Although career development is in part the employee’s responsibility, it is also important for management to be involved.

One of the signs of a good employee is the drive to grow and develop their career.

Without the support of company higher ups, employees may feel they don’t have the support required or know where to begin their career journeys. This lack of support can cause employees to seek better opportunities elsewhere, or lead to a lackluster work environment.

So, how can managers encourage employee development?

At HRSG, we believe organizations should become familiar with career pathing and put systems in place to support helping employees grow personally and professionally.

Career pathing is essentially mapping out desired career progressions, showing how to reach a goal. When combined with competencies, career pathing becomes an even more powerful tool for development as you can develop even more individualized career paths with clear steps for progression.

For instance, if the promotion an employee wants requires the client focus competency at level 3, but they are only at level 2, you can target learning resources and training to building up that competency.

You can even customize career paths based on required educational, certification, and other requirements.

Here are some of the ways you can further support your employees:

1. Encourage training
2. Introduce mentoring programs
3. Promote individual development plans

Post last updated: June 20, 2019.