To do that reliably, we anchor WorkGraph on a research-backed occupational framework used across the U.S. economy. It describes hundreds of occupations, dozens of core skills, and a rich set of work activities — all based on large-scale studies of real workers and experts. This page is a plain-English primer on that system and why it matters for your organization.
Occupations: The “Job Types” Behind Titles
An occupation is a standardized description of a type of job — like “Marketing Manager,” “Software Developer,” or “Marine Engineer” — that shows up across many companies.
Each occupation in the framework includes:
- A title and many alternate job titles used in the market
- The level of preparation required (training, education, experience)
- A profile of the skills, knowledge, and work activities that define the role
Example: Marine Engineers & Naval Architects
The framework captures what these professionals actually do:
- They spend a lot of time getting information — reading technical specs, design documents.
- They regularly monitor processes and materials — checking performance of systems and structures.
- They frequently inspect equipment and structures and estimate quantifiable characteristics like loads, capacities, and tolerances.
Those activities come from structured ratings with sample sizes, importance scores, and confidence intervals gathered from experts.
In WorkGraph, this means that over time we can say, “This person’s work patterns look like a marine engineer” (or a financial analyst, or an account manager) — regardless of what their internal job title says.
Skills: What People Bring to the Work
Skills are learnable capabilities — things people can develop with training and practice. The framework distinguishes a focused set of core skills that show up across many jobs.
Basic Skills
Thinking & Learning
- Reading Comprehension
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Mathematics
Using math to solve problems, from simple calculations to complex models.
- Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to evaluate options and choose the best approach.
- Active Learning
Understanding the implications of new information for current and future decisions.
Cross-Functional Skills
People, Systems & Technology
- Active Listening
Giving full attention to what others are saying, asking good questions, not interrupting.
- Speaking
Conveying information effectively to clients, peers, and leadership.
- Writing
Communicating effectively in writing for the needs of the audience.
- Complex Problem Solving
Identifying complex problems, reviewing related information, developing and evaluating options.
- Time Management
Managing one’s own time and the time of others.
For a typical business-development or account-management role, the most important skills often include critical thinking, reading comprehension, writing, active listening, complex problem solving, and speaking — all rated at high importance. That mix tells you what really drives performance in that role.
WorkGraph uses this structure to move from “who touched which tools” to “which skills were actually in play during this work.”
Work Activities: What People Actually Do All Day
If skills are “what you bring,” work activities are “what you actually do.” They are standard descriptions of job behaviors that show up in many occupations.
The framework groups activities into categories such as:
Getting and monitoring information
Analyzing data, making decisions, planning
Producing things, operating equipment, documenting
Communicating, selling, coordinating, leading
Examples of Generalized Work Activities
- Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
- Analyzing Data or Information — Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts by breaking information into separate parts.
- Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Staying current by attending training, keeping up with changes in a field, or learning new tools.
- Documenting / Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic form.
- Performing General Physical Activities — Activities like loading materials into equipment, moving products between work areas, or cleaning workpieces in more hands-on jobs.
For each occupation, these activities are rated for importance and level, with statistical detail (sample sizes, standard errors, confidence intervals) so they can be compared reliably.
Detailed Work Activities
Under the hood, the system also defines thousands of detailed work activities like:
These detailed activities are mapped to occupations and to higher-level work activity categories through a series of reference files. That mapping is what lets WorkGraph say, “This pattern of steps looks like ‘analyzing data or information’ for an analyst, or like ‘documenting and recording information’ for a compliance role.”
How This Helps You, Without the Jargon
By combining WorkGraph’s real work capture with this occupational language, you get:
Time by Capability, Not Just by Project
Instead of "30 hours on Project Alpha," you see "12 hours analyzing data, 8 hours client communication, 6 hours documentation, 4 hours coordination."
Clarity on What Roles Actually Do
Compare what your "analysts" really spend time on against the standardized profile of analyst-type work — how much is true analysis vs coordination vs documentation.
Better Automation and AI Decisions
Activities like "processing information" and "documenting/recording information" tend to be more automatable, while "making decisions" or "negotiating" usually remain human-led. That gives you a principled way to decide where AI workers can safely plug in.
A Shared Language Across Teams and Tools
Because the framework is used broadly by workforce and labor experts, it creates a neutral, research-backed vocabulary that HR, operations, IT, and business leaders can all understand.
WorkGraph isn’t inventing its own theory of work. It’s aligning what your people actually do on their screens with a rigorously researched map of occupations, skills, and work activities — so you can see your workforce in terms that are meaningful, comparable, and ready for AI.
Ready to See Your Workforce Through This Lens?
WorkGraph’s skills taxonomy turns raw screen activity into occupational intelligence. See it in action.
Request a Demo