This symposium is comprised of three papers on competencies in human resource development (HRD). "The Development of a Competency Model and Assessment Instrument for Public Sector Leadership and Management Development" (Sharon S. Naquin, Elwood F. Holton III) reports on a streamlined methodology and process used to develop a competency model for management development in the public sector. "Competencies of the Distance Education Professional: Self-Assessment and Authentication Measures to Document Learning" (Kim E. Dooley, James R. Lindner, Larry M. Dooley) describes a study to document growth in distance education core competencies of professionals in Costa Rica. It presents these results: individual and average growth in core competencies, comparisons of authenticated distance education competency scores to self-assessment scores, and comparisons based upon personal characteristics. "HRD Competencies for Effective Performance in a Knowledge-Based Economy (KBE): A Study of HRD Professionals in Singapore" (A. Ahad M. Osman-Gani) presents findings on the competencies and appropriate training and development strategies to develop them. It reports these findings: most respondents associated KBE with knowledge management, lifelong learning, and intellectual assets; and on-the-job training was considered the most effective training delivery method. All papers contained substantial references. (YLB)