We have to plan our career on a regular basis. According to recent survey, an average worker is expected to shift careers multiple times in a lifetime. Thus, it’s never too soon or too late to start planning your career…

Individual Initiatives in Career Planning and Development

Career Planning: An individual employee should be mature enough to plan his/her career in a systematic way looking at the current performance and future interests.

Career Awareness: It is the responsibility of an employee to keep himself updated about the latest development happening in the specific area of his work. This is possible through taking membership from the related bodies, subscribing to relevant magazines, attending seminars and conferences.

Career Resource Center Utilization: It is one of the way that an employee can plan and develop the career. This center guides and counsels in the right direction helping to take unbiased decisions.

Interests Values and Competency Analysis: Awareness about the individual area of interest and analysis of current level of competency helps an employee to understand better with regards to his potential career path.

Internal mobility of employees: Job rotation, promotion, transfer to different department can help an employee to gain better career exposure which will enhance the growth prospect in the organisation.

Steps in Career Planning and Development Process

Step 1: Self Assessment: Knowing about the strengths and weakness about own helps an employee to check the various areas of exploring the career.

Step 2: Career Skills Assessment: Based on the individual strength, right fit for the right career is possible to sustain in the job for lifetime.

Step 3: Setting the career objective: The career skills assessment leads to set the desired career objective.

Step 4: Career Development Plan: Depending on the career objective the development plan is structured and further broken to sub division of plans

Step 5: Implement the plan: The clearer the development plan is, the easier it is for the employee to implement the same since the goal becomes clearer which helps to achieve the plan.

Step 6: Looking for Continuous growth: After achieving every step, review is a must based on which further growth in the career path is made possible.