Train and Develop VII Homework

BHR 4680, Training and Development 1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VII Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

5. Assess the organizational structure/environment to determine which external participants use to obtain transfer of learning. 5.1 Discuss why career management is important from both the employee and company

perspective. 5.2 State the factors that should be considered in designing an effective career management

system. 5.3 Explain the importance of developing career paths, dual-career paths, and a career portfolio.

Reading Assignment Chapter 10: Social Responsibility: Legal Issues, Managing Diversity, and Career Challenges

Unit Lesson Career development is important for companies to create and sustain a continuous learning environment. The biggest challenge that companies face is finding a balance between advancing current employees’ careers, while simultaneously attracting and acquiring employees with new skills. The concept of careers is influenced by the growing use of teams to produce products and provide services. What is career management, and why is career management important? It is the process through which employees:

 become aware of their own interests, values, strengths, and weaknesses;

 obtain information about job opportunities within the company;

 identify career goals; and

 establish action plans to achieve career goals. From the company’s perspective, the failure to motivate employees to plan their careers can result in:

 a shortage of employees to fill open positions,

 lower employee commitment, and

 inappropriate use of monies allocated for training and development programs. From the employees’ perspective, lack of career management can result in:

 frustration due to lack of personal growth and challenge at work,

 feelings of not being valued in the company, and

 an inability to find suitable employment in case of mergers, acquisitions, restructuring, or downsizing.

UNIT VII STUDY GUIDE

Careers and Career Management

BHR 4680, Training and Development 2

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Then the question becomes: what is a career? It is the individual sequence of attitudes and behavior associated with work-related experiences and activities over the span of the person’s life. The concept of careers can be described as an advancement, a profession, a lifelong sequence of jobs, or a lifelong sequence of role-related experiences. Let’s look at some of the terms and definitions associated with career.

 Protean career is based on self-direction with the goal of psychological success in one’s work.

 Psychological success is the feeling of pride and accomplishment that comes from achieving life goals that are not limited to achievements at work.

 Psychological contract is the expectations employers and employees have about each other. The Model of Career Development Career development is the process by which employees progress through a series of stages. Each stage is characterized by a different set of developmental tasks, activities, and relationships. There are a number of career development models. We will look at the Career Stage model.

 Exploration: identifies interests, skills, and fit between self and work

 Establishment: advancement, growth, security, and develops lifestyle

 Maintenance: hold on to accomplishments, update skills

 Disengagement: retirement planning, change balance between work and non-work Career Management Systems help the employees, managers, and the companies identify career development needs. There are a few steps that are a part of this process. This may also involve training courses and seminars, informational interviews, or employee volunteerism programs.

 Self-assessment is the use of information by employees to determine their career interests, values, aptitudes, and behavioral tendencies. This is not limited to, but involves psychological tests.

 Reality check is when the employees receive information about how the company evaluates their skills and knowledge and where they fit into the company plans.

 Goal setting allows employees to develop short- and long-term career objectives, usually related to desired positions, level of skill application, work setting, or skill acquisition.

 Action planning is the process employees use to determine how they will achieve their short- and long-term career goals.

What are the roles in career management? This is not something the employee does on his or her own. Career management is a collaborative effort. Let’s review the players and some of their roles.

 Employee: responsible for self-assessment, self-development action plan, creates visibility through good performance and relationships, and seeks out challenges

 Manager: coaching, counseling, communicating, and requesting information from other company resources

 Company: develop systems to support career management and develop culture that supports career management

 HR manager: offers information, advice, and specialized services (testing, counseling, or workshops) Once all of these elements are in place, a career discussion should occur to cement the plan. This discussion can be seen as successful if the following characteristics have been met:

 manager has gained an awareness of the employee’s work-related goals and interests;

 manager and employee agree on the next steps;

 employee understands how the manager views his or her performance, developmental need, and options;

 manager and employee agree on how the employees needs can be met on the current job; and

 manager identifies resources to help the employee accomplish the goals agreed upon in the career discussion.

BHR 4680, Training and Development 3

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Career management systems need to be evaluated to ensure that they are meeting the needs of employees and the business. The evaluation can be based on the reactions of the customers who use the career management system and the objective information related to the retention rates of key employees or managers of the career management system. Special Challenges in Career Management What is a supportive work-life culture? It acknowledges and respects family and life responsibilities and obligations and encourages managers and employees to work together to meet personal and work needs. By creating a culture that supports work-life balance, the organization realizes happier and more dedicated employees. This is an incentive to any organization looking to increase employee satisfaction. Organizational socialization is the process by which new employees are transformed into effective members of the company and has three phases:

1. Anticipatory socialization is when employees develop expectations about the company, job, working

conditions, and interpersonal relationships.

2. Encounter phase is when an employee begins a new job; they experience shock and surprise and

need to become familiar with job tasks, company practices, and procedures.

3. Settling-in phase is when employees begin to feel comfortable with their job demands and social

relationships.

During this socialization period, employees are learning the history, company goals, language (jargon), the politics, people, and performance proficiency. This is normally done as a part of the new employee orientation. A career path is a sequence of job positions involving similar types of work and skills that employees move through in the company. It involves analyzing work and information flows, important development experiences, qualifications and tasks performed across jobs, similarities and differences in working environments, and historical movement patterns of employees in and out of jobs. A dual-career path system enables employees to remain in a technical career path or move into a management career path. Its characteristics are:

 Salary, status, and incentives for technical employees compare favorably with those of managers.

 Individual contributors’ base salary may be lower than that of managers, but they are given opportunities to increase their total compensation through bonuses.

 The individual contributor career path is not used to satisfy poor performers who have no managerial potential. The career path is for employees with outstanding technical skills.

 Individual contributors are given the opportunity to choose their career path. Plateauing is when an employee hits a certain level and seems to be unable to move. The likelihood of the employee receiving future job assignments with increased responsibility is low. About mid-career is when employees are most likely to plateau. It becomes dysfunctional when the employee feels stuck in a job that offers no potential for personal growth resulting in poor job attitude, increased absenteeism, and poor job performance. Some of the reasons employees plateau are due to discrimination issues based on age, gender, or race; lack of ability and training; low need for achievement; unfair pay decisions or dissatisfaction with pay raises; confusion about job responsibilities; and slow company growth resulting in reduced development opportunities. There are some possible remedies for plateaued employees. Once employees understand the reasons for plateauing, they can begin to make the necessary changes. If employees are encouraged to participate in development activities, they can knock down some the barriers that are preventing them from moving forward. If employees are encouraged to seek career counseling, they can be helped to determine what steps are necessary to move into the area they are pursuing. Most importantly, once employees do a reality check on the solutions, they can better determine what their career path can be.

BHR 4680, Training and Development 4

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Some of the other major issues in career management include skills obsolescence, which is a reduction in an employee’s competence resulting from a lack of knowledge of new work processes, techniques, and technologies that have developed since the employee completed his or her education. Balancing work and life can also present challenges. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal law that provides for up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for parents with new infants or newly adopted children. It also covers employees who must take a leave of absence to care for a family member or to deal with a personal illness. Companies are required by law to provide health care benefits during this time. Company Policies to Accommodate Work and Non-work Identifying work and life needs and communicating information about work and non-work policies and job demands are a large piece of the puzzle for a company. Companies have to understand employees’ needs, solicit their input, and make work-life benefits accessible to everyone. Providing information regarding the nature of jobs helps employees choose career opportunities that match the importance they place on work. By allowing flexibility in work arrangements and work schedules, it reduces pressure on employees to work long hours. Offering telecommuting, which is a work arrangement that provides flexibility in both location and hours, allows the employee to continue to be productive while taking care of their families. Job sharing allows two employees to divide the hours, responsibilities, and benefits of a full-time job, but still gets the job done. By thinking outside the box and redesigning jobs and providing managerial support for work-life policies, it offers a win-win solution for both the company and employee. How should companies help employees coping with job loss? From a career management standpoint, companies and managers have two major responsibilities: helping employees who will lose their jobs and ensuring that the “survivors” remain productive and committed to the organization. An organization should strongly consider outplacement services and those services should include:

 advance warning and an explanation for the layoff;

 psychological, financial, and career counseling;

 assessment of skills and interests;

 job campaign services;

 job banks; and

 electronic delivery of job openings, self-directed career management guides, and values and interest inventories.

Dealing with older workers is another touchy situation that, when handled correctly, can also be a win-win situation. When companies provide flexibility in scheduling, which allows older employees to take care of sick spouses, go back to school, or travel, it ensures that older employees receive the training they need to avoid obsolescence and to be prepared to use new technology. It also provides resources and referral help that addresses long-term health care and elder care; assessment and counseling, which are necessary to help older employees recycle to new jobs or careers; considers moving valuable older employees who are suffering skill deterioration to other jobs; and ensures that employees do not hold inappropriate stereotypes about older employees and an environment of trust and loyalty is created. Another option for older workers is the possibility of an early retirement program. It offers employees financial benefits to leave the company. To avoid potential legal actions and to be fair, companies need to ensure that the program is part of the employee benefit plan, the company can justify age-related distinctions for eligibility for early retirement, and employees are allowed to voluntarily choose early retirement.