Reimagining Development Plans in a Remote Work Setup

Employees have different work styles and preferences, which means that development is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Some are slow-paced, while others are fast-paced. The COVID-19 pandemic made an impact on the career journey of every employee, according to Forbes. Everyone in the workforce is reassessing goals and aspirations, considering other fields of work, and bearing the tradeoffs. Hence, dreams are put on hold and compromised. 

The workforce is contemplating their future more and what lies ahead of them. So, it is necessary to understand where your employees are coming from.  Is there a need for upskilling, reskilling, or cross-skilling? Whatever that may be, L&D strategies need to be diverse and experiential. 

How To Assess The Gaps

Individual Development Plans (IDP) begin by assessing the current capabilities and strengths of your employees. Talegent is a powerful tool in identifying the difference between areas of strength and areas for development. 

How To Develop The Gaps

As a next step, self-improvement is addressed using learning programs that suit one’s needs. Here are some ideas from TalentView University (TVI Uni), the L&D program of TalentView, to help you implement IDPs in your organization.

1- Identify key learning metrics.

TVI Uni has a grading system wherein employees earn points by attending training, hosting learning sessions, facilitating passion hours, and many more. They get points for any kind of learning activity they do. There is a minimum number of points required per quarter depending on their career track in the organization. These learning points are also monitored as part of their KPIs.

2- Create Learning Champions.

Each employee can choose people who will sponsor (advocate), stretch (challenge), support (social and emotional well-being), and mentor (feedback and coaching) them from inside and outside the organization. Mentoring programs were instrumental as cross-collaboration provided additional value to their team members. Check out this article to learn more about that! 

3- Allot time for career conversations.

Career conversations were pivotal wherein the employee and line manager can align on goals as part of their IDP. This engagement allows quarterly performance appraisals to bridge the gap between what they are currently doing and what they want to achieve in the future.

4- Provide learning opportunities.

Different activities are provided depending on the preferred learning style of the employees. Whether they like audiobooks, video materials, or books, members can choose activities that suit them the most and monitor their progress through a learning journal. The material is customizable and resources are linked there. It is confidential, and the goal is to document learnings, key insights and reflect on their progress while allowing a sense of autonomy. Essentially, the L&D program seeks to know and understand what they want to contribute and how they can add value to the organization.

5- Celebrate small wins.

Town Hall recognitions such as highlighting top students boosted the self-esteem of members. Releasing content to acknowledge and share applications played a role in their desire for self-development. Improvement does not equate to big wins always. Employers should start instilling in their members the essence of progress. Small wins can be milestones, like being authentic and honest around colleagues, presenting with confidence in an internal meeting, having the desire to take short courses, and the list goes on. Teach your members to record their progress and commend them regularly. The return on investment will be exponential.

Contrary to its name, the Individual Development Plan is a collective process. If you want to reinforce an effective IDP, start instilling a culture of learning by introducing its benefits. After all, career drivers consider fulfillment at whatever stage their team members are.

Organizations must give employees a sense of autonomy and support in accomplishing their career goals to boost productivity.

Feel free to reach out by sending us a message at inquiry@talentview.asia and looking forward to having conversations with you.