June 2013

Your Guide to Your Career and Learning Plan

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Contents Page

Introduction…….………………………………………………….……..3

What is a Career and Learning Plan?..............................................4

Where does it fit in?..........................................................................5

Why is it important?..........................................................................6

Where do I start?..............................................................................7

Step One: Identify your development………………………….……..8

Step Two: Consider current and future roles………………………..9

Step Three: Determine the best learning activities……..…….…...10

Step Four: Manage your plan…………………..…………………...11

Step Five: Report on your accomplishments………………………11

Resources…………………………………………………………..12-13

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Introduction Welcome to the guide to Career and Learning Plans.

This guide is intended to assist you, as a

Government of Alberta employee, in creating

your own career and learning plan each year.

Planning your career and learning helps you

set development goals to:

enhance performance in your current role,

and

prepare yourself for future roles.

The Government of Alberta is committed to

supporting continuous learning for its employ-

ees. What does this mean for you and your

career and learning?

Your career is a lifelong learning process.

You are in charge of managing your own

career.

There will be many factors that influence

your career decisions, but nobody is more

interested or qualified to determine its di-

rection and timing than you.

You will likely have several different jobs

and career shifts in your lifetime.

It is about making informed career and

learning decisions.

Ideally, your Career and Learning Plan is not

something that happens only at the beginning

of each fiscal year, but something that is a

continual, living document adjusted to meet

your changing needs and learning acquisi-

tions. APS career paths are often as unique

as individuals, and ultimately you will make

choices to meet your individual needs.

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What is a Career and Learning Plan? A Career and Learning Plan is a tool to help

you capture information related to your de-

velopment goals, which are discussed and

agreed to between you and your supervisor.

A Career and Learning Plan generally:

Includes development goals, the specific

actions you will take to meet your

development goals, when you will do

them and the results you achieve

throughout the year.

Is flexible and allows for individualiza-

tion; considers that people work and

learn differently and have different de-

velopment needs depending on where

they are in their careers.

Is open to adjustment as things may

change throughout the year.

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This diagram shows the linkage between your Career and Learning Plan and your

Performance Agreement. It is important to keep in mind that your performance

commitments and your career and learning goals should fit together.

CAREER PLANS: usually take a longer-term view, typically 2-5 years. Here you need to factor in long-term work/life goals and issues depending on your stage of life (e.g. family responsibilities, geographic concerns, financial plans, health issues, etc.). Some of the career plans you have will directly influence

your immediate learning plan.

LEARNING PLANS: mostly concentrate on the next 1-2 years and focus on current or transition jobs. They need to be in sync with your career plans

and may also be influenced by your immediate Performance Plan.

PERFORMANCE PLANS: are linked to the achievement of business plan goals. They are defined for the current fiscal year and highly

focused on job-related deliverables.

Where does it fit in?

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Remember you are not alone as you work through your plan as you can talk to your supervisor

and Human Resources. The plan is best implemented using a phased approach and it does

not have to be done all at once. It is also important to remember that it is up to you to create

the future you want and nobody is more capable of creating that future than you!

Have a look over the rest of this guide to find answers to frequently asked questions on each

section of the Career and Learning Plan. You will also find links to resources to help you as

you create your development goals and select the best mix of learning options to help you

reach those goals.

Why is it important? For You?

Research has shown that people who set

career and learning development goals:

Have a strong sense of purpose and

connection.

Have more personal satisfaction in

their work.

Are more open to new opportunities

when they come up.

Are better prepared for the future and

better able to cope with change.

And thus have less stress.

For the Organization?

Clarifies expectations and

commitments between you and your

supervisor.

Strengthens current and future

capacity of the organization.

Supports succession planning.

Supports continuous learning

throughout the organization.

Creates an environment where em-

ployee’s are engaged and want to

stay.

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In the following pages, there are a number of key questions and resources to help you as you

work through each section of your Career and Learning Plan.

The Career and Learning Plan is part of your annual Performance Agreement form and looks

like this:

When developing your Career and Learning Plan, focus on your learning needs to enhance performance in your current role and actions to prepare for longer-term career opportunities. Prioritize your learning needs into 1-3 main development goals. Click here to access resources to help you develop your plan.

CAREER AND LEARNING PLAN Click here to see a Sample Plan

My Development Goal:

(State the specific Knowledge, Skill or APS Competency to be developed)

Focus:

Current Role

Future Roles

Actions/Timing Results Achieved/How I Applied What I Learned

Where do I start?

Too busy to think about your career and learning?

Planning your career and learning does not have to be an arduous task. Taking a bit of time through-

out the year to revisit your learning needs and progress can keep you on track, better prepare you for

new opportunities that arise and allow you to make any changes if needed. Have a look at Career

Management for Busy People on the Career Management Portal to give you a quick overview of the

portal and to get you started. (Click on the links or see the Resources section on page 13 of this

guide for the website address).

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Step One: Identify your development goals

My Development Goal

What is a development goal?

A development goal is a statement describ-

ing how you want to enhance your skills,

knowledge and competencies.

Development goals can be short-term or

long-term, depending on what your learning

focus is. They can help you develop yourself

for your current role as well as for your future

career aspirations.

Where do I begin?

Ask yourself:

What learning (knowledge, skills,

competencies) would help me be

more effective as an employee?

What do I need to learn to prepare

for the future?

Compare your current knowledge,

skills and competencies with where

you want to be and determine where

there are gaps or areas to develop.

Reflect on your strengths and consider

areas for further development.

Talk to your supervisor and Human

Resources for advice.

What is an APS Competency? Competencies are behaviors that are essential to reach our goals in serving Albertans. APS members need to demonstrate two types of competencies: technical competencies and behavioral competencies. Technical competencies are generally the focus of what you do in your job. Behavioral competencies are the observable characteristics or behaviors that are critical for individual or team performance and success. They focus on how you approach your work. The APS Competency Model focuses on behavioral competencies. Check out all the APS Competencies.

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Step Two: Consider current and future roles

Focus

What should my development

goal focus on?

That depends!

Are you new to your role and are just

“learning the ropes”?

Are you looking to continually improve

yourself in a job you love?

Are you looking for more challenge?

Are you looking to move to a different

role?

Are you looking at changing career

paths?

The focus of your development goal can be

towards improving your performance and

proficiency in your current role if you are new

or want to improve your performance.

It can also be focused towards preparing you

for a future opportunity if you are potentially

looking at a career shift.

Or, you may find that your development goal

overlaps both.

Do you love your current role?

That’s great! Many employees are happy in

their current role. Focus your learning on

staying current with new knowledge in your

field and skills that will help you enhance

your performance. If you have a lot of expe-

rience in your job, you may also want to

consider helping to teach new or less expe-

rienced co-workers.

Are you thinking of a future

opportunity?

Have a look at the Career Management

Portal. (Click on the link or see the Resources

section on page 13 of this guide for the website

address).

It is a great resource which provides infor-

mation to help you manage your career. It

also contains activities which are self-

directed and can trigger thought and con-

versation to help create a picture of yourself

and your career options.

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Step Three: Determine the best learning activities

Actions

What should I consider when identifying learning actions and activities to support my

development goal(s)?

Get creative! Learning opportunities are all

around you!

First, focus on your development goal.

What will you need to do to meet that goal?

For example, if you are new to your role,

your career and learning plan may include

orientation or a job shadow. If you are look-

ing to retire soon, your development plan

may include ways you can share your

knowledge with others, such as through

coaching and mentoring.

Next, consider your personal learning style.

How do you learn best?

Some people learn best through doing, oth-

ers can pick things up through reading or in

the classroom. Most people learn best

through a mix of different learning methods.

What are the options for learning and

development?

The Government of Alberta offers a wide

range of options from formal, classroom-

based training to learning on-the-job.

Consider what you need to learn and how

you learn best when looking at your options.

Click here to explore these options in the Career

Management Portal.

What support will you need (e.g. time, mon-

ey)?

Once you have figured out your options and

have discussed them with your supervisor,

list the actions you are going to take to

increase your knowledge and/or abilities

and skills to do your current job or to pre-

pare for a future role. Give yourself some

reasonable timelines to complete them.

What if something unexpected comes up and impacts my planned timing? It is quite common that this will occur. Ensuring you have an on-going dialogue with your supervi-sor and keeping on top of your career and learn-ing plan will help you to adjust your plan and the timing of your actions. Remember your plan is meant to be flexible and changed throughout the year as needed.

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You can complete the Results Achieved/How I Applied What I Learned section throughout the

year as you accomplish your development goals, or you can complete it all at fiscal year end.

Once completed have your supervisor review it and prepare to discuss it. Reflect on what you

accomplished and how you have applied your learning. Start to think about your next steps

and where you would like to go with your career and learning for the year ahead.

Step Four: Manage your plan

Ready, Set, Go!

Now that you have gathered your information together, you are ready to meet with your

supervisor to finalize your Career and Learning Plan. Review your development goals and

priorities and focus on 1-3 key goals you wish to accomplish this year. Bring in all your docu-

ments and a draft of your Career and Learning Plan to the discussion with your supervisor.

It is important to remember even the best laid plans are subject to change. When you come up

against an obstacle, figure your way around it and update your plan accordingly. Review your

plan as often as possible throughout the year, individually and with your supervisor to monitor,

reinforce and challenge your learning. Continually work through your plan to modify and adjust

as new learning opportunities emerge.

Remember this is not always a linear process! You need to constantly review where you are at

and where you want to go – just like driving on a long vacation! It is up to you to create the fu-

ture you want and nobody is more capable of creating that future than you!

Step Five: Report on your accomplishments

Results Achieved/How I Applied What I Learned

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Here are the web addresses to some great resources which you can use to help you as you work on your Career and Learning Plan: Explore and be aware of any department-based learning and development op-

portunities available to you through your ministry. alis - provides information to all Albertans on career planning, post-secondary

education and training, educational funding, job search, labour market trends and workplace issues. http://alis.alberta.ca

Alberta Public Service (APS) Competencies - are the underlying characteristics

that enable people to deliver superior performance in a given job, role or situation. Consider these as you determine your development goal. http://psc.alberta.ca/competencies

APS Vision and Values - in all of the work we do, including career planning, it is important to keep the Vision and Values in mind.

Resources

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Career Management Portal - provides information to help you manage your careerand acts as a guide. The activities within the portal are self-directed and act to trig-ger thought and conversation to help create a picture of yourself and your career options (see page 7 and 9). http://psc.alberta.ca/careerportal

Career Management for Busy People - gives you a quick overview of thefour sections in the Career Management Portal (See page 7). http://psc.alberta.ca/Practitioners/?file=learning/careermgmtkit/resources/careermgmt-for-busy-people&cf=9

Government of Alberta (GoA) Jobs Website - provides you with a link to job op-portunities across the GoA and other job search resources. http://www.jobs.alberta.ca

Research Careers & Calculate Pay and Benefits - enables you to re-search careers across the GoA based on job category, type of work and lev-el of work. You can also estimate the total compensation for a position by calculating the pay and benefits. http://www.jobs.alberta.ca/explore/research.html

Ask Our Employees - watch videos featuring a variety of GoA employees tolearn more about their jobs and the work they do. http://www.jobs.alberta.ca/explore/profiles.html

GoA Learning Centre Catalogue - helps you identify training opportunities toachieve your career and learning development goals.

http://psc.alberta.ca/learning/GoA_learning_catalogue.pdf

Resources continued