---
title: "Manage competency roles"
slug: "manage-competency-roles"
tags: ["How-to", "Totara Skills"]
updated: 2026-10-08T07:25:59Z
published: 2026-10-08T07:25:59Z
canonical: "totara.help/manage-competency-roles"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://totara.help/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Manage competency roles

[Competency roles](/totara-20/docs/what-are-competency-roles) allow the Site Administrator to define groupings of skills that can be applied to positions across the organisation. Each competency role can have one or more skills assigned to it, and once a skill is assigned to a competency role, it is automatically applied to all positions associated with that role.

To view and manage competency roles, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to *Quick-access menu > Skills* (/totara/hierarchy/framework/index.php?prefix=competency).
2. From the left-hand menu, select **Competency roles**.

A list of existing competency roles is displayed. From this list, the administrator can add, edit, delete or manage individual competency roles.

![The competency roles page displaying the list of competency roles and number of skills assigned to each role.](https://cdn.document360.io/a007399b-031e-436b-999a-528240e16f58/Images/Documentation/image-PKIOADTG.png?sv=2026-02-06&spr=https&st=2026-11-01T15%3A50%3A00Z&se=2026-11-01T16%3A50%3A00Z&sr=c&sp=r&sig=4L3mdXMM3EXN00psWf%2Fir%2BHcy3yPAPxBwii6v%2Bh00pI%3D)

## Create a competency role

To set up a new competency role, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to *Quick-access menu > Skills* (/totara/hierarchy/framework/index.php?prefix=competency).
2. From the left-hand menu, select **Competency roles**.
3. Click **Add competency role**.
4. Configure the [settings](/totara-20/docs/manage-competency-roles#competency-role-settings).
5. Click **Add new competency role** to save the competency role.

Once you’ve created the competency role, you can start [assigning skills to the role](/totara-20/docs/manage-competency-roles#assigning-a-skill-to-a-competency-role).

## Edit a competency role

To edit an existing competency role, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to *Quick-access menu > Skills* (/totara/hierarchy/framework/index.php?prefix=competency).
2. From the left-hand menu, select **Competency roles**.
3. Locate the competency role to be edited.
4. Click the three-dot icon (![](https://cdn.document360.io/a007399b-031e-436b-999a-528240e16f58/Images/Documentation/image-88FZGPDM.png?sv=2026-02-06&spr=https&st=2026-11-01T15%3A50%3A00Z&se=2026-11-01T16%3A50%3A00Z&sr=c&sp=r&sig=4L3mdXMM3EXN00psWf%2Fir%2BHcy3yPAPxBwii6v%2Bh00pI%3D)) next to the role and select **Edit**.
5. Configure the [settings](/totara-20/docs/manage-competency-roles#competency-role-settings) as required.
6. Click **Save changes**.

## Delete a competency role

1. Navigate to *Quick-access menu > Skills* (/totara/hierarchy/framework/index.php?prefix=competency).
2. From the left-hand menu, select **Competency roles**.
3. Locate the competency role to be deleted.
4. Click the three-dot icon (![](https://cdn.document360.io/a007399b-031e-436b-999a-528240e16f58/Images/Documentation/image-88FZGPDM.png?sv=2026-02-06&spr=https&st=2026-11-01T15%3A50%3A00Z&se=2026-11-01T16%3A50%3A00Z&sr=c&sp=r&sig=4L3mdXMM3EXN00psWf%2Fir%2BHcy3yPAPxBwii6v%2Bh00pI%3D)) next to the competency role and select **Delete**.
5. In the confirmation dialog, choose one of the following options for the existing skill assignments associated with this competency role:
  - **Skill assignments should remain active:** The competency role is deleted and can no longer be assigned to positions, but existing skill assignments remain active in all associated positions.
  - **Archive skill assignments:** The competency role is deleted, and existing skill assignments remain visible in associated positions with the **Archived** status.
  - **Delete skill assignments:** The competency role is deleted, and all skill assignments associated with it are removed from the affected positions.
6. Click **Proceed** to confirm the deletion.

> [!NOTE]
> One of the available options must be selected before the deletion can be confirmed.

## Assign skills to a competency role

To assign skills to a competency role, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to *Quick-access menu > Skills* (/totara/hierarchy/framework/index.php?prefix=competency).
2. From the left-hand menu, select **Competency roles**.
3. Click the name of the relevant competency role.
4. Click **Assign skills**.
5. Select the skills to be assigned.
6. Click **Add** to confirm.

The selected skills are automatically assigned to all positions associated with the competency role.

![Selecting skills to assign to a competency role.](https://cdn.document360.io/a007399b-031e-436b-999a-528240e16f58/Images/Documentation/image-46C6QCUR.png?sv=2026-02-06&spr=https&st=2026-11-01T15%3A50%3A00Z&se=2026-11-01T16%3A50%3A00Z&sr=c&sp=r&sig=4L3mdXMM3EXN00psWf%2Fir%2BHcy3yPAPxBwii6v%2Bh00pI%3D)

## Unassign skills from a competency role

To unassign skills from a competency role, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to *Quick-access menu > Skills* (/totara/hierarchy/framework/index.php?prefix=competency).
2. From the left-hand menu, select **Competency roles**.
3. Click the name of the relevant competency role.
4. Locate the skill to be unassigned.
5. Click the three-dot icon (![](https://cdn.document360.io/a007399b-031e-436b-999a-528240e16f58/Images/Documentation/image-88FZGPDM.png?sv=2026-02-06&spr=https&st=2026-11-01T15%3A50%3A00Z&se=2026-11-01T16%3A50%3A00Z&sr=c&sp=r&sig=4L3mdXMM3EXN00psWf%2Fir%2BHcy3yPAPxBwii6v%2Bh00pI%3D)) next to the skill and select **Unassign skill**.
6. In the confirmation dialog, choose what should happen to the existing skill assignments in positions associated with this competency role, as described in the table below.
7. Click **Proceed** to confirm the deletion.

> [!NOTE]
> One of the available options must be selected before the removal can be confirmed.

![Unassigning skills from a role.](https://cdn.document360.io/a007399b-031e-436b-999a-528240e16f58/Images/Documentation/image-QXPY2KPB.png?sv=2026-02-06&spr=https&st=2026-11-01T15%3A50%3A00Z&se=2026-11-01T16%3A50%3A00Z&sr=c&sp=r&sig=4L3mdXMM3EXN00psWf%2Fir%2BHcy3yPAPxBwii6v%2Bh00pI%3D)

| Setting | Description | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Skill assignments should remain active | The skill is removed from the competency role, but existing skill assignments remain active in all associated positions. | - |
| Archive skill assignments | The existing skill assignments remain visible in associated positions with the **Archived** status. | Archived assignments are no longer active but remain visible for historical reference. |
| Delete skill assignments | All skill assignments associated with this competency role are removed from the affected positions. | - |

## Competency role settings

When creating or editing a competency role, you can configure the following settings.

| Setting | Description | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Name | The name of the competency role. | Required. |
| ID number | A unique identifier used to represent the competency role. | - |
| Description | A free-text field for providing additional information about the competency role. | - |

## Competency roles permissions

There is a single capability allowing users to manage competency roles.

| Capability | Description |
| --- | --- |
| local/totaraskills:manage_competency_roles | Allows the user to add, edit and delete competency roles, and assign skills to competency roles. |

## Next steps

- [Assign competency roles to positions](/totara-20/docs/assign-competency-roles-to-positions)

Join the [Totara Community](https://totara.community/) for more resources to help you get the most out of Totara.

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