On this page6 sections
A plain-English definition
A skills matrix lists people down one side and skills across the top. Each cell holds a level, such as supervised or competent, and the role sets the level each person should reach.
You may also see it called a skill matrix, an employee skills matrix or a competency matrix. Whatever the name, it is only useful if each level means the same thing to everyone reading it.
Setting the levels
Agree the levels before you score anyone. Four or five levels usually work well, each with a short description of what the person can do at that level.
Decide which level counts as competent, and which level lets someone train or sign off others. Those two lines are what turn a grid of numbers into decisions about cover and sign-off.
- Not trained: hasn't started
- In training: learning it, not yet doing it on the job
- Supervised: does it with someone checking
- Competent: works alone to the standard
- Can train others: can train and sign off others
Skills matrix vs training matrix
A training matrix records whether required training is complete, due, overdue or missing proof. A skills matrix records the level someone has shown in the work itself. A course can help someone reach a level, but completing it doesn't prove they can do the job.
Many teams need both. Our training matrix guide covers the training side.
How to build a skills matrix
Start small. One team, the skills that matter most to its work and an agreed set of levels will tell you more than a company-wide grid nobody trusts.
If you want the columns and gap formulas ready-made, start from our free skills matrix template.
- List the skills the work depends on, in words people use on the job
- Agree the levels and what each one means
- Set the level each role or department needs
- Record each person's current level, who assessed it and the evidence
- Set a date to check each level again
- Name an owner who keeps the matrix current
Reading the matrix: gaps and cover
A gap is a person below the level their role needs. Cover looks at the same grid the other way: how many people hold each skill at a competent level, on each site or shift.
Cover is often the more urgent question. A skill held by one person is a risk the day they are off, even if nobody in the team has a personal gap.
- Which skills does only one person hold on a site?
- Which levels are due to be checked again soon?
- Which gaps have an agreed action and a date?
- Who can sign off each skill, and is there more than one person?
When a spreadsheet stops working
A spreadsheet works for one team with a clear owner. It gets harder to trust when several managers edit copies, levels are typed in without a sign-off and reassessment dates live in diaries.
SkillProof's Skills matrix, on Professional and Enterprise, keeps signed-off levels with their evidence, plans reassessment and shows cover for each skill by site. Levels reflect the sign-offs your organisation enters. SkillProof doesn't certify competence.
Questions this guide answers
What is a skills matrix used for?
To see who can do which work, where people fall short of the level their role needs and where a skill rests on too few people. It helps managers plan training, cover and sign-off.
What is the difference between a skills matrix and a competency matrix?
The terms are often used for the same grid. Some organisations keep competency matrix for formal, assessed standards and skills matrix for a broader view of capability.
How many levels should a skills matrix have?
Four or five levels usually work well. Fewer levels are easier to apply consistently; what matters most is a clear description of each one.
How often should a skills matrix be updated?
Whenever someone is signed off at a new level, and at a set reassessment date for each level. Many teams also review the whole grid once a year.