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NOTEBOOK

Career Plan Template 1.1 2005-12-24 This template is for use with the career planning guidance available on the PM Notebook web site. (http://www.pmnotebook.com/index.php? option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog &id=78&Itemid=106) http://www.pmnotebook.com Copyright 2005 Pinnacle Performance, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Individuals are free to adapt this for their personal use. (Naturally, youll want to delete this first page when creating your own Career Plan).

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1. My Career Plan
This is an initial outline of the Career Plan the employee can tailor this, without restriction, in creating their own plan: 0.1. Career Goal Statement: <Your career goal or another important statement about our career.> 0.2. Foundation for Career Planning <Basic information to be understood and as recognized as influencing your career> Trends: <relevant trends that impact your career. E.g., economy in recession or growth, offshoring, industry/company growth/shrinkage, industrys or your companys view of your profession, new technologies, changes in industry standards> o o <Trend1> <Trend2>

Profession: <information about your profession. E.g., how it is defined, growth and development path, certification, ongoing training/education> o <Profession information goes here>

0.3. Preparation Thinking about your Career <Basic information to be understood and as key to a viable Career Plan> Current Job: <describe your current job and any significant observations you have about this jobs alignment with your career desires. Also include a list of your key skills this job utilizes, along with those skills you have that cannot be utilized in this job.> o o o Brief Description: Alignment with career desires: My skills that are best utilized in my current job o <Skill1> <Skill2> <Skill1> <Skill2>

My skills that are under-utilized in my current job

The Right Jobs for Me: <key information about your abilities and job interests; include a list (and description) of jobs/tasks at which you excel, jobs/tasks that you like; then list those jobs/tasks that where your performance is substandard, along with jobs/tasks that you dont like> o Jobs/Tasks Im very good At These <Job/Task1>

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<Job/Task2> <Job/Task1> <Job/Task2> <Job/Task1> <Job/Task2> <Job/Task1> <Job/Task2>

Jobs/Tasks I like doing these

Jobs/Tasks Im not very good At These

Jobs/Tasks I dont like doing these

Thinking about Success: <Define success for you by completing these two sentences:> o o In order to succeed in my current job, I must . . . In order to succeed in my career, I must . . .

Skills Inventory and Gap Identification: <Create a list of 3 to 5 categories of skills, then populate each category with 2 or 3 specific skills that you possess. Then, using the information that youve previously been documenting (in each of the above sections), identify up to 3 skills where development is needed; these could be skills already on your I possess these skills list, or these may be skills that you dont currently have.> o Skills I Possess <Skill Category 1> o <Skill 1> <Skill 2> <Skill 1> <Skill 2> <Skill 1> <Skill 2>

<Skill Category 2>

<Skill Category 3>

Skills I Possess but Must Develop, or Skills I Must Acquire (This information will be used below in the Planning Section) <Skill Category 1> <Skill 1> <Skill 2>

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<Skill Category 2> <Skill 1> <Skill 2> <Skill 1> <Skill 2>

<Skill Category 3>

Opportunity Prospecting: <Opportunities for training, assignments, new jobs, identifying a mentor, presenting, and teaching others are sometimes easy to find, and other times elusive. In this section, list the types of opportunities (e.g., training, assignments, etc.) that are of interest to you in developing your career. Determine if you will adopt a passive approach (e.g., letting opportunities come to you) or an active approach (e.g., seeking out opportunities using specific techniques) to prospect for opportunities.> Opportunities Id Like to Research or Explore <Opportunity1, and method of prospecting> <Opportunity2, and method of prospecting> <Opportunity3, and method of prospecting>

0.4. Planning Identifying Directions for your Career <Strategic directions to advance your career> Growth Areas in Current Position: <List areas of development (breadth and depth) that you can pursue while in your current position; growth items are typically skills that are improved or newly developed by your professional experiences. These growth areas are to improve your success in your current position and to prepare you for other positions. Information from the Preparation Section should be used in preparing the list of growth areas you want to pursue. > <Growth/Development1 (in current position)> < Growth/Development2 (in current position)> < Growth/Development3 (in current position)> Training: <List categories of needed training that are consistent with your definition of success and your skills gap; information from the Preparation Section should be used in preparing the list of potential training you will consider. You may choose to list general areas of training, or you may choose to list specific providers and courses/workshops.> o o <Training1> <Training2>

o o o

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Job Progression: <List jobs or roles, different from your current job, that provide you the opportunities to perform at your potential, and that will give you experiences consistent with your definition of success. This list of jobs is sequential: show a few job possibilities for the next job you would want to have, along with a list of the job possibilities for the following job. If you are ambitious in your planning, you might also want to include, for each job, a list of 1 or 2 of your key skills that this job would utilize along with 1 or 2 key skills that this job would help develop and improve.> o o <Job1 and why it is consistent with your view of success> <Job2 and why it is consistent with your view of success>

0.5. Actions Moving to Advance Your Career <A small set of actions over the next 6 to 12 months to develop your career. Review the list of items youve listed in the Planning section immediately above and select a small subset of those items which will be your focus. The key here is to have only a small number of actions youll want to select from the many options in the bullet list below to have no more than 3 actions. Your actions should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-Bound. > Training: <One or two classes you will take. > Networking: <Specific network activities in which you will participate; indicate how the chose activities can be beneficial to your career> Mentoring: <Specific actions you will take to develop a professional connection with a mentor; also, show any action you will take to become a mentor> Presenting/Publishing: <Sometimes career advancement involves developing a presence by speaking as an expert or publishing. List any specific activities in this area.> Special Roles or Assignments to pursue: <While retaining your current job responsibilities, you may elect to pursue and accept additional special assignment or leadership roles. List any special assignment you will pursue.> Work Experience: <List any work experience, for your current or a different employer, that you will pursue> Volunteer Experience: <Sometimes experience outside of the work environment can be exceptionally valuable for your career aspirations. This could be involvement in an organization related to your chosen profession, or it may be completely apart from your profession. List specific volunteer involvement that you will pursue.>

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