“Reinventing” career development

This paper is concerned with reinventing career development. During the long period of economic growth following World War II, career development was equated with promotion (primarily into management) and salary increases (usually double-digit). Since the 1980s, however, flatter organizations and low economic growth have wreaked havoc with career ladders and downsizing and restructuring in hundreds of major companies have significantly altered traditional career development processes. The author suggests that people are more fulfilled and productive when they are doing work that they both enjoy and feel that they do well. It is also explained that most employees reporting high job satisfaction also reported high satisfaction with: job-fit; life-long learning; self-management; and joint planning and education. The job-fit question is the most important and the least understood element of career development. Providing managers and employees new insights and skills for determining job fit and developing motivated abilities to meet business needs is the cornerstone of reinventing career development. Many career development programs and processes fail to do this in a substantive way. The author also discusses how recognizing motivational patterns can contribute to reinvent career development