The document summarizes the development of the Geospatial Management Competency Model (GMCM) by the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (URISA). It provides background on precursors like the USM/NASA competency model. URISA formed a task force to develop Tier 9 (management competencies) of the US Department of Labor's Geospatial Technology Competency Model. The task force drafted the GMCM with 4 domains, 17 competency clusters, and 74 competencies. The GMCM was then published after public review and comment.

1. Greg Babinski, MA, GISP
Finance & Marketing Manager
King County GIS Center
Seattle, WA
URISA President
Summit Chief Editor
URISA Develops the Geospatial Management
Competency Model (GMCM) for USDOLETA
2012 GIS in Action – PLSO Conference
March 14, 2012
Portland, Oregon

2. Agenda
 Precursors: USM/NASA
 URISA’s GISCMM
 USDOLETA Geospatial Technology Competency Model
 GTCM and the Missing Tier 9 – Management Competency
 URISA Commits to Develop the GMCM:
 Washington URISA – 2011 GMCM Strawman Draft
 GIS-Pro 2011- GMCM Task Force & Work Session
 Draft GMCM :
 4 Domains, 17 Cluster Areas
 74 Competencies
 Public Review & Comment
 Final Revisions
 Publication
 What to do with the GMCM?
 Questions & Discussion

3. Why Develop a Geospatial Competency
Model?
For Business and Industry
For Workforce Investment Boards
For One-Stop Career Centers
For Economic Developers
For Educators and Training Providers
For Students
For Practitioners
To Establish the Geospatial Professional Domain,
separate from all other domains

4. Precursor: USM/NASA Geospatial
Competency Model

5. Precursor:
USM/NASA
Geospatial
Competency
Model

6. Precursor: USM/NASA Geospatial
Competency Model

7. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
The Ubiquitous Municipal GIS
 GIS has become a common component of city &
county government
 All large and most medium sized cities & counties
have established GIS operations
 Many small sized jurisdictions have a GIS
 31 of 39 Washington Counties have public web
mapping capability implying GIS operations of some
sort
 Dozens of Washington cities are known to have GIS
operations

8. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
Variations in Municipal GIS Operations
What causes variation in municipal GIS Operations?
 Each municipality is unique
 City and county business focus often varies
 Population
 Nature and level of economic development

9. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
Variations in Municipal GIS Operations
What causes variation in municipal GIS Operations?
 GIS development history and funding
 GIS operational budget and staffing
 GIS strategic plan
 Municipality’s institutional expectations
 GIS operational vision – or lack of vision?

10. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
When is GIS Development ‘Done’?
There are many ways to answer:
 With an external focus?
 Best practices
 Benchmarking
 With a theoretical focus?
 Ideal design
 Academic state of the art
 With a capability focus?
 With a maturity level focus?

11. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
What is a Capability Maturity Model?
 A tool to assess an organization’s ability to accomplish a
defined task or set of tasks
 Originated with the Software Engineering Institute
 Objective evaluation of software contractors
 SEI published Managing the Software Process 1989
 SEI CMM is process focused
 Other applications of the capability maturity model concept:
 System engineering
 Project management
 Risk management
 Information technology service providers

12. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
Why Develop a GIS Maturity Model?
To provide a means for any municipal GIS operation to gauge its
maturity against a variety of standards and/or measures,
including:
 A theoretical ideal end state of GIS organizational
development
 The maturity level of other peer GIS organizations , either
individually or in aggregate
 The maturity level of the subject organization over time
 The maturity level of the organization against an agreed
target state (perhaps set by organizational policy, budget
limitations, etc.)

13. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
A Proposed Municipal GIS Capability
Maturity Model
 Maturity for the proposed model indicates progression of an
organization towards GIS capability that maximizes:
 Potential for the use of state of the art GIS technology
 Commonly recognized quality data
 Organizational best practices appropriate for municipal business
use
 The Municipal GIS Capability Maturity Model assumes two broad
areas of GIS operational development:
 Enabling capability
 Execution ability

14. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
A Proposed Municipal GIS Capability
Maturity Model
 Enabling Capability:
 Technology
 Data
 Resources
 Infrastructure
 GIS professional staff
 Execution Ability:
 Ability of the staff to maximize use of available
capability
 Ability to execute relative to normative ideal

15. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
A Proposed Municipal GIS Capability
Maturity Model
Enabling Capability
Components:

16. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
A Proposed Municipal GIS Capability
Maturity Model
Enabling Capability Assessment Scale:

17. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
A Proposed Municipal GIS Capability
Maturity Model
Execution Ability
Components:

18. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
A Proposed Municipal GIS Capability
Maturity Model
Execution Ability Assessment Scale:

19. 2010 -URISA Commits to Develop Tier 9: The
Geospatial Management Competency Model
The GTCM is an element of the U.S. Department of
Labor Employment and Training Administration’s
(DOLETA’s) Competency Modeling Initiative
(http://www.careeronestop.org/competencymodel/).
For DOLETA, a “competency” is the capability to apply
or use a set of related knowledge, skills, and abilities
required to successfully perform “critical work
functions” or tasks.
A “competency model” is a collection of competencies
that together define successful performance (Ennis
2008).
The Competency Modeling Initiative promotes the
development of industry-driven competency models in
high-growth, high-demand industries.
DOLETA identified “geospatial technology” as a high-
growth industry in 2003.

20. GTCM and the
Missing Tier 9 –
Management
Competency
In 2010, DOLETA issued a Geospatial Technology Competency Model (GTCM)
that 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.

21. 2010 -URISA Commits to Develop Tier 9: The
Geospatial Management Competency Model
URISA GMCM Core Team:
 David DiBiase
 Patrick Kennelly
 Greg Babinski
 Coordination with USDOLETA

22. Developing The Geospatial Management
Competency Model

23. Developing The Geospatial Management
Competency Model
2011 Washington GIS Conference:
GISCMM Review - GMCM Strawman Task Force (May 2011)
Greg Babinski, GISP, King County (WA) GIS Center
Steve Beimburn, City of Seattle (WA) GIS
Don Burdick, GISP, City of Bellingham (WA) GIS
Amy Esnard, GISP, Multnomah County (OR) GIS
George Horning, King County (WA) GIS Center
Tami Griffin, Thurston County (WA) GIS
Ian Von Essen, Spokane County (WA) GIS

24. Developing The Geospatial Management
Competency Model: Strawman Draft

25. Developing The Geospatial Management
Competency Model: Strawman Draft

26. Developing The Geospatial Management
Competency Model:
2011 GIS-Pro GMCM Task Force
GMCM Task Force (November 2011 - ____ 2012)
Greg Babinski, GISP, Finance & Marketing Manager, King County GIS Center
Thomas Conry, GIS Manager, Fairfax County VA
Peter Croswell, PMP, GISP, President, Croswell-Schulte IT Consultants
David DiBiase (facilitator), GISP, CMS, Director of Education, Esri
Dianne Haley, DMH GIS Consulting
Patrick Kennelly, Associate Professor of Geography, Long Island University and
Penn State University
Twyla McDermott, Corporate Strategic Technology Planning Manager, City of
Charlotte NC
Robert Ryan, CP, PLS, URS Corporation
Rebecca Somers, President, Somers-St. Claire GIS Management Consultants
Bruce Stauffer, Vice President, geographIT
Dr. Chin-hong Sun, Professor of Geography, National Taiwan University

27. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
A Challenge:
 Competency Domains n=4
 Competency Clusters n=17
 Competencies: n=74

28. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
Competency Domains n=4
Based on Hays Group
Management Model
 Manage yourself
 Manage your team
 Manage collaborations
 Manage the work
Competency Clusters n=17
A. Self-Management
B. Human Resource Management
C. Performance management
D. Legal Affairs Management
E. Communication
F. Team Management
G. Relationship Management
H. Business Development
I. Leadership
J. Professional Development
K. Strategic Planning and Action
L. Work Management
M. Geospatial Project Management
N. Political Skills
O. Contract Management
P. Financial Management
Q. Asset Management

29. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
Competencies n=74
Competencies The following list represents the GMCM Task Force’s consensus (i.e., 80
percent agreement) about the minimum number of critical work functions that most
geospatial managers need to be able to perform. The sequence corresponds roughly to the
order of competency areas expect that recurring competencies are listed only once.
1. Keep up with technology trends
2. Keep abreast of developments that affect your organization
3. Apply sound decision making practices
4. Assess and improve your skills and performance regularly
5. Develop a geospatial staffing plan to meet business needs
6. Recruit and hire competent geospatial and support staff
7. Define geospatial work functions and assign appropriate staff
8. Establish clear performance expectations
9. Emphasize accountability
10. Acknowledge and encourage exceptional achievement
11. Remediate performance shortfalls effectively
12. Avoid conflicts of interest—actual and apparent

30. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
13. Comply with all relevant laws and regulations
14. Follow relevant professional codes of ethics
15. Communicate effectively in all forms, formats, and media
16. Communicate effectively to all sizes and types of audiences
17. Communicate the value of geospatial technology to decision makers and
stakeholders
18. Foster an environment conducive to teamwork
19. Assemble, charge, and enable effective work teams
20. Help resolve conflicts among team members
21. Develop and maintain long-term client relationships
22. Develop collaborative relationships within the organization
23. Build relationships with other organizations to promote mutually
advantageous partnerships and best practices
24. Maintain productive relationships with vendors
25. Identify business opportunities
26. Evaluate risk of new ventures

31. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
27. Assess competition
28. Conduct client-focused needs evaluation
29. Develop business case and plan for developing and marketing new ventures
30. Develop and maintain strategic partnerships
31. Develop, promote, and protect the organization’s brand
32. Lead creative thinking about geospatial technology opportunities
33. Articulate a geospatial technology vision for the organization
34. Communicate geospatial program goals to stakeholders
35. Build consensus
36. Foster a culture of employee-driven process improvement
37. Mentor staff and colleagues
38. Prepare and implement a geospatial staff competency plan
39. Provide opportunities for continuing professional development
40. Encourage contributions to the profession
41. Develop a strategic plan with measureable goals and specific actions
42. Implement a strategic planning cycle
43. Align geospatial activities to support the organization’s strategic plan

32. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
44. Adjust the plan in response to changing environment
45. Apply QA/QC best practices
46. Monitor stakeholder satisfaction
47. Improve efficiency
48. Adopt a customer service orientation
49. Apply project management knowledge and best practices
50. Understand and apply the geospatial technology components of projects (as
outlined in the Department of Labor’s Geospatial Technology Competency Model)
to accurately establish scope, resources, schedule and quality requirements for
project success
51. Identify collaborative opportunities to achieve project goals
52. Manage a portfolio of projects effectively
53. Cooperate within political and professional organizations
54. Pursue goals tactfully in context of particular organizational cultures and
governance structures
55. Identify potential political champions and engage their support
56. Honor jurisdictional responsibilities

33. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
57. Implement policies that respect the purpose and role of public, private,
nonprofit, and academic organizations in the marketplace
58. Prepare, negotiate, monitor, administer, and remediate contracts
59. Prepare Statements of Work (SOW) defining project objectives and
requirements
60. Prepare competitive solicitations including project rationale and objectives,
existing geospatial technology assets, desired services, and final deliverables
61. Prepare proposals including understanding of need, technical approach and
proposed technology, final deliverables, schedule, budget, and relevant
qualifications
62. Prepare objective selection criteria and scoring mechanism to fairly evaluate
proposals
63. Develop service level agreements
64. Prepare and document budgets
65. Manage expenditures and income
66. Identify funding sources and obtain funding, including collaborative
opportunities
67. Develop and manage a long term financial plan

34. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
68. Conduct regular financial analyses
69. Implement standard financial accounting procedures and controls
70. Assure accountability by periodic independent audits
71. Understand enterprise geospatial architecture
72. Ensure that geospatial technology infrastructure meets organization needs
73. Recognize geospatial data as a capital asset
74. Manage the asset lifecycle:
a. Establish and maintain an up-to-date asset inventory
b. Procure and upgrade assets
c. Implement and periodically audit security procedures for assets such as
work spaces, equipment, computer networks, data, and software
d. Implement computer system back-ups and periodically test reliability of
backup procedures
e. Implement sound data management procedures

35. The Geospatial Management Competency Model
Next Steps
Public review and comment period through March 31, 2012 –
See: http://www.urisa.org/gmcm_review
URISA GMCM will then review all comments, agree on
consensus changes to the GMCM, then submit to
USDOLETA
USDOLETA will then review the draft GMCM for formal
publication
URISA will then go back to the GISCMM and consider
changes to align with the GISCMM

36. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
References and Additional Reading
Capability Maturity Model, Wikepedia Article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capability_Maturity_Model Accessed 8/3/2009).
Selena Rezvani, M.S.W., An Introduction to Organizational Maturity Assessment: Measuring
Organizational Capabilities, International Public Management Association Assessment
Council, ND.
Jerry Simonoff, Director, IT Investment & Enterprise Solutions, Improving IT investment
Management in the Commonwealth, Virginia Information Technology Agency, 2008.
Curtis, B., Hefley, W. E., and Miller, S. A.; People Capability Maturity Model (P-CMM),
Software Engineering Institute, 2001.
Niessink, F., Clerca, V., Tijdinka, T., and van Vlietb, H., The IT Service Capability Maturity
Model, CIBIT Consultants | Educators, 2005
Ford-Bey, M., PA Consulting Group, Proving the Business Benefits of GeoWeb Initiatives: An
ROI-Driven Approach, GeoWeb Conference, 2008.
Niessink, F. and van Vliet, H., Towards Mature IT Services, Faculty of Mathematics and
Computer Science, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, ND.
Gaudet, C., Annulis, H., and Carr, J., Workforce Development Models for Geospatial
Technology, University of Southern Mississippi, 2001.

37. Municipal GIS Capability Maturity
Model
References and Additional Reading
Additional Resources
Babinski, G. (2010-11). URISA Proposes GIS Capability Maturity Model. ArcNews, Winter
2010/11. http://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/winter1011articles/urisa-proposes.html
Croswell, P. (2009). The GIS Management Handbook: Concepts, Practices, and Tools for
Planning, Implementing, and Managing Geographic Information System Projects and
Programs. Kessey Dweitt Publications.
DiBiase, D., T. Corbin, T. Fox, J. Francica, K. Green, J. Jackson, G. Jeffress, B. Jones, B. Jones,
J. Mennis, K. Schuckman, C. Smith, and J. Van Sickle (2010). The New Geospatial Technology
Competency Model: Bringing Workforce Needs into Focus. URISA Journal 22:2, 55-72.
psu.edu/files/sites/file/DiBiase_etal_2010_GTCM_URISA_Journal.pdf
Ennis, M. R. (2008). Competency Models: A Review of the Literature and the Role of the
Employment and Training Administration (ETA).
http://www.careeronestop.org/COMPETENCYMODEL/info_documents/OPDRLiteratureRevi
ew.pdf.
HayGroup (2001). The Manager Competency Model. http://www.professionallearning.
com/MCPBriefGuide.pdf
PDRI, Inc., and Aguirre International (2005). Technical Assistance Guide for Development
and Using Competency Models—One Solution for a Demand-Driven Workforce System.
http://www.careeronestop.org/competencymodel/Info_Documents/TAG.pdf.
U.S. Office of Personnel Management (2011). Competency Model for IT Program
Management.
http://www.chcoc.gov/transmittals/TransmittalDetails.aspx?TransmittalID=4058

38. Greg Babinski, MA, GISP
URISA President-Elect
SUMMIT Chief Editor
Finance & Marketing Manager
King County GIS Center
201 South Jackson Street, Suite 706
Seattle, WA 98104
206-263-3753
greg.babinski@kingcounty.gov
www.kingcounty.gov/gis