A 360 action guide for Careers

When we talk about careers, the context is often about 'organised careers'. You are part of an organisation, and some basic tenets apply.

• There is more or less a defined path to move up and around, however opaque or ill defined
• There is a process, including some form of assessments, and there are organisational control and checks, or rules
• There is a socio political process to manage (where decision maker personalities matter) and that can often define careers

There is an expectation that each employee and manager will understand, appreciate and foster these and abide by the 'system'.

In the context of modern organisations however, these systems and boundaries are fading and the onus is on the individual to be able to manage their careers. Many organisations still prefer to play by the old rules and control the 'career management process'.

Increasingly though, organisations are looking to design career processes that puts the employee and the manager (coach) at the center of the process.

So how does one get educated about managing a large part of one's life, the career? This aspect not only helps pay the bills but satisfies other deeper human needs like engagement, meaning and recognition, if managed well.

We worked with over 5000+ professional over the last 12 years on their development journeys in one way or another. Professionals ranged from young graduates to managers and leaders in their mid forties. This helped us get a better understanding of the issues that individuals are dealing with in navigating their careers.

More and more individuals are becoming aware that they need to take proactive action in leading their career management. Many are working on a plan and taking action as well. However, there is a still a degree of confusion, challenge and lack of guidance around how to go about managing one's career on an ongoing basis, especially when one feels 'stuck'. We see this more in early managers and middle managers--mostly folks between 27 and 40 years of age.

One of the key aspects we discovered is that there is an overemphasis by individuals on some factors that impact career development and growth at the cost of other factors, almost universally. The encouragement therefore is to attempt a comprehensive 360 view to "working on one's own career".

The 7 factor 360 career model can be used for personal assessment by professionals as well as for coaching and mentoring. Here, a short summary is provided as a starting point for self- reflection. A couple of questions which can help assess and reflect on each of the factors is provided, to start working.

Let's address the 7 factors individually. Two of these factors Learning Agility and Patterns Making cut across all the other apart from being independent factors by themselves.

1. Factor 1: Opportunities. We are often narrow in our assessment of career opportunities available to us. We look at our past experience and skill set and assume that we may be suited to certain kinds of roles and jobs. In the current work context, there are so many roles and opportunities where there is no direct fit anyway. Adjacency of skills and the right attitude can often be the key factors, and a person could well be found a fit. The other aspect is often to try and build new skills and almost undervalue the skills we may already have. Two key set of questions emerge for all of us to think through: --Have I explored 'all' potential opportunities that may be available to me because I have something unique that not many others may have? Is my mindset about what I have or about what I don't have in terms of capability and skills?--Have I explored 'adjacent' kind of roles? e.g. if I am a coder and have logical thinking skills, where else could these fit in. Am I only searching for 'coding jobs' or thinking about a skill set that can apply to a wide range of jobs? e.g. would a analyst role be suitable for me? Would a trader role work for me? I take these examples because people have made these switches.
2. Factor 2: Skills. This is pretty evident. But this is more about a realistic assessment of one's skills. Research tells us that almost all of us tend to overestimate our capabilities and skills. It is also important to be clear that skill is not about knowledge. I may know something but do I have the skill/s to actually apply the knowledge. Skill also has other elements beyond knowledge--for instance, about practice, an understanding of how to apply a set of skills in different contexts and whether there is a good balance between a set of skills one has which can be used together. Here are a couple of questions to think about:--Am in investing enough in my strengths from a skills perspective? Getting outstandingly good at one or two skills that are natural to me and I have honed them over time.--Do I understand how I can leverage a bundle of skills? e.g. I know Canva as a design tool and have solid skills in that area but if I have teaching and training skills it opens up many more role and career options by bundling them.
3. Factor 3: Competition. For any given role or opportunity, we often take a 1-1 approach, i.e, I and the opportunity. Consider a broader approach where many others may be equally interested and qualified for the same role/ opportunity. The strategy and approach to gunning for any opportunity within or outside the organisation requires a process of thinking through all the 7 factors in this model. Having said that, competition is a factor which most people do not think through enough. Ask yourselves these three questions to start:--who else will the decision maker consider for this opportunity?--what do the competition bring to the table which I do not?--what do I bring to the table which the competition may not?
4. Factor 4: Time and Energy. We all have different levels of time and energy to devote to careers. It is important to reflect on a broader set of life goals and priorities before (over)focussing on careers. For exampIe, one may have a family situation which requires time, emotional energy and effort on an ongoing basis, so career choices have to be made accordingly. While careers are important, we must be clear where to peg it among our life's priorities. Let me take two examples here from among people I have coached:--a senior(ish) sales person with a steady job in a mid level town has chosen to not apply for higher level roles as they would take him away from his broader friends and family circle, and more importantly will not allow him to save as much for his future. Interestingly though, he created a plan for developing his skills so that he is one of the best in his profession around town.--a young lady who landed a decent job in a bank after a good MBA, but had interests in music and theatre decided to work for a smaller local finance company in a location where she had access to the best theatre resources. She was clear that what kept her going on with her job was the energy feed she was getting from getting involved in theatre. She continues with spending her evening and weekends working with her theatre group, and has a decent career in banking as well, but not top of the line.
5. Factor 5: Network and Community. Very few professionals do a real mapping of their networks and communities in a systematic way. Most often who we end up meeting is a little unplanned and more by chance than choice. There is some value in that as well. There is a larger aspect of network and communities. Engaging with, managing and leveraging what we already have. Since life is not a one way street, it is also bout adding value to one's network an community over time. Leveraging communities has to be a long term investment with an approach which is almost like a leap of faith. Believing that being part of selected networks, contributing and adding to them, will pay off in some way or the other. This belief is also therefore built on a platform of not expecting anything in return when contributing to a community. Sounds a bit philosophical? So here are two questions to start with on a practical note.--Have I got a list of my first level and 2nd level network (people the first level connections are connected to)? do I know what they do, and how they may be able to help me if at all? What is my method of staying in touch with this network and getting to know a bit more about them? --Do I know how to ask for help or support? It may be very different with some one I know really well, with someone I have not been in touch for 10 years, my ex-colleague and so on. Most professionals are not good at asking for help. The core issue is that when things are going well, most folks think they will never require help. So there is no thought to this aspect.
6. Factor 6: Learning Agility. This is a factor that cuts across the other five mentioned so far. In each of the five areas, there needs to be the agility to learn and take things forward. Here are 5 questions which can aid learning agility in the context of the five areas/factors mentioned above:--Do I have a process of combing for new opportunities continuously? (weekly, monthly etc.)--What else would a competitor do in my situation? (visualize someone who is vying for the same or similar role/job)--How can I increase my energy (keeping time commitment the same) towards my career pursuits? (Tip--laser sharp focus on very few things)--Which specific skill have I assessed myself on through real feedback in the last quarter? (self assessment does not qualify as real feedback)--what specifically have a I contributed to someone in my network in the last few weeks?
7. Factor 7: Pattern Making. This one cuts across all the other factors and is a bit difficult to explain. This is a bit in our minds and at best can be described as a orientation of attitude to furthering one's career. Think of it like a juggler who is playing with 7 balls. First, they have to be in the air all the time. Second, one needs to keep adjusting some aspects all the time, and with deep focus, just to keep the balls in the air. And finally, in order to keep the audience engaged, there have to be some changes and newness almost every few seconds or minutes else the audience gets bored. Similarly, the relevant takers buyers for us in the employment and career market can get bored, if we are not keeping up in terms of our skills, and bringing something new to the table on an ongoing basis. So wishing everyone some juggling magic and successful career outcomes !!

***Bimal Rath is a leadership development and talent management consultant. He is an author of two books on coaching and runs https://thinktalent.co/