What are the Executive Core Qualification (ECQ) Competencies?

This ECQ is about managing and developing strategic changes inside and outside an organization. As the world and an organization change, executives with this competency should continue to have a clear organizational vision and be able to implement that vision — or, if needed, adapt it — in the face of changes. The OPM identifies six segments that make up this competency:

• Creativity and Innovation: An executive should be able to develop their own new ideas and encourage them in others. They should question traditional thinking when it no longer serves and implement new strategies, solutions or processes.
• External Awareness: No organization exists in a vacuum and an executive understands this. He or she follows the local, national and international news, especially the items that could affect stakeholder ideas or an organization’s position. An executive is also aware of the impact an organization has on the greater world.
• Flexibility: An executive needs to be open and to adapt readily to new ideas, processes, circumstances and conditions — including challenges.
• Resilience: A successful executive needs to overcome challenges readily and needs to be able to stay focused and positive, even in the face of challenges. They must deal with pressure and take responsibility, offering leadership in difficult times.
• Strategic Thinking: A leader makes and meets goals, mitigates risks and seizes opportunities. He or she considers an organization’s goals and plans and acts to meet those long-term objectives.
• Vision: A leader has a clear vision and can share that vision with a team or organization, turning the vision into action and reality.

This competency involves leading people so that they work together to meet the objective and goals of an organization. It implies that an executive knows how to build teams and environments in which people work efficiently, feel comfortable, bring their best work and easily resolve difficulties. Leading people involves:

• Conflict Management: Differences of opinion can be beneficial in an organization because they can encourage creative or innovative thinking. A leader encourages differing opinions without allowing differences to turn into conflicts or disagreements that harm productivity or morale.
• Leveraging Diversity: Leaders encourage the differences between people and respect diversity, making it a part of a successful organization.
• Developing Others: Leaders help others do their best with encouragement, appropriate opportunities and options for training and growth.
• Team Building: Executives encourage diverse people to work effectively together for common organization goals, developing team pride, spirit, morale and commitment among team individuals.

This competency means executives can take the actions needed to make measurable progress on goals and to meet objectives. This competency involves:

• Accountability: A leader follows the rules and takes responsibility for themselves and for their team. He or she meets responsibilities for delegating, creating goals and taking action.
• Customer Service: An executive cares about the customer experience and works to meet the needs of external and internal customers, always striving to improve deliverables.
• Decisiveness: A leader considers the outcomes of their decisions carefully but can make decisions in a firm and timely fashion, even when all facts aren’t available and even if a decision may lead to negative consequences.
• Entrepreneurship: A successful executive has the drive to pursue organizational goals by seeking out new opportunities, improving deliverables or customer experiences and taking strategic risks. He or she seeks out and acts on opportunities.
• Problem Solving: A leader can target and resolve issues and challenges. They can acquire information needed to solve a problem and is able to take decisive action or make decisions to address the problem.
• Technical Credibility: Technical credibility refers to the leveraging of rules, systems, regulations and policies in leadership role

Virtually all organizations have human, technological and financial resources that directly and indirectly influence the ability to realize the organizational vision and meet organizational goals. Effective leaders can use these resources to help an organization meet objectives. Executives do this through:

• Financial Management: A leader understands finances and can prepare and administer a budget. He or she can also oversee spending and set priorities for spending and savings. He or she can manage contracts and procurements to meet objectives within budget.
• Human Capital Management: Executives recognize employees as powerful assets and take care to develop a workforce that meets staffing needs, budget and skill needs. Leaders work to attract the correct workers and to ensure the workers are correctly trained, evaluated, hired and rewarded for their work. Executives are able to allocate staff in the best possible use of talents and skills and work to resolve any performance or workplace issues.
• Technology Management: Leaders understand technology and security systems affecting their organization, effectively using technology to meet organizational goals in efficiency.

Executives are able to build coalitions or networks to support their organization and to meet organizational goals.

• Partnering: Where necessary, leaders should be able to build strong partnerships — defined by trust, cooperation and mutual advantage — to execute objectives and meet goals.
• Political Savvy: Leaders understand that political climates and external and internal politics can affect an organization’s goals, morale and mission. They recognize this type of political reality and leverage it for the benefit of the organization.
• Influencing and Negotiating: Executives can exert influence to help an organization meet its goals. They can negotiate contracts, opportunities and issues for the benefit of the organization.