No abstract

Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to clarify which knowledge, skills and behaviors are used to describe excellent performance in professional communication. As the demand for talented communication professionals increases, organizations and educators need an empirically defined set of performance criteria to guide the development of (potentially) excellent communication professionals (ECPs). This research aimed to render a competence profile which could assist in the development of recruitment, training and development to develop relevant programs for high-potential communication practitioners. Design/methodology/approach-This mixed-method research was approached in two phases: first, a series of focus groups (n ¼ 16) were held to explore work field perspectives resulting in a concept profile, and second, a series of expert panels (n ¼ 30) following the Delphi method were conducted to determine the extent of agreement with the findings. Findings-Participants clarified that excellent performance is characterized by competences which transcend normative technical skills or practical communication knowledge. The five domains, 16 item "SEEDS" competence profile describes that ECPs are distinguished by their compounded ability to be strategic, empathic, expressive, and decisive and to see patterns and interrelationships. Research limitations/implications-Although a broad range of relevant professionals were involved in both phases, the study could be considered limited in size and scope. Research was conducted in one national setting therefore further research would be necessary to confirm generalizability of the results to other cultural contexts. Originality/value-Although many competence frameworks exist which describe normative performance in this profession, specific criteria which illustrate excellent performance have not yet been identified. This competence profile clarifies characteristics which typify excellent performance in professional

The Netherlands (…) has perhaps the most unifi ed, consistent, and self-conscious array of honors programs and research projects about honors based on the U.S. model. (Long 2012 , p. 9) The attitude towards excellence changed quickly in Dutch society over the last 20 years. 'Until recently in the Netherlands, special programs to support weaker students were generally accepted, whereas "high potential programs" (honors) were considered inappropriate in a democracy where all students should be treated equally -a stance that still prevails in many European countries ' (Wolfensberger 2012 , p. 16; see also Wolfensberger et al. 2012a , p. 149). But now, excellence in education is named a priority by the ministry of Education and money is set aside for it. The development of honors programs at higher education institutions started in 1993, but accelerated in the early 2000s. As inspiration for the development of programs was sought in the United States, the term 'honors program' was imported and has since been widely used for the extra educational offers made to excellent students in higher education in the Netherlands. In 2004, the ministry of Education established a temporary commission called Ruim baan voor talent (make room for talent), which provided small subsidies to experimental differentiation projects at HEIs, including honors programs, until 2007.1 A major incentive to the development of these programs came in 2008, when more government subsidies through the national Sirius Programme became available. By now, most HEIs in the Netherlands have honors programs .The attention for excellence in higher education is embedded in an education system where focus on excellence has signifi cantly increased over the last few years (Boxes 4.1 and 4.2 ). Many provisions for excellent students are already in place in primary and secondary education and the government strongly supports further development.1 See Commissie Ruim baan voor Talent 2007 for the commission's fi nal report. 44An extensive array of approaches to education, seen through a wide diversity of schools, defi nes the Dutch education system. This system rests on the principle of free school choice for parents.2 Public schools, on the one hand, and special schools based on religion or educational philosophy, on the other hand, are all fi nanced by the government. In theory, special schools can reject pupils whose parents do not agree with the basic principles of the school, but this rarely happens. In fact, around 70 % of all pupils attend special schools (CBS Statline 2014 ) 3 and differences between special schools and public schools may be very limited.While compulsory education starts at the age of fi ve, almost all children enter the eight-grade primary school ( basisschool ) at age four. Differentiation occurs early. At the end of primary school, around age 12, pupils choose one of three options: pre-vocational secondary education ( vmbo , 4 years 4 ), senior general secondary 2 This has been subject of much debate in the early twentieth century a...