The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) has established the behavioural competencies for Governor in Council (GIC) appointed members to ensure they have the necessary skills, abilities and personal suitability. Outlined below are the nine key behavioural competencies for the role of Member Immigration Appeal Division/Refugee Appeal Division. These competencies are the basis for the evaluation of candidates for appointment to the IRB, as well as, for the ongoing evaluation of IRB member performance.
- Communication: Is the ability to transmit and receive information clearly and communicate effectively to others by considering their points of view in order to respond appropriately. It includes using impartiality and tact in all communications as well as the ability to convey ideas and information, both orally and in writing, in a way that brings understanding to the target audience.
- Conceptual Thinking: Is the ability to identify patterns or connections between situations that are not obviously related such as the applicability of broad legal principles to a specific set of facts, and to identify key or underlying issues in complex situations. It includes using creative, conceptual, or inductive reasoning.
- Decision Making: Is the ability to make decisions based on analysis of the information presented in the face of ambiguous or conflicting situations or when decisions rendered have a significant impact on others. It entails the capacity to exercise this ability on a consistent basis in the face of a constant demand to render fair decisions in a timely manner.
- Investigative skills / information seeking: Is the ability to efficiently identify information required to clarify a situation, to direct that information be obtained from appropriate sources, and use skillful questioning to draw out the relevant information including when others are reluctant to disclose it. This competency enables the Member to prepare clear and well-structured cases reflecting in depth knowledge of the subject and the audience and to use the hearing as a tool to obtain additional required information.
- Judgement/Analytical Thinking: Is understanding a situation, issue, problem, etc. by extracting the essential elements and forming them into a cohesive whole, or tracing the implications of a situation in a step-by-step way. It includes efficiently assimilating, organizing and interpreting information from a variety of sources and depicting sound judgement by being rational, objective and unbiased, and selecting the best option based on the analysis. It also includes the capacity to critically assess and evaluate the reasoning of adjudicators in order to determine whether an initial decision is sustainable in law.
- Organizational Skills: Is the ability to organize the work to make the most efficient use of available time. It is expressed in such forms as monitoring and checking work or information, insisting on clarity of roles and functions, etc.
- Results Orientation: Is the overall concern for working well and surpassing a standard of excellence. Focuses on results to be achieved, promotes best practices, measures performance and makes adjustments to improve both efficiency and effectiveness. Takes ownership of personal work objectives, as well as the objectives that may exist through collaboration with others. Has the stamina to deliver a high volume of decisions on a consistent and timely basis.
- Self-Control: Is the ability to keep one's emotions under control and restrain negative actions when provoked in order to preserve impartiality and neutrality in decision-making. It also includes the ability to maintain stamina under continuing stress and during times of change.
- Cultural Sensitivity: Is the ability to take into account the social and cultural conditions, norms and beliefs prevailing in appellants' milieu of origin in assessing the credibility or plausibility of their actions. This involves the ability to question one's own cultural assumptions, a willingness to understand a perspective other than one's own, and a commitment to recognize diversity both between and within cultural groups.