A reference for managing competence
ISO 10015:2019 provides guidelines for establishing, maintaining and improving competence management and people development. Its official catalogue states that it was reviewed and confirmed in 2025. It is management guidance, not a catalogue of mandatory courses or professional authorisation to perform hazardous activities.
Starting from what the job requires
The organisation needs to know what a person must be able to do to perform an activity appropriately. In prevention, this includes recognising hazards, applying controls and responding to changes or incidents according to their responsibility. Preventive competence is not demonstrated simply by accumulating teaching hours or holding attendance certificates.
Identifying specific gaps
Job needs are compared with available competence to define what is missing. The response may include training, supervised practice, mentoring or other measures. Knowledge problems should be separated from those caused by unsuitable equipment, insufficient time or contradictory instructions. A course does not itself correct every cause of unsafe performance.
Evaluating the result
How usefulness will be checked should be decided before the intervention. Depending on the objective, exercises, task observation or review of decisions in representative situations may be used. Assessment should match the risk and working conditions. Passing a questionnaire about a manoeuvre does not necessarily mean performing it safely in the field.
Development example
In a hypothetical example, several managers know the coordination procedure but fail to detect conflicts between simultaneous jobs. Practice is designed using workplace cases, followed by review of its application. Follow-up distinguishes whether the difficulty was conceptual, organisational or both, avoiding repeated general training that leaves the specific problem unresolved.
Integration with preventive management
A training matrix can document needs and evidence but must remain linked to jobs and changes. ISO 10015 does not modify other standards’ requirements or replace legal training obligations. Its value lies in organising development and checking results, with responsibilities and reviews that follow the evolution of activities.
