# Skills Matrix: Distinguishing Statements, Experience, and Evidence Build a skills matrix linking self-reports, described experience, reviewed material, and checks still needed, without an automatic score. - Canonical URL: https://www.harmate.com/en/blog/skills-matrix-why-your-excel-file-is-already-obsolete-and-how-to-make-it-dynamic - Author: Harmate Team - Published: 2026-01-08 - Updated: 2026-10-12T02:57:00.189804+00:00 - Language: en ## Content # Skills Matrix: Distinguishing Statements, Experience, and Evidence A skills matrix can help an HR team, training provider, or instructor organize what is known and what still needs review. To be useful, it should distinguish a stated skill from a described experience and from material that has actually been reviewed. A checked box does not by itself demonstrate mastery; one piece of evidence does not summarize a person either. The template below has a modest purpose: prepare a conversation and identify information to verify or learning to consider. It does not calculate a score, skill level, fit, or potential from free-text responses. ## 1. Define the question before filling in the matrix Choose one specific decision to inform: for example, preparing a development conversation, clarifying the intended outcomes of a course, or assembling relevant information for an assignment. Describe each skill as an observable activity in a given context. “Communication” is too broad; “explain a process to a new team member and check their understanding” is more concrete. Also define the scope of the review: who is included, which sources are relevant, who will review them, and for what purpose. Do not add a skill or data point merely because it is available. ## 2. A matrix that separates statements, experience, and evidence Use one row for each skill and relevant example. Duplicate a row when a skill was used in different contexts; do not merge those experiences into a general judgment. | Activity-related skill | Person’s statement | Reported experience example | Material actually reviewed | What the material can show — and its limit | Follow-up question or check to agree | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Facilitate a meeting with a clear purpose | “I have facilitated several team check-ins.” | The person describes a weekly coordination meeting and how they prepared its agenda. | A dated project note mentioning preparation and facilitation of one check-in. | The note documents preparation for that meeting; it does not cover every facilitation context or the quality of listening. | Ask what helped people participate and what feedback the person received. | | Analyze survey responses | “I have summarized participant feedback before.” | The person explains how they grouped responses from a training session. | An anonymized sample summary, shared with appropriate permission. | The document shows a summary for that session; it does not prove general expertise in analysis or a causal link between training and an outcome. | Review another example together or agree on a task suited to the need. | | Prepare a learning module | “I would like to try designing modules.” | No specific experience has been described yet. | No material reviewed at this point. | The interest has been stated; mastery and experience remain to be explored. | Clarify what the person wants to learn and choose a first exercise if they wish. | Fictional examples. The columns for “statement,” “reported experience,” and “material reviewed” are not interchangeable. A document may confirm that an activity took place without establishing every skill involved. No document means “not verified here,” not “skill absent.” ## 3. Review examples without inventing a measurement Avoid replacing this distinction with a 1-to-4 rating, a readiness color, or a score calculated from free text. If your organization needs assessment criteria for a specific role or course, define them for that purpose, say who applies them, and review examples with the people concerned. Such a rubric is a local instrument to validate, not a general measure of a person’s worth. For each row, ask questions that can be checked: - What specific action does the person describe? - In what context, when, and in what role? - Which source did we actually review, and what can it establish? - Which part of the skill has not yet been examined? - What next conversation, observation, or practice would be relevant and agreed? Keep differences and nuance visible. Self-report is useful information about a person’s experience or perspective, not automatic proof; a third-party note is also situated and may be partial. For behavior, describe the observed action and context rather than labeling the person (“rephrased the instruction when two participants had a question” instead of “very empathetic”). ## 4. Use the matrix to support development A matrix does not need to pretend it knows everything to be reusable. Add a review date and update a row when a relevant example is discussed or information changes. Leave uncollected information blank; do not infer a gap from it. Use open questions to agree on a concrete next step: observe an activity, review another example, try a task in context, or explore a course. Record the agreement and follow-up date, not a general conclusion about the person. For mobility, connect examples to the role’s actual criteria and speak with the person, as in our [human review template for internal mobility](/en/blog/internal-mobility-how-to-awaken-sleeping-talents-instead-of-hiring-externally). A [RACI matrix](/en/blog/raci-matrix-how-to-clarify-who-does-what-without-building-a-bureaucratic-monster) can help clarify the roles and responsibilities involved in the work. To describe a situation without rating the person, see the [observation checklist](/en/blog/observation-checklist-focus-the-inquiry-without-rating-a-person). If you collect written questionnaire responses, [Harmate lets you review them with their source excerpts](/en/product/open-questions). This supports the people reviewing responses; it does not turn them into skill levels or automatic decisions. ## 5. Govern the information, not just the spreadsheet Before expanding the matrix, decide which information is necessary, who can access it, how the person can correct it, and when it should be reviewed again. Avoid irrelevant, excessive, or decontextualized comments and data unrelated to the stated purpose. The [CNIL summarizes rules for employee-management data](https://www.cnil.fr/fr/les-regles-pour-la-gestion-du-personnel), including relevance and proportionality of comments and people’s access rights. Check the internal and legal rules that apply to your organization. A lightweight tool remains usable when its columns answer a real question, its sources are clear, and people can add nuance to what is recorded. An updated matrix is not a complete truth; it records information situated at a particular time. ## Conclusion A useful skills matrix shows what was stated, what was reported, what was reviewed, and what still needs checking. It supports a conversation and preparation for learning or a human decision without confusing an account, evidence, and demonstrated mastery.