Employee Development - Whose Responsibility Is It? (Part I of II)
Employee Development - Whose Responsibility Is It? (Part I of II)
These expectations create a constant struggle for both employers and employees. This newsletter focuses on the importance of taking control of your career development – and provides strategies to help you do so. After all, you’re not responsible for your boss’s leadership skills. But you alone are responsible for the goals and strategies you put in place to succeed. (My next newsletter will focus on providing support for employers.)
Consider this example as a lesson: Almost two years ago Renee resolved to develop her leadership capabilities and begin increasing her responsibilities at work. Fortunately, the CEO of her company, Ted, saw Renee as capable, moved her into the office next to his and promised to provide guidance. While he has been more than willing to give ideas and provide support when she approaches him, he has yet to reach out on his own with feedback.
Just a couple of days ago, Renee came to me frustrated – with lots of questions and concerns:
• “Why do I keep doing the same things and expecting different results?”
• “Clearly I am not the type of person who does well under Ted’s leadership. Why isn’t he providing the guidance he promised?”
• “How am I to know what I’m doing well if he never provides feedback?”
• “How am I going to get promoted if I can’t capture his attention?”
• “What are my markers for success?”
Renee was stuck. She wanted to grow and develop, to dive into the leadership position she so desired. But she had no idea how. Fortunately, she realized there’s no point in playing the blame game. This new-found understanding (what I’m doing isn’t working, so I need to try something different) was the perfect starting point.
Below are some tips I gave Renee:
-> Take full responsibility for your own professional development. If you blame your lack of guidance on someone else, only you lose.
-> Create a plan for your development – with specific goals.
-> Share your plan with your supervisor or a trusted mentor. Let them know what areas you would like to improve on and request their support. Be specific about what this means – the time commitment you’re asking for and the frequency with which you’d like feedback.
-> Be ready to grow. Feedback is a way of letting you know you are or are not on track. And if your mentors are truthful (and therefore effective leaders), it’s very likely you will hear some things you don’t want to hear. Remember: It is simply feedback. It’s not good or bad; it just is. Understanding and becoming aware is awesome for your growth.
The vast majority of professionals choose not to take responsibility for their development. They go through the motions, hoping they will be noticed, admired, promoted and given projects that excite them. Do you want to leave your career to chance? I don’t.
Rock on!
Misti Burmeister
Employee Development Whose Responsibility Is It Part I of II - To learn more about this author, visit Misti Burmeister's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Wouldn’t it be easy to say the responsibility for developing your career rests solely in the hands of your employer and supervisor? After all, you’re giving your time and effort to them, so shouldn’t it be their responsibility to ensure you develop into the superstar you’re meant to be? Aren’t they supposed to give feedback on what you’re doing well and how you can improve?
These expectations create a constant struggle for both employers and employees. This newsletter focuses on the importance of taking control of your career development – and provides strategies to help you do so. After all, you’re not responsible for your boss’s leadership skills. But you alone are responsible for the goals and strategies you put in place to succeed. (My next newsletter will focus on providing support for employers.)
Consider this example as a lesson: Almost two years ago Renee resolved to develop her leadership capabilities and begin increasing her responsibilities at work. Fortunately, the CEO of her company, Ted, saw Renee as capable, moved her into the office next to his and promised to provide guidance. While he has been more than willing to give ideas and provide support when she approaches him, he has yet to reach out on his own with feedback.
Just a couple of days ago, Renee came to me frustrated – with lots of questions and concerns:
• “Why do I keep doing the same things and expecting different results?”
• “Clearly I am not the type of person who does well under Ted’s leadership. Why isn’t he providing the guidance he promised?”
• “How am I to know what I’m doing well if he never provides feedback?”
• “How am I going to get promoted if I can’t capture his attention?”
• “What are my markers for success?”
Renee was stuck. She wanted to grow and develop, to dive into the leadership position she so desired. But she had no idea how. Fortunately, she realized there’s no point in playing the blame game. This new-found understanding (what I’m doing isn’t working, so I need to try something different) was the perfect starting point.
Below are some tips I gave Renee:
-> Take full responsibility for your own professional development. If you blame your lack of guidance on someone else, only you lose.
-> Create a plan for your development – with specific goals.
-> Share your plan with your supervisor or a trusted mentor. Let them know what areas you would like to improve on and request their support. Be specific about what this means – the time commitment you’re asking for and the frequency with which you’d like feedback.
-> Be ready to grow. Feedback is a way of letting you know you are or are not on track. And if your mentors are truthful (and therefore effective leaders), it’s very likely you will hear some things you don’t want to hear. Remember: It is simply feedback. It’s not good or bad; it just is. Understanding and becoming aware is awesome for your growth.
The vast majority of professionals choose not to take responsibility for their development. They go through the motions, hoping they will be noticed, admired, promoted and given projects that excite them. Do you want to leave your career to chance? I don’t.
Rock on!
Misti Burmeister
Employee Development Whose Responsibility Is It Part I of II - To learn more about this author, visit Misti Burmeister's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
|||
Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
|||
John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
|||
David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
|||
Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to Misti's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | |||||||
|
 | ||
|
||
|
||
 |
||
|
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 Networking Impacts Income Dazzling Presentaion Steps How to Get a Life Human Resources Checklist 100 Success Tips |
|
 | ||
 |
Top 50 HR Blogs 2009
Top 50 HR Blogs 2009 | |
 |
The Top 10 GTD Times Posts
Best Posts for Productivity | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
| ||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||