For more than 75 years, an important part of ATD’s work has been to establish standards of excellence for our profession through our competency research. Best practices and expectations for the field have kept pace with changing times, and ATD’s commitment to equipping others to develop talent in the workplace remains strong.

To help talent development professionals stay current on knowledge and skills that are important for success, ATD updates its competency model every five to seven years. The most recent model was released in 2013.

By Jennifer Homer on November 13, 2019

Through its competency studies over the last 40 years, ATD has helped define what training, learning, and talent development professionals need to know and do to be successful. Amid a constantly evolving business landscape and a proliferation of new buzz words and trends, success in our field has always been about unleashing workforce potential and harnessing it to generate meaningful business impact.

ATD’s latest research to measure the pulse of the profession culminates with the release of the Talent Development Capability Model. The new model underscores how specialized knowledge about how to create, deliver, foster, and measure learning is essential to TD’s ability to boost the potential of our learners and deliver value to the organizations we serve.

By Courtney Vital, CPTD on December 9, 2019

The new ATD Capability Model identifies three domains of practice, each equally important within the scope of what talent development professionals need to know and do to be successful today and in the future. You can read more about the Developing Personal Capability and Building Professional Capability domains in previous posts. The third area, Impacting Organizational Capability, is today’s topic.

In earlier competency models, ATD research identified that “business acumen” is an important skill for talent development professionals. When we talk about aligning TD practices to business goals and strategies, it becomes apparent that knowledge of the business, competitive landscape, and organizational goals are necessary components in designing and delivering effective learning programs that drive real business results. Research for the new ATD Capability Model revealed that to truly affect organizational outcomes, talent development professionals needs more than business acumen.

By Tony Bingham on December 18, 2019

Over the past several weeks, ATD has shared details about the new standard for talent development professionals. Built on comprehensive research into the role of TD professionals, the Talent Development Capability Model outlines what those working in talent development need to know and do to be successful.

While previous research helped develop a competency model framework, the focus of ATD’s new study has been how to help talent development professionals build capability so they can effectively perform their work today and prepare for challenges they’ll face in the future. Competence refers to a person’s current state and having the knowledge and skills necessary to perform a job. Capability is about integrating knowledge and skills and adapting and flexing to meet future needs. Shifting from a competency model to a capability model signals to talent development professionals that they must be agile and committed to continual development to successfully create, innovate, lead, and manage change.

By Morgean Hirt on January 8, 2020

The Association for Talent Development (ATD) is making a bold shift with the new Talent Development Capability Model. ATD is shifting from competency to capability and broadening the model’s focus to help talent development professionals build capabilities that will help them perform their work today, communicate the strategic importance of TD, and prepare for challenges they’ll face in the future.

Why the shift from competency to capability? According to Capabilities for Talent Development: Shaping the Future of the Profession, competence refers to a person’s current state and having the knowledge and skills necessary to perform a job. Capability is about integrating knowledge and skills and adapting and flexing to meet future needs. Shifting from a competency model to a capability model signals to talent development professionals that they must be agile and committed to continual development to create, innovate, lead, manage change, and demonstrate impact.

By Paula Ketter on January 22, 2020

Within the dynamic universe of learning platforms and technologies, where exciting new capabilities forever beckon talent development professionals, surely the wisest purchasing advice is also the timeless one: before consummating that deal, carefully weigh the needs of your organization.

This lesson in practicality is offered by Lou Tedrick, vice president of global learning and development with Verizon Wireless, in reference to one of the capabilities—Technology Application—in the Talent Development Capability Model. The capability details the current ecosystem of learning platforms and tools along with the skills needed to select, integrate, manage, and maintain them.

By Paul Harris on February 5, 2020

With the release of its new Talent Development Capability Model, the Association for Talent Development serves TD professionals with the most comprehensive compilation of skills, concepts, and strategies necessary to fulfill their roles. It is important to emphasize that those efforts can achieve maximum impact only when guided by a comprehensive talent management (TM) strategy.

ATD’s new model groups capabilities into three domains: building personal capability, developing professional capability, and impacting organizational capability. Talent strategy and management is one of the model’s 23 capabilities and resides in the impacting organizational capability domain.

By Paul Harris on February 19, 2020