

  • Determine how frequently you add new competency types.

  • Determine how up-to-date the competency type information must be in the PeopleSoft Resource Management tree.

Most organizations don't need to update the Competency tree in PeopleSoft Resource Management more than a few times per year because adding a new competency type typically occurs only when an organization offers a new product or provides a new service.

See the product documentation for PeopleTools: Tree Manager