How Might Encouraging of Employees to Engage in Personal Development Planning Enhance the Workplace - Literature review Example

• Enhancing Workplace through Personal Development Planning

Personal development is a way for people to assess their skills and consider their set goals in order to meet their objectives. Personal development planning is, therefore, the idea of creating a plan based on the goals and objectives set for the purpose of self-improvement. When the employees engage in the personal development plan, they set goals and struggles to achieve them. The goals can be related to career, education, relationship or even personal development. When Personal Development Plans related to career are met, it also contributes to the development of the company. Nonetheless, it is not only achieving the career related goals that can have a contributing impact to the growth or development of an enterprise. Other personal development goals like education, relationship and personal development all contribute to the better performance of the company. This study explores how encouraging employees to engage in personal development planning enhance the workplace.

Everybody has the ambition to have a great career. Personal Development Plan is a three stage process which involves personal analysis, setting goals and creating personal objectives (Dziak 2016, n.p). Personal Development Plan is commonly used by students to outline their plans and ambitions for the future. However, it is also used by the adults as development is a continuous process(Icaew.com, 2011, p.1). It has benefits to both individual’s career and the company at large. Through personal assessment, the person evaluates his or her current state to see what areas he or she needs to improve and which previous goals he or she has achieved. At the setting goals stage, the person focuses on where he or she wants to be in the future. In the case of the workplace, the goal might be to secure promotion or mend communication issues within the organization. Personal development plans benefit the employee individually by enabling them to understand themselves better, develop a positive forward looking approach and skills such as reflection, strategic thinking, self-direction and self-evaluation (Bath.ac.uk 2016, n.p). It also enables them to be in a better position to make appropriate choices to meet their aspirations (Cottrell 2010, p.3). Besides, when PDP is combined with job crafting, it promotes a mindset of growth (Schoberova 2015, p.29). Hence, encouraging an individual to engage in Personal Development Planning will contribute to the growth of both the employee and the workplace.

Personal Development Plan also has benefits to one’s professional life (Cottrell 2010, p.3). As such, it can be used to enhance the workplaces. The development of a place of work is highly dependent on its employees. When the employees are performing well, the company has a greater chance of achieving its goals. It is therefore upon the management to motivate their employees to raise their performance so as to lift the performance of the company. As outline by Wilcock, Campion-Smith and Elston (2003, p. 76), Personal Development Plan (PDP) is connected to Practical Professional Development Plan (PPDP) hence developing PDP will help to improve PPDP. As a result, the practical performance of the employee, which has a direct impact on the performance of the Company, will also develop. As Olenski (2015, n.p) explains discussing and adding details to the employee development plan will increase the likelihood for a return-on-investment to the company.

Through self-assessment, an individual can identify the skills and experience they already have hence they are in a position to realize their real worth (Online Student Support Service 2014, n.p; Bath.ac.uk 2016, n.p). Encouraging employees to engage in personal Development Planning also encourage them to keep the record of their achievements (Bath.ac.uk 2016, n.p). Keeping the performance records can be helpful in making them recognize the skills and abilities that they have acquired while at the workplace (University of Leicester 2016, n.p). Knowing the skills and experience can enable them to recognize how these skills are transferable in a professional context. Furthermore, knowing the skills and experience the employee has acquired from the workplace will make them appreciate the role the workplace has played in their life hence pledge their loyalty to the company. Additionally, knowing the skills helps one to identify areas they need to improve and develop.

PDP helps the employees to lay strategy to achieve their career goals. By laying better strategies of achieving the career goals, the employee becomes the one in charge of his or her direction for development. Encouraging employees to engage in Personal Development Plan, therefore, helps to encourage them to take charge of their own direction of development (Lee-Davies & Bailey 2007,p.28). When an employee feels in control of what he or she is doing in the workplace, they tend to increase confidence in themselves, and thus, they become more productive (Bath.ac.uk 2016, n.p). They also develop confidence in the choices they make without worry of possibly making a mistake. Encouraging employees to engage in PDP will, therefore, increase their confidence and thus productivity

Moreover, when employees perceive Personal Development Plan as serving development purposes, they are likely to it to increase their performance (Beauseart et al. 2011a, p.5). Encouraging employees to engage on PDP will, therefore, enhance their production which will then translate to the performance of the company.

PDP also helps an individual to identify the activities that they should be undertaking (Olenski 2015, n.p). Identifying the right activity for the right employee will increase productivity for the company. Encouraging the employees to engage in Personal Development Plan, therefore, enhances workplace by increasing efficiency since by evaluating the Personal Development Plan, the firm will be able to match the right employee with the right job. Engaging in Personal Development Planning also helps an individual to identify and develop skills required for their current jobs (Online Student Support Service 2014, n.p). It can be used to work out what one wants to achieve and how to achieve it. These strategies can be shared with the management when they meet to discuss their future career goals, strength, and areas for improvement.

Encouraging employees to engage in Personal Development Plans makes them have a sense of life and make choices on the kind of work they want (Coaching Positive Performance 2014, n.p). Keeping a happy employee is more productive that keeping one who does not enjoy his or her job. Nonetheless, encouraging the employee to engage in Personal Development Planning will benefit the company as it will prepare the employee for work review or appraisal hence reducing the chances of employees opposing the review or assessment program (Chambers, Schwartz & Boath 2003 p. 91).

Apart from being happy and enjoying their job, employees also need to handle jobs that they are well qualified to and which they can manage effectively. Encouraging the workers to engage in Personal Development plant can, therefore, be helpful to the workplace as the results can be used for review and appraisal. When an employee creates the PDP, he or she develops objectives that help to create methods by which to proceed from his current position to the point of achieving his or her targets (Skillsyouneed.com 2016, n.p). They can also use the PDP to demonstrate their fitness for given jobs (Chambers, Schwartz & Boath 2003 p. 91). When the management considers PDP in their review, they can be able to identify the area of interest of the employee and thus make the necessary adjustments. PDP can also be used by the workers to demonstrate that they can manage stress which is the kind of people that most manufacturing and construction firms are looking for. PDP can also be used by the employee to demonstrate to the management that their plans fit that of the workplace.

Personal Development Plan helps the workers to develop in their profession as it helps them to develop confidence in theirs skills and qualities. Having confidence in their skills and quality puts the employee in a better position to discuss his or her skills with the employers. It also helps the worker to develop the positive attitude and creative thinking attitude necessary for solving problems associated with professional life. Personal Development Planning is also required to assist the employee understand work life and develop skills necessary for success in the workplace (Teaching and Learning Conference, Tang & Logonnathan 2015, p. 159).

Although it may not be easy to have the full cooperation of the employees to engage in Personal Development Planning, it has the potential to improve the performance of the workplace. Some scholars argue that the management may use PDP to victimize employees. However, the benefits of engaging in Personal Development Planning are more than the limitations. Engaging in Personal Development Planning helps individuals to gain self-awareness, acquire a sense of direction, improve focus and effectiveness and bring motivation among employees. It also helps them to develop professionally and give them the confidence to express themselves and what they believe in. Moreover, it helps one to identify the progress he or she has made, and to lay strategies to achieve the goals set as well as to demonstrate what they are capable of doing thus preparing them for appraisal. This study, therefore, believes that encouraging employees to engage in personal development planning can help in enhancing the workplace.