REAV

Glossary

Skills matrix

ISO 9001 clause 7.2, competence

A map of who is qualified to do what, at what level, with the evidence behind each qualification.

ISO 9001 clause 7.2 requires an organisation to determine the competence needed for work that affects quality, ensure people are competent on the basis of education, training or experience, take action where they are not, and retain documented information as evidence. A skills matrix is the usual way to hold all four in one place.

The useful version is a grid of people against tasks, with a level rather than a tick: aware, can do under supervision, autonomous, can train others. Levels turn the matrix into a planning tool, because they show where a single autonomous person is the only cover for a task.

It is also a record with a date. Competence acquired three years ago on a model that has since changed is not current competence, which is why the matrix needs a review rhythm rather than a one-off filling-in.

In refurbishment, where the work ranges from part swaps to micro-soldering and the device mix keeps moving, the matrix is what tells you whether a new flow can actually be absorbed, or whether accepting it means training first.

A skills matrix kept next to the procedures it covers

Related terms

  • ISO 9001 The international standard that sets out what a quality management system has to contain, and the one most industrial customers ask their suppliers to be certified against.
  • SOP A written, versioned instruction that defines how one operation is performed, so any trained technician produces the same result.
  • First-time fix rate The share of repairs that pass final quality control on the first attempt, without rework or a second pass.
  • Management review The periodic review in which top management looks at whether the quality system is still working, using a defined list of inputs, and decides what changes.

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