8 Ways to Support Employee Career Growth

8 WAYS TO SUPPORT EMPLOYEE CAREER GROWTH A Checklist for HR 2023 HR RESEARCH REPORT EBOOK SERIES

Actions for managers to support employee growth and retention: 1) Talk regularly with employees about careers Incorporate career development into your 1:1 check-ins. In our recent eBook — Avoiding the Managers should make career conversations a standard part of their check-in Engagement and Retention Cli昀昀 — cycle — clearing time at least quarterly to talk with their direct reports about career we made a case for why employers aspirations and to make plans and track progress against career goals. must focus on employee career Our 2023 research shows when employees development — or risk losing their are satis昀椀ed with manager check-ins on employees to turnover or apathy. career, they are 7.5x more likely to feel there This included worrisome recent data from our 2023 State of Performance Management report that showed 3 in 4 is a path for advancement in their company employees want to advance with their companies, but less and have far higher levels of engagement than half see a path for advancement. How can employers step up and take action to help existing and productivity. employees feel supported in their growth and advancement — and reassure them that they have a future with their current Managers are the linchpins of employee satisfaction, and if employees feel their organization? We’ve put together three tips for managers, manager is in their court and trying to help them grow, it will increase trust and help and 昀椀ve tips for employers, to help avoid this dangerous employees feel someone in the organization cares about their growth. engagement and retention cli昀昀. 2 Checklist: 8 Ways To Support Employee Career Growth

Employees who are satis昀椀ed with career and development check-ins are also more likely to say they are always engaged and productive. Engaged Productive 82% “Never/not at all” < 1% of respondents. 75% 61% 58% 54% 47% Always/Very Sometimes/Somewhat Rarely/A Little In these conversations, managers should: » Demystify career development by talking candidly about strengths and opportunities. » Create a safe place for employees to discuss growth ambitions and ask questions about opportunities for advancement and building related skills. » Show support for growth and build trust to help employees see them as advocates for the employee’s advancement. » Resist the temptation to hoard talent or hold employees back for fear of losing their expertise on the team. 3 Checklist: 8 Ways To Support Employee Career Growth

2) Create a plan and take action Help employees to identify and take the steps that can advance employee careers. Managers should work with their direct reports to help them identify the career paths they are most interested in pursuing, and help outline the current or future career paths at the company that will meet those goals. As part of this career coaching, managers should: 3) Establish accountability » Help employees to think about development as a web rather than a ladder — identifying opportunities not only to move up into supervisory roles but also to work in similar roles on a new team, and develop Both employees and managers are responsible current or adjacent skills. for growth. » Articulate the particular knowledge, skills, and behaviors required to Employees are in charge of their career aspirations — but leaders advance on the employee’s chosen path, and help them to acquire also have an important role to play. Managers can encourage those new skills or build adjacent skills. their team members to set development goals regularly as part » Help employees design a personalized plan for their development of their performance — and then track progress against those that aligns with their chosen career path — and with the needs of goals and provide nudges if needed. This is important not only for the organization. employees’ personal development but also for building skills and competencies at an organizational level. To keep employees positive and growing, managers should: » Set goals that are in service of both skill-building and long- term career development. » Have employees document their career aspirations in their own performance plans and prompt them to keep those plans updated. » Discuss career aspirations and skill-building activities regularly to monitor and promote progress. » Ensure the employee has adequate time to build the desired skills. 4 Checklist: 8 Ways To Support Employee Career Growth

Actions organizations can take to develop, retain, and motivate employees to grow: 4) Map and articulate clear pathways for career progress Make sure employees and managers understand the opportunities for development. Career pathing works, but it can only thrive in the light of day. Create and share career paths within your organization for every role, and make sure managers and employees alike understand exactly what skills or competencies are required to move successfully into a new role. To make careers easier to navigate, organizations can: Map career paths for every role in your organization and make them widely available. Make HiPo training, manager training, and other structured programs accessible to all employees to build your internal pipeline and to predictably and regularly advance employees in cohorts. This will also lessen talent hoarding. Help employees to understand that career growth doesn’t have to equal promotion to management — it can also mean becoming an expert in a subject at a more senior or specialized level, or developing new skills that the employee can leverage to expand their capabilities in a current role. 5 Checklist: 8 Ways To Support Employee Career Growth

5) Support managers with better infrastructure, tools, and training Supply managers with the support they are looking for. Managers will sometimes avoid conversations around careers simply because they lack con昀椀dence in having those discussions. In our recent research, we found that only about half (54%) of all managers feel con昀椀dent in their ability to coach employees for career development. When we asked managers where they most need a helping hand, 38% said they want assistance in helping employees develop skills and path careers. Managers want better support from their organizations in helping their employees develop skills and path careers. Only 54% of managers feel con昀椀dent delivering career development and coaching To help managers be better coaches, organizations can: » Provide tools and processes that help to ensure that manager-employee conversations are more frequent, structured, and well-documented. » Train managers in the nuances of career coaching and development. » Keep the trust of managers and employees alike, and follow through with promotions and advancement when employees have achieved career goals. » Assure your managers that advancing their employees won’t leave them short- handed, and roles will be back-昀椀lled with up-and-coming talent. 6 Checklist: 8 Ways To Support Employee Career Growth

6) Make it easier for employees to advance Enable workers to change roles, try out new roles with low risk, and grow in place using programs and resources such as: » Internal job boards » Job shadowing opportunities » Learning and development opportunities » Cross-functional team programs » Stretch assignments » Job rotation programs 7) Provide organizational support for changes Put structures into place that will support job transitions — both before and after they happen. Building skill sets for new jobs is only half of the picture. Employees must also get training and onboarding into new roles that will help them to succeed once they are there. This means creating a strong training engine, as well as facilitating a support and feedback network with mentors and other social supports. Develop the resources to Keep pipelines moving help make someone more Establish goal-setting, and build a culture of successful during and after feedback, and internal advancement a transition. This includes enablement technology that discourages setting up training, on-the-job that supports growth. managers from learning, a mentor program, hoarding talent. cross-functional opportunities, and learning resources. 7 Checklist: 8 Ways To Support Employee Career Growth

8) Proactively calibrate performance ratings Ensure workers are being fairly assessed and positioned for internal advancement. » Provide managers and administrators with easier, more automated calibration coming out of the review process. » Companies that regularly calibrate reviews can 昀氀ag when it is most appropriate to promote workers — and are better positioned to prevent frustrated quits. Finally, invest in the right infrastructure for career advancement. To promote the above activities, you will want to be sure you have the tools in place to support managers and employees. Be sure to invest in the processes and technology that will help them to understand what it takes to advance con昀椀dently — and take the actions needed to make that happen. Download our 2023 State of Performance Enablement report for more insights. Interested in technology to better support manager career coaching? LET’S TALK 8 Checklist: 8 Ways To Support Employee Career Growth

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