Enterprise IT Skill Frameworks

1 Key Skill Introduction

While many large companies have defined their own sets of skills for purposes of talent management (to recruit, retain, and further develop the highest quality staff members that they can find, afford and hire), the advancement of EIT professionalism will require common definitions of EIT skills that can be used not just across enterprises, but also across countries. We have selected three major sources of skill definitions. While none of them is used universally, they provide a good cross-section of options. Each chapter contains a short description of the three frameworks and list of the skills that apply to the chapter.

1.1 Skills Framework for the Information Age

The Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA) has defined nearly 100 skills. SFIA describes 7 levels of competency which can be applied to each skill. Not all skills, however, cover all seven levels. Some reach only partially up the seven step ladder. Others are based on mastering foundational skills, and start at the fourth or fifth level of competency. It is used in nearly 200 countries, from Britain to South Africa, South America, to the Pacific Rim, to the United States. (http://www.sfia-online.org)

SFIA skills have not yet been defined for the security chapter.

1.2 European Competency Framework

The European Union's European Competency Framework (e-CF) has 40 “competencies” and is used in the EU. (http://www.ecompetences.eu/) It uses five levels of competency. As in SFIA, not all skills are subject to all 5 levels. The EU has also created a mapping between e-CF and SFIA.