Skills Mapping: 6 Methods to Capture What Really Matters

You have already made the strategic choices: who evaluates what, whether to rely on observation or self-reporting, and how often skills should be updated. Now it is time to move into execution.

So, how do you actually capture your employees’ skills? Which tools and methods should you deploy to create a skills map that is reliable, actionable and accepted by teams?

Below are six proven methods, with their strengths, limitations and conditions for use, illustrated in the specific context of Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB).

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1. Structured skills inventory

What it involves

This is the classic starting point: asking each employee to list the technical and behavioural skills they use in their day-to-day work. This is usually done through a structured questionnaire built around predefined categories:

• Technical skills (tools, methodologies, regulations)
• Functional or business skills (financial products, transaction types)
• Soft skills (leadership, negotiation, stress management)

The objective is to quickly build a usable database, based on employees’ own understanding of their work.

When to use it

This method is particularly effective for:

• Mapping hard technical skills: Bloomberg, Python, VBA, modelling tools (Monte Carlo, Black–Scholes), certifications (CFA, FRM, AMF)
• Identifying product expertise: derivatives, structured finance, M&A, DCM, ECM, trade finance
• Capturing regulatory knowledge: MiFID II, Basel III/IV, EMIR, SFDR, EU taxonomy

For example, if you need to quickly identify who understands the latest SFDR requirements in order to structure ESG products, a well-designed inventory can give you a first answer within days.

Common pitfalls

The main issue is self-reporting bias. Employees tend to overestimate their skills, particularly soft skills. An M&A analyst may declare themselves an “expert negotiator” after taking part in just three deals over two years.

Another common problem is poor granularity. Asking “Do you master Excel?” will yield a universal “yes”. Yet there is a huge difference between building pivot tables and writing complex VBA macros to automate reporting.

Best practice

Two complementary ways to structure your inventory:

Approach 1: Start from the business value chain

Instead of asking “List your skills”, start from the core activities of each role. For example, on a sales desk:

• Activity 1: Prospecting and business development→ Skills: client pitching, product knowledge, network building
• Activity 2: Solution structuring→ Skills: financial engineering, understanding client needs, creativity
• Activity 3: Execution and follow-up→ Skills: operational management, middle-office coordination, stress management

This approach helps employees identify skills they might not list spontaneously, and ensures you do not miss critical capabilities.

Approach 2: Define clear proficiency levels

For each skill, use precise levels:

• Basic: theoretical knowledge, limited practice
• Operational: used regularly in day-to-day work
• Expert: able to train others and handle complex situations
• Reference: go-to person for critical or exceptional cases

For critical technical skills, add validation questions. For example: “How many pricing models have you built this year?” rather than “Do you master financial modelling?”

Tip

Use talent management tools to automate data collection and updates. In international organisations, where teams are geographically dispersed and under constant pressure, a 45‑minute questionnaire will never be completed. Aim for 15 minutes maximum, even if that means spreading it over several waves.

2. 360° assessments

What it involves

360° assessments combine multiple perspectives on an individual’s skills: self-assessment, manager feedback, peer input, and sometimes feedback from internal or external clients. The aim is to achieve a more balanced and objective view by triangulating perspectives.

When to use it

360° assessments are particularly relevant for:

• Evaluating critical soft skills: handling pressure, negotiation, collaboration on complex deals
• Identifying high-potential talent: who do people naturally turn to? Who positively influences teams?
• Preparing succession plans for key roles (head of desk, business line leader)

For example, when identifying a future sales desk head, a 360° captures not only commercial performance (visible in the numbers), but also the ability to unite a team, manage demanding clients and develop juniors.

Common pitfalls

360° processes are time-consuming and can generate tension. Discovering that peers rate you lower than you rate yourself can be difficult to accept. In highly competitive CIB environments, some individuals may also use the process for political positioning.

Another limitation is the halo effect. Strong commercial performers may receive high scores across all dimensions, even where they are average. Conversely, someone struggling with targets may be rated poorly across the board.

Best practice

Do not roll out 360° assessments to everyone. Use them where they genuinely add value:

• Managers and future managers
• High-potential talent being developed for leadership roles
• Roles involving many stakeholders (for example, structurers working with front office, middle office, legal teams and clients)

Most importantly, support the process: train evaluators, debrief results individually, and define concrete action plans. A 360° without follow-up is worse than useless—it creates frustration.

Warning

In some organisations, a culture of open and direct feedback is not yet established. Before launching a 360°, assess readiness. If needed, start by building a culture of continuous feedback and introduce 360° assessments gradually on a limited scope.

3. Analysing annual and regular reviews

What it involves

Annual appraisals and regular manager check-ins are natural moments to discuss skills. The idea is to leverage these conversations to capture structured information: which skills were developed this year? Which need strengthening? Which projects revealed new expertise?

When to use it

This method is useful for:

• Tracking skills over time: an analyst who worked on three tech M&A deals this year has likely developed sector expertise they did not have 12 months ago
• Identifying training needs: if several people on a desk express interest in crypto-assets, the signal is clear
• Spotting dormant skills: an employee with an FRM certification unused for two years may be redeployed on risk-related projects

Common pitfalls

The main issue is inconsistent quality. Some managers document skills rigorously; others rush through reviews in 20 minutes and never use the information.

Another limitation: if reviews are not structured around skills, you only collect partial data. Managers may focus on targets achieved without ever discussing the skills required to achieve them.

Best practice

Structure review templates to systematically include a skills section, with clear questions:

• Which skills did you use most this year?
• Which new skills did you develop (training, projects, mentoring)?
• Which skills would you like to develop next year?
• Are there skills you no longer use but could reactivate?

Ensure this data feeds into your workforce or skills management system, not just a Word document forgotten in a shared folder.

Good practice

Complement annual reviews with short quarterly check-ins (30 minutes) focused on skills. This is especially effective in environments with short but intense projects: a three‑month deal can develop skills that will be lost if you wait eight months for the annual review.

4. Observing behaviour in real situations

What it involves

Some skills cannot be declared—they are revealed through action. Observation looks at how employees behave day to day: who naturally takes the lead in meetings? Who handles crises effectively? Who adapts well to the unexpected?

This method is particularly powerful for capturing behavioural and situational skills that questionnaires cannot detect.

When to use it

Observation is valuable for:

• Identifying natural leaders: who brings the team together during a client pitch or an operational crisis?
• Uncovering hidden skills: a middle-office professional who excels at explaining complex concepts, or an analyst who manages external lawyers exceptionally well
• Assessing stress management: impossible to self-assess reliably, but very visible during a tense deal closing or sharp market movements

Common pitfalls

Observation is subjective and time-intensive. Observing five people over two weeks yields rich insight; observing 500 is unmanageable. There is also confirmation bias—we tend to see what we expect to see.

Another risk is perception: observation can feel intrusive or anxiety-inducing. “HR is watching us” does not land well in every corporate culture.

Best practice

Do not try to observe everyone. Focus on:

• High-potential talent being considered for promotion
• Critical situations (crisis management, complex deals, transformations) where skills emerge under pressure
• Behavioural skills that cannot be assessed otherwise (leadership, conflict management, resilience)

Formalise observations: use clear evaluation grids, involve multiple observers to limit bias, and provide feedback to employees to avoid any sense of being “spied on”.

Tip

Work with managers as your “field observers”. Good managers already observe their teams naturally. HR’s role is to give them a framework and ensure observations are captured and formalised—not to play detective.

5. Technology-based tracking tools

What it involves

Talent management platforms, HRIS and learning management systems can automate skills tracking. They capture training, certifications, projects and, in some cases, even suggest missing skills based on career paths.

When to use it

Technology is particularly useful for:

• Tracking mandatory certifications (AMF, compliance, AML) and anticipating renewals
• Automatically identifying skills gaps against reference profiles
• Matching existing skills with future needs (for example, ESG capabilities for sustainable finance initiatives)
• Facilitating internal mobility by matching employees with roles aligned to their skills

Common pitfalls

The first mistake is confusing tools with strategy. An HRIS will not fix unclear thinking—you will simply digitise the chaos.

Second, adoption complexity. If the tool is heavy, unintuitive or requires re-entering information already provided elsewhere, it will not be used. In time-poor environments, a complex tool is a dead tool.

Third, technology captures structured data well, but struggles with tacit and behavioural skills—the ones that often make the real difference.

Best practice

Start simple and build progressively:

• Phase 1: Centralise easy-to-capture data (certifications, training, career paths, major projects)
• Phase 2: Gradually integrate managerial assessments and self-evaluations
• Phase 3: Use AI and algorithms to suggest training, identify project profiles and anticipate attrition risks

Above all, make the tool useful for employees, not just HR. If completing a skills profile opens mobility or training opportunities, people will engage. If it is “just for HR”, they will not.

6. Continuous self-assessment and feedback

What it involves

Instead of running one large annual assessment, employees update their skills continuously. After completing a project, earning a certification or finishing training, they update their profile. Ongoing feedback from managers and peers complements self-assessment.

When to use it

This approach works well for:

• Fast-changing environments (markets, products, regulations, tools)
• Project-based and agile teams working on three- to six-month deals
• Highly autonomous populations (traders, structurers, senior M&A bankers)

Common pitfalls

The main risk is fatigue. Engagement is high at first, then fades. Six months later, profiles are outdated and employees feel burdened.

Another issue is noise. Without clear rules, every two-hour training generates a skills update, obscuring what truly matters.

Best practice

Two conditions are essential:

1. Make it radically simple

• Integrate updates into daily tools—no separate HR portal
• Ultra-fast updates (two clicks, not ten questions)
• Automatic triggers where possible (certifications synced from the LMS)

2. Make it visible and useful

• Clear benefits: mobility opportunities, training suggestions, internal visibility
• Easy access for managers (“Who in my team has this skill?”)
• Recognition: showcasing expertise, inviting people onto high-value assignments

Feedback culture

Continuous self-assessment only works alongside a genuine feedback culture. Establish simple rituals:

• 15-minute post-deal debriefs: what did I learn? Which skills did I develop?
• Immediate feedback after client presentations, complex negotiations or pitches
• Peer knowledge-sharing on best practices and skills used

This is what turns self-assessment into a real development tool, not a box-ticking exercise.

Conclusion: Combining approaches for greater robustness

There is no silver bullet for skills mapping. Each method has strengths and limits. The key is to combine them coherently and pragmatically.

A proven approach: start with a structured inventory to build a baseline quickly. Enrich and validate it through managerial reviews and project analysis. For critical populations, add 360° assessments and observation. Support everything with tools to make the process sustainable over time.

Beyond methodology, two cultural factors make all the difference.

Skills culture vs job culture

If your organisation remains locked into a “job/role” mindset, skills will be hard to capture. People think in terms of what someone does in their current role, not what they are capable of doing.

A classic CIB example: an M&A analyst who led three tech deals has developed sector expertise that could be valuable on a tech desk, in equity research or venture capital. A purely job-based view sees only “M&A analyst” and misses the transferable skill.

Shifting this culture takes time:

• Talk about skills in reviews, not just responsibilities
• Value lateral mobility based on skills, not only vertical progression
• Share success stories of internal career moves driven by transferable skills

The importance of mobility history

Do not forget to capture internal mobility history. Someone who spent three years in front office and two in middle office has built a valuable 360° perspective. A professional who moved from DCM to ECM understands both debt and equity worlds.

These paths create unique skills that are visible only when you look at history, not just current roles. Such profiles are often best suited to:

• Bridging teams that rarely interact
• Understanding transactions end to end
• Training juniors
• Leading cross-functional projects

Ensure your skills mapping captures not only current capabilities, but also those acquired in previous roles—even if they are not used daily.

Finally, remember: skills mapping is not an end in itself. It only creates value if it helps you:

• Recruit more effectively by identifying real gaps
• Enable internal mobility by making skills visible
• Anticipate training needs in scarce skill areas
• Build robust succession plans
• Drive Strategic Workforce Planning with reliable data

If your skills map does none of these, it is probably too complex, too detailed, or insufficiently aligned with real organisational needs.

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