Following the introduction of the Functional Competency (FC) Assessment in PICS II Series (2) published on February 27, this issue explains in more details the method of FC assessment.

Descriptive Rating Scale

Similar to the Core Competency Assessment and Overall Performance rating in the PICS II Annual Report Form (ARF), the rating of FC Assessment will be displayed in descriptive ratings instead of grades A, B, C, etc.  A new five-level descriptive rating scale will be used.

Categorisation of FC

The Assessing Officer will be able to access a pool of FC items for FC Assessment.  As a result of consultations with Major Formations through focus groups, a total of 22 Job Functions under six Major Job Families have been devised and listed as follows:

Major Job Families and Job Functions :

Crime: Criminal Investigation, Criminal Intelligence

Operations: UB Operations, Emergency Response, Public Order Policing

Marine: Police Launch Operation (Deck), Police Launch Operation (Engineering)

Traffic: Enforcement and Control, Accident Investigation, Traffic Support, Central Traffic Prosecutions

Training: Foot Drill and Physical Training, PTU Training, Detective Training, Development Training, Use of Force Training

Personnel, Management Services and Support: Policy Formulation and Review, IT Management, Project / Event / Building / Stores Management, Quality Assurance, Community / Media Relations, Human Resources Management

Method of Assessment

During the process of completing the ARF, a list of FC items under the Job Function most applicable to the Appraisee's current posting will be automatically displayed for the Assessing Officer to assess.  If the job nature of the Appraisee involves more than one Job Function, the Assessing Officer may also select other FC items under a different Job Function.  Where necessary, the Assessing Officer may compile an FC item by way of free-text entry.  The Assessing Officer can select up to a maximum of eight FC items, including three free-text entries. There is no pre-set minimum number of FC item.

Through the enhanced FC Assessment, competency mapping of the Force can be achieved for analysis of post-related abilities, professional skills and knowledge of individual officers, thus facilitating selection of suitable officers for different jobs, assessment of competency levels and identification of training needs.