Individual Career Development Plan
Individual Career Development Plan
Developing a five-year plan was very tedious and challenging for me because I never thought about it. I knew from being in the military; I wanted to complete 20 plus years of service and then retire. I have been in the Army for 12 years and I have approximately eight years to go before I complete 20 years of service. I am a Criminal Investigator in the Army which is a 24/7 job. Within the next five years, I foresee myself being the Special Agent-in-Charge (SAC) of my own office, managing both enlisted Soldiers and civilians. My objectives are to perform at a high level and set the example for my subordinates and peers. Also, meet with senior supporting officers on the installation and conduct key leadership …show more content…
engagement to deter crime within the military community. I would measure my objectives on the decrease in crime rate within the military installation/community and my working relationship with senior leaders. Since my job is 24/7, I have to be flexible and maintain good time management skills. Teleworking from home is not an option for me so, I have to be totally organized to juggle both home and work duties. Managing my time is imperative because I have to remain productive throughout the course of the day. In addition, managing my time allows me to plan the hours and days when I can leave work behind for family time or “me” time. Learning to manage both my work/life enables me to manage my obligations and interest as well. One thing that I have learned is balancing work and life is an on-going process. In order to deal with the chaos of my goals and struggles, which are constantly changing, I have to put everything into perspective and remain flexible. Being an innovative thinker and being vision driven will allow me to succeed and meet my career goal within the next five-years and allow me to have a personal life as well.
The trends in the workplace that could affect my plans are the long deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, the downsizing of the military due to budget cuts, and a permanent change of duty station. In the event I deployed to Afghanistan for a year, it would affect me from being able to accomplish my goal within five-years. Being in Afghanistan, I would be able to continue doing my job but in a different capacity. I would be more focus on safety for my fellow Soldiers and myself.
According to Secretary 's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) (2000), the kinds of competencies and skills that workers must have to succeed in today 's workplace are resources - identifies, organizes, plans, and allocates resources; interpersonal - work with others; information - acquires and evaluates information; and systems - understands complex interrelationships. In addition, workers must also have the following basic skills: reads, writes, performs arithmetic and mathematical operations, listens, and speaks; thinking skills: thinks creatively, makes decisions, solves problems, visualizes, knows how to learn, and reasons; and personal qualities: responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self-management, integrity, and honesty.
The transferable skills I currently have are a certificate of medical assistance, certificate of dialysis technician, cardiopulmonary resuscitation certificate.
I am proficient with Microsoft Office XP, Windows, 95, 98, 2000, 2003, 2007, Word Processing, Excel, PowerPoint, Word Perfect, Access, type 40-50 words per minute and internet applications, fax and copying machine. When I was a teenager, I worked as a cashier, bookkeeper at a Supermarket; customer service representative at several retail stores; laboratory technician at a hospital, ticket agent and baggage claims representative at JFK airport. I have excellent customer service skills, interpersonal skills, phone etiquette, excellent with multi-tasking, as well as organized, self-motivated, and able to meet deadlines. I am diverse; I am a team leader and a team player. I have the ability to think and react quickly. I am a well-rounded individual that would be a major asset to any …show more content…
organization.
My professional experience had helped me to plan for the next five years of my career by following up with other members to evaluate progress, identify task to be accomplished, give constructive feedback and praise to others for work well done. Listen carefully and respond to verbal and non-verbal messages. Respond appropriately to positive and negative feedback, support and praise members for reaching goals, and accomplishments. Understanding strengths, weaknesses of members, and use strengths to build team development. Keep accurate and complete financial records.
I am currently on track to being a SAC of having my own office. I have completed most of my requirements except for the completion of my Master’s degree in Management and Leader and attend the Warrant Officer Staff Course (WOSC). WOSC is considered a cored course, which has to be completed prior to being a SAC of an office. The WOSC provides Chief Warrant Officer 3 (CW3s) and new CW4s with the intermediate level education, and influential leadership skills. This course is necessary to integrate his/her technical expertise in support of leaders as staff officers, trainers, managers, systems integrators, and leaders at the tactical and operational levels of Army, Joint, Interagency, Intergovernmental, and Multinational (JIIM) organizations executing Unified Land Operations thru Decisive Action.
According to Cherwin (1996-2013), it is helpful to join and participate in a professional association because it is an important reason to consider membership to a professional organization and to take advantage of their career resources. Associations often have job listings online or in print available only to their members. This is a great way to find targeted job postings for your area of interest. Additionally, many associations have career resources available such as tips on effective resumes or cover letters, job searching strategies and negotiating techniques. Some associations even have panels of experts that one can contact for specific questions on career issues. Other benefits include information about seminars, training or certification classes that may be suitable for an individual. Often these classes can be done through web- or podcasts so you do not even have to leave your home. Moreover, don 't forget, listing your association membership on your resume is impressive to current or future employers as it shows that you are dedicated to staying connected in your profession. Most associations provide an enormous amount of access to resource information such as case studies, articles, white papers, and books written by experts in your field or area of interest. Also, major journal, magazine and newsletter access is provided as a part of your membership privileges. Another reason to join an association is to learn more or stay informed about issues in diversity. For example, Academic360.com includes a list of associations and articles that provide valuable information such as, resource guides for diversity, affirmative action, and advocacy, as well as information on new and proposed regulations related to diversity. Additionally, associations provide a source for scholarship information, links to publications, and awards for persons achieving excellence in their field. No matter what your field is, staying on top of all of these issues is important. (Cherwin, 1996-2013)
I think having a mentor would be useful because a mentor can pass on valuable skills, knowledge, and insights to the mentee to help them develop their career.
Not only does the mentor passes on knowledge but also allows the mentee to feel more confident and self-supporting. Mentees can also develop a clearer sense of what they want in their careers and their personal lives. They will develop greater self-awareness and see the world, and themselves, as others do. For an organization, mentoring is a good way of efficiently transferring valuable competencies from one person to another. The job satisfaction attributes that are most important is the work/life, autonomy, independence, work culture and feeling safe close. (MindTools.com.
2011)
In conclusion, I realized that having goals and objectives are imperative to my career, as long as the goal are attainable and realistic. I believe the goals that I have set for myself are attainable and will help me in the future. Assessing my five-year career plan, I have realized that I am closer to accomplishing my goals than I have previously thought.
References
Cherwin, K. A. (1996-2013). Why join a professional association? Retrieved from http://www.higheredjobs.com/articles/articleDisplay.cfm?ID=157
Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2011, 2009). Human resource management (13th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
MindTools.com. (2011). Mentoring Skills. Using your knowledge and experience to help others. Retrieved from: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/morale.htm.
Skills and Competencies Needed to Succeed in Today’s Workplace. (1991). Retrieved from http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/assment/as7scans.htm
Developing a five-year plan was very tedious and challenging for me because I never thought about it. I knew from being in the military; I wanted to complete 20 plus years of service and then retire. I have been in the Army for 12 years and I have approximately eight years to go before I complete 20 years of service. I am a Criminal Investigator in the Army which is a 24/7 job. Within the next five years, I foresee myself being the Special Agent-in-Charge (SAC) of my own office, managing both enlisted Soldiers and civilians. My objectives are to perform at a high level and set the example for my subordinates and peers. Also, meet with senior supporting officers on the installation and conduct key leadership …show more content…
engagement to deter crime within the military community. I would measure my objectives on the decrease in crime rate within the military installation/community and my working relationship with senior leaders. Since my job is 24/7, I have to be flexible and maintain good time management skills. Teleworking from home is not an option for me so, I have to be totally organized to juggle both home and work duties. Managing my time is imperative because I have to remain productive throughout the course of the day. In addition, managing my time allows me to plan the hours and days when I can leave work behind for family time or “me” time. Learning to manage both my work/life enables me to manage my obligations and interest as well. One thing that I have learned is balancing work and life is an on-going process. In order to deal with the chaos of my goals and struggles, which are constantly changing, I have to put everything into perspective and remain flexible. Being an innovative thinker and being vision driven will allow me to succeed and meet my career goal within the next five-years and allow me to have a personal life as well.
The trends in the workplace that could affect my plans are the long deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, the downsizing of the military due to budget cuts, and a permanent change of duty station. In the event I deployed to Afghanistan for a year, it would affect me from being able to accomplish my goal within five-years. Being in Afghanistan, I would be able to continue doing my job but in a different capacity. I would be more focus on safety for my fellow Soldiers and myself.
According to Secretary 's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) (2000), the kinds of competencies and skills that workers must have to succeed in today 's workplace are resources - identifies, organizes, plans, and allocates resources; interpersonal - work with others; information - acquires and evaluates information; and systems - understands complex interrelationships. In addition, workers must also have the following basic skills: reads, writes, performs arithmetic and mathematical operations, listens, and speaks; thinking skills: thinks creatively, makes decisions, solves problems, visualizes, knows how to learn, and reasons; and personal qualities: responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self-management, integrity, and honesty.
The transferable skills I currently have are a certificate of medical assistance, certificate of dialysis technician, cardiopulmonary resuscitation certificate.
I am proficient with Microsoft Office XP, Windows, 95, 98, 2000, 2003, 2007, Word Processing, Excel, PowerPoint, Word Perfect, Access, type 40-50 words per minute and internet applications, fax and copying machine. When I was a teenager, I worked as a cashier, bookkeeper at a Supermarket; customer service representative at several retail stores; laboratory technician at a hospital, ticket agent and baggage claims representative at JFK airport. I have excellent customer service skills, interpersonal skills, phone etiquette, excellent with multi-tasking, as well as organized, self-motivated, and able to meet deadlines. I am diverse; I am a team leader and a team player. I have the ability to think and react quickly. I am a well-rounded individual that would be a major asset to any …show more content…
organization.
My professional experience had helped me to plan for the next five years of my career by following up with other members to evaluate progress, identify task to be accomplished, give constructive feedback and praise to others for work well done. Listen carefully and respond to verbal and non-verbal messages. Respond appropriately to positive and negative feedback, support and praise members for reaching goals, and accomplishments. Understanding strengths, weaknesses of members, and use strengths to build team development. Keep accurate and complete financial records.
I am currently on track to being a SAC of having my own office. I have completed most of my requirements except for the completion of my Master’s degree in Management and Leader and attend the Warrant Officer Staff Course (WOSC). WOSC is considered a cored course, which has to be completed prior to being a SAC of an office. The WOSC provides Chief Warrant Officer 3 (CW3s) and new CW4s with the intermediate level education, and influential leadership skills. This course is necessary to integrate his/her technical expertise in support of leaders as staff officers, trainers, managers, systems integrators, and leaders at the tactical and operational levels of Army, Joint, Interagency, Intergovernmental, and Multinational (JIIM) organizations executing Unified Land Operations thru Decisive Action.
According to Cherwin (1996-2013), it is helpful to join and participate in a professional association because it is an important reason to consider membership to a professional organization and to take advantage of their career resources. Associations often have job listings online or in print available only to their members. This is a great way to find targeted job postings for your area of interest. Additionally, many associations have career resources available such as tips on effective resumes or cover letters, job searching strategies and negotiating techniques. Some associations even have panels of experts that one can contact for specific questions on career issues. Other benefits include information about seminars, training or certification classes that may be suitable for an individual. Often these classes can be done through web- or podcasts so you do not even have to leave your home. Moreover, don 't forget, listing your association membership on your resume is impressive to current or future employers as it shows that you are dedicated to staying connected in your profession. Most associations provide an enormous amount of access to resource information such as case studies, articles, white papers, and books written by experts in your field or area of interest. Also, major journal, magazine and newsletter access is provided as a part of your membership privileges. Another reason to join an association is to learn more or stay informed about issues in diversity. For example, Academic360.com includes a list of associations and articles that provide valuable information such as, resource guides for diversity, affirmative action, and advocacy, as well as information on new and proposed regulations related to diversity. Additionally, associations provide a source for scholarship information, links to publications, and awards for persons achieving excellence in their field. No matter what your field is, staying on top of all of these issues is important. (Cherwin, 1996-2013)
I think having a mentor would be useful because a mentor can pass on valuable skills, knowledge, and insights to the mentee to help them develop their career.
Not only does the mentor passes on knowledge but also allows the mentee to feel more confident and self-supporting. Mentees can also develop a clearer sense of what they want in their careers and their personal lives. They will develop greater self-awareness and see the world, and themselves, as others do. For an organization, mentoring is a good way of efficiently transferring valuable competencies from one person to another. The job satisfaction attributes that are most important is the work/life, autonomy, independence, work culture and feeling safe close. (MindTools.com.
2011)
In conclusion, I realized that having goals and objectives are imperative to my career, as long as the goal are attainable and realistic. I believe the goals that I have set for myself are attainable and will help me in the future. Assessing my five-year career plan, I have realized that I am closer to accomplishing my goals than I have previously thought.
References
Cherwin, K. A. (1996-2013). Why join a professional association? Retrieved from http://www.higheredjobs.com/articles/articleDisplay.cfm?ID=157
Mathis, R. L., & Jackson, J. H. (2011, 2009). Human resource management (13th ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
MindTools.com. (2011). Mentoring Skills. Using your knowledge and experience to help others. Retrieved from: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/morale.htm.
Skills and Competencies Needed to Succeed in Today’s Workplace. (1991). Retrieved from http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/assment/as7scans.htm