Why Bother With Career Development?

The business case for a manager’s time investment

Premise:

• Every organization will need to make employee development a top priority.
• Every manager will need to bring their best coaching game to their employees.
• Every employee will need to bring their best capabilities forward.

Leaders play a key role in employee development. They have the power to motivate, inspire and lead. They also help employees thrive, remain competitive and develop their unique skills. knowing what to do, how to do it, and then doing it is what is called for today’s economy.

Update Your Knowledge of Their Talents

Mastering this ability enables managers to use the talent on their team more effectively. It supports better matches between business needs and responses to those needs. Too often, we assume we know the skills and capabilities of the people who report to us. Unfortunately, this is not always the case, and valuable talent is underutilized or not used in the best way. The more managers understand the talents of every individual on their team, the easier it is to grow and retain employees and the more effectively challenges can be assigned.

Candid Conversations

Feedback is a fundamental part of effective management and leadership. Leveling with employees is a direct route to growth, development, and career success. Retention research suggests that employees leave because they have no idea of their value to the organization and can’t envision career growth inside the organization. Many reports that they have never had candid conversations about their abilities and how they can leverage their strengths, develop new skills, and polish rough edges as they work toward their career aspirations. Clear feedback allows individuals to make appropriate choices to know how they are perceived in the organization and to manage that perception. And this critical function is in the domain of every manager.

Spotlight Impending Change

Employees must constantly consider changes that affect their careers in the short term. Understanding long-term trends and the opportunities/implications of those trends are equally important, helping employees identify information sources prepares them to stay in tune with trends and up to date with the forces that will impact their careers.
 

Managers who talk openly and honestly about the future with their teams help employees envision the future and prepare for success. Constant and continuous change makes this strategy a critical piece in building a resilient team-a team that will be ready to meet the challenges ahead and succeed. Managers use their experience and wisdom to prepare employees for what may become tomorrow’s realities is essential.

Plan for Contingencies

Employees’ commitment and contribution to the organization can increase when they recognize opportunities and multiple ways for them to grow and develop. Creating development goals that align with the organization’s direction positions your team for success. Goals should include contingencies for shifts and changes that arise. Setting specific goals motivates employees to pursue professional development and provides a vital link to the utilization of talent. Job satisfaction results when employees feel that they are part of the organization’s future. Employees can then align their goals with the organization’s goals.

Encourage Continual Learning

Organizations that are not learning cannot be competitive. Individuals need to grow, develop, and add new skills to keep themselves and the organization on the competitive edge, ready to excel in a world of rapid and constant change. Managers must build an environment that supports learning, encourages inquiry, rewards growth, and challenges employees to pursue their own definition of success. Managers who create links to the resources and experiences employees need will create a community of learners equipped to achieve the organization’s goals, mission, and vision. Talented people want to work with talented people. A second, but equally important outcome of creating a development-focused environment, is that the word gets out. Talent will be attracted to your organization.

Beware the Knowing-Doing Gap

None of this is probably new to you – nor should it be. The real question is – are you actively doing it? All of it? Would your employees agree? The difference in closing the knowing-doing gap is directly related to the number of employees who grow and develop under your guidance.

Author Bio

Dr. Beverly Kaye is recognized internationally as one of the most knowledgeable and practical professionals in the areas of career development, employee engagement and retention. Her contribution to the field of engagement and retention includes the Wall Street Journal bestseller, Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em: Getting Good People to Stay, which is now in its 6th edition. Her recent books in the career development field include Up is Not the Only Way and Help Them Grow or Watch Them Go, which provides overwhelmed managers with a way to blend career conversations into their everyday routines. Visit www.bevkaye.com Connect Dr. Beverly Kaye