AG5 is a competency management system for frontline operations in manufacturing, aerospace, pharma, logistics, and food and beverage. A missing qualification here isn’t an HR problem. It’s a stopped line or a failed audit.
Trusted by 200+ leading enterprises with modern frontline-heavy operations
A competency management system is software that defines what each role requires, records how every employee measures against that standard, and keeps the result current. It replaces spreadsheet skills tracking with a single live view of who is qualified, who is close, and whose certification is about to expire. The evidence to prove it comes built in.
AG5 is a competency management system built for compliance-critical frontline operations, where a missing qualification stops a line or fails an audit.
How AG5’s competency management system works
Four steps, running continuously rather than once a year. The order matters more than the pace, and teams that skip straight to assessing tend to end up rebuilding the framework six months later.
Set the standard before you measure anyone against it. You map every role to the competencies it requires and the proficiency level each demands, drawing on ISO clauses, work instructions, and the people who do the job. Each level carries its evidence requirement, so two assessors reach the same verdict.
You see your framework as a role-by-competency map you can edit as roles change.
Record where each person actually stands. Managers sign off observations, assessors log practical tests, and certificates from third parties are attached to the competency they prove. Every result carries a date, an assessor, and the evidence behind it.
You see each employee's profile fill in against their role requirement, with the gaps calculated rather than eyeballed.
Watch the state change without chasing it. Certifications count down to their expiry dates, new hires show as unqualified until assessed, and a change to the framework re-scores everyone it touches. Nothing waits for a quarterly review to surface.
You see a live alert list of problems and warnings, ordered by urgency, filtered to your site or your team.
Close the gaps you can now see. Each gap links to the training that resolves it, completions write back to the competency record, and the matrix updates. Skill gap analytics show you which gaps cluster by team, role, or location, so training spend goes where the risk is.
You see the gap count fall, and you can prove why.
Competency tracking software features
Six capabilities, and they aren’t equal. The audit trail is the one that decides whether a compliance team keeps its certification, so start there.
Skills matrix viewThe operational heart of the system. Employees down one axis, competencies across the other, a color and a level at every intersection. Filter to a shift, a line, or a certification, and the qualified and the not-yet-qualified separate instantly.
Certificates and licensesEvery certificate stored against the competency it proves, with its issue date, expiry date, and the document itself attached. Renewals surface weeks ahead rather than on the day, and expired credentials drop the employee out of the qualified pool automatically.
Real-time gap detectionGaps are calculated, not reported. When a role requirement changes, a certificate lapses, or a new competency joins the framework, everyone affected is re-scored immediately and the difference between required and achieved is visible without anyone running a query.
Audit trails and ISO-ready reportsEvery assessment carries who signed it, when, and on what evidence. That history exports as an ISO 9001, ISO 45001, or AS9100 compliance report in a few clicks, the difference between an audit that takes an afternoon and one that takes three weeks.
Assessments and sign-offsStructured assessment workflows for manager observation, practical test, and third-party certification, each with its own approval path. Results are timestamped and attributable, so the record answers the auditor’s real question: who decided this person was competent, and on what basis.
Frontline appSupervisors and operators reach their own competency data on the floor, on the device they already carry. Training reminders, sign-offs, and qualification checks happen where the work happens, not after a trip to a desktop.
Built for regulated industries
AG5 documents training, certifications, and assessed skill levels as you go, so a compliance report is a filter and an export rather than a fortnight of assembly. What you have to prove differs by sector.
ISO 9001 Clause 7.2 requires documented evidence that everyone whose work affects quality is competent to do it. On a multi-line site that means proving, shift by shift, that the operator on the press holds the current qualification for that press.
AS9100 carries the ISO 9001 competence requirement and adds certification for special processes such as welding, composites, and non-destructive testing. Every one of those certifications expires, and an auditor will ask to see the current one.
GMP requires evidence of trained, qualified personnel at every step of production. A deviation traced back to an operator who was not qualified for the step is a finding you cannot argue your way out of.
Dangerous goods handling, forklift licenses, and customs compliance all carry expiry dates and all sit on the critical path. An unqualified handler does not delay a shipment, it stops one.
HACCP awareness and allergen handling are non-negotiable across almost every operational role, from line to warehouse. Retailer audits also arrive with far less notice than regulatory ones, so the evidence has to be standing ready.
IATF 16949 extends the ISO 9001 competence requirement and asks you to show that training worked, not simply that it happened. On a line running mixed models, that means evidence of competence per station and per shift, ready on the day the audit lands.
Compliance leaders don’t switch systems for the software. They switch because the question “is this person qualified for this task, right now” needs an answer they can defend, and the spreadsheet stopped producing one at their scale.
“We now have instant visibility into which cargo staff are fully compliant across all our global locations. That means no more last-minute scrambling before audits or flight operations – we’re always one step ahead.”
“When an employee is unavailable, we can now instantly identify a colleague with the same qualifications – no more scrambling through spreadsheets. This means there’s no delay in shipments or warehouse operations.”
“AG5 helps us prepare operators with the right qualifications, stay audit-ready, and plan ahead for future training so we’re always staffed with the right skills at the right time.”
“With AG5, we’ve eliminated Excel-based chaos. The real-time skills matrix gives us instant visibility into team capabilities, helping us identify bottlenecks, plan more efficiently, and ensure compliance across operations.”
Competency management system vs LMS: which do you need?
Most regulated operations need both, wired together. Gaps identified in the competency system trigger training assignments in the LMS, completions flow back and update the competency record, and the audit trail spans both.
If you’re weighing them up rather than running both, our competency management system vs LMS guide sets out where each one earns its place.
An LMS can tell you that someone finished the course. It can’t tell you they’re qualified to run the line.
Switch to AG5’s competency management system and make informed decisions faster.
Recognized by G2 for Excellence in Skills Management
