What Is Meant by a Competency?

The word “competency” stalked up on the unwary working in the human resources field. The catalyst for its use was Boyatzis's (1982) book The Competent Manager . He triggered the popularity of the term which became de rigueur for the serious consultant in the late 1980s. Unfortunately, while street credibility demanded use of the word, few were certain in their own minds what it meant. This state of confusion has not really abated with the passage of time.