The U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (DOLETA) has incorporated URISA’s Geospatial Management Competency Model (GMCM) in its Competency Model Clearinghouse (http://www.careeronestop.org/competencymodel/). This endorsement follows a year-long effort to draft the GMCM by a task force of 18 contributors and a public review process that attracted 100 comments.

Of the 20 industries that have published competency models, the Geospatial industry is the first to have specified management competencies.  Dr. Jennifer Troke of DOLETA’s Office of Workforce Investment called the GMCM “a groundbreaking accomplishment.”

URISA’s Geospatial Management Competency Model (http://www.urisa.org/gmcm) specifies 74 essential competencies and 18 competency areas that characterize the work of most successful managers in the geospatial industry. The GMCM is an element of DOLETA’s Geospatial Technology Competency Model (GTCM), which specifies the foundational (Tiers 1-3), industry-wide (Tier 4), and industry sector-specific (Tier 5) expertise characteristic of the various occupations that comprise the geospatial industry (http://www.careeronestop.org/CompetencyModel/pyramid.aspx?GEO=Y). Descriptions of individual geospatial occupations, including occupation-specific competencies and job requirements (Tiers 6-8), are published in DOLETA’s O*NET occupation database (http://www.onetonline.org/). The GMCM corresponds to Tier 9 of the GTCM.

Competency models are used to guide individual professional development, to help people move up or over in an organization or industry, to help educators and trainers develop curricula that address workforce needs, to inform development of interview protocols, as requirements for professional certification, and as criteria for academic program accreditation and articulation.

The GMCM is a key component of URISA’s recently announced GIS Management Institute (GMI) initiative. The initiative will be a key topic of discussion at GIS-Pro 2012: URISA’s 50th annual conference in Portland, OR (http://www.urisa.org/gispro2012).  According to URISA President Greg Babinski, “Development of the Geospatial Management Competency Model once again demonstrates URISA leadership in the field. For almost 50 years now URISA has been identifying and addressing challenges in the practical application of technology for urban and regional systems. The GMCM continues that practice and the intellectual capital it represents for the Geospatial Profession will be a key resource to help develop a GIS management body of knowledge.”

The Urban and Regional Information Systems Association’s (URISA’s) qualifications to organize the GMCM effort include its nearly 50-year history as one of the founding organizations of the GIS profession, its successful organization of the GIS Certification Institute and the URISA Leadership Academy, and its healthy working relationships with other professional and scientific associations in the geospatial field through the Coalition on Geospatial Organizations (COGO).

Proceed to URISA’s Geospatial Management Competency Model (http://www.urisa.org/gmcm)