According to People Management Magazine, 2 in 5 employees were planning to leave their jobs due to a lack of career progression opportunities.

Additional research shows that career conversations can hold tremendous value for career development practices and benefit both the organisation and the employee.

Even though the research supports the need for career development, many organisations are under-utilising these programs and are instead placing the responsibility of career progression solely upon the employee’s shoulders creating an immense amount of stress in the workplace.

While there aren’t nearly enough managers who are committed to engaging in career progression activities that benefit their employees, research does show that organisations want their managers to support these programs but don’t provide the necessary training to prepare them to do so.

Why are career development programs important?

It’s no secret that careers are an important priority for people and if they’re not getting what they want out of their roles, they will seek out other opportunities. In fact, it’s estimated that 30% of employees are searching for new roles at any given time in the UK which translates to 9.8 million people who are actively looking for new roles.

Career development programs are key to reducing these figures as employees are always on the search for ways to improve their skills to better themselves and climb up the corporate ladder. They can also gain valuable insights into their strengths and areas for improvement which only benefits their ability to progress in their careers and make the most of any future opportunities that may arise.

Benefits of career development programs for employees

When it comes to career development programs, there are benefits for both the employee and the organisation. Making career development programs a part of an organisation’s strategy can give employees the opportunity to gain critical knowledge and develop vital skills that will aid them in making a bigger impact on the organisation which ends up contributing to an organisation’s overall strategy.

Here’s how career development programs can benefit your employees:

Guidance to develop strong careers

Having a leader or mentor that can impart knowledge and wisdom can have a profound impact on an employee’s career. It gives them a clear blueprint of where they need to go and how they’re going to get there.

They have the ability to learn about their aspirations and objectives to better understand where their strengths lie and how they can maximise these strengths to shape a better future in their career.

More often than not employees fail to make an impact or rise through the corporate ranks because they don’t have a clear path or someone to guide them to the top. Career development programs can change this as they give employees all the tools needed for a successful career.

Important performance feedback

According to Forbes, 87% of employees want career development opportunities but only a third actually report receiving the feedback they need to improve.

This creates a compelling argument for businesses that are lacking the motivation to provide regular feedback to employees. While traditional annual performance reviews may not be the right approach for a modern workforce, organisations need to update their processes when providing feedback and take a more active role in offering insights into areas of improvement.

Today, there are many organisations that have shifted to providing ongoing feedback—while some highly engaged employees receive feedback each week— helping employees that get the insights they need to succeed.

Job enrichment and satisfaction

Career development programs often clarify the goals that both organisations and employees need to achieve in order to attain a common goal. Employees are often frustrated when they don’t see a clear path to how their roles contribute to the big picture.

With career development, they have a more clear idea about what’s expected of them and having this clarity can help them become more empowered, enriched, and satisfied with their roles.

There’s a significant amount of research which reveals that employees who are satisfied with their jobs work well and stay much longer in their companies giving them a certain level of job stability and security.

Final thoughts on career development programs from Kinhub

Careers are an important piece of the human puzzle and being able to understand how employees can develop their skills to fit into the overall corporate strategy is crucial.

While taking an active interest in employee development via development programs can be a great way to start this journey, employers need to ensure that these programs are giving employees genuine opportunities to rise to the top.

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