Models to Split Up and to Integrate Competencies Systems in Design Activities Management

Abstract Design activities require complex organizations to support the production of technical objects about systems that tend to be more and more complex too. The management of design projects and of their skill-networks requires models to take into account the complexity of competencies systems. Socio-technical systems management has to define an appropriate organization to create synergy between competencies, processes, products and technologies, at different levels within the company or between companies. This paper proposes models to help project managers or skill-networks managers to organize competencies systems, i.e., to split up objectives they have in charge in terms of collective or individual competencies. It contributes to articulate a manager's point of view with an actor's point of view. The validation of this model is achieved in the framework of a research contract with a French car enterprise, in a specific field of car engineering processes. The final aims of our research works are about the design of a management device of the engineering competency system.