A step-by-step personal development plan for employees

Personal development of employees is one of the key tasks of a manager. Unfortunately, in the case of many teams the development plan remains too abstract and there is no real progress. But you just need to stick to a simple plan and then you, as a manager, can really help your employees to progress both career-wise and personally. This brings benefits to everyone: the employee, you and the company. This article looks at a simple way to put together a realistic personal development plan, including its outline and structure.

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A personal development plan should always be compiled with the help of the given employee, with whom you must discuss individual steps. The resulting plan should thus be a result of negotiations between you (the manager) and the employee.

Identifying the employee's strengths

According to The Balance, you must first of all define the strengths of the given employee. What are they good at, what is their expertise, what can they be proud of? Answers to these questions will help you understand the employee's situation and the skills they can use to develop themselves.

Identification of weaknesses

Write down a list of weaknesses and points that need improvement. You will then focus on these points when putting together the development plan.

Compiling an action plan

Next comes a list of specific action steps that will lead to improvement of the current situation. Plan these development activities point by point, in a completely specific way.

Definition of indicators of subsequent development

Define the desired state, using measurable and specific indicators. Only then will you know if you have reached the defined goals or not.

Defining the time frame

Determine the timeline of all the steps and define a realistic schedule for the plan. Also plan for checkpoints on specific dates when you will look at progress.

Continuous monitoring

Follow the actual plan, completing the steps one by one, and check your progress continuously. Monitor the situation and evaluate whether you are not diverging too much from the given plan. Alternatively, you can make changes to the plan.

 

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Article source The Balance - a US website focused on money and career
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