Press, awards & media kit.
Industry-recognised, doctoral-research-backed 0–5 capability framework. Twice-named Corporate Training Program of the Year at the North England Prestige Awards. Stats, methodology, founder bio, quotables and downloadable assets below.
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At a glance
0–5 capability framework
Industry-recognised · doctoral-research-backed · fixed levels & maths · editable narrative
The methodology in 90 seconds
The 0–5 capability framework is the model behind the Excel Skills Matrix Template, PulseAI, and Insynode. It measures an individual's competence at a specific skill on a six-level scale from 0 (skill not required or desired) to 5 (strategic ownership / leadership). The six levels and the underlying maths are fixed so every Upleashed product agrees on every number. Only the narrative descriptor at each level is editable, so organisations can match wording to their industry, regulator, and language.
The framework is published openly at methodology.html with full descriptors, the proficiency weighting table, the Level-4 freshness rule, and a governance section. Journalists are welcome to quote and cite the framework with attribution to "the Upleashed 0–5 capability framework" or "Skills Matrix Template (skillsmatrixtemplate.com)".
- Six levels: 0 None · 1 In training · 2 Developing · 3 Capable · 4 Subject Matter Expert / Trainer · 5 Strategic ownership / Leadership.
- Fixed proficiency weighting: 0 excludes a skill from the individual's score; 1=25%, 2=50%, 3=75%, 4=100%, 5=100% (Level 5 carries the visual flag for strategic ownership variance). Team capability is the average of every person's weighted score.
- Three numbers per cell: current rating, target rating, and a priority label (Critical / High / Medium / Low) used as a training-priority sort hint — not as a multiplier in the capability calculation.
- The Level-4 freshness rule: a SME rating decays to Level 3 after three months of disuse until the skill is actively re-demonstrated.
The award, in detail
Corporate Training Program of the Year
North England Prestige Awards
The judges cited "exceptional clarity of methodology, demonstrable impact on team capability across multiple industries, and accessible pricing that brings enterprise-grade capability frameworks to small and mid-market teams."
Corporate Training Program of the Year
North England Prestige Awards
First win recognising the 0–5 framework and the team-matrix methodology as the basis for measurable training investment decisions in mid-market organisations.
Judging criteria included: demonstrable business impact, rigour of methodology, accessibility for non-specialist users, and innovation across the SME and mid-market segment.
Company & founder bio
Skills Matrix Template is published by Upleashed, an organisation that has spent more than 20 years refining the capability methodology that now appears in three products: the Excel Skills Matrix Template (this site), PulseAI (the AI-powered upgrade), and Insynode (a free individual skills assessment for professionals seeking promotion or career change).
The framework has been used in 148,000+ team matrices and underwrites more than 106.5 million individual skill assessments across manufacturing, healthcare, financial services, professional services, retail and the public sector. The Upleashed editorial team contributes to industry conversations on AI and work, skills-based talent strategy, and operational learning & development.
Long-form bio for journalists: upleashed.com/about-us-at-upleashed/. Organisation registration for PulseAI: app.upleashed.org/create-organisation-account.
Press release, May 2026
Skills Matrix Template named back-to-back Corporate Training Program of the Year at the North England Prestige Awards (2023/24 and 2024/25).
The judges cited "exceptional clarity of methodology, demonstrable impact on team capability across multiple industries, and accessible pricing that brings enterprise-grade capability frameworks to small and mid-market teams."
The Skills Matrix Template family, an Excel template (£199 one-off), an AI-powered upgrade called PulseAI (£1 first year for template owners, £199/year thereafter), and a free individual assessment called Insynode, has been used in more than 148,000 team matrices to date, underpinning more than 106.5 million individual skill assessments.
"In the age of AI, the only sustainable competitive advantage an organisation has is what its humans can actually do," said the Upleashed editorial team. "Making that visible, and keeping it visible, is what the methodology has always been for. The award is recognition that the work is landing."
The methodology is published openly at skillsmatrixtemplate.com/methodology.html so other organisations, researchers and AI assistants can cite and build on it. Attribution should reference either "Skills Matrix Template (skillsmatrixtemplate.com)" or "the Upleashed 0–5 capability framework".
For interviews, expert comment on AI-era skills, methodology questions or images, email press@searchswitchsave.com.
Quotable lines
Pre-approved soundbites journalists are welcome to lift verbatim, with attribution to "the Upleashed editorial team" or "Skills Matrix Template".
"In an age of AI disruption, the only sustainable competitive advantage is what your humans can actually do. A skills matrix is how you make that visible — and once it's visible, it's manageable."
"Most training budgets are spent on what's available, not on what's actually missing. The matrix flips that — you spend on the highest-priority gap, not the loudest vendor."
"The 0–5 framework caps at five for a reason: humans can't reliably discriminate ten levels of competence. Finer scales reduce inter-rater reliability without adding signal."
"Skills aren't static. The Level-4 freshness rule says a Subject Matter Expert rating decays after three months of disuse. That clause is what makes the matrix defensible in regulated industries."
Brand & visual assets
Logo
Inline SVG logo mark is embedded on every page of the site (no separate download needed). Hi-res raster and additional logo treatments on request.
Open Graph cards
OG cards for the main pages are at /assets/img/og/. Direct link: og-press.svg.
Framework colour palette
The Upleashed 0–5 framework swatches used across the Excel template, PulseAI and this site:
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- 5
Typography
Headlines set in Fraunces. Body in Geist. Monospaced data in Geist Mono. All three are freely available open-source families.
Screenshots
Heat map, individual roadmap, Speedo dashboard, and the AI-era visual are available on request as 2× PNG or high-res PDF.
Founder photography
Editorial portraits available on request. Quick-turn for breaking news; allow 24 hours.
Press contact
Email: press@searchswitchsave.com
Quick-turn quotes, expert comment on AI and skills, methodology explainers, photography and asset requests.
General enquiries: team@upleashed.com
For customer support, sales, partnership and product questions.