An effective career development plan can provide a roadmap to professional success. While creating one may take some effort and time, its implementation could prove instrumental in reaching your desired goals.

Start by outlining your career aspirations goals - what would your desired destination be five years from now?

Once identified, create a timeline to fill any skill gaps between your current set of competencies and those needed for growth.

Self-Assessment

Performing a self-assessment can be the starting point for developing a career development plan. Employees can use this step to identify their skills, learning needs and any gaps between these elements of development. Once complete, employees should work with managers in determining their best path toward reaching their goals.

Encourage employees to set ambitious yet realistic goals, taking into account their current abilities and any they'll acquire over time. Once set, have them outline a list of steps they can take towards reaching those goals, including signing up for courses to hone skills or seeking opportunities within their work roles - this might involve signing up for courses to develop new abilities or even creating challenges to reward people once their goals have been accomplished.

Managers should consider ways they can assist employees while creating the final roadmap, including providing additional training or mentoring relationships. For example, if an employee wishes to learn a particular piece of software, their employer could possibly arrange training programs or pay for classes.

As important, it's essential to bear in mind that it may never be possible for an employee's desired career goals and company goals to align perfectly. Even so, creating a plan will allow them to remain within their current company while expanding upon their skills as much as possible.

Goal-Setting

An effective career plan helps employees remain focused and motivated, with goals following the SMART framework: Specific Measurable Achievable Realistic and Timebound goals being ideal. Accessing relevant resources may also prove invaluable; for example, taking an online marketing course would provide a measurable goal that can be accomplished within an acceptable timeline.

Additional measurable goals could include taking on more leadership duties or expanding their professional network. Building relationships between peers from different departments can give an inside look into how other groups operate, while career development goals could include attaining certifications, attending seminars, or reading industry-related books.

Some employees may be content with where they stand in their careers, which is also fine. A career development plan can still help them increase their ability to fulfill their current role or overcome any challenges that might come their way, while providing the inspiration to explore other things outside their current company that could ultimately open up many more doors for them. Should an employee decide to change departments, their managers and supervisors must remain supportive and helpful by organizing 1:1 meetings to review feedback, goals and achievements of an employee in a new department.

Action Planning

Establishing a written career development plan can increase engagement rates, motivation levels and performance. As part of this process, employees should first determine what their short-term goals should be; goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely (SMART). Now is also an ideal opportunity to consider outside experiences such as attending courses or shadowing more experienced colleagues.

Managers should recognize their team members' efforts at growing professionally during this stage. Even if their goal is to transfer onto another department or company, acknowledging their efforts can keep them engaged with their current roles and increase likelihood that they remain loyal to the business.

Managers need to collaborate with their team members in identifying how they will meet their long-term career goals. Training or other resources could be needed, such as personalized coaching or mentoring support, to achieve these ambitions.

Finalizing a career development plan involves creating a timeline that shows employees exactly what needs to be done to meet both short- and long-term goals. This gives employees a clear idea of their obligations while serving as a tool to measure progress towards reaching these objectives.

Monitoring

Create a career development plan can help employees gain clarity over their professional goals, organize and plan the steps to take toward them, as well as identify internal mobility potential and how these align with organizational goals.

An employee career development plan provides them with a roadmap for professional advancement, which can serve to increase employee engagement and motivation at work, as well as identify any barriers that may impede reaching their goals.

An employee's career development plan should outline three elements: starting point, destination and roadmap. Their starting point may be their current position while their destination could be their desired future career path; with each step leading closer towards their goal. A good roadmap should follow a SMART framework: Specific Measurable Achievable Realistic and Timely goals should be established as goals to work toward.

Step two is tracking an employee's career development plan. Managers should schedule regular check-ins with team members so they can discuss career progression, achievements, and challenges; it also serves as an excellent reminder for employees to periodically revisit their plans and make any necessary modifications as required.