A general model for competency repositories and its instantiation to the information systems domain

Abstract Competency repositories have been developed for several years with various objectives: helping to establish competency assessments, helping with recruitment, helping to build training. A repository can bring together the descriptions of several hundred competencies. However, few studies have focused on the structuring of a competency repository. In this paper, the authors propose a general model for a competency repository based on 5 principles. Two of them consist in using a composition relationship to define competencies at several levels of abstraction and a prerequisite relationship to establish prerequisites between competencies. To illustrate the model, an application in the domain of information systems design and implementation is fully developed. The proposed repository, in addition to a new structure, incorporates new competencies compared to existing IS repositories, in particular with regard to strategic management of the IS, development methodologies and techniques, interpersonal competencies, prerequisites coming from basic disciplines. This repository aims primarily to help the organization of academic and professional training and to allow the assessment of personal competencies. This initiative comes from the French network of MIAGE (Méthodes Informatiques Appliquées à la Gestion des Entreprises) masters.


Introduction
The usefulness of a competency-based approach is now well recognized both in the professional world to characterize activities and help recruiting, and in the academic world to characterize educational objectives and help organizing training. The term competency refers to a complex concept covering different points of view and whose precise definition remains controversial. Recall that the most common acceptance distinguishes three inseparable components in a competency: knowledge, know-how, interpersonal competency. Furthermore, a competency can only be understood in relation to the context in which it is considered. In the professional world, it is know-how and interpersonal competencies that are highlighted while academics focus primarily on knowledge and reasoning.
Competency repositories have been developed in various domains. A repository can be structured in different ways. A structure can be characterized by three main criteria: i) the way in which competencies are divided into groups and possibly sub-groups; ii) the way in which the links between competencies are expressed within a group or between groups; iii) the level of detail with which competencies are expressed. It is clear that the more detailed the competencies are, the greater the volume of specifications is and the greater the need for adequate structuring is.
The structuring directly impacts the ease of use of the repository.
There are currently no explicit recommendations for structuring a competency repository. Several repositories have been published and each one has an ad-hoc structure. It is therefore difficult to compare and evaluate the existing repositories in a given domain. In particular in the domain of computing and information systems, various repositories have been proposed. They differ not only in structure but also in content. Choosing one of them or acquiring an overview to better understand the domain is a difficult task.
This work is an attempt to improve the situation. It has two complementary objectives.
The first objective is to propose a standard model for structuring a competency repository. This model must be general so that it can be applied to any domain. It must be able to be used by different types of users: designers to help with the initial construction of the repository and its modifications, trainers to help with the design of curricula and courses in the domain, human resources managers to help recruit and develop skills, employees to formalize their competencies and choose personal development paths, students to understand and choose a future curriculum. The difficulty here is to imagine a model that can be adapted to any domain and that can be used in an intuitive way by the different kinds of users.
The second objective is to propose an instantiation of this model to the domain of design and implementation of information systems, in other words to develop a repository of the domain respecting the model. For this domain, there is no overall vision of the repositories that have been proposed. Also, through this instantiation, it is shown that it is possible to incorporate proposals coming from different sources. The difficulty here is threefold: bringing together and correctly positioning competencies that can be expressed in different terms at different levels of abstraction; ensure strong consistency with business activities; ensure a good coverage of the domain.
The rest of the paper is organized around four main sections. A state of the art is first proposed to identify different forms which have been used for structuring a competency repository. Our general model for constructing a competency repository is then explained. This model is then used to structure a competency repository in the domain of information systems design and implementation. Finally, a discussion section positions the contributions of our proposals.

State of the art
The structuring of three competency repositories in the field of information systems is first studied. However, competencies are generally derived from typical activities of the domain and it is useful to also focus on the structuring of trade repositories. Finally, some works, that have addressed the study of relationships between competencies, are mentioned.
Facilitate, Manage). Each competency is defined globally by general activities denominated through action verbs. Five competency levels are considered. Each competency is associated with examples of know-how and knowledge. The e-CF does not include any explicit interpersonal competencies. It has a fairly general aim. It can be used both to characterize business activities and training objectives.
The MSIS repository, which is more precisely titled "Global Competency Model for Graduate Degree Programs in Information Systems", was developed under the aegis of the Association for Information Systems (AIS) and the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). It was specifically designed for a Master degree in information systems. It covers the topics of information technology and information systems management. It is divided into five main sectors: Pre-Master Competencies; Information Systems Competencies; Domain Competencies such as management, law, health; Specialized Competencies and Individual Foundational Competencies. The Information Systems Competencies sector is itself divided into nine areas, one relating to ethics and sustainability issues and another relating to innovation and entrepreneurship. In each of these areas, competencies are specified at two levels of abstraction: the first level for categories and the second level for examples. Each of these levels is described with sentences using action verbs (in the infinitive for categories, in the present imperative for examples) and represent an activity.
The SFIA repository, in version 7, focuses on information and communication technologies, digital transformations and software engineering. It describes 95 professional competencies, which are organized into 6 categories and 17 sub-categories. Each competency is defined in the form of responsibility levels (up to seven levels are possible). These levels are characterized by five attributes (Autonomy, Influence, Complexity, Knowledge and Business Competencies).
It appears that the organization of these three repositories is presented in an ad-hoc hierarchical form. This hierarchy implicitly underlies a composition.
The "Competency Working Group" of the French MIAGE network has also elaborated a version V0 for a competency repository in the domain of information systems. Its objective is to offer a competencies booklet to streamline the development of training. This booklet has also an adhoc hierarchical organization. It is in the form of teaching topics (TT) which are organized into 6 areas. Each topic is divided into LU (Learning Unit) and each LU is characterized by a set of ELO (Expected Learning Outcomes). An ELO specifies the objectives to be achieved through action verbs using the BLOOM classification (Bloom, 1956;Churches, 2008). ELO are then distributed according to a three-level classification. Each MIAGE Master training can be positioned in relation to this booklet to identify any adaptation to be made in order to meet the trade needs.

Trade repositories in the IS domain
Many organizations have developed repositories to describe the objectives of trades related to information systems and the corresponding activities. At the European level, CEN has proposed a repository for trades and more recently a repository for roles (Cen, 2018). A role is a coherent set of activities. A role can be part of a trade. In France, the CIGREF (Club Informatique des Grandes Entreprises Françaises) repository (Cigref, 2018) is the best known and most often referenced. Other French organizations have also published professional repositories in the information systems domain, notably the OPIIEC (Observatoire Paritaire des métiers de l'Informatique, de l'Ingénierie, des Études et du Conseil; Opiiec, 2018) and the ANAP (Agence Nationale d'Appui à la Performance; Anap, 2020). The ANAP repository is targeted at health information systems. All these repositories have roughly the same sections for each profession: mission, typical activities, expected competencies, required training, deliverables and potential developments.
These repositories organize trades into families. Thus, the CEN repository is organized into 7 families and that of CIGREF into 9 families. In both cases, these families correspond roughly to a breakdown of activities into major processes. This type of organization can be a way to organize a competency repository.
The O*NET database (O*NET On Line, 2020) is an important initiative that brings together more than 1,000 trades covering the entire US economy. For each trade, it provides information on the following attributes: Tasks, Technology competencies, Knowledge, Competencies, Abilities, Work activities, Detailed work activities, Work context, Job zone, Education. ICT and information systems professions are well represented.

Competency repositories in other domains
Competency repositories have been proposed in different domains. The health sector is very active (Embo et al., 2015;Sastre-Fullana et al., 2014;Vandeweerd et al., 2014;Whitehead & Kuper, 2015). In a same domain, particularly in the medical domain, propositions can be multiple, overlapping, and heterogeneous. The idea of reconciling points of view is now often expressed.

Conceptual models of competencies relationships
Several works have been interested in the conceptual modeling of competencies with various objectives. For example, in (Schmidt & Kunzmann, 2006) and (Paquette, 2007), ontologies are proposed, one for human resource management and the other to support e-learning systems. Relationships between competencies have been highlighted, particularly prerequisite, composition and subsumption relationships.
Either composition or subsumption relationships can be useful for organizing a competency repository by showing competencies at multiple levels of abstraction in hierarchical form.
We propose to use the composition relation to remain consistent with the implicit structuring of existing repositories in the IS domain. The novelty we introduce is that all hierarchical levels are expressed in a uniform way. We associate it with the prerequisite relationship. These two relationships constitute two of the principles of our proposal which also includes three other principles. These five principles are explained in the next section.

A general model
In this section, the 5 principles that we recommend to guide the structuring of a competency repository are first presented. Then, a conceptual model compatible with these principles is proposed.

Principle 1: Identification of competencies from trade activities
An activity in a trade implies a competency for its good realization. This competency must then be characterized. It is generally a know-how. It can also be knowledge or interpersonal competencies. The context can be specified if necessary. It is important to note that, from the same activity, one or more know-how, knowledge and interpersonal competencies can be extracted simultaneously. It depends on the context in which this activity is expressed. Consider, for example, the "Analysing Needs" activity that can be found in the description of the business analyst job. This sentence induces a know-how which is associated with knowledge (knows the procedures to analyze needs, knows the different types of needs) and interpersonal competencies (has the qualities to dialogue with users, to lead a meeting, to write a report). The attitude of analyzing business activities to elicit competencies is natural and therefore general. The main problem is to select and organize them. Principles 2 to 5 defined below contribute to this essential task.

Principle 2: Hierarchical organization by a composition relationship
The composition relationship is proposed to organize competencies at different levels of abstraction. The semantic interpretation of a composite competency is then obtained from its component competencies. This relationship induces a hierarchy insofar as a component competency can itself be the subject of a composition. However, we impose a weak unshared composition to mean that the deletion of a composite does not entail that of its components and that a component is linked to only one composite. It can be considered that this relation introduces a kind of semantic map.
The proposed hierarchical organization is composed of four levels: general, main, specific, elementary.
The general level corresponds to very broad competencies for the domain (this level, for example, correspond to the main types of activity for the e-CF repository). The main level corresponds to the major competencies of the repository (this level could for example, correspond to the 40 competencies of the e-CF repository). The specific level corresponds to an interpretation of the main level. The elementary level corresponds to the lowest level. The word elementary is used here to mean that it is no longer useful to decompose again. As it will be illustrated later, a specification at the elementary level contains all the ingredients to characterize the underlying learnings and their assessments.
The general, main and elementary levels are mandatory. The specific level is optional. Indeed, in some cases, the number of elementary competencies for a main competency may not be very large and the introduction of specific competencies is not necessary for the interpretation of the main competency.
This composition relationship and the resulting hierarchical organization are important for assessing the achievement of objectives. At the elementary level, the specification must make it possible to deduce unequivocally the test or tests to be performed (with the learner or with a candidate to a job) to assess the satisfaction of the competency.

Principle 3: Expression of the ability level by the use of action verbs respecting the BLOOM classification
The notion of LO (Learning Outcome) or ELO (Expected Learning Outcome) has been widely explored to describe training objectives, competencies and results. Universities, especially North American universities, have become accustomed to characterizing their training by LO which can be placed at the level of a course or at the level of a module. The ACM also defines its curricula using LO (Acm, 2016).
An effective solution for specifying LO is to use the classification of BLOOM and its associated action verbs (Bloom, 1956;Churches, 2008). Recall that the original BLOOM classification distinguishes six cognitive levels ranging from memorization to synthesis. This initial classification was the subject of several variants. Various studies have worked on how to express LO from action verbs corresponding to the BLOOM classification (Kennedy, 2006;Osters & Tiu, 2008). A LO normally includes the following elements: an action verb, the object and conditions of this action, an element to allow the assessment of the ability to perform this action.
With action verbs respecting the BLOOM classification, it is possible to express levels of ability to be achieved for know-how, knowledge and interpersonal competencies. Here are some examples: -"Collecting the needs": know-how at ability level 3, assessed through observations in real or simulated conditions; -"Describing the different types of needs": knowledge at ability level 1, assessed by oral or written tests; -"Communicating in a professional environment": interpersonal competency at ability level 3, assessed through observations in real or simulated conditions. In the three cases, the context is implicitly the company information system and the parties concerned are the users of the system.
We propose to extend the use of action verbs respecting the BLOOM classification to characterize the competencies of the four levels (general, main, specific, elementary).
It is clear that the verbs used in the different levels of a hierarchy must be specified consistently: the competency level of a compound competency must be in coherence with the levels of its component competencies.
It is important to note that action verbs respecting the BLOOM classification correspond to action verbs of the cognitive type. Affective or psychomotor action verbs have also been proposed and can be used as far as an assessment is possible (De Landsheere, 2014).

Principle 4: Choice of general competencies
General competencies constitute the roots of the hierarchical organization and will directly condition the structure of the repository. They should therefore be chosen with care according to the objectives sought. This choice obviously depends on the domain covered, which must be defined beforehand. Many approaches can be considered to guide this choice: respecting the major processes that govern the domain, following trade classes in the domain, using cognitive classes (case of the e-CF repository), reusing the division of the domain into sectors of training.
This notion of general competency must be compared with the notion of block of competencies. In the French context, training and certification bodies are strongly encouraged to define blocks of competencies. In the labor code, a block of competencies is defined as a "homogeneous and coherent set of competencies contributing to the independent exercise of a professional activity and which can be assessed and validated". It is the respect of principles 2 and 3 which makes it possible to guarantee that a general competency can be considered as a block of competencies.
One wonders if more restrictive properties should be assigned to these blocks (and therefore to general competencies). For example, a form of semantic independence between blocks could make it easier to read, delete and add competencies to the repository. The use of a weak nonshared composition to organize hierarchy goes in the direction of this semantic independence.
Two different types of general competencies may be needed: superior competencies which are in direct correspondence with the activities of the trades in the domain; primary competencies which serve as support for the previous ones. These are necessary to acquire superior competencies, but they are not necessarily specified through an activity of a trade.

Principle 5: Explicit representation of prerequisites
In a competency repository covering a wide area, there are generally prerequisites between competencies. It is important to explain the most significant prerequisites. They will be very useful, for example, to an employee who would like to master a given competency; its prerequisites indicate the most efficient way to that aim, given the competencies already acquired. They will also be useful for a training manager who would like to design training that must include some competencies; the prerequisites help him to elaborate a complete and coherent set of training actions.
We wish to give flexibility to this relation. First, some prerequisites are obvious and there is no need to explain them. In addition, the number of competencies being able to be high, in particular at the elementary level, it would be tedious to make a complete explanation of it. Therefore, explicit prerequisites are defined only between the competencies of the first three levels (general, main, specific). It appears through the instantiation proposed in section 4 that the specific level is the most appropriate target to express the prerequisites.
To allow instantiation of the prerequisites, it will be necessary to identify the competencies with labels.

The conceptual model
The conceptual model which is based on the principles discussed above is presented in Figure 1 in the form of a UML diagram. The 4 competency levels are modeled by 4 separate classes which are each a specialization of the COMPETENCY class. The "specification" attribute in this class is formulated in accordance with principle 3. The "label" attribute is used to identify each instance and to install the prerequisites. The associations between classes materialize the composition relationship and prerequisite relationship. The DOMAIN class is used to characterize the domain. A general competency can be associated to several domains. It is thus possible to implement shared competency blocks. For example, as it is pointed later, the "Assessing and improving interpersonal competencies" block can be shared between several domains.

Instantiation to the information systems domain
In this section, the model defined above is used to structure a competency repository in the domain of information systems design and implementation. It is possible to name the domain by a high level competency specified as "Designing and implementing information systems".
This competency repository is a priori oriented towards Master training: most of the competencies are those that a Master graduate should assess from his/her training. But this repository must also be able to allow a professional to position his competencies and determine ways of progression. Our purpose is to cover all the competencies in the domain and thus objectify all the variants of Master training in the domain.
The proposed repository, in addition to a novel structuration, incorporates topics which are not specified in existing repositories: concrete approaches for strategic alignment of IS, complete vision on methods and techniques for designing and implementing software, prerequisites in basic disciplines (computer science, management science, discrete mathematics), interpersonal competencies. The 10 general competencies that we have chosen are first presented. Then, the full hierarchy for two of these competencies are explained.

The 10 general competencies
In accordance with principle 4, we suggest to separate the general competencies into two parts: the superior competencies which report directly on the trades activities in the IS domain and the primary competencies which serve as a basis for the previous ones. We propose five superior general competencies and five primary competencies. An outlook is given on each one: the main topics, the actors and trades which are involved, the main prerequisites, and the correspondences, when they exist, with the e-CF and the MSIS repositories. The prerequisite can be used to organize the training chronology. In addition, a training is not intended to integrate all the competencies of the repository. There is therefore a certain flexibility to compose an academic or a professional course from the repository.
The five general superior competencies correspond to a breakdown of the IS domain into major processes (Table 1) relative respectively to strategic management (PS), operational management (PO), design and implementation of computer applications (CD), control of IT infrastructure (FO), implementation of an IS in a specific sector (SS).
The PS competency corresponds to the strategic steering activities of the IS which are carried out in close association by actors of general management, business lines and IT department. It mainly concerns the elaboration of a map of the existing IS at all levels (business processes, functions, applications, infrastructures), the detection and the characterization of problems or any wish for change and evolution, the choice of a solution, the initialization of the implementation of this solution through a strategic project. This block covers and extends competencies A1, A3, A4,

SS-Implementing an information system in a specific sector
Main topics identifying the entities of the sector, identifying the main processes, describing the main solutions to support the automation of these processes, identifying the typical decision models for the sector, designing and implementing specific solutions Actors all the actors of the other four blocks Prerequisites to all other 9 blocks D10, E1, E2, E3, E5, E7 of the e-CF. There are correspondences with the "Enterprise Architecture", "IS Strategy and Governance" and "Business Continuity and Information Assurance" areas of the MSIS repository.
The PO competency corresponds to operational steering activities which are mainly carried out by actors of the Information Systems Department: determining solutions for the evolution of applications and infrastructures, managing project, managing quality and security, managing resource. This block corresponds to competencies D1, D2, D8, E2, E6, E7, E8, E9 of e-CF. There are connections with the MSIS repository for project management, quality, security, IS management.
The CD competency refers to all activities related to the design and production of IT solutions. It also relates to know-how for the implementation of specific systems and applications relating to decision-making, multimedia and mobility. The prerequisites come from competencies inside this block or inside blocks I, M, G. Correspondences exist with competencies B1 to B6, A6 and D11 of the e-CF. This block also corresponds to the "System Development and Deployment" area of the MSIS repository.
The FO competency brings together the activities which ensure the proper functioning of the hardware and software infrastructures and which implement the changes decided at the PS and/or PO level. The prerequisites are mainly in computer science. In the e-CF, it exists a correspondence with D10. There are correspondences with the MSIS repository for all the competencies in this block.
The SS competency corresponds to the implementation of an IS in a specific sector. Certain sectors, such as health for example, indeed require adapted approaches. A main competency is introduced for each sector. For example, in the health sector, competencies are essentially about knowing the structure and functioning of the health system and identifying the potentials that a digital information system can provide. Other sectors can be considered: finance, transport and distribution, tourism and leisure, telecommunications, public sector and e-government. The MSIS repository expresses competencies for several specific sectors. Some actors are concerned by several blocks. It is so interesting to cross trades and competencies as it is done for the profiles of the CEN (Cen, 2018).
These 5 general superior competencies are mainly found at levels 3, 4, 5 of the BLOOM classification. Remember that we are aiming for a level of ability corresponding to an early career in the various trades of the domain.
The five general primary competencies (Table 2) correspond globally to training disciplines, and refer respectively to computer science (I), management science (G), discrete mathematics (M), interpersonal competencies (CP), innovation and entrepreneurship (IE). I, G, M bring together knowledge and know-how of the basic disciplines which are useful or necessary for the acquisition of superior competencies. They are located at levels 2, 3, 4 of the BLOOM classification. CP brings together the interpersonal competencies required for the activities of trades in the domain. These competencies are broad and the prerequisite relationship makes it possible to specify those which relate more specifically to each case.
The I competency aims at a deep knowledge of the foundations of IT and its foreseeable evolution, the aptitude to develop software in any type of language, the aptitude to install and operate the different computer systems which a company can use to support its information system. A good mastery of these competencies is necessary for the five superior general competencies and more particularly for the CD and FO competencies. The e-CF does not structure this type of competencies. It includes references to data management and programming. The MSIS repository structures competencies relating to data management, the management of IT systems and networks, the management of IT security and risks.
The G competency is about understanding the models, reasoning and tools used by business managers. This block mainly brings together knowledge relating to the economic and legal environment of companies, the business strategy, business processes, the operation of the different units, the the control via accounting mechanisms. It also includes know-how relating to internal audit. This knowledge and know-how are essential for the proper implementation of activities in the PS, PO, CD blocks. The e-CF and MSIS repositories do not directly structure competencies about these topics. The e-CF repository, on the other hand, defines competencies relating to the functions of buying and selling products and services in the IS domain (D4, D5, D6, D7).
The M competency aims, on the one hand, at understanding the main theories of discrete mathematics and artificial intelligence, their constraints and limits, and, on the other hand, the ability to reuse and improve algorithms for analysis and optimization through languages and software packages. These competencies are useful and necessary for data processing, development of assessment models and decision support at the level of PS, PO, CD blocks. This type of competencies is partially expressed in the MSIS standard.

I-Choosing and using computer science models, methods and techniques
Main topics mastering different types of programming, using tools for helping development, mastering design and management of structured and unstructured data, mastering computer systems and networks, using IoT, using web services, implementing security and cyber security techniques

G-Analyzing company operation and its interactions with its environment
Main topics analyzing the economic and legal environment of a company, analyzing the strategy of a company, analyzing the social organization of a company, analyzing the role of accounting tools to control and evaluate the activities of a company, characterizing the functional areas of a company and the main IT solutions supporting them, analyzing the internal audit procedure M-Implementing mathematical models to evaluate or optimize a product, a process, a service Main topics using graph theory to model and optimize, using PETRI nets, using models and reasoning of logic, using techniques of statistics and data analysis, using data mining algorithms, using models and reasoning of artificial intelligence, using tools of operational research

CP-Assessing and improving interpersonal competencies
Main topics identifying the variety of interpersonal competencies, defining and characterizing main interpersonal competencies for the IS domain, evaluating and improving your interpersonal competencies, preparing your professional career

IE-Developing innovation, research and entrepreneurship projects
Main topics performing a scientific and technology watch, developing an innovation project, developing an R&D project, developing an entrepreneurship project The CP competency brings together interpersonal competencies. Many interpersonal competencies have been characterized and classified (Bonnstetter & Brooks, 2003;Oecd, 2014;Scouarnec et al., 2019). The objective here is to specify those which relate more specifically to the trades in the domain. For each of them, it is a question of understanding its effects, having its level of ability assessed or self-assessed, identifying ways of improvement and implementing them. The prerequisites, established in the other blocks, make it possible to specify the interpersonal competencies which are more especially expected to carry out a particular activity. This block also offers competencies to strengthen his professionalism and manage his professional career. Interpersonal competencies are not explicitly present in the e-CF. Some are developed in the MSIS repository. The FNEGE framework (Scouarnec et al., 2019), positioned on general management and business management, is organized around this type of competencies.
The IE competency brings together competencies relating to technology watch, innovation, R&D, entrepreneurship. The IS domain is very favorable for the development of new scientific and technological advances and the acquisition of this type of competencies should be recommended. The e-CF repository incorporates a technology watch competency (A7) and an innovation competency (A9). The MSIS repository includes competencies relating to innovation and entrepreneurship.
These primary competencies can be considered as global prerequisites. They could be the subject of a pre-master training. But it is not necessary to acquire all primary competencies before superior ones. Some may correspond to advanced topics whose mastery may be deferred and acquiring through specialized trainings.
Blocks associated with these primary competencies are good candidates for sharing across multiple domains. In particular, the CP and IE blocks can be fully shared with any domain. The other blocks can be shared partially or completely with domains where engineering is predominant.
In the following two subsections are presented the complete hierarchies of the two blocks PS and CP corresponding respectively to a superior general competency and to a primary general competency. The complete repository can be viewed from the URL: http://miage.univ-lyon1.fr/ referentiel-anglais/. Out of all the 10 general competencies, the repository includes around 60 main competencies, 140 specific competencies, 800 elementary competencies.

The complete hierarchy of the bloc PS "managing the information system at the strategic level"
The complete hierarchy of the PS block is presented in Table 3 with its 3 levels: main, specific, elementary. The main competencies correspond to the main themes which have already been presented in Table 1. They are identified by labels of 3 alphabetic characters. The order of presentation is irrelevant. The specific competencies correspond to a semantic refinement of each main competency. They are identified by an alphabetical character (a or b or c . . .) in the order of their presentation. Here again, the order of presentation is irrelevant. But, to facilitate reading, a logical order can be respected. For example, for the main competency Fes, the specific competencies are presented in the logical order of the steps that are necessary to deal with a strategic evolution. The main competency Oes is composed at the specific level of independent alternatives and here the order of presentation has no meaning. Elementary competencies correspond to the last level of refinement. Remember that at this level the specification must not leave any ambiguity; in other words, any academic or professional tutor must be able from this specification to deduce a sequence of training activities to acquire the competency and assess its acquisition. This point will be illustrated in the next section.
When there are many elementary competencies for a same main competency, specific competencies are needed to group and facilitate semantic interpretation. If these elementary Table 3. The hierarchy for "Managing the information system at the strategic level"

• Explaining the interest of a map for IS
• Explaining the different views / layers to represent a map for IS • Comparing different formalisms for representing a map for IS • Collecting the elements participating in a map for IS • Elaborating a map for an IS using a software tool • Updating a map after each evolution while keeping the traceability information

Gdd-Organizing data governance
• Identifying the role of data in the digital transformation of company • Identifying the roles and responsibilities of the actors involved in data governance • Analyzing the impact of law or regulation relating to data • Explaining data governance procedures • Explaining the concept of enterprise data repository and metadata • Using a data repository management tool I-Bdd CP-adj competencies are few in number (this is the case, for example, for the competency "Car-Elaborating a global IS map"), it is not useful to introduce specific competencies. This is why, in our model, the specific level is optional.
The prerequisites are installed using the labels assigned to the various competencies. In this hierarchy, prerequisites are introduced only at the specific level. This is the position where they are most relevant. But, it is possible to install them at all levels, including elementary level. Elementary competencies should then be labeled as well. Regarding the general competency PS presented in this section, the activities take place in a context that is close to the strategic directions of the company and the prerequisites towards the components of the general primary competencies G are useful, even necessary. Prerequisites to components of CP are also necessary.
The hierarchies associated with the 9 other general competencies are developed according to the same principles.

The complete hierarchy of the bloc CP "assessing and improving interpersonal competencies"
This hierarchy (Table 4) is organized in a similar way to that of the PS block in subsection 4.2. For the competencies in this block, there are no significant prerequisites and the corresponding column has been deleted. The main competencies are oriented on i) the identification and understanding of the classifications that have been proposed to identify intrapersonal competencies, ii) the definition and characterization of the 10 intrapersonal competencies that are more particularly sought after in the field of information systems, iii) the evaluation of an intrapersonal competence and the implementation of solutions to improve it. Each intrapersonal competency considered is at the specific level. The associated elementary competencies aim to define it, to locate its challenges, to explain the ways of exploiting it. Many authors have been interested in the characterization and classification of intrapersonal competencies in a targeted or general way. The proposals of (Penzenstadler et al., 2009), (Heckman & Kautz, 2012), (Lent & Pinkowska, 2012) are the more prominent. Their work can help feed the elementary level. The teaching and assessment of intrapersonal competencies pose specific problems that have been widely explored (Kechagias, 2011), (Gibb, 2014), (Ingols & Shapiro, 2014), (Rasipuram & Jayagopi, 2020), (Kantrowitz, 2005). This type of work is an appropriate source to develop the elementary level of the specific competence "Evaluating and improving your interpersonal competencies".
As it was already pointed out, this block is a good candidate for sharing between several domains. Moreover, it is easy to introduce other competencies to adapt it to a particular context.
The competencies of this block are prerequisites for most of the competencies of the superior blocks and particularly for the PS block.

From elementary competencies to teaching activities and asssessments
In this section, it is shown how teaching activities and assessments can be deduced from elementary competencies. Remember that an elementary competency is not intended to be broken down. Through its specification, any industrial or academic tutor must be able to interpret without ambiguity the knowledge, know-how and interpersonal competencies that it covers. In particular, he/she may deduct the teaching activities to be implemented in order to acquire the competency and the assessments to be carried out to verify that the competency is well mastered.
In fact, an elementary competency can be more or less complex. It can underlie only one type of training action or several. A simple case and a complex case are analysed below.

Case of a simple elementary competency
This is the case, for example, for the elementary competency "Explaining the interest of a map for IS" (cf., Table 3 part 1). For this competency, the training activity corresponds to the acquisition of

Case of a complex elementary competency
For illustrating, we consider below the elementary competency "Installing a DBMS" which is a component of the specific competency "Administrating DBMS and databases" of the main competency "Managing data" in the FO block. For a tutor, this specification is not ambiguous. But, it underlies several types of training actions that are illustrated in Table 5. Assessments can be easily deduced. There is a wide variety of tools for performing assessments: MCQ, exercises, analysis report of a case, analysis report about an experimentation, observation in simulated conditions, etc. In a professional context, the work of (Ferns & Moore, 2012) distinguishes eight categories of assessments. The choice of a category depends primarily on the type of the underlying activity but also on the objective and context of the training, the audience, the training mode (face-to-face or distance).
It is possible to suggest a general process to elaborate teaching activities relative to an elementary competency which consists to make an operation: i) Explaining the concepts relating to the operation to be performed; ii) Explaining the process for implementing the operation to be carried out and its usual variants; iii) Illustrating/demonstrating of the implementation of the operation in the most typical situations; iv) Asking the apprentice to do the operation; v) Making additional comments to explain the different situations and constraints which can be encountered.
Regarding the assessment, steps i), ii), iii) and v) can be the subject of multiple choice questions or open questions or exercises. Stage iv) can be the subject of a report by the apprentice (case of a report for a practical work at the university for example) and of an observation report of the apprentice behavior by the tutor. This observation report is a very useful element for the apprentice to enable him to position himself and to take improvement actions. In particular, when it comes to assessing an interpersonal competence, an observation report, oral or written, by the tutor or by a peer, constitutes the most adequate means for the apprentice to become aware of the necessity for improvement.

About the structuring model
We position our model relatively to the structure of 3 prominent competency repositories (MSIS, e-cf, SFIA) in the domain of information systems which have been presented in the state of the art. The MSIS repository structure includes three levels (competency area, competency category, competency) corresponding quite well to our three highest levels. Only the competency level is expressed using action verbs. It is therefore not easy to assign a competence to the two upper levels. The level of expertise is expressed in the form of four values in a separate table, whereas in our proposal it is expressed directly from the action verbs of BLOOM (6 levels). The learning objectives are expressed in a separate structure whereas in our model they appear directly at the last level. Finally, the notion of prerequisite is not present. In the e-cf structure, each competency is specified into a record comprising 3 fields: the textual description, the level of expertise (5 possible levels), examples of knowledge and know-how. This record corresponds to level 2 of our model. Descriptions are based on action verbs in free form. The notion of prerequisite is not explicitly defined. There is no level corresponding to the learning objectives. The SFIA structure is composed of 3 levels (category, subcategory, skill). Levels 2 and 3 are expressed through action verbs and a form of abstraction between these two levels is present as in our model. Level 2 is associated with a level of expertise (7 possible levels). There is no level corresponding to the learning objectives. The notion of prerequisite is not present.
Finally, it appears that using our general model is very valuable for different reasons: competences are expressed in the same way at all levels, levels of expertise are specified in an explicit way through BLOOM action verbs, prerequisites can be installed. This model is simple to understand and easy to use by all the types of users. The composition hierarchy facilitates abstractions and allows users to position themselves at the desired level. In addition, it makes it possible to suggest learning objectives for all actors in the professional and academic worlds who have the task of designing and implementing continuing or initial trainings in the domain.

About the competency repository in the domain of information systems
Remember that the proposed repository includes so-called superior competencies relating to the design, implementation and management of information systems; and so-called primary competencies relating to computer science and programming, management sciences, decision-making mathematics. Higher competencies are elicited from the trades activities that can be found in different trade repositories and in particular those of cen and CIGREF. The primary competencies are developed from the knowledge and know-how specific to the three disciplines. These elements were defined from scratch by the members of the French MIAGE network. Our framework also includes a section relating to interpersonal competencies, the importance of which is no longer to be underlined. These competencies have been selected in conjunction with the needs of the trades and developed from the many studies that have been carried out on the subject. We also studied Our repository incorporates the majority of the content of the MSIS repository but expressed in another form and with a different structuring. We have borrowed from this framework the idea of incorporating competencies specific to the different professional sectors. Our framework goes further with regard to management sciences and the mathematics of decision-making.
Our repository incorporates a large part of the proposals of the e-cf repository. Some have been the subject of additional developments, in particular those relating to the "Developper" block. Others were not selected because the associated trades have not been selected. This is the case for sales and purchasing activities within the IS department. But these activities could easily be introduced within a new general competency. Note that the e-cf does not incorporate the equivalent of our primary competencies and in particular interpersonal competencies.
The SFIA framework displays broad guidelines quite similar to that of our repository. It brings more attention to strategy and planning, human resources management, contracting with the client. The mathematics of decision-making are present but less developed than in our repository.
It appears that our repository, thanks to its structure, is able to easily integrate competencies from different sources. The main difficulty to solve is the semantic reconciliation to detect possible duplicates and ensure the correct positioning of a new competency in the composition hierarchy. The prerequisite relationship introduces great flexibility because it allows specifying dependencies that are not present in the hierarchical composition. This is the case for all the dependencies that may exist between higher competencies and primary competencies, particularly for interpersonal competencies.

Conclusion
Two joint motivations are at the origin of this paper. First, there is currently no general model for building a competency repository. When, in the same domain, several repositories exist, each relies on an ad-hoc organization and it is difficult, if not impossible, to use them together. Then, in the field of information systems, there are several repositories, each with a different vision, and it is difficult to acquire an overall view. Our objective is therefore to propose a general model of repository, then to develop a unified repository in the field of information systems.
The proposed model organizes competencies in the form of composition hierarchies with four levels of abstraction: general, main, specific, elementary. The general level corresponds to the notion of competency block. At all levels, competencies are specified in the same way using action verbs that may relate to the classification of BLOOM. These verbs make it possible to clearly set the objectives. At the elementary level, they allow to induce the type of assessments to be carried out to measure their achievement. In addition, it is recommended to instantiate prerequisites between competencies. Our model is general and can be used to structure any type of repository. Such a proposal constitutes an effective way to facilitate understanding by users and maintenance by designers.
The new repository includes 10 composition hierarchies (therefore 10 competency blocks) corresponding to the main subjects of the domain. It incorporates a significant part of competencies offered by existing repositories and in particular those of the e-CF and MSIS repositories. However, this repository has several particularities. First, it distinguishes superior competencies which correspond directly to the activities of the trades in the domain and primary competencies which serve as the basis for the previous ones. The latter bring together knowledge and competencies from the three basic disciplines of computer science, management science and discrete mathematics. Superior competencies are directly based on this type of knowledge and know-how. The prerequisites make it possible to express the most significant dependencies. The importance of these primary competencies will increase in the future as information systems evolve towards increased technicality, closer coupling with business processes, higher requirements in terms of data analysis and assistance to decision processes. Then, the "Designing and developing applications and systems" block was the subject of various enhancements to cover the ever widening range of development methods and technologies. A majority of students graduating in information systems begin their professional career with activities corresponding to this block and it is necessary to take into account new approaches. In addition, we separated strategic management of the information system from operational management because they involve different points of view. The two corresponding blocks have been enriched with competencies relating to design and implementation of typical solutions for the evolution and adaptation of an information system. Finally, we paid a particular attention to the block "Developing interpersonal competencies and professionalism". Interpersonal competencies (i.e. soft skills) have become essential in all trades in the domain. The recommendation that is made is that an individual be able, not only to identify the importance of an interpersonal competency relative to a trade, but also to assess his level of ability and to choose solutions to improve it.
This repository is currently available only in a textual form. An implementation through a DBMS based on the conceptual diagram of Figure 1 have been started in order to facilitate queries or modifications.
We plan to install a semantic query interface to allow approximate queries by matching words or phrases. Moreover, this interface would be designed not only to access a competency but also its composition hierarchy and its prerequisites. A teacher will thus be able to instantly obtain all the competencies that may correspond to a training objective and their organization. In the same way, an employee will be able to discover the competencies to be acquired in order to satisfy a personal development need.