Career Planning

You have to water the flowers you want to grow Stephen Covey Career PlanningTwo approaches to employee developmentOnly for poor performers Vs For all employeesDevelopment is the responsibility of HR Vs Every Managers responsibilityCareer planning is moving employees up the corporate ladder Vs Moving employees through new challenges and opportunities to strengthen their professional abilitiesDevelopment is training Vs Includes diverse stretch assignments, action learning, mentoring etc What if do not invest in career planningMiss aligning employees performance to organizations performance

Have less engaged and less contributing employees

Helps to attract and retain talent

Dont have back-up incase top performers leaveReward people in a currency they value - Growth

What I need is someone who will make me do what I can Ralph Emerson What to do in career planningAppropriately address employee expectationsDraft suitable and feasible developmental PlansCustomize career plans according to individuals needs, preferences and strengthsBuild a strong foundation for organizational success Types of PerformersTop PerformersSolid PerformersUnder PerformersUnderstanding the Performance Potential GridRefer to handout for dicussion Steps for preparing for a career development planning discussionSchedule the meetingAgree on content to have a candid and purposeful discussion on employees growthGather information on employeesReflect on employees skills ,interests and valuesExplore opportunities available for employeeBuild trust

Tips for creating a career development planFocus on specific goalsDesign Action Plans including training,coaching,challenging work assignments etcCareer Development Plan should be a collaborative effortHave stipulated time frames for evaluation set milestonesFocus on accountabilityMake the plan challenging enough to push the employee out of his comfort zoneMake it incremental

Ladder Vs LatticeLow rate of job mobility Vs High rateUniform career-life need Vs varied career needsLinear career Progression Vs Non-linearPromotion a key measure of success Vs Growth and development Life time jobs Vs Continual, customized career enhancerFeatures of Lattice Career PathwaysCreate multidirectional development options, expanding choices for individualized career movesProvide transparency about the range of possible rolesFocus less on upward moves and more on development and contributionBuild cross-silo relationships and knowledge , thereby improving collaboration,cooordinationa and execution