Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to conceptually define and empirically investigate the density of work experience along with individual characteristics (cognitive ability, conscientiousness and openness to experience) and examine their influence on human resource (HR) competencies.
Design/methodology/approach
Regression analysis was used to analyze the data. In total, 140 HR professionals from service industry background and their supervisors participated in the data collection efforts.
Findings
Data analyses revealed three key findings. Employees’ density of work experience positively relates to HR competencies. Cognitive ability is the strongest predictor of the positive relationship to HR competencies, and density of work experience.
Research limitations/implications
The author did not assess learning from each role (individual contributor, team lead and manager). Another limitation stems from the measure of density of work experience. The author did not consider the feedback that each incumbent might have received while dealing with challenging activities and the course corrections that may have been made.
Practical implications
Using an approach of gradually increasing the level of responsibility and involvement in challenging tasks may also help incumbents develop who may not be intellectually gifted. In the process of gradually increasing the level of involvement in challenging tasks, incumbents could develop a nuanced view of the field expertise required to deal with challenges, gain an in-depth understanding of the business, and acquire change management skills.
Originality/value
The author attempts to know which aspects of personality influence density of work experience the most. In addition, which personality characteristic predicts HR competencies more strongly?
