An engineer moving into management may be strong at technical delivery but unsure which management skills to develop. Gap analysis compares their current strengths and experience with the competencies needed for the role. A one-on-one conversation helps uncover their motivations as well as the areas that need attention. section 2.6
Turn the comparison into a practical growth plan:
- List the competencies required for the role. For each, record situations that show how the person has demonstrated it. Describe the situation, their behavior, and its impact—the SBI format—so the evidence is specific rather than a guess. section 3.1.1
- Mark each competency as to do, in progress, or done. Agree on achievable, time-bound goals and check progress in regular conversations. section 3.1.1 section 2.6
- Match support to the gap. This might mean mentoring, pair programming, a demo, or a learning resource. If a delegated task requires skills too far beyond the person’s current capabilities, reconsider the assignment. section 5.4.1
From a missed milestone to a development plan
An engineer misses a project milestone partly because they lack familiarity with a service codebase. Their manager pairs them with a senior engineer and creates a gap analysis document identifying areas for improvement. Two months later, peer feedback shows significant improvement. The manager also reviews onboarding documentation so future engineers have better support. section 3.2.6
Table 3.1 A competency matrix representing a sample gap analysis document
|
Competency
|
How do you demonstrate it?
|
Status (To do, In progress, Done)
|
|---|---|---|
|
Technical skills. Employee should be adept at coding and system design and have experience with large-scale system designs.
|
Situation 1—Dave was tasked with delivering a project to build a continuous data streaming service due to the missing mechanism.
Behavior—Dave stepped up to understand the problem statement and did a deep dive into the architecture design. He worked with senior engineers on the team and developed a technical design document detailing the pros and cons of each approach. Next, he implemented the project under a tight deadline.
Impact—His efforts led to a timely launch of the streaming service and helped reduce message latency by more than 80%.
Situation 2—<>
Behavior—<>
Impact—<>
|
Done
|
|
Participation in technical events.
|
Situation 1—<>
Behavior—<>
Impact—<>
|
In progress
|
|
Sharing learnings and expertise with cross-functional partners and having influence across teams.
|
Situation 1—<>
Behavior—<>
Impact—<>
|
In progress
|
|
Helping to improve operational excellence metrics for the team.
|
Situation 1—<>
Behavior—<>
Impact—<>
|
To do
|
The sample competency matrix shows how to record a required skill, evidence of it in SBI form, and a progress status. section 3.1.1
