The Talent Management Handbook: Chapter 15

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Chapter 15

Career Development:
Encompassing
All Employees
Beverly Kaye, Ph.D.,Founder and CEO
Joyce Cohen, Senior Consultant
Beverly Crowell, Senior Consultant
Career Systems International

T HERE’S A NEW NORMAL THAT IS DEMANDED OF CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS AND
practices. It is required alongside reorganizations, downsizing, budget con-
straints, and flattening levels of leadership. The new normal suggests that career
development must occur right here, right now, and right where you are. Consider that
old saying, “There’s no sense in waiting for your ship to come in if you haven’t sent
one out.” Companies who are excelling in the war on talent are getting their ships out
and getting them out fast—at the helm, the employee.
It’s time to declutter past thinking about career development. In business envi-
ronments where employees and leaders are operating faster and leaner, career devel-
opment must be flexible and self-powered by the employee no matter where they are
or what they are doing. The new attitude about career development places responsi-
bility squarely on the employee. It may even mean that succession plans for a few are
replaced with career growth plans that build on the strengths of all employees. It
promotes the belief that all employees must learn and grow, not just those on the
high-potential list. Opportunities are readily present to do so if, and only if, the
organization can truly support an “up is no longer the only way” philosophy.
159

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160 Part I. Creating a Talent Management Program for Organization Excellence

World-class businesses who embrace this new attitude are building wider and
deeper bench strength, enhancing employer brand, improving workforce flexibility
and resilience, developing employee self-advocacy and career accountability, engaging
and retaining key talent, and increasing employee productivity.

The Changing Face of Career Development
The nature of work today is very different from what it was several years ago. Because
of the unsettling economy, HR departments are charged with filling the talent pipeline,
with limited or no budget, fewer resources, and less time to execute. At the same time,
they are tracking regrettable losses, satisfaction indicators, and individual develop-
ment plan (IDP) progress. Business leaders and busy managers are turning to HR for
quick answers and even faster solutions to talent management challenges as they are
being held accountable for growing the talent in their departments. They must put
practices into place that align the talent of an organization with the strategic direction
of the business. When careers are aligned with core business principles, employees
take on greater self-accountability for career, and connections foster strength across the
organization.
On the organizational level, HR leaders look to identify and align with the organi-
zational mission and strategy, evaluate organizational change and how it impacts the
workforce, and track and monitor emerging trends and understand their impact on
both the industry and careers within the organization. In addition, they will need to
educate the workforce to take responsibility for their own careers and be willing to
coach one another.
Within HR there is a need to respond in a timely manner to evitable change as
it occurs, ask for opinions, value and respect diverse points of view, create a brand
reputation, market to wider career audiences, and develop enrichment options that
support career choices. It also demands the creation of an infrastructure that supports
self-motivated career development and growth plans.
A proactive and accountable career development process, when partnered with
succession planning, can meet these challenges swiftly and head-on. To work, it
requires leadership buy-in, systems and tools that support this model, managers
equipped to career coach, and employees willing to take ownership for their careers
as well as their own job satisfaction. Ultimately, a development-minded strategy is
needed that
• Holds employees accountable for personal development.
• Wins confidence of customers, community, and suppliers.
• Gains commitment of internal and remote workforce.
• Propels teams forward with internal worker support and buy-in.
• Uses power of generational teams to work together as partners in unprecedented
ways.
• Optimizes diverse skills, talents, and age differentials.
• Gathers new information and remains open to new options, ideas, and strategies.

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Career Development: Encompassing All Employees 161

The Tie That Binds: Career Development Links to
Succession Planning
Succession plans have been the mainstay for organizations for many years as the way
to develop the leadership pipeline and to ensure a healthy talent management pro-
gram. Career development was often reserved for the high-potential employee on the
fast track. We believe a development message is critical for a wider array of workers.
Career growth plans (CGP) are needed to enhance the traditional succession plan.
Change in today’s work structure calls for self-advocacy on the part of all employees.
The CGP could become part of the hiring process, describe a variety of paths to devel-
opment, emphasize the need to focus on mastery of the current job, build relevant skill
sets, and value contributions from all generational groups. A CGP could motivate all
employees to learn from their experiences and daily work, while expanding reach and
network, both social and professional.
All employees must learn to build their own individualized career plan. Each
person creates a master plan with the help of managers and mentors and their own
peers to promote the learning and personal development areas that needs to be
addressed. This CGP continues to latter stages of one’s career within an organization
where experienced employees focus on “what’s next,” legacy development, mentor-
ing younger workers, sharing expertise, and working on projects aligned to their
experience and skills.
Each organization must grapple with how to create a healthy tie between the busi-
ness strategy and the ever-changing workforce. Along with the strong need for flexi-
ble policies and procedures, there is an immediate need for upgrades in skills. During
one’s tenure, from on-boarding all the way through phased retirement, it is important
to balance individual goals with the business needs of an organization.
New language, such as “zigzagging” career moves or lattice instead of ladders is
needed to replace terms that have lost their meaning. An example of such verbiage is
the search for a new word to replace retirement, the last phase of the career contin-
uum. Many words have been recommended to take its place, such as refirement,
rewirement, and protirement, but none have caught on to date. That debate still con-
tinues after a decade of realizing that a new paradigm has emerged without much
clear direction.
Other gray areas and questions emerge. What about those not included in a suc-
cession plan? How can career development be made viable and important to all? How
will the organization respond to the younger generation who is asking about their
development? How can traditional succession plans integrate harmoniously with
emerging career growth plans?

A New Model for Career Development
Career development and career growth plans have evolved to be a business impera-
tive that can directly impact the success of any organization. Talent demands more

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than a job. They demand a satisfying career that meets professional, personal, and
emotional needs.
The hand-holding days are long gone. Multiple jobs are the norm with constant
re-skilling and networking to stay attuned to business needs. Consider Ben and
Janis who are self-motivated and successfully managing their careers. Ben is mar-
ried, 42, with three children, completed a bachelor’s degree through the armed
forces ROTC program, has held six jobs and is working full-time as a computer
technician, and is taking courses in pursuit of a master’s degree in organizational
management through an accelerated adult learning program online. He has already
conducted numerous informational interviews and is focusing on a next career
move as an IT business partner liaison (drawing on his education, current interests,
and previous IT expertise). He is also beginning to think about his next career after
he retires from this current line of work. A combination of a career development
plan, flex time at work, distance education, and ROTC is making Ben’s career
dreams possible.
Janis, on the other hand, at age 32, has already navigated four different careers in
education, library science, and early childhood development. She is job-sharing a
position with a colleague to spend more time with her young child and her elderly
widowed father, who lives with them.
Each unique situation can be accommodated by providing work/life balance,
strong career fit, appropriate education, and flexible hours. Both Ben and Janis say
their career choices and decisions have been driven by developing a portfolio of
transferable skills and competencies, concrete career planning, personal life circum-
stances, and taking advantage of the flexibility of today’s workplace and educa-
tional options.
Research suggests that challenging work, flexibility, career development, and the
opportunity to learn and grow are some top reasons employees choose to stay, and
stay engaged, in an organization. It doesn’t happen by accident. Worker’s attitudes
and expectations have changed—permanently.

What Keeps Them?
These factors influence job satisfaction and commitment:
Exciting, challenging, and meaningful work
Supportive manager, great boss
Being recognized, valued, and respected
Career growth, learning, and development
Flexible work environment
Job security and stability
Fair pay
Job location

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Working with great coworkers or clients
Pride in the organization, mission, or product
Fun, enjoyable work environment
Good benefits
Loyalty to my coworkers or boss
Source: Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em: Getting Good People to Stay. Berrett-Koehler
Publishers; Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans; 4th edition. (January 1, 2008).

Organizations must think beyond the traditional models of career and expand
their thinking to an overall career development and growth strategy that focuses on
three critical groups: the organization, the manager, and the employee. To begin, ask
lots of questions. Investigate what’s happening in your organization to discover the
truth about your development culture.

The Organization
Organizations are continually asked to reinvent themselves and are forced to juggle
priorities that shift regularly. The result is a leaner organization with fewer resources,
fast-paced work, expanded spans of control, and a new normal at work that demands
flexibility and the ability to thrive when ambiguity and change are the order of the
day. To remain competitive in business and attract top talent, an organization must
provide the systems and structure that support the career development needs across
all levels. Framing responses to the questions below will be an important first step to
addressing the development of systems and structures that support career develop-
ment needs.
• How can leaders and managers who work within the organization guarantee
that the business strategy will work, the day-to-day tasks are updated and
redesigned, and the workforce still remain engaged?
• How do we respond to the constant change in business today?
• What does a career look like in our organization today?
• Do our systems and processes support career development and succession plan-
ning for the next generation?
• How do we measure results and does our career development process support
those results?
• How do we establish a foundation for employees to grow in areas that matter
across the life continuum of the organization and the employee?

The Manager
While the company provides the systems and tools for career development, the devel-
opment-minded manager provides the support and guidance. Most managers are

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trained in performance management, and some believe performance management and
career development are the same. They’re not. Managers must understand that build-
ing talent for tomorrow requires commitment to career development today and at
every level. Development-minded managers create and implement developmental
assignments, encourage risk taking, set stretch goals, and tap unused resources. They
provide a professional safety net so that employees can experiment and learn on the
job. They continually ask themselves some key questions:
• How do I serve as a career advocate for my employees?
• How often do I talk with my employees about their career goals and what mat-
ters most to them?
• Do I provide candid and frequent feedback to my employees about what they
need to do to grow in their careers?
• Do I link employees to the resources and information they need in support of
their careers?
• Do I take career growth plans seriously? What amount of time do I devote to
planning?
• Do I provide information to employees about the future of the organization and
look for opportunities for employees?
• Do I stay current and future focused in the above concerns for me and my career
as well as the careers of my direct reports?
• What am I reading and discussing with colleagues to ensure the above?

The Employee
No longer can employees wait for career development to happen to them or for them.
To be effective, employees must begin to manage their careers by knowing themselves,
knowing what’s out there, knowing what others think of them, and knowing whom to
ask for help. They pave the way by taking charge of their careers: developing on the job,
ensuring that their work has heart, and networking throughout the organization to
engage with others and energize daily work. There are five critical areas that demand
exploration by the individual:

Change. What trends are impacting my organization and how can I capitalize on
this reality to benefit my career? How will I hold myself accountable?
Specifically, what am I willing to do?
Interests. How would I describe my current values, skills, and interests on the job?
How do I use them regularly at work? How do I ensure that I’ll continue to
learn, grow, and develop on the job?
Reputation. I received a 360-degree report about my performance/work style and
said, “They got my number!” What were the main messages of my strengths
and weaknesses? How will I ensure ongoing performance feedback?
Options. If I could do any job within the organization, what would I like to do and
why? How can I explore multiple growth avenues? Do I view change as an
opportunity?

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Actions. What do I want to be doing in one or three years and what’s my plan to
get there? What actions will I put in place to ensure that I put myself in position
to turn these dreams to reality? With whom can I talk about these issues and
build a viable personal plan?

An Important HR Role
Given the environment of constant change and uncertainty, one thing is for certain:
HR leaders must align with the vision of the organization by serving as strategic
partners who can integrate business-driven solutions around a robust career
development program. This means they must take stock of their existing career
development processes to integrate new thinking, ignite new strategies and behav-
iors, and infuse it into the culture of the organization. They must examine key ques-
tions about policies, systems, and structures that are designed to support career
development in the organization. The list of questions that follows is just some of
the challenges for HR professionals to consider and implement as new processes
take shape.
How are our policies, systems, and structures

• Aligned with development choices?
• Focused on future directions?
• Driving new positive behaviors?
• Creating partnerships that energize and engage while fulfilling valued services/
products?
• Investing in broad talents and determining where those talents can best be
utilized internally?
• Growing a new brand of worker who is fulfilled both personally and profes-
sionally?
• Building confident, cost-conscious risk-takers?
• Ensuring respect and inclusivity across the workplace?
• Providing opportunities for employees at all levels to learn, grow, and develop
within the organization?

Generational Diversity: Gifts of the Ages
No matter the generation they represent, employees want work that provides
satisfaction. Consider the generational group when developing career develop-
ment and growth plans by valuing and utilizing the uniqueness of each. If atten-
tion is provided across generational groups, organizations have a head start
in embracing the new meaning of career, alignment to business strategy, self-
accountability, connectedness, sustainability, and attention to a future-focused
business.

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MATURES (Ages 65 )
Savvy, experienced workers who want to use their expertise and be integral to the
job. Include them in training (they’re often overlooked) where they can learn new
technologies and emerging concepts. Involve this group fairly, investigate phased
retirement options, and consider age-specific perks.
BOOMERS (Ages 46 to 64)
Boomers are confident careerists who are also natural subject matter experts, teach-
ers, and mentors. They possess a strong work ethic. Help them explore new work
options and utilize their talent, expertise, and skill sets on the job or specific special
projects. Redesign their jobs to meet multiple life demands and encourage growth
in place.
GEN Xers, GAMERS (Ages 29 to 45)
They are collaborative, value team approach, work/life balance, self-reliance, and
applying new skills. They seek autonomy, love a challenge, and need opportunities
to grow. Provide feedback on reputation and candor about how to leverage their
entrepreneurial spirit. Want to win their hearts? Offer meaningful work, stake-
holder status, food, and fun!
GEN Y, GEN WHY, DIGITAL KIDS (Up to Age 28)
These global, street-smart, green multi-taskers are driven by technology and social
media such as blogging, twittering, absorbing 24/7 news, e-learning, and electronic
gadgetry. They adapt easily, value learning, love working in teams, and thrive on
being developed by experts. Ensure that learning, growth, group work, and devel-
opment are high on their work agenda.

The Opportunity Environment
Opportunities for employees to learn, grow, and develop within any job is key to a suc-
cessful strategy. For many years, opportunity was defined as a promotion. Now oppor-
tunities can manifest themselves in many different ways—most specifically through
enrichment in the current job and keeping an eye focused on emerging trends. These
opportunities can be somewhat elusive to the untrained eye.
Today, we operate in a new opportunity environment as organizations position
themselves to embrace a culture of success. Career development is not for the chosen
few, but for all. With that said, organizations may struggle to understand where all this
development will happen. Understanding that each organization is an “opportunity
marketplace” is a critical mind-set necessary to meet the learning and development
needs of employees.
The organizational culture must nurture all talent and educate managers to under-
stand the needs inherent in the professional lives of their direct reports. By looking

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wider and deeper for talent within internal ranks, organizations can develop a new
understanding and sensitivity to backfilling jobs and promoting career ownership.
How might an organization embrace this concept of an “opportunity marketplace?”
Consider the following examples:
(A) Communicate select issues downward in the organization typically discussed
“at higher ranks.” Isn’t it time that more people seriously take on important
internal problems? Encourage internal talent to turn those issues into opportu-
nities and to think strategically and innovatively.
(B) Redirect a portion of funds earmarked for high-potential development to chal-
lenge and mobilize talent in the middle. Initiate competition, and embed
reward/recognition in the stakes.
(C) Coach managers to work with their talent and reward competitive innovative
thinking aligned to an organization’s strategy, vision, mission, and purpose.
(D) Unleash “innovation teams” across generational lines to take on real company
issues.
(E) Challenge employees to think about talent that will be needed in their “future”
departments” to deliver the business strategy. Conduct a gap analysis, and
redesign jobs with a focus on the future. As needed, update skills and retrain.
(F) Who may retire in the near future? How will you ensure his or her knowledge
is transferred and important intellectual capital doesn’t walk out the door? Or
if it does, how will it be replenished internally and cost-effectively. Think of it
this way: Who would you sorely miss if they didn’t come to work tomorrow
morning? How will you capture that expertise and where should it reside?
That’s costly, irreplaceable talent unless you start now.

Generating Buy-In
HR professionals readily understand and accept the importance of a development
culture to drive talent to greater performance, higher levels of engagement, and job
satisfaction. In a time when senior leadership and managers are focused on the bot-
tom line or doing more with less, placing a priority on the career development of its
people is often lost in the shuffle. Creating a strong business case, developing a mar-
keting and communications strategy, and branding the career development effort
early on will increase the probability of leadership buy-in and sustained support.
Find a champion. Who in the ranks of senior leadership places a high priority
on career development and actively models it in their organization? Creating a strong
culture of development will require the resources and funding that only senior lead-
ers can deliver.
Develop a business case. What is your “burning platform?” Link to employee or
culture surveys, take a look at turnover, tie talent to organization vision, link to busi-
ness metrics, and identify the cost of doing nothing or maintaining status quo. Bottom
line: Develop a case that demonstrates the return on investment for the leaders signing
the check.

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Know your key stakeholders and influencers. Talk with them often and keep them
updated on the progress of your career development strategy. Ask their advice, seek
their support, tailor your communications to their priorities, and encourage them to
share the how and why with their teams. On the other side, know who in the organi-
zation will seek to derail your efforts. Get them on board and get them on board early.
Use employees to tell the story. Look inside the organization for employees who
embody the culture of development in your organization. Demonstrate through
videos, posters, e-mail, intranet, and reward “real” employees who have self-powered
their career for success.
Keep it simple. Busy managers and employees need career growth plans that inte-
grate into existing systems and processes with minimal impact on time, the most valu-
able resources today. Provide training to help master the how and sustain the learning
though coaching, career action teams, career development resources, messaging, and
communications. Keep the momentum going and commit to a long-term plan.

The Challenge
In this era of self-accountability, every organization must take a leadership role in devel-
oping individual resiliency through a strategic priority on career development. There
will be times of not knowing. Recession tested leaders must convey a message of soli-
darity. In the midst of uncertainty, it is critical to reach out to all levels and work together
to achieve deadlines and solutions. In developing a more robust career development
process and ultimately transforming a culture, everyone is a stakeholder. So, here’s the
challenge, “What step(s) will you take now to build career development and growth in
your organization?” Organizations, managers and employees alike, want a career cul-
ture where employees are in charge of their own destiny, feel more in control, and seek
to do meaningful work. To make that happen, it will take new flexible career options,
future-focused thinking, and professionals at all levels who are committed to their own
learning. The time is now to launch—right here, right now, right where you are!

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