As a people manager, you want your team members to grow and thrive in their careers. But how can you motivate them to take charge of their own professional development, without micromanaging or neglecting their needs? Here are some tips to help you foster a culture of self-directed learning and career advancement among your team.
The first step to encourage your team members to take responsibility for their own career development is to set clear and realistic expectations for their performance, goals, and growth opportunities. Communicate with them regularly about what you expect from them, what they can expect from you, and how they can measure their progress and achievements. Provide them with constructive feedback, recognition, and support, and help them align their personal aspirations with the organizational vision and values.
In my experience having clear defined Job Descriptions with roles and responsibilities is a good basis for these conversations and then having a Growth mindset within your team and your leadership
Another way to inspire your team members to take ownership of their own career development is to empower them to make decisions that affect their work and learning. Give them some autonomy and flexibility to choose their projects, tasks, methods, and resources, as long as they meet the quality standards and deadlines. Encourage them to experiment, innovate, and learn from their mistakes, and celebrate their successes and contributions. By giving them more control and agency over their work, you can boost their confidence, creativity, and engagement.
As a people manager, you also have a role in providing your team members with the resources and opportunities they need to develop their skills and knowledge. This could include offering them access to training courses, mentoring programs, coaching sessions, online platforms, books, podcasts, or other learning materials. You could also help them find and pursue opportunities to expand their network, exposure, and experience, such as attending events, conferences, webinars, workshops, or joining communities of practice. However, don't impose or prescribe these resources and opportunities to them; instead, let them choose what suits their interests, needs, and goals.
One of the most important aspects of career development is reflection and planning. You can help your team members to take responsibility for their own career development by encouraging them to reflect on their strengths, weaknesses, achievements, challenges, feedback, and aspirations on a regular basis. You can also assist them to create and update their personal development plans, where they can set their short-term and long-term goals, identify their learning gaps and needs, and outline their action steps and strategies. By reflecting and planning, your team members can gain more clarity, direction, and motivation for their career development.
Finally, you can foster a culture of self-directed career development among your team members by supporting them to balance their workload and wellbeing. Career development can be exciting and rewarding, but it can also be stressful and demanding. You can help your team members to manage their time, energy, and priorities effectively, and avoid burnout, frustration, or boredom. You can also promote a healthy and positive work environment, where your team members feel valued, respected, and appreciated. By supporting their wellbeing, you can enhance their productivity, performance, and satisfaction.
If you want anyone to take responsibility for anything, they need to know what's in it for them. What is motivating will differ by person so helping them to understand what they want and then how taking responsibility for their own plan will help them get there.