# Enhancing Smart Cities' Resilience Through Competency Assessment and Open Data Utilization
## 9 Design Principles  
**DP1:**: _To facilitate timely self-assessment of cities' resilience management competencies, the tool will list 20 core competencies related to anticipation, absorption, recovery from crises, and adaptation to new conditions._  
Competency assessment requires multiple proficiency levels [61], ranging from basic levels, where activities are performed under guidance, to expert levels, where the professionals innovate based on accumulated knowledge [62]. Each proficiency level is associated with specific knowledge, skills, and attitudes, which should be reflected in concrete statements (T3). The self-assessment tool should avoid general statements and instead provide clear statements for each proficiency level (MR3). To streamline the assessment process, the tool will present four proficiency levels for each of the 20 core competencies related to the SCRO function: foundation, intermediate, advanced, and specialized. **DP2:**: _The tool will be designed as a questionnaire containing 80 statements in total, allowing users to identify their proficiency level in each of the 20 competencies._  
**DP3:**: _To ensure consistency, the tool will provide standardized introductions for the four proficiency levels of each competency, highlighting specific attitudes for each level._  
**DP4:**: _Each proficiency level introduction will be followed by a statement focused on the specific knowledge and skills associated with that level._  
Assessing proficiency levels across competencies is crucial for selecting appropriate learning journeys to enhance performance (T4). Users should select only one statement for each of the 20 competencies listed by the self-assessment tool (MR4). Each choice will place the user at one of the four proficiency levels. Upon completing the questionnaire, the tool should provide an overall picture of the self-assessment results for the 20 competencies (MR5). **DP5:**: _To ensure accurate performance evaluation, the tool will allow only one statement to be selected among the four available for each of the 20 competencies._  
**DP6:**: _The tool will offer an intuitive visualization of the self-assessment results, enabling users to understand their training needs to achieve optimal performance as an SCRO._  
Defining learning journeys should enable the learner to progress in proficiency across various competencies [63], gradually enhancing their knowledge, skills, and attitudes (T5). The foundation, intermediate, and advanced proficiency levels indicate potential for improvement (MR6). Due to project constraints, it is not feasible to develop modules for gradual training between proficiency levels. Therefore, a single module per competency will be developed to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge and skills at the advanced proficiency level, considering project limitations (MR7) (Figure 3). **DP7:**: _Recommended modules will guide users to advance their knowledge and skills to an advanced level of proficiency._  
The self-assessment tool is designed as a questionnaire that guides the user through the questions [64]. Each page of the tool focuses on either providing information about self  
Figure 3: The process of deriving design principles based on [PERSON] and Hevner [54]. assessment (introduction page, results page) or requiring users to answer a question. This design allows users to concentrate on the content presented and the competencies related to anticipation, absorption, recovery, and adaptation (DP1). The first page offers information about the tool's use and purpose, and users can select their preferred language (English, Greek, German, or Portuguese) to personalize the experience (DF1). Language support helps users better identify their proficiency levels (DP2), with standardized introductions for each proficiency level in various languages (DP3) to avoid language barriers. A crucial aspect of identifying proficiency levels is the response to self-assessment questions (DP2).