Skills Tracking for Org Admins
Skills Tracking helps your organization identify, track, and report on important skills across your board or member group. Organization Admins can create an Essential Skills bank, assign skills to members, set skill experience levels, ask members to confirm or report their skills, and review the results in a matrix or chart.
Use Skills Tracking to help your organization:
- Identify skill strengths and gaps
- Track member experience across key skills
- Review skills by group, member, or skill type
- Export skills data for reporting
- Keep member skill information organized in one place
Access Skills Tracking
Who Can Manage Skills Tracking?
By default, only Organization Admins can add, edit, delete, and apply skills for members in the Skills Tracking tab.
How Do I Open Skills Tracking?
To open Skills Tracking:
- Select Directory from the left navigation menu.
- Select the Skills Tracking tab at the top of the Directory page.
If this is your first time using Skills Tracking, you will see the first step in the setup process: Choosing Essential Skills.
To begin, select Get Started Now.
Build Your Essential Skills Bank
What are Essential Skills?
Essential Skills are the key traits, abilities, or areas of experience your organization wants to track. These skills can help your organization understand member strengths and identify possible skill gaps.
OnBoard includes a list of common skills that many organizations use. You can also:
- Select skills from the default list
- Create custom skills
- Add skills that members have reported on their profiles
- Choose which skills appear in the Matrix and Chart
Choose Essential Skills
How Do I Select Skills for the Essential Skills Bank?
To select a skill:
- Review the list of available skills.
- Left-click the skill you want to add.
- The selected skill will be highlighted.
To remove a selected skill:
- Left-click the selected skill again.
- Select Deselect.
Each time a skill is updated and saved in OnBoard, a confirmation message appears at the bottom center of the screen. The message says: Skill updated successfully.
Edit Existing Skills
How Do I Rename a Skill?
To rename a skill:
- Left-click the skill name.
- Select Rename from the skill menu.
- Enter a new name for the skill.
- Save the change by selecting: Rename Skill.
If members are already assigned to the skill, OnBoard will show how many members currently have that skill.
Renaming a skill does not remove the skill from members who already have it assigned. Because of this, we recommend renaming skills carefully so the new name still matches the original meaning.
For example, avoid changing a skill like Coaching to something unrelated, such as Cooking.
What Happens if I Enter a Duplicate Skill Name?
If another skill already has the name you entered, OnBoard will notify you that a skill with that name already exists. This helps prevent duplicate skills and inaccurate skill counts.
Delete Skills
How Do I Delete a Skill?
To delete a skill:
- Left-click the skill name.
- Select Delete Skill from the skill menu.
Before the skill is deleted, OnBoard shows a confirmation prompt. If members have the skill assigned, the prompt will also show that information.
| NOTE: Deleting a skill is permanent. Deleted skills and assigned skill values cannot be restored. |
Create Custom Skills
How Do I Create a Custom Skill?
If you need a skill that is not included in the default list, you can create a custom skill.
To create a custom skill:
- Go to the Custom Skills section.
- Select Create Custom Skill.
- Enter the new skill name.
- Select Create Custom Skill.
The new custom skill is added to your Custom Skills list and is selected automatically as an Essential Skill.
Add Skills Reported by Members
What are “Additional Skills Reported by Members”?
Additional Skills Reported by Members are skills that members have added to their own profiles. These skills appear at the bottom of the Essential Skills page for Admin review.
If member-reported skills are available, you will see a section called Additional Skills Reported By Members below Custom Skills.
How Do I Add a Member-Reported Skill to Essential Skills?
To add a member-reported skill:
- Find the skill under Additional Skills Reported By Members.
- Left-click the skill name with the eye icon
next to it.
- Select Add to Essential Skills.
The skill will move to the Custom Skills section and will be automatically selected as an Essential Skill.
How Do I Hide a Member-Reported Skill from the Matrix and Chart?
If you do not want a skill to appear in the Skills Tracking Matrix or Chart, select Hide On Matrix & Chart.
When a skill is hidden:
- It does not appear on the Matrix and Chart
- It cannot be selected as a custom skill by other members
How Do I Show a Skill on the Matrix and Chart Without Making it Selectable?
Select Show On Matrix & Chart if you want the skill to appear in the Matrix and Chart, but do not want it added as a custom skill for other members to choose.
How Can I Tell if a Skill is Visible on the Matrix and Chart?
The visibility icon shows whether a skill appears on the Matrix and Chart:
-
An eye icon means the skill is shown
-
A greyed-out eye icon with a slash means the skill is hidden
Member-reported skills can also be renamed or deleted like other skills.
Capture Member Skills
How Do Admins Assign Skills to Members?
After selecting your Essential Skills, you can assign those skills to members.
To continue:
- Select Next, or
- Select Capture Member Skills near the top of the screen.
On the Capture Member Skills page, Admins can:
- Select members
- Assign skills to selected members
- Set skill experience values for each assigned skill
Select Members
How Do I Select Members?
To select members:
- Click one or more member names.
- Click a selected member again to deselect them.
How Do I Filter Members by Group?
You can filter members by group to make it easier to find and assign skills to the right people.
To filter by group:
- Select Filter By Group.
- Check one or more groups.
The member list on the left updates to show only members in the selected groups.
How Do I Apply Skills to Selected Members?
After selecting members, use the panel on the right to assign skills.
To apply skills:
- Select one or more members.
- In the skills panel, left-click each skill you want to assign.
- Select Apply Skills.
The selected skills are assigned to the selected members with a default skill experience value of 3.
| NOTE: If you select multiple members before applying a skill, that skill is assigned to all selected members. |
To clear your selected members, select Clear All above the member list.
Set Skill Experience Values
What Are Skill Experience Values?
Skill experience values help your organization track how much experience each member has with an assigned skill. Higher values represent higher experience levels.
These values can help your organization review areas of strength and possible skill gaps in reports.
How Do I Change a Skill Experience Value?
To change a skill experience value:
- Find the member and assigned skill.
- Click the number value for that skill.
- Choose or enter the updated value.
Assigning experience values is optional. However, values are useful for reports that depend on skill strength.
Notify Members to Report Their Skills
How Do I Ask Members to Confirm or Report Their Skills?
After skills and experience values are assigned, you can notify members so they can review, confirm, or report their skills.
To continue:
- Select Next, or
- Select Reach Out to Your Members.
On this page, you can select members and send them a notification.
By default, members who had skills assigned in the previous step are pre-selected. You can also:
- Filter By Group
- Select additional members
- Deselect members who should not receive the notification
When your member list is ready, select Notify.
Can I Include a Custom Message?
Yes. After selecting Notify, you can add a custom message to the notification. Use this message to include extra instructions, context, or clarification for members.
What Happens After I Notify Members?
Members receive an email reminder asking them to report their skills. The email includes an Edit Skills link.
When a member selects Edit Skills:
- They are prompted to log in to OnBoard.
- They are taken to their Profile.
- The Skills section opens so they can review or update their skills.
Members can report skills after receiving a notification, or they can log in to OnBoard and go directly to their profile to update their skills.
| Board Members can follow the steps in the Reporting Skills for Skills Tracking article. |
Review Skills in the Matrix and Chart
After members report their skills, Admins can review the data in two views:
- Skills Tracking Matrix
- Skills Tracking Chart
Skills Tracking Matrix
What Does the Skills Tracking Matrix Show?
The Skills Tracking Matrix appears automatically after Essential Skills are set.
The Matrix shows:
- Members across the horizontal axis
- Skills along the vertical axis
- Each member’s experience value for each assigned skill
The Matrix uses a heat map display. Darker values indicate higher skill experience.
Where Do Member-Reported Skills Appear?
Skills reported by members in their profiles appear in a separate section called Additional Skills Reported.
How Do I View More Members in the Matrix?
To view members that are farther across the Matrix, use the scroll bar at the bottom of the Skills panel.
Skills Tracking Chart
How Do I Open the Skills Tracking Chart?
To open the Chart view:
- Select the Matrix and Chart toggle at the top left of the Skills panel.
- Select Chart.
What Does the Skills Tracking Chart Show?
The Skills Tracking Chart displays a radar chart. A radar chart is a visual report that shows aggregate skill experience across members.
Aggregate means the values are combined to show an overall view of skill experience.
How Do I See Which Members Have Experience in a Skill?
Move your mouse over a point on the chart. OnBoard displays the members who have experience in that skill.
Skills set to Show on Matrix & Chart display with a pink dot near the skill on the Chart.
Filter Skills Data
How Do I Filter the Matrix and Chart?
You can filter the Matrix and Chart by:
- Group
- Skill
- Member
To open filter options, select Show Filters.
How Do I Filter by Group?
Use the Groups filter to show skills data for one or more groups.
How Do I Filter by Skill?
Use the Skills filter to show data for only selected skills.
How Do I Filter by Member?
Use the Members filter to show skills data for one or more members.
Export Skills Data
How Do I Export Skills Data From the Matrix?
In Matrix view, select Export to download the skills matrix data as a CSV file.
CSV stands for comma-separated values. A CSV file is a spreadsheet-style file that can be opened in tools like Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.
How Do I Export Skills Data From The Chart?
In Chart view, select Export to download the Skills Chart as a PNG image file.
PNG stands for Portable Network Graphics. A PNG file is an image file format.
Exported files respect the filters you have applied. For example, if you filter by a specific group, the export will include only the filtered data.
FAQs
Who can access and manage Skills Tracking?
- By default, only Organization Admins can access Skills Tracking to add, edit, delete, and apply skills for members.
What are Essential Skills in OnBoard?
- Essential Skills are the key skills, traits, or areas of experience your organization wants to track across members. They help your organization review strengths and identify possible skill gaps.
Can I create custom skills?
- Yes. Organization Admins can create custom skills from the Custom Skills section if the needed skill is not included in the default list.
What happens when I delete a skill?
- Deleting a skill is permanent. Deleted skills and assigned skill values cannot be restored.
Can members report their own skills?
- Yes. Members can report skills from their OnBoard profile. Admins can also notify members by email and ask them to review, confirm, or report their skills.
What is the default skill experience value?
- When an Admin applies skills to selected members, the skills are assigned with a default experience value of 3.
Are skill experience values required?
- No. Skill experience values are optional, but they help make Matrix and Chart reporting more useful.
What is the Skills Tracking Matrix?
- The Skills Tracking Matrix is a heat map that shows members, skills, and each member’s experience value for assigned skills.
What is the Skills Tracking Chart?
- The Skills Tracking Chart is a radar chart that shows aggregate member experience across selected skills.
Can I filter Skills Tracking data?
- Yes. You can filter Skills Tracking data by group, skill, or member.
Can I export Skills Tracking data?
- Yes. In Matrix view, you can export skills data as a CSV file. In Chart view, you can export the chart as a PNG image file.
Plan Information
Skills Tracking is included in OnBoard's Ultimate Plan or available as an add-on. To add Skills Tracking for your organization contact your Account Manager today.
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