Employee Skill Management in Odoo 18

Companies promoting employees based solely on tenure without considering actual skills create misaligned teams where senior positions lack necessary competencies. A marketing manager promoted after 5 years might have outdated digital marketing skills, while a junior team member has current expertise in SEO, analytics, and social advertising. Without systematic skill tracking, promotion decisions become political instead of meritocratic, training budgets get wasted on irrelevant courses, and internal hiring overlooks qualified candidates.

Odoo 18's Employee Skill Management system solves this by creating a centralized competency database where HR teams track technical abilities, certifications, work experience, and proficiency levels—enabling data-driven decisions about promotions, project assignments, training investments, and succession planning.

Why Employee Skill Management Matters

Systematic skill tracking transforms HR from administrative recordkeeping to strategic workforce planning:

Step 1: Enable Skills Management

Skills management is part of the Employees module but must be activated manually in settings.

Installation & Activation

1. Install Employees Module: Navigate to Apps, search "Employees", click Install
2. Enable Skills Management: Go to Employees → Configuration → Settings
3. Activate Feature: Enable the "Skills Management" option and click Save

Step 2: Configure Skill Types

Skill Types are categories that organize related skills logically (e.g., "Programming", "Languages", "Soft Skills").

Creating Skill Types

1. Navigate: Go to Employees → Configuration → Skill Types
2. Create Type: Click New
3. Name: Enter descriptive name (e.g., "Programming Languages")
4. Skills Tab: This is where you'll add individual skills under this type
5. Skill Levels Tab: Define proficiency levels for this skill type

Example Skill Types

Step 3: Define Skill Levels

Skill Levels quantify proficiency for each skill type, enabling standardized competency measurement.

Creating Skill Levels

Within each Skill Type, navigate to the Skill Levels tab and add proficiency levels:

Each level includes:

• Level Name: Descriptive label (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Expert)
• Progress Percentage: Visual indicator for skill proficiency (0-100%)
• Default Level: Optional - mark one level as default when adding new skills

Step 4: Add Individual Skills

Skills are specific competencies linked to Skill Types.

Creating Skills

1. Access Skill Type: Open the relevant Skill Type (e.g., "Programming Languages")
2. Skills Tab: Click Add a line in the Skills tab
3. Skill Name: Enter specific skill (e.g., "Python", "JavaScript")
4. Repeat: Add all related skills for this type

Step 5: Assign Skills to Employees

Once skill structure is configured, assign skills to individual employees with proficiency ratings.

Adding Skills to Employee Profile

1. Open Employee: Navigate to Employees → Employees, select employee
2. Resume Tab: Click Resume tab in employee form
3. Skills Section: Scroll to Skills area
4. Add Skill: Click Pick a Skill from the list
5. Select from Popup:
   • Choose Skill Type (e.g., "Programming Languages")
   • Select specific skill (e.g., "Python")
   • Set Skill Level (e.g., "Advanced - 75%")
6. Save: Skill appears in employee's Skills section

Example Employee Skill Profile

Updating Skills Over Time

Skills can be updated anytime to reflect employee development:

• Upgrade Level: Increase proficiency after training or project success
• Add New Skills: Record newly acquired competencies
• Remove Outdated: Delete skills no longer relevant
• Timeline View: Odoo 18 shows skill evolution history

Step 6: Configure Resume Line Types

Resume Lines document employee work history, education, and certifications in a structured format.

Creating Resume Line Types

1. Navigate to Employees → Configuration → Resume Line Types
2. Click New
3. Configure type name and display options

Common Resume Line Types

Step 7: Add Resume Entries

Document employee career history, education, and achievements in the Resume tab.

Adding Resume Lines

1. Open Employee Profile: Select employee from Employees list
2. Resume Tab: Click Resume tab
3. Add Entry: In Resume section, click Add a line
4. Configure Entry:
   • Title: Role name, degree, or certification (e.g., "Senior Developer at TechCorp")
   • Type: Select Resume Line Type (e.g., "Work Experience")
   • Display Type: How entries are presented
   • Start Date: When this began
   • End Date: When completed (or leave blank if current)
   • Description: Responsibilities, achievements, coursework details

Example Resume Entries

Step 8: Manage Access Rights

Odoo 18 uses role-based permissions to control who can view and edit skill data.

User Roles & Permissions

Practical Use Cases

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Employee Skill Management in Odoo 18 transforms HR from reactive administration to strategic workforce planning. By systematically tracking competencies, proficiency levels, work experience, and certifications in a centralized database, companies make smarter decisions about hiring, training, promotions, and project assignments—all backed by data instead of gut feelings.

The structured approach of Skill Types, Skill Levels, and Resume Lines ensures consistency, searchability, and meaningful analysis across your entire organization. Combined with role-based access controls and timeline tracking, Odoo provides everything needed to build a competency-focused, agile workforce ready for future challenges.