Competencies.
Part 3 of The Playbook Series. Your values become sentences. Sentences become expectations. Expectations become the system you hire, review, promote, and fire by.
The Playbook Series
If you read Part 1 and Part 2, you have a mission, a vision, and core values. If you skipped them, go back. This will not make sense without them.
This is the part where the whole system clicks. Parts 1 and 2 might have felt abstract. Corporate. Like words on paper that sound nice but don't change your Monday morning.
Part 3 is where it hits the ground. This is where your values turn into sentences that describe exactly what is expected of every person in your company. Not feelings. Not vibes. Sentences. Written down. Measurable. The same sentences you use to hire, evaluate, promote, and fire.
Competencies Are Not What You Think
When most moving company owners hear "competencies," they think corporate HR. They think binders nobody reads. They think annual reviews where everyone gets a 3 out of 5 and nothing changes.
That is not what this is.
A competency is a sentence that describes a situation and an expectation. That is it. No jargon. No mystery. Just: "when this happens, this is what we expect you to do."
Two Types. That Is It.
Core Competencies
Same for everyone. The mover, the salesperson, the dispatcher, the manager. No exceptions. No levels. You either demonstrate them or you do not.
Role Competencies
Specific to each position. And they change based on seniority. What you expect from a junior mover is not what you expect from a senior. The bar moves up as they grow.
From Values to Core Competencies
Let's take three values and turn them into core competencies. Watch how each value becomes a sentence everyone can understand.
Value: Ownership
Becomes this competency
When something goes wrong in your area, you fix it. You do not wait. You do not explain before you act.
Value: Customer First
Becomes this competency
Every decision considers the customer. Not just when it is easy. Every time.
Value: Integrity
Becomes this competency
If you said it, you do it. No excuses. No half-done work. If something changes, you say it before the deadline, not after.
These apply to every single person. The owner. The dispatcher. The mover. The sales rep. There are no exceptions and there are no levels. You either demonstrate them or you do not belong here.
See It Now?
Mission forced the values. Values forced the core competencies. Core competencies are the same sentences you now use in every interview, every performance review, every promotion decision, and every termination.
One document at the top. Everything below it connected.
Role Competencies: The Bar Moves Up
Core competencies are the same for everyone. Role competencies are specific to the job and they change based on seniority. What you expect from a junior salesperson is not what you expect from a senior. What you expect from a mover is not what you expect from a foreman.
This is where every person in your company can see exactly what they need to demonstrate to move up. No guessing. No politics. No "I've been here longer so I deserve it." You either meet the next level or you do not.
Example: Sales Department
Handles Objections
When the customer pushes back, turns a no into a conversation.
Junior
Handles basic objections using the script. Knows the standard responses. Not confident yet on price pressure or unusual pushback.
Mid Level
Handles common objections confidently. Knows the standard responses. Struggles with unusual or aggressive pushback.
Senior
Handles any objection without losing the customer. Keeps the conversation going. Rarely needs to escalate.
Manager
Trains the team on objection handling. Listens to calls and coaches reps on exactly what to say and when.
Follows Up
Keeps every lead warm. Never lets a serious prospect go cold.
Junior
Follows up when reminded. Still building the habit and the system.
Mid Level
Follows up consistently without being reminded. Has a personal system. Rarely loses a warm lead.
Senior
Follows up on every lead with the right message at the right time. Conversion rate from follow up is visibly higher than the team average.
Manager
Builds and enforces the follow up system for the whole team. Tracks who is following up and who is not. Makes it a non-negotiable.
Example: Mover Department
Handles Items With Care
Every item is treated as if it belongs to someone they respect.
Junior
Handles standard items carefully with guidance. Needs oversight on fragile or high value items.
Mid Level
Handles all items independently. Knows how to wrap, protect, and load without being told.
Senior
Sets the standard for how items are handled on the truck. Corrects the crew when they see careless handling.
Manager
Makes sure handling standards are trained and enforced before every job. Damage rates in their department are low and tracked.
Works at the Right Pace
Fast enough to respect the customer's time and budget. Careful enough to protect their belongings.
Junior
Works at a reasonable pace. Sometimes slows down too much on simple items or rushes on fragile ones.
Mid Level
Consistent pace on all job types. Knows how to read the job and adjust without being told.
Senior
Sets the pace for the crew. Keeps everyone moving efficiently without cutting corners.
Manager
Tracks job times across the team. Identifies where crews are slow and why. Coaches for efficiency without sacrificing quality.
Communicates on the Job
Keeps the customer and the team informed. No surprises.
Junior
Communicates basic updates when asked. Still building confidence talking to customers directly.
Mid Level
Communicates proactively with the customer during the move. Flags problems before they become bigger.
Senior
Runs the communication on the job. Customer always knows what is happening. Team always knows what comes next.
Manager
Sets the communication standard for all jobs. Customers should never have to call the office to find out what is happening on their move.
Solves On-Site Problems
When something unexpected happens on the job, they handle it.
Junior
Handles small surprises. Knows when to call for help. Does not panic.
Mid Level
Handles most on-site problems independently. Calls for help only when it is genuinely beyond them.
Senior
Handles complex problems on site. Access issues. Difficult furniture. Upset customers. Makes the call and owns it.
Manager
Rarely needs to go on site for problems. But when they do, they resolve it fast and then fix the process so it does not repeat.
The Chain
Mission & Vision
Why you exist. Where you are going.
Core Values
What behavior your mission demands.
Core Competencies
Same expectations. Every person. No exceptions.
Role Competencies
Specific to the job. Changes with seniority.
Every person knows what is expected. Every person knows what they need to demonstrate to move up.
How You Run the System
Competencies are not a document you write and put in a drawer. They are the operating system of your company. Here is how you use them every day.
Performance Reviews
Every review uses the same competencies. No surprises. The employee knows exactly what they are being measured on because they saw it on day one. The review is not your opinion. It is: did they demonstrate this competency or not?
Core competencies: pass or fail. You either demonstrate ownership, customer first, and integrity, or you do not. There is no "sometimes."
Role competencies: which level are they at? Junior, mid, senior, manager. If they are at mid level and want to move to senior, the gap is written right there. No ambiguity. No "you need to step it up." The exact behavior they need to demonstrate is on paper.
You run this every three months. For new hires, you also run it after 30 days. We will cover exactly how to run the performance review in Part 4.
Hiring
The entire interview is about one thing: finding evidence of your core competencies and role competencies. You go through all of them. One by one. You are not asking trick questions. You are looking for a pattern of behavior that is most likely going to repeat itself in the future.
You ask: "Tell me about a time something went wrong on a job. What did you do?" You are testing for ownership.
Someone who lived it
"The dresser wouldn't fit through the hallway. I measured the door frame, took the legs off, removed the mirror, wrapped each piece separately, and got it through without a scratch. Took about 15 minutes but the client was watching and I didn't want to force it."
Details. Steps. Decisions. This person was there. They remember because they did it.
Someone who is faking it
"Yeah, my team handled it. We figured it out and got it done. The client was happy."
Vague. No details. "My team" instead of "I." No steps. No decisions. This person was either not there or not the one doing it.
When they say "my team did this," you probe. "What did you do there exactly?" Someone who actually did the work can describe it down to the details. Someone who is borrowing credit gets vague fast.
You are also looking for the negative. Evidence of behavior that contradicts your competencies. If you ask about a time they disagreed with a manager and they describe going behind the manager's back, that is evidence against integrity. If they describe blaming the client for a problem, that is evidence against customer first.
You go through every core competency. Every role competency. You are not looking for perfect answers. You are looking for a pattern. And patterns repeat. The behavior you see in the interview is the behavior you will see on the job.
Competencies are sentences that describe situations and expectations. Not corporate jargon.
Core competencies: same for everyone. You demonstrate them or you do not belong here.
Role competencies: specific to the position. They change with seniority. The bar moves up.
Your values force your competencies. Your competencies force your hiring, reviews, promotions, and terminations.
Every interview question maps to a competency. Every review measures against them. No guessing.
Next: Part 4 covers how to promote and fire using this system. The hardest conversations in the business.
Before you move on
Write your core competencies from your values. Then write role competencies for at least one department. See how it feels. See if every sentence traces back to a value. If it does not, it does not belong. If it does, you just built the system most moving companies will never have.
Next in the series
Part 4: Promoting and Firing.
You have the system. Now use it for the hardest decisions in the business. Who moves up. Who moves out. And how to do both without destroying your company.