Title: A step towards human capital management in the software industry based on generic competencies

Authors: Ricardo Colomo-Palacios; Cristina Casado-Lumbreras; Edmundo Tovar; Pedro Soto-Acosta

Addresses: Computer Science Department, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Av. Universidad 30, Leganés, 28911 Madrid, Spain. ' Faculty of Education, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Rector Royo Villanova, s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain. ' Faculty of Informatics, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Campus de Montegancedo S/N, 28660 Boadilla del Monte, Madrid, Spain. ' Department of Management & Finance, University of Murcia, Campus de Espinardo, 30100 Murcia, Spain

Abstract: The definition of generic competency levels in a complete career ladder devoted to software profession presents a novel contribution to the literature with added value both for practitioners and industry. The aim of this paper is to identify generic competency levels relevant to software professionals in working environments with respect to a specific professional ladder. The empirical study employed a questionnaire approach. The sample consisted of 50 professionals working in software development within large enterprises for a period of time equal or higher than five years. Results show the importance of competencies like Quality concern and Teamwork and the higher significance that, in average, generic competencies take for the higher positions in the career ladder.

Keywords: generic competencies; IT professionals; quantitative study; professional ladder; information technology; human capital management; software industry; careers; software development; career ladder; quality concerns; teamwork.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSCM.2011.044938

International Journal of Strategic Change Management, 2011 Vol.3 No.4, pp.247 - 259

Published online: 07 Mar 2015 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article