AN ASSIGNMENT
ON
Organizational Career Management
Systems
As part of the fulfillment of MBA Program for the requirement of
the course HRM 612: Career Planning and Development
Prepared For:
Dr. M. Ataur Rahman
Professor
Department of Management Studies
chairmen
MBA (Evening) Program
University of Dhaka
Professor
Department of Management Studies
chairmen
MBA (Evening) Program
University of Dhaka
Prepared By:
|
Name
|
ID
NO.
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| Md. Sojibur Rahman | 0821BBA00877 |
MANARAT INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY
Date: November 22, 2013
Introduction:
In the dynamic business
environment where people have become one of the critically important elements
to gain competitive advantage, organizations are faced with new challenges in
managing its human resources. Instead of
focusing only on financial capabilities and product quality, Dreher and Dougherty
(2001) suggested that high-performing organizations should engage in
competitive search for the most capable employees. These capabilities can only
be achieved through the development and implementation of effective human
resource practices and strategies.
Career management, one
of the important elements in human resource management, has a great impact on
organization. According to a report,
effective career development system was found to be the fifth most important predictor
(out of 80 factors) contributing to company financial success (Steven,
1996). Feldman (1988) has also noted
that career management is essential for organizations to retain the most
talented employees available.
Organizations often decide to adopt career management programs because
they believe that those programs can increase employee individual performances
(Fish & Wood, 1993) as well as foster positive attitudes and corporate
loyalty among workers (Feldman, 1988).
One
of the ways progressive employers have sought to make improvements in their
people management is through benchmarking their practices against the progress
of other firms. Benchmarking embodies the idea that it is possible to examine
the best practices of other organizations and then implement changes based on
these observations. Fitz-Enz, the guru of benchmarking, formally defines benchmarking
as a “continuous systematic process for evaluating business practice and
organizations that are recognized as examples of best-in-class through organizational
comparison.”1 He views it as an iterative, investigative process that seeks out
high performers to learn how they have achieved exceptional results. This
article presents some of the conclusions drawn from the study which benchmarked
the human resources (HR) practices of a number of organizations considered to
be on the leading edge of career development. The objectives of the
benchmarking study were to allow federal policy makers to:
•
examine and learn from these best-in-class career management and career
development companies;
•
reflect on the appropriateness of the best practices in their own context;
•
reflect on their own career development practices;
•
identify, define and refine a set of career development processes and practices
that will contribute to organizational success and employee growth; and
•
implement changes based on these reflections and observations. This article
will first provide a description of the methodology used to conduct the study.
This is followed by a short discussion of the reasons private sector
organizations are interested in career development. The rest of the article is
devoted to summarizing the major lessons learned and the critical success
factors for effective career development identified by the best-practice organizations.
Career Management:
Organizational
Career Management is a relatively new concept. Its genesis is in the
recognition that old ways of doing business are becoming increasingly
ineffective. Innovative organizations recognize that today’s knowledge and
service-based economy requires greater investment in human capital. In a
knowledge-based economy, a highly skilled and motivated staff is the
organization’s competitive edge. In an era of skills shortages, employers can
no longer rely on simply hiring more people to meet the organization’s need to
increase production. Organizations need to find other strategies to build
capacity.
Mayo (1991) provided a
definition of career management as follows:
The design and
implementation of organizational processes that enable the careers to be
planned and managed in a way that optimizes both the needs of the organization
and the preferences and capabilities of individuals.
Mayo’s (1991)
definition contains two main points regarding career management. The first is that the idea focuses on the
organization’s role in planning and managing employees’ career. The second stresses on the organizations’
need and individuals’ preferences and capabilities. Mayo (1991) defined career management as a
process done by the organization to manage employees’ career for the benefits
of both organization and also individuals.
Torrington and Hall (1998) on the other hand, stated that career
development is something that is experienced by the individual and therefore
not necessarily bound by one organization.
Therefore, the main responsibility of managing career is with the
individual while the organization should only play a supporting role in
facilitating the processes.
However, Byars and Rue
(2000) suggested that successful career management should include actions from
three sources: the employee, the organization, and the employee’s immediate
manager. Accordingly, employees’
responsibility is to prepare their own career plans, as career planning is not
something one person can do for another.
This is important because it is the employees who are going to put the
plan into practice (Byars and Rue, 2000).
Gould and Penley (1984) have recognized the activity of putting planning
into practice as career strategies.
Another source of
successful career management suggested by Byars and Rue (2000) is the role of
the organization. The organization’s
responsibilities are to ensure a smooth delivery of necessary career- related
information and advice concerning possible career paths to carry out their
career plans. In other words, an
organization’s role is to create the environment that facilitates the
development of individual career plans. The immediate manager’s responsibility,
on the other hand, is to show an employee how to go about the process and help
the employee evaluate the action taken (Byars & Rue, 2000).
Reviewing the above
ideas, it is found that Byars and Rue’s (2000) explanation is the most
appropriate concept of career management that fits the purpose of this
study. It is the idea of joint-responsibility
between individuals, organization, and employees’ immediate managers. Individuals’ responsibility, which covers two
main areas: preparing their own career plans and putting the plan into practic
are termed as career planning and career strategies respectively. The organization’s and the immediate
managers’ responsibilities, if combined together would generate another
dimension which is best named as organizational career management. More specifically, the concept of career
management as applied in this study comprises three dimensions namely
organizational career management, career planning, and career strategies.
Organizational
Career Management (OCM):
The term
“organizational career management” in the context of this study is used to cover
various activities, programs, and policies employed by the management team or
employer to support individual career planning and strategies.
In his study on OCM,
Pazy (1987) indicated that OCM activities include the following: •
organizational and human resource planning. • ensuring free flow of information
regarding organizational plans, job openings, career paths and opportunities. •
designing selection, admission, staffing, training and development programs. •
conducting performance evaluations and maintaining assessment centers as
developmental process linked to job assignment. • basing promotion decisions on
objective, job-relevant criteria. www.ijms.uum.edu.my
IJMS 11 (2), 73-90
(2004) 77
• taking into
consideration career stages, personal, and family needs.
Feldman (1988) has
listed several OCM activities that an organization commonly offers to their
employees. They are: (i) career
information systems; (ii) human resource planning and forecasting; (iii) career
counseling; (iv) career pathing; (v) skills assessment and training; (vi)
career development for disadvantaged groups; (vii) career development for
“fast-track” employees; and (viii) career development skills workshops for
supervisors.
Further, Torrington and
Hall (1998) have suggested several ways for the organization to support each
stage of individual career planning. Baruch (1999) suggested various OCM
practices that are valid for the 2000s.
As proposed by some
researchers (Baruch, 1999; Torrington and Hall, 1998), the practices and programs
that are related to OCM vary and they seem difficult to analyz. Moreover, Orpen (1994) has grouped these
practices and programs into three main components, which are career
information, career management policies, and career development.
Where career
information is concerned, Byars and Rue (2000) suggested that the organization
should be responsible for developing and communicating career options within
the organization to employees and ensuring that the information is always
current and accurate. To reach this end,
Gomez-Mejia, Balkin and Cardy (2004) have suggested that company newsletters,
booklets/pamphlets and company websites can be used as tools that can be used
to deliver this information. Furthermore, Jackson (1991) has suggested three
kinds of information the that organization should provide, i.e., information
about training and educational opportunities to communicate the organization’s
policy about eligibility for training and provide support to employees who wish
to pursue educational courses that run externally or internally; information
about the organization which includes information about job vacancies, possible
career paths and the number of people needed in a particular job. This kind of information might enable
employees to plan for their career and to determine the opportunities that may
occur in the organization; information about how the organization sees the
future which includes business plans, manpower projections and predicted future
skills requirement. Therefore for the purpose of this study, career information
is referred to as management efforts in providing necessary career-related
information for employees.
Following career
information is career management policies. Career management policies cover
various standards and procedures implemented by the management team in managing
employees’ career (Orpen, 1994). These policies are important as they serve as
guidelines to individual employees. Without proper policies, employers are not
able to plan for their employees accordingly.
Lastly is career
development. Career development covers various activities, programs, and
techniques employed by the management team to enhance employees’ career
development, such as training and career counseling (Orpen, 1994). These career development activities would
logically support the career management policies.
Objectives
of Organizational Career Management
a.
To improve organizational performance
b.
To apply behavioral science theories
c.
To create awareness
d.
To increase knowledge and skills
e.
To crate job satisfaction
f.
To increase motivational level
g.
To create supportive value
h.
To create and maintain interpersonal
relations
Career Planning
in an Organization:
Career Planning is the
action-oriented aspect of an individual’s personal Career Management. Career Management is a lifelong process in
which individuals take proactive steps to determine their career paths. Good Career Management recognizes that while
long and short-term goals are important, life situations and opportunities
arise that influence these goals. Rather
than having defined start and end-points, Career Management recognizes that
individuals are dynamic and continually developing. With that in mind, goals are created to
provide the means for navigating a career path.
Career Management is an empowering endeavor that equips people to take
charge of their careers.
Involvement in
employees’ Career Management makes sense for organizations of all types and
sizes. Enabling individuals’ career
development is a win-win proposition. As
employees develop, the organization’s human capital grows, building its
capacity to deliver and expand its services and/or products. An effective career planning process in an
organization provides an opportunity to link an individual’s goals with those
of the organization. When this occurs,
both the individual and organization benefit from its employees Career
Planning.
For many people,
“getting a pay-cheque” is their primary reason for working. It is rare for such individuals to be engaged
with either their jobs or their organizations.
These individuals often make up a significant percentage of an
organization’s workforce. (“Only 26% of
Canadian workers report being ‘highly engaged’ in their jobs, and 66% report
being ‘moderately engaged’; 24% report being ‘actively disengaged’” –The Ten
C’s of Employee Engagement, Seijts & Crim, Ivey Business Journal,
March/April, 2006)
Two of the most common
reasons that individuals think like this include:
1. They’ve never
thought in terms of “career”, and/or have never been given the tools for making
informed career decisions and goals.
2. They do not
understand how they can advance their careers within their organizations for
which they work.
These employees become
more engaged in their work and productive for the organization when they are
able to frame their employment in the context of their career path. Their work takes on new meaning – it becomes
part of their overall success. Organizations
can create an atmosphere that fosters a stronger link between their employees
and their career development by establishing a process that helps them set
career goals and action plans in the context of the organization.
Objectives of Career Development Systems
- Fostering Better Communication in Organization: The main objective of designing a career development system is to foster better communication within the organization as a whole. It promotes communication at all levels of organizations for example manager and employee and managers and top management. Proper communication is the lifeblood of any organization and helps in solving several big issues.
- Assisting with Career Decisions: A career development system provides employees as well as managers with helpful assistance with career decisions. They get an opportunity to assess their skills and competencies and know their goals and future aspirations. It helps them give a direction so that they can focus on achieving their long term career goals.
- Better Use of Employee Skills: A career development system helps organization make better use of employee skills. Since managers know their skills and competencies and therefore, can put them at a job where they will be able to produce maximum output.
- Setting Realistic Goals: Setting realistic goals and expectations is another main objective of a career development system. It helps both employees and organization to understand what is feasible for them and how they can achieve their goals.
- Creating a Pool of Talented Employees: Creating a pool of talented employees is the main objective of organizations. After all, they need to meet their staffing needs in present and future and a career development system helps them fulfill their requirements.
- Enhancing the Career Satisfaction: Organizations especially design career development systems for enhancing the career satisfaction of their employees. Since they have to retain their valuable assets and prepare them for top notch positions in future, they need to understand their career requirements and expectations from their organization.
- Feedback: Giving feedback on every step is also required within an organization to measure the success rate of a specific policy implemented and initiatives taken by the organization. In addition to this, it also helps managers to give feedback for employees’ performance so that they can understand what is expected of them.
Importance
of Organizational Career Management
a.
Increased motivation
b.
Increased competitive ability
c.
Ensure quality goods & services
d.
Improvement organizational performance
e.
Making high moral and satisfaction
f.
Increased knowledge and skills
g.
Contractual relationship
h.
Growth opportunities
Business Environment Factors that can
Bring Undesired Changes
- Economic Downsizing: The biggest of all the factors that has badly affected the careers of millions of individuals is economic downsizing. The jobs are cut from the organizations and the fittest of all employees survive. If employees continuously learn new and better skills, chances are that economic conditions won’t hurt them that badly as compared to other individuals.
- De-layering: De-layering means reclassification of jobs. This is an organizational change initiative where a company decides to reclassify the jobs more broadly. However, old reporting lines do exist in order to maintain managerial control but some jobs may be removed or cut down during the process. Again, those individuals have to leave the organization who are not competent enough to be shifted to other job with different nature.
- Cost Reduction Strategies of the Organization: Cost-reduction strategies of the organizations are again very dangerous for those individuals who are not prepared to move on to the next level. If organizations have to cut down their operating costs, the employment of those individuals is at stake who are not employable or who have not performed up to the mark in past. Employees continuously need to upgrade themselves and show their talent in order to remain in the organizations till long.
- IT Innovations: Continuous changes and up gradation in the technology is also one of the major factors that bring change. Some individuals can keep a pace with the changing technology and are always ready to learn and adopt new IT applications while some show immense resistance which is not acceptable to the organizations. Employees need to keep themselves updated and show willingness to accept changes as and when they occur and mould themselves accordingly.
The business changes affect both organizations and
employees. The need is to understand them and find a way to cope with them
effectively.
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Benefits
of a Career Development System to Organization
|
Benefits
of a Career Development System to Employees
- The major benefit of career development system to employees is that they get helpful assistance and guidance with their career decisions. They get to know about their own aspirations, objectives and desires and understand how to shape their career.
- By using this system, they can set more realistic goals and objectives that are feasible to be accomplished over the span of one’s life.
- It fosters better communication between the employee and the manager as well as at all levels of the organization.
- The best part is that they can get feedback on their performance. This helps them improve their working style and compels them to upgrade their skills.
- The process leads to job enrichment and enhanced job satisfaction.
Benefits
of a Career Development System to Managers/Supervisors
- A career development system helps managers and supervisors in improving and upgrading their skills in order to manage their own career. Even they get to where they are heading to and what their aspirations are.
- It fosters better communication between managers and employees.
- It helps them in retaining valued employees as they get to know about their skills and competencies and future aspirations as well.
- It helps in discussing productive performance appraisal of employees and planning their promotions as well as their career graph.
- It leads to greater understanding of the organization as a whole and cultivate a supportive and conducive culture in the organization.
- It helps managers in understanding the hidden aspects of employees and guides them to allocate employees the right job that matches to their skills and competencies.
Components of a Career Development System
|
A career development system includes a
variety of components for use in the organizations. In order to increase the
efficiency of the system, the HR mangers must have complete knowledge about
these tools since they play a role of consultant when employees and
supervisors use this system. Plus, they are responsible for designing and
developing an effective career development system for their organization.
Some activities or components are known as individual career planning tools
while some are used for organizational career management. To achieve greater
efficiency, most organizations use a right combination of both types of
activities. Let us understand these tools and activities to learn in-depth
about career development system:
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- Career Planning Workshops: Once employees are through their self-assessment, they share their findings with other individuals and their supervisors in career-planning workshops. It allows them to receive feedback from others and check the reality of their plans and aspirations. They may change their plans if they find them unrealistic and move in new direction.
- Individual Counseling: It is one of the most common activities that are undertaken by almost all people developing organizations. Generally, individual counseling is provided by career development specialists, HR specialists or life skills development trainers. Some organizations hire them from outside while some have their own fully fledged departments where they recruit and hire trainers for full time. It helps employees in understanding their own goals, making a change in them if required and working on improving their skills and competencies.
- Organizational Assessment Programs: Organizational assessment programs include tools and methods for evaluating employees’ potential for growth within the organization. Johnson & Johnson is one company that uses these programs to assess the careers of their employees and evaluate their potential in order to facilitate the staffing and development of special teams known as “tiger teams”. These special teams are formed to speed up the development of new products. The most popular programs under this category include assessment centers, psychological testing, 360 degree appraisal, promo ability forecasts and succession planning.
- Developmental Programs: Developmental programs are used by an organization to develop their employees for future positions. They can be internal as well as external and can be performed under the supervision of human resource staff or trainers and specialists from outside. These programs include assessment centers, job rotation programs, tuition refund plans, internal training programs, external training seminars and formal mentoring programs.
In addition to these programs, there are several
other components of a career development system such as career programs for
special target groups, fast-track or high potential employees, supervisors,
senior-level employees, women, technical employees, minorities and employees
with disabilities, etc.
Relationship
Between Organizational Career Management (OCM) And Performance:
Orpen (1994) has
studied the relationship between OCM and career effectiveness on 129 employees
in a variety of organizations both in private and public sectors in UK. Most of them were in the supervisory
position. He studied career
effectiveness in terms of salary growth, promotion received, career performance
and career satisfaction. From the factor
analysis conducted in his study, he identified three components of
organizational career management, which includes career information, career
management policies and career development.
The results of his study demonstrated that career policies, career
development and career information do have a positive correlation with
performance. It also provided evidence
that career information has a stronger effect on performance, compared to the
other two factors.
In terms of gender
differences, Pazy’s (1987) study have demonstrated the similarity in the mean
score between men and women in terms of their perception on the existence of
OCM activities in their organization. However, there was a different perception
between men and women in terms of the effect of OCM on their career effectiveness. According to Pazy (1987), when women feel the
organization takes an interest in managing their careers, their performances
were enhanced. In short, his findings
indicated that organizational career management played a very important role in
women’s career development, while organizational career management did not
influence men’s performance.
On the other hand,
training has been identified as an element in OCM (Pazy, 1987; Baruch, 1996).
Therefore the literature review is extended to cover this aspect. The study by
Roman et al., (2002) provided empirical evidence pertaining to the importance
of sales training (training methods and training contents) in increasing
performance of salespeople. Through the
statistical test conducted by Roman et al. (2002), it was found that higher
level performance was observed when specific training methods such as
on-the-job training for salespeople were implemented. Concerning the training contents, their
performance were significantly different when the content related to company
policy and sales techniques, as well as customer knowledge and computer
knowledge were taught. Furthermore,
Langeland, Johnson and Mawhinney, (1998) suggested that in-service training is
an effective way to improve employees’ performance.
Many researchers (Pazy,
1987; Orpen, 1994; Langeland et al., 1998; Roman et al., 2002) indicated that
OCM were related to performance. Langeland et al. (1998) and Wilk and Redmon
(1998) revealed that goal setting has great impact on performance improvement. On the other hand, Appelbaum, Arye &
Shapiro (2002) indicated that career planning has no direct relationship with
performance. Regarding career
strategies, none of the literature exhibit that it is directly related to
performance. The areas that have been
reviewed were career success and salary progression. Nevertheless, Gould and Penley (1984) has
suggested several strategies, if implemented well could contribute to higher
performance.
These various
perspectives of career management and performance have become a foundation in
the establishment of the research framework for this study.
Methods of
Career management practices & programs:
1.
Anticipatory Socialization via
internships and Apprenticeships.
2.
Realistic Recruitment.
3.
Employee orientation.
4.
Individual learning and development.
5.
Job challenge and on the job
experiences.
6.
Performance feedback and coaching.
7.
Mentoring and supportive alliances.
8.
Dual promotion ladders.
9.
Dealing with the career activities.
10. Late
career activities.
11. Redeployment
and outplacement programs.
12. Pre-retirement
programs
Indicators of Career Program Effectiveness
- Matching the Standards with the Results: Comparison between already established goals and objectives and achievement is the biggest indicator of the effectiveness of a career program. Lesser the difference between the two, more successful the program is. But before matching the two, HR managers should make sure that the set standards were feasible to achieve and achieved output is calculated without any bias.
- Greater Self Awareness among Employees: The effectiveness of the program can also be measured by the degree of increase in self awareness among employees. If they feel that they have achieved greater self awareness and self-determination and acquired necessary and useful information about their career, the program is definitely a big success.
- Balance between Employee and Organization Requirements and Objectives: Implementation of a career development program should result in better communication at all levels within the organization, a balance match between individual and organizational career and identification of talent pool by HR specialists are other major indicators that can help you measure the effectiveness of a career development program.
- Changes in Performance Indexes: Improved employee performance ratings, improved employee morale, reduced turnover rates; reduced employee absenteeism, increased promotions from within and reduced time to fill job openings are other positive indicators for measuring the effectiveness of a career program.
Along with this, a positive change in the
attitude and behavior of employees and adequacy of organizational career
information can also be seen as indicators of career program effectiveness.
Sample Career
Planning Process:
An integral part of
Organizational Career Management is a Career Planning Process that creates a
partnership between employees, their manager(s), and the organization. While career planning is the responsibility
of the individual, support and involvement by organization for which she/he
works helps forge a greater commitment to the organization’s success. An important aspect of this partnership is a
clear understanding of the type and amount of support available for employees
as they carry out the action steps of their career development plans.
The Career Planning
Process requires a framework in which employees develop career growth plans. An
effective Career Management framework helps individuals identify the work that
they’re innately suited for, and provides information about the job options
they may wish to pursue. In short,
employees need to answer two questions: “What type of work am I suited for?”
and “What career options do I want to pursue?”
While employees are
responsible for carrying-out the work of Career Planning, managers can assist
the process by monitoring the process and providing important feedback and
coaching.
Employees answer these
two main questions of the Career Planning Process through a combination of
activities that include self-assessment, exploring job options, and identifying
the skills / training / education / experience required for reaching their
goals.
The first question –
What type of work am I suited for?” – can be answered through a self-assessment
process. Through self-assessment,
individuals discover:
• Personality-based
Preferences: types of work that they are drawn towards on the basis of their
in-born temperaments
• Occupational
Interests – types of work they are most naturally interested in
• Workplace Values – the situations and
activities that provide greatest amount of work satisfaction
• Preferred Skills – the skill-sets they enjoy
most and want to develop
• Work-Life Balance – how their career fits
into the bigger picture of their priorities.
Individuals answer the
second question – “What career options do I want to pursue?” – through
exploring their job options. Access to
job descriptions within the organization, spending time with people who hold
positions they are interested in, and job shadowing are some of the methods an
organization can provide to assist employees with setting career goals.
Once an employee has
determined his goals, he will meet with his immediate manager to discuss the
plan and his next steps. The type and
amount of support the organization will provide will vary according to
organization’s career management policies.
The Career Planning
Process is a dynamic activity. As
individuals reach their goals, they will likely develop new ones. When life situations and circumstances change,
individuals may revisit their plans to establish different goals and action
plans. The Career Planning Process is an
outstanding tool for fostering employee engagement. When employees feel they are in control of
their career paths, they become far more motivated in their jobs and their work
takes on new meaning. Commitment to the
organization markedly increases when employees believe that the organization is
considering their interests at the same time it is fulfilling the corporate
mission. In most cases, this type of
organizational-employee partnership creates a deeper level of “buy-in” for
organization’s vision and goals.
Tips
for Organizational Career Management
a.
Effective communication
b.
Dealing with change
c.
Respect the past
d.
Communicate
e.
Empower
f.
Reward
g.
Include
Integration into
Organizational Structure:
As the conceptual
diagram on page 8 demonstrates, Organizational Career Management is not an “
add-on ”; it must be integrated into the entire organizational structure. The Career Planning Process is closely linked
with other important functions in an organization, and particularly with
succession planning. In fact,
Organizational Career Management’s greatest impact is on succession planning. Once fully functional, Organizational Career
Management gives an organization more succession planning options. Employees who are engaged in a process of
developing their skills and capabilities create greater organizational
capacity. This increased capacity gives
organizations more stability, creativity, and ability to capitalize on new
opportunities.
The decision to
implement Organizational Career Management must be made at the executive
leadership level. Because of the impacts
that this process has on the overall organization – including its culture – the
highest level decision makers need to be actively involved in its
implementation.
Benefits of
organizational career management:
Organizational Career
Management significantly changes the nature of an organization providing
numerous benefits including: • Enhanced Employee Engagement levels o Employees
have greater commitment to their work .
When employees recognize how skillful performance in their jobs benefits
them personally, they become more committed to high performance o Employees
have greater commitment to the organization.
Employees no longer view their employment as a “financial contract for
duties performed.” They understand their
employment as a partnership for reaching goals.
They take a greater interest in and ownership of corporate goals.
• Improved Recruiting -
Attracting new employees becomes easier as the organization establishes a
reputation as “an employer of choice.”
• More Effective
Succession Planning o Organizational Stability – “Bench strength” results from
employees who are committed to their career development. o Long-term Viability
– A workforce developing at all levels ensures an ongoing inventory of
home-grown talent. o Capacity for Expansion – High skill levels amongst
employees enables the organization to expand operations and take advantage of
opportunities as they arise.
• Better
Manager-Employee Relationships – The manager’s coaching relationship with
employees creates stronger relationships and shared successes as people
progress to new levels.
• Culture of Achievement
– A workforce of continually improving people creates higher expectations.
• Culture of Learning –
Career development requires attaining knowledge and learning new skills. When this becomes a common activity, a
culture of learning is the result.
• Greater Creativity –
Increased exposure to education, training and new experiences enhances
employees’ creativity.
• Exit Management – If
an organization needs to lay-off numerous employees, the staff members actively
involved with their career development will have more opportunities to pursue
and be better equipped to pursue them.
• More Effective
Workforce Development Initiatives –Significantly more meaningful training and
professional development opportunities take on new meaning when they are part
of employees’ career development plans.
• Understanding Of
Other’s Jobs – Career Planning opens one’s eyes to other’s jobs and the skills
required to perform them. This exposure
also leads to a greater understanding of the entire organization.
• Workforce Retention –
Employees who are able to realize their career goals within the organization
are unlikely to pursue “greener pastures.”
• Greater Likelihood Of
Boomerang Returnees – Employees who leave the organization for career
advancement are more likely to return to the organization. When they return they’ll bring new knowledge
and experience.
The Model of
organizational career management:
The conceptual diagram
on the following page demonstrates Organizational Career Management’s
integration within a typical organization’s structure. The model includes the basic functions and
process within an organization. It is
designed to be expandable for larger organizations (i.e. able to include
additional organizational layers), and collapsible for smaller organizations
(i.e. can become less complex when some of the processes included do not exist
or are combined).
The model is designed
in a generic way so as to be adaptable to organizations in different
sectors. The model is applicable to
business, government and not-for-profit organizations. Organizational Career Management is most
applicable for organizations that have fluid workforces that include a variety
of job types. A fluid workforce is one
where it is possible for people to transition to new job types within the
organization by attaining the new job’s requirements through a variety of
learning methods while they continue in their current jobs.
Function
of Organizational Career Management
a.
Job performance
b.
Exposure
c.
Training and development
d.
Competency management
e.
Succession planning
f.
Loyalty
g.
Growth opportunity
h.
Key subsidiary
Organizational Assessment Programs
- Assessment Centers: Assessment centers are popular decision-making tools that are used by most companies including Pratt & Whitney, AT & T, Sears Reobuck & Co., TVA, JC Penney, IBM, GE and Bendix. All the individuals (participants) in assessment centers are engaged in a variety of exercises and put in different situations including tests, group discussions, interviews, in-baskets and business games. Their performances are evaluated by the experts. After that a panel of trainers gives them an in-depth feedback on their strengths and weaknesses. They then are given an opportunity to improve their skills and set their future career goals.
- Psychological Testing: Psychological testing consists of written test that help individuals as well as organizations understand their personality, career interests, work attitudes, vocational interests and other personal characteristics. It reveals their career needs and preferences and then they are given jobs that suit their personality as well as skills and competencies.
- Promotability Forecasts: Promotability forecasting is a tool that helps organizations is identifying the individuals with exceptionally high potential to perform different types of jobs. This technique is used in making early forecasts. Once individuals are identified, they are made to attend conferences and training programs and other relevant developmental experiences in order to groom them for higher positions. Several companies have different programs to groom different groups of employees. Along with this, high potential employees are given developmental assignments that are a real test for them.
- Succession Planning: Succession planning is a formal process with an aim to groom lower level individuals to replace next-higher level individual in case he or she leaves the organization or gets retired. The process involves continuous review top executives and the next lower level employees in order to determine whether he or she is the right backup for the senior executive or not. This is the most important exercise which often takes several years in grooming the next person for the senior position. It includes overall development of the selected individual and continuous review of his or her performance. This is a common assessment tool in Fortune 500 companies that choose their CEO by the same process. Organizations create a pool of talented employees who have high leadership potential. They are put to different jobs in different situations and are evaluated by a panel of experts. The process is usually restricted to senior level management only.
Benefits of Formal Succession Planning
|
Succession planning is one of the most
important career development tools used by organizations. This is done to
determine the backups for each senior position by identifying and training
the executives who are at the next-lower levels. This is an important process
as most organizations rely on it to find their next CEO and other top notch
executives. This includes an overall development of lower level employees to
make sure that they can effectively handle the responsibilities that they
will be handed over in next few years. Formal succession planning is an
examination of organization’s long range plans and strategies and HR
forecasts. It also offers several other benefits and has a positive impact on
organizational culture and efficiency.
Benefits of Formal Succession Planning
|
- It provides a logical approach for succession of top notch positions by the next lower-level employee. It is all about identifying the skills and competencies and potential of an employee so that he or she can be deployed at different jobs in the time of crisis.
- Succession planning gives the answers to all the questions regarding preparing an individual for the next level in the organizational hierarchy. It helps HR specialists in knowing and understanding why a specific individual should be developed and trained to promote to the next level.
- It reduces the randomness in organization’s processes and managerial development movements and establishes formal steps and actions, policies and procedures to support the process of selecting the CEO and other top management executives.
- A formal succession planning process is a proactive approach to fill a top position. It helps HR professionals to anticipate problems in the process before they get started. This is very important to avoid negative and dysfunctional situations.
- It fosters cross-functional development and facilitates the integration of HR planning components, processes and procedures. Not only this, it supports connecting formats, guidelines, analyses, judgments and discussions at their front.
- Formal succession planning helps in further exploitation of computer systems, HRP software applications, HR tools and techniques in order to support the identification, development and training of the individuals.
- It helps HR managers in overcoming the limitations of reactive management approaches and fosters pro-active management approaches to make organization a better place to work.
- It establishes a logical basis for making choices among qualified candidates. Who should be selected, why they should be selected and what skills and competencies they own and what needs to be developed in them are critical factors while identifying the employees for succession planning.
- The process establishes a specific connection between the business objectives and HR strategic planning. Along with this, it also increases internal promotion opportunities.
ETHOS
Organizational Career Management Model Guide for Navigating the Various
Stages
OVERVIEW OF THE
MODEL
Ø Shape
of the Model: The model is shaped like a ship to appreciate that all
organizations have direction and are in motion.
Ø The
Nature of the Model: The interconnectivity of the parts is drawn to communicate
that Organizational Career Management results in a healthier organization that
sustains itself. The investment into
individuals’ skill development benefits both individuals and the organization.
Ø Organizational
Direction: Comes from the highest level leader/team, hence its placement at the
front of the model. Executive leadership
team(s) identify and clarify visions, missions and values. They are also responsible for ensuring a
healthy culture that is congruent with the organization wants.
Placing of Job Types:
§ Management
Positions are on the perimeter of the model to communicate that they serve to
support the organization and move it forward.
Lower level management roles are further to the back-end of the model,
while higher level roles are further to the front. Note, while these positions are drawn on the
perimeter of the diagram for the above reasons, the soft color of the border
communicates that all management moves through and is involved throughout the
organization.
§ Job
Type A, B, C refers to the variety of jobs that exist in every organization
from entry-level positions, to highly complex, specialist positions. The model recognizes that there are different
job types, and that many of these jobs can be part of a progressive career
path. The red lines from Job A to Job B,
Job C and Management positions, demonstrate the numerous options and directions
that any given employee’s career path might travel. The red lines are the same color as the
Succession Planning area of the model to communicate that all transitions
between jobs are part of the Succession Planning strategy.
Interpreting the
organizational career management model:
·
Organizational Mission, Vision, Goals,
Priorities & Values must permeate the organization at all levels. It is important to note how this starts at
the earliest stage, Recruitment Process, and is emphasized at subsequent
levels.
·
Effective companies put a lot of energy
into the Recruitment Process “Getting the right people on the bus” adds to the
organization’s human capital, potential, and saves the difficulties associated
with staff turnover.
·
Once hired, all employees are taken
through an Orientation Process. This
orientation includes an introduction to the organization’s Career Planning
process and how active involvement in this process will benefit them. Once Orientation is completed, the employee
moves to the job for which she was hired.
·
Each job has a Performance Support
process attached to it. Managers will
ensure that the employee understands his job and reaches a fully satisfactory
level of competency through ongoing performance management. In most cases employees will not move to
other jobs until they have become competent in their current assignment.
·
Workforce Development refers to all the
programs and tools the organization has in place to assist employees in their
skills growth. Well- developed Workforce
Development tools and processes will ensure that employees are prepared for new
responsibilities and job types.
Workforce Development strategies will ensure that all key jobs are
filled and Succession Plans are in place.
Workforce Development may be accessed by an employee to build their
skills level for their current job, for general improvement, or as part of
their career development plan.
·
Career Management is concurrent throughout the
employee’s stay with the organization.
The organization will provide the means for employees to clarify their
career goals and understand how to manage their careers and achieve goals while
employed by the organization.
*Note: Career Management is a partnership
between the employee and the organization.
However, while the organization provides the atmosphere and tools for
career management, the individual takes full responsibility for managing her
career and achieving goals. Because the Career Management Process is driven by
the employee, managers will not be burdened with another program to
support. Managers can oversee the Career
Management Process as part of their regular performance management duties. Typically, employees will be able to access
Career Management activities after six months of employment.
·
Through the Career Planning Process,
employees will develop learning and career development plans. Employees will be given the tools they need
to make informed career decisions. The
organization will help employees understand where their career aspirations
coincide with organizational needs.
Through the involvement and support of the organization and its
managers, the employee will move through the required stages of training for
assuming greater responsibilities and new job assignments.
·
Management’s close involvement with
employees’ career management plans will significantly help the organization
with its Succession Planning .
Involvement in employees’ career management will enable management to understand
individuals’ aspirations and create opportunities for individuals to obtain
exposure to new opportunities and for managers to observe individual’s
potential for new job types.
·
Important – Performance Supports, Career
Planning Process and Succession Planning are parts of an interconnected and
synergistic process. Even in the early
stages of an employee’s career during their training to reach a satisfactory
level of competency, Succession Planning is taking place. As employees chart their career growth plans
and attain new skills, higher levels of Succession Planning are achieved.
·
Effective organizations have a
well-thought-through Exit Management strategy.
People leave organizations for a variety of reasons. A well- managed Exit Process will help both the
organization and the individual with the transition. An Exit Process can also serve as a “feedback
loop” that can help the company make needed improvements and become
stronger. Recent research shows that a
well-managed Exit Process supports “Boomerang” hiring, as former employees
re-join the organization at a later stage in their careers.
The bottom-line to the
process is better Employee Engagement and productivity. Hiring the right people, getting them engaged
in the organization and equipping them for greater productivity will ensure
sustainability with ongoing and long-term success for both the individual and
organization.
Essentials for
Implementing:
Organizational Career
Management is not an add-on program; it significantly changes how organizations
operate. Because of that, there is a
fair amount of preparation required before introducing this process to
employees. These essential steps
include:
• Support from Senior
Management : The decision to implement must come from
executive leadership. Top leadership must
recognize the value of this process and be committed to its
implementation. This ensures that all
levels of management are accountable for fulfilling their task and
responsibilities for setting up the process.
• A Blueprint of the
Process : The organization needs to know how the system works before it
begins to implement the system. All
tasks, responsibilities and lines of communication must be understood by
everyone who operates the system. These
managers need to understand how the entire process works in order to fully
understand the importance of their individual tasks.
• Action Plan for
Implementing the Process : A system that involves numerous people from
different levels and departments to work together requires a well-planned
implementation process. The plan should
be structured along a realistic timeline for its implementation.
• Communication Plan
for all Staff : In all likelihood, Organizational Career Management will be
a new concept for most staff members.
The communication plan will need to be educational in nature. Management should expect some resistance from
staff members who are adverse to change or feel threatened by it. The communication plan should clearly outline
the benefits for all staff members and articulate what will not be affected
(I.E. internal processes, collective agreements, etc.).
• Career Planning
Process : This document outlines the basics of a career planning process on
page 3. Every organization will need to
customize a process that will work in its context. Career Planning Processes have a fair range
in levels of complexity. Effective
career planning processes can be built around a fairly simple action planning
process with minimal management involvement.
At the other end of the spectrum is a process that includes specialized
career management staff members dedicated to coaching staff through their
career planning steps.
• Clearly Defined
Expectations : Organizational Career
Management is a three-way partnership between staff, management and the
organization. Each partner in the
process commits time, energy and resources. Clearly defined expectations are
crucial for implementing a successful process.
Levels of support for career development will vary in each
organization. Unmet expectation can lead
to negative consequences such as frustration and cynicism. However, when policy clearly articulates the
organization’s level of involvement in staff career development, expectations
are understood at the out-set and result in a smooth working relationship between
all partners. We believe that employers
should begin from the perspective that career management is fundamentally the
individual’s responsibility, and that the organization’s involvement is for the
mutual benefit of both parties.
Defined expectations are
crucial for implementing a successful process.
Levels of support for career development will vary in each
organization. Unmet expectation can lead
to negative consequences such as frustration and cynicism. However, when policy clearly articulates the
organization’s level of involvement in staff career development, expectations
are understood at the out-set and result in a smooth working relationship
between all partners. We believe that
employers should begin from the perspective that career management is
fundamentally the individual’s responsibility, and that the organization’s
involvement is for the mutual benefit of both parties.
Recommendations
for Implementation:
Organizational Career
Management is a strategy that promises to deliver significantly higher levels
of Employee Engagement and greater productivity. To be effective, this strategy needs buy-in
at all levels of the organization.
Implementing the process properly is essential to its success. We recommend organizations take the following
steps:
1. Understand the
Strategy in Detail :
Before committing to the process, leadership needs to fully understand
how this strategy will affect the organization.
Leadership needs to know the costs and energy involved for implementing
and maintaining the process. Leaders
need to be fully convinced that this strategy will deliver worthwhile
benefits.
2. Test the Strategy
With Small Group :
Implementing a new process across an entire organization always has a
degree of risk involved. We recommend
that the strategy be piloted with a smaller group within the organization. This pilot will enable the organization to
create a prototype process customized to its needs. It will also help leaders create a more
comprehensive implementation strategy.
3. Commit to a
Successful Organization-Wide Implementation : After a successful test phase, commit to
implementing the strategy throughout the organization. The test phase will also help leaders create
a communication plan that articulates the benefits of the strategy.
4. Strike Task Force to
Implement the Strategy :
A smaller group should be given the responsibility for implementing the
process. This group will mobilize all
the resources required to successfully establish the process across the organization.
Ques-10:
1.
(a) What do you mean by “Career Management”?
(b)
) what do you mean by “Organizational Career Management (OCM)”?
2.
(a)
What do you mean by “Career Planning in an Organization”?
(b)
What is the Relationship between Organizational
Career Management (OCM) and Performance?
(c)
Describes the Methods of Career
management practices & programs.
3.
(a)
What do you mean by “Sample Career Planning Process”?
(b) What is Integration into Organizational Structure?
© What are Benefits of organizational career
management?
4.
(a) Describe the Model of organizational
career management.
(b)
What are the objectives of Organizational career management?
5.
(a) What is the Importance of CM?
(b)
What are the Factor Influencing CM
systems?
6.
(a) Show the Guidelines for CMS.
(b)
What are the Tips should be followed for CMS?
7.
Briefly explain the Recommendations for
Implementation.
8.
(a) What are the Steps for CPL?
(b)
What are the essentials issues for implementation?
9. (a) what is Formal Succession Planning?
(b) Discuss the benefits of Formal
Succession Planning.
10. (a) explain the Organizational Assessment Programs.
(b) What are the Indicators of Career Program Effectiveness? Discuss briefly.
MCQ-5:
- The systematic and deliberate advancement made by an individual in his career in the entire work life is known as:
|
|
career
path
|
|
|
career
goals
|
|
|
career
guidance
|
|
|
career
anchoring
|
- The factors that influence the selection of individuals’ career choices are usually referred to as
|
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career
anchoring
|
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career
path
|
|
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career
goals
|
|
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mentoring
|
- Which of the following perspectives looks at the career of an individual from the future positions he is likely to hold?
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subjective
perspective
|
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objective
perspective
|
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neutral
perspective
|
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none
of the above
|
- The career development program which enables the employees to gain multi-skills and diverse experience before being considered for any promotion in the future is called
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Dual-skills
path
|
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conventional
career path
|
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lateral
career path
|
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network
career path
|
- A series of processes aimed at assisting the employees make informed career decisions is known as
|
|
career
guidance
|
|
|
career
anchoring
|
|
|
mentoring
|
|
|
career
goals
|
References:
- Cradler, Geoffrey C. and Kurt E. Schrammel , “The 1992-2005 Job Outlook in Brief”, Occupational Outlook Quarterly. Spring, 1994, p. 3.
- Nigel Nicholson, “Career Systems in Crisis: Change and Opportunity in the Information Age,” Academy of Management Executive, vol. 10, No 4, 1996, p. 40.
- Allred, Brent B., Charles C. Snow, and Raymond Miles. “Characteristics of Managerial Careers in the 21st Century”, Academy of Management Executive, vol. 10, No 4, 1996, p. 17.
- Schein, Edgar H., “Career Anchors Revisited: Implications for Career Development in the 21st Century”, Academy of Management Executive, Vol. 10, No 4, 1996, p. 80.
- Hall, Douglas, T. Careers in Organizations. Scott, Foresman, Glenview, Il. 1976. Bass Publishers, 1997, p. 221.
- Butler, Timothy, and James Waldrop, Discovering Your Career in Business. Addison-Wesley, 1997, p.17.
- Raider, Holly J. and Ronald S. Burt, “Boundaryless Careers and Social Capital”, in Michael Arthur and Denise M. Rousseau, the Boundary less Career, Oxford University Press, New York, 1996, p. 189.
- Adapted from Herriot, Peter. The Career Management Challenge. Sage Publications, London, 1992.
- Fisher, Anne. “Six Ways to Supercharge Your Career”, Fortune Jan 13, 1997, p 47.
- Handy, Charles, “The Handy Reference to the Future”, Management Review, July, 1996,
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