Competence X Commitment Dave Ulrich Commitment and competence are embedded in how each employee thinks about and does his or her work and in how a company organizes to get work done. It is, according to Dave Ulrich, a firm's only appreciable asset. As the need for intellectual capital increases, companies must find ways to ensure that it develops and grows. There are five tools for increasing competence in a firm, site, business, and plant. The company goes outside to hire new talent.
Managers invests in employee learning and training.
A company hires consultants and forms partnerships with suppliers, customers, and vendors to share knowledge, create new knowledge, and bring in new ways to work. The company removes those employees who fail to change, learn, and adapt. The firm finds ways to keep those workers it finds most valuable. Companies also need to foster employees who are not only competent but committed. Employees with too many demands and not enough resources to cope with those demands quickly burn out, become depressed, and lack commitment.