The Commission on Population (POPCOM) is mandated to serve as the central coordinating and policy making body of the government in the field of population. Through its Philippine Population Management Program, the organization’s goal is to help the country achieve a sustainable population level, structure, distribution and quality in order to empower Filipinos to acquire a better quality of life both within the family and the society at large. A key requirement of POPCOM in 2019 was to define the learning and development agenda of the organization and its employees to ensure the achievement of its strategy and objectives.

In developing the organization’s Learning and Development Plan, the project involved four components – (1) discover the competencies critical to POPCOM’s success, (2) create the standards for the competencies identified, (3) define the required proficiency level for applicable competency for each position, and (4) use the profiles to assess the capabilities of POPCOM employees and determine each individual’s development plan.

The following interventions, workshops, activities and tools were used – Competency Model Development Workshop, Competency Card Play, Behavior Collection + Validation, and Survey-Based Learning Needs Analysis

Through the Competency Model Development Workshop, POPCOM was able to identify the critical dimensions for its strategy and the key divisions of the organization. With the Competency Card Play, POPCOM was able to generate behavioral criteria per competency while validating the more exemplary standards that fit into POPCOM’s aspirations.

After Behavior Collection + Validation, position profiles helped establish the key competency requirements per division and positions in the organization. Finally, a Multi-Rater Survey-Based Learning Needs Analysis identified the learning and development opportunities of each division, employee group and individuals within the organization.

The population program through the local government units and civil society organizations reached a significant number of couples and individuals – going beyond its annual target. 

At the policy level, POPCOM was able to develop and issue revised memorandum, and provided adolescents with health and development. POPCOM’s continuing efforts to capacitate institutions in integrating population variables in various development processes and outcomes has resulted in the formulation of population-related plans and programs.