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Create a career plan

Create a career plan

5 minutes

The Hellomonday Career Plan offers a structured yet flexible framework in inspiring your team member’s career aspirations and bringing them to life. By articulating ambitions and motivations, career exposure, identifying current strengths and opportunities, and establishing goals, your team member steers closer to a future in line with their desires and interests.

The Career Plan process

The career plan is a collaborative effort. At the same time. your objective as a leader is to help them forecast how they see themselves in the future through guidance. With this framework, the team member leads the way, and you serve to light the path.

As you guide your participant through creating their career plan, this article will serve as your guide. Therefore, all instructions for leaders are found in this article. Meanwhile, instructions for your teammate are included The Career Plan PDF.

Click the download button below to access The Career Plan PDF for your participant.

The Career Plan Activity Directory
Tip: Although the sheets your participant needs to work on are in one printable document, ensure that both of you are on the same step in the career plan.
The Career Plan Steps​
1
Create the vision

Instructions:

Have your team member fill out the 'Create the vision' section of the Career Plan. Give them ample time to accomplish this -- the freedom to think, envision, and dream is the foundation of this activity, allowing them to consider what they are truly passionate about.
After completion, set a quick discussion between you and your team mate. Go over their responses and discuss further how their ideal career looks like. Ask questions to understand their values, passions, and motivations.
Take notes of other important details that may come up during the discussion in the Leader's notes section at the bottom of the page.
2
Exposure Exercises

Instructions:

Choose among these recommended exposure exercises. Go over the details and decide which exercise would suit your participant's career journey best.
After your participant goes through the chosen exposure exercise, have a debrief session with your team mate and get to know how they feel about their prospective career path.

Recommended exposure exercises

Additional tasks
Get your team member started on developing their skills with secondments in or outside the team, project work, or even additional responsibilities.

Not only does this give your participant room to stretch their creative muscles with unfamiliar tasks, but it is also learning by experience in a practical way.
Shadowing
Is your teammate’s dream career or a similar role being performed by someone in the organisation?

By having them shadow, you allow them to gain first-hand experience in how daily tasks and responsibilities would look like, as well as the skills required to perform it.
Cross training
Perhaps the in your team

Is your teammate’s dream career or a similar role being performed by someone in your team or the organisation?

By having them shadow or receive cross training, you allow them to gain first-hand experience in how daily tasks and responsibilities would look like, as well as the skills required to perform it.
Initiate an open discussion
Do you or your teammate know someone thriving in a similar role, field, or industry? Maybe there’s even a team within your organization doing similar work?

Why not set up a conversation? Dive into their journey, ask about the steps they took to succeed, and uncover insights that can inspire and guide.

Here are some recommended questions to get the discussion started:

1. How did you find out this was the career you wanted to pursue?

2. How did you start your journey into this career path?

3. How does your daily routine/tasks look like?

4. What skills or tools do you routinely use?

5. What skills do you think could make your job easier?

6. Can you share any words of wisdom or recommendations for me?
Other exercises
Draft up your own plan in giving your teammate some exposure about their desired career.

Note: We do not recommend purely going online to check on job descriptions and details. Although convenient, the day-to-day of any job provides opportunity to form organic interactions, allowing room for authentic perspectives.

Debrief Session

After any of these recommended exposure exercises, have a debrief session with your teammate and get to know how they feel about their prospective career path.

What did you think about the role?
Tell me about what you liked and what you think could be better about the role.
What aspects about the ideal career suits what’s important to you?
Now that you have seen what the role looks like, how do you feel about moving to the next phase of the career plan?
Checkpoint: Is your team member hesitant or reconsidering their ideal career? Head straight to Reevaluation and guide your participant into the right direction.
3
Map the skills

Instructions:

Have your team member do all the sections in the 'Map the vision' section of the Career Plan.
Should they request for guidance, offer some suggestions. However, do not give them answers straight away -- this activity is is meant for your participant to take the lead.
Checkpoint: At this point, your participant may or may not consider pursuing this career path. When they do approach you because of it, be prepared to hop on over to the Reevaluation section of the career plan.
4
The development plan

Instructions:

Have your team member fill out the 'Your Development Plan' page of the document. Same with the 'Map your skills' activity, offer guidance and suggestions when requested.
After completion, go over their development plan. Offer recommendations when necessary, and reinforce that you are within reach whenever they feel lost or need guidance.

One of the most crucial tools in following through a career plan is reinforcement. Should your team mate feel lost or have trouble following through their set goals, click here to check out how you can follow up a career conversation (hyperlink followup career conversations article once published)

5
Reevaluation

There are many possible reasons why the initial career path wouldn’t have worked — this can range from a need for more information, or even wanting to explore a different opportunity. In either case, a good step forward is filtering out other options and clearing the way.

Instructions:

Set a meeting with your participant. Find out what worked, what didn't, and what direction your participant can move forward to by asking them these Reevaluation Questions.

Reevaluation Questions

What made you reconsider pursuing this career path?
What did you learn about your preferences and priorities?
Did you hear about other careers that might suit you better?
Given everything you know now, what career or skillset would you like to explore next?

As you and your teammate loop back to modifying the career plan, allow them time to carefully consider their options. Remember that change can be intimidating and sometimes scary for many, so check in with them once in awhile. 

 

Allow them to express themselves and their thoughts, and offer support and guidance consistently.

Source
Dorman, J. (2018, January). Mind materials. Office of Career and Professional Development. https://career.ucsf.edu/phds/career-exploration/MIND/materials
by
Hellomonday