---
title: "Manage and Customize Skills in SkillPanel's Skill Manager"
canonical: "https://help.skillpanel.com/space/TBG/2894331905/Manage%20and%20Customize%20Skills%20in%20SkillPanel's%20Skill%20Manager"
format: markdown
---
Keep your company’s skills map accurate and adaptable. The Skills Manager tab lets you add, edit, hide, or remove skills at any level of your hierarchy.

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## Why

A clean, structured skills database keeps workforce insights real. Updating areas, sub-areas, and groups directly in SkillPanel prevents data drift and saves time during audits or capability reviews.

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## When to Use This

- Setting up your company’s skills framework for the first time.
- Adding new skills, skill descriptions, or relations between skills.
- Cleaning up outdated or duplicate skills.

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## Prerequisites

- Access to the **Skills Manager** tab.
- Admin permissions.

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## Quick Start

1. Open **Skills Manager** from the left menu.
2. Choose the level where you want to add something:
  - **Add Area** for a new top-level category.
  - **Add Sub-area** for a nested topic under an existing area.
  - **Add Skill Group** to organize related skills within a sub-area.
  - **Add Skill** to list a specific capability (e.g., *PRINCE2*, *Scrum Mastery*).  
→ Each new object appears immediately in the hierarchy.
3. Use the **three dots (⋯)** beside any item to **Edit**, **Hide**, or **Disable**.
4. To check details, click **⋯ → View details** on any skill.

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## Detailed Steps

### 1. Add New or Custom Skills

- Go to the desired category and click **Add**.
  - You can add at the Area, Sub-area, or Skill Group level.  
**Why this matters:** Keeps your framework flexible as your organization evolves.

![fc4de720-0e43-4a6d-a73b-6028d5f5d45c.png](media://a8c6098f-c837-438d-9a62-5486902d2466)

### 2. Edit, Hide, or Disable

Use the **⋯ (three dots)** next to each skill:

- **Edit:** Change the name, description, or relationships.
- **Hide:** Temporarily remove visibility for employees without deleting data.
- **Disable:** Fully remove from the Skills Manager.  
**Why this matters:** Control visibility and relevance without losing structure.

![840a2d74-530b-430c-84a8-30a466f4fd03.png](media://224b58e8-8416-40f2-977c-c0523adf61fc)

### 3. View Skill Details

- Find a skill → Click **⋯** → **View details**.  
The details window appears on the right side. It includes:
- **People:** See average skill levels, learners, and who’s close to mastery. You can recommend skills to others.
- **Skill Definition:** Shows related skills and their network.
- **Learning:** Add or view linked learning materials.  
**Why this matters:** Connects skill data, people progress, and learning content in one view.

![c252b519-b2b6-4a34-9df4-6d46d399274f.png](media://1e403feb-4086-4982-b5dd-2da7c6ae3c19)

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## Use the Product to Go Faster / Safer / Clearer

| Step | Feature | Benefit | How? |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Add skills | Multi-level hierarchy (Area → Sub-area → Group) | Keeps taxonomies consistent and scalable | Create new layers without losing inherited structure |
| Edit/hide/disable | Inline controls | Prevents clutter and outdated data | Adjust visibility in seconds, no backend changes |
| View details | Unified skill view | Links people, learning, and definitions | Pulls live data from SkillPanel’s skills graph |

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## Examples

**Example 1:**  
You add a new Sub-area called *AI Tools* under *Digital Skills*.  
→ Employees can now rate themselves in related skills (e.g., ChatGPT, Midjourney).

**Example 2:**  
You hide the *Salesforce *Sub-area because you’ve moved CRMs  
→ It disappears from employee profiles but stays archived for audit reference.

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## FAQ

**Q:** What’s the difference between Hide and Disable?  
**A:** Hide keeps the skill in the database but invisible to employees. Disable removes it completely.

**Q:** Can I reorder skills or groups?  
**A:** Not currently.

**Q:** Who can edit skills?  
**A:** Only admins with Skills Manager access.

**Q:** Does hiding affect analytics?  
**A:** Hidden skills are excluded from dashboards and gap reports.