Career development has always been integral to the success of a business through its ability to attract, engage and retain employees by investing in them and their futures. Yet owing to the seismic shifts our working lives have undergone in recent years, it has never been so crucial.
Generational expectations around ‘career’ have changed– and continue to evolve. For many, the aspiration to join a company and work their way up is no longer valid. Individuals are seeking flexible roles that build their skills base and can give them exposure to a wide range of experiences, thereby increasing their asset value around employability. Employees are actively seeking organisations that support their career development and employers who fail support this are seeing themselves caught up in “The Great Resignation”. In fact, for 9 years in a row, the Employees Retention Report by the Work Institute found that career progression is the number one reason why employees leave their jobs.
Despite the challenges, investing in career development – as an organisation looking to retain, develop and engage a productive workforce – it has never been more important to implement a clear career development strategy. And by investing in this, organisations will be taking steps to increase employee engagement, motivation and retention.
A whopping 93% of employees would stay at a company longer if it invested in their careers. Development is no longer an optional perk or reserved for only certain positions. It’s expected by today’s talent.
The benefits of a clear career development strategy.
A clear career development strategy has many benefits for you as an employer as well as the individual
For the organisation:
• Promotes active career management and on-going succession planning
• Supports broader talent management strategies such as retention, attraction, engagement, whilst building more cohesive businesses and improving productivity by improving employee loyalty and reducing churn
• Helps future-proof businesses by identifying the skills employees currently possess with those needed by the business in the future, allowing the organisation to put clear plans in place for developing these skills
For the individual
• Drives professional and personal development, focusing on key accelerators, areas for development and inhibitors, allowing for profile matching with relevant career paths and opportunities
• Helps to navigate career crossroads such as decisions around promotion or changing direction
• Keeping skills up to date promotes overall wellbeing and reduces stress in employees as they understand how they can continually contribute to the business
A career development plan that benefits the organisation
• Promotes active career management and on-going succession planning
• Supports broader talent management strategies such as retention, attraction, engagement, whilst building more cohesive businesses and improving productivity by improving employee loyalty and reducing churn
• Helps future-proof businesses by identifying the skills employees currently possess with those needed by the business in the future, allowing the organisation to put clear plans in place for developing these skills
Mutual Gain
• Encourages individuals to become career activists – individuals are more self-aware, understand their skills gaps and proactively seek to address them
• Improves employee retention and engagement by allowing your people to identify future opportunities within your organisation
• Supports lateral development such as secondments and special projects as well as vertical career moves and promotes greater career mobility and knowledge retention
• Prepares employees for progression, highlighting development needs and identifying ways to build required skills
• Aligns personal career goals with the needs of the business, resulting in greater career fulfilment for employees
• Balances career goals with the organisation’s objectives and adapts these as business needs change
• Promotes organisational resilience as well as individual resilience – creating more agile businesses
With changes to the world of work more magnified than ever in recent times, career development understandably slipped down the list of priorities for employers. However, in a candidate led market, organisations can no longer afford to ignore the importance career development plays in attracting, retaining, engaging and upskilling talent. Those that have come to this realisation early are already reaping the benefits.
If you would like to discuss our Career Development programmes in more detail contact a member of the INTOO team directly on 0808 164 2220 or email getintouch@intoo.com.
For further information on Career Development, download a copy of our Career Development Guide by clicking on the button below.
