It’s that goal-setting time of the year again, and ‘advance my career’ is at the top of the New Year’s resolution list for many. When looking at the role of Learning & Development (L&D), the department’s core responsibility is to help employees find purpose in their work.
A recent study by Gartner revealed that only 29% of employees agree that L&D provides relevant learning solutions. Similarly, 64% of employees say it’s not easy to find learning content when and where they need it.
Nowadays, we are accustomed to having answers at our fingertips. We can ask Alexa, google or use Siri to find the answer to all our questions. Employees are looking for a similar experience in their career development. That’s why (and many more reasons we’ll unpack in a bit) leveraging technology can help drive a more effective career pathing strategy in your financial institution.
What is Career Pathing, and Why Does it Matter?
Effective career pathing empowers your employees to envision and create their own path for career development. Career paths may include both vertical and lateral opportunities. While the employee should own their own career path, your financial institution can provide guidance and steps to follow for an in-depth evaluation of their career goals, experiences, personal characteristics/preferences and the skills they need to attain their career aspirations.
Before you lose your top talent, you need to understand why employees seek new employment opportunities. Career paths could be the reason why an employee stays or seeks employment elsewhere. Deloitte’s 2020 Talent Report indicates the number one reason employees leave their job is due to the lack of career progress.
1. 2020 Talent Report, Deloitte University Press
There are many powerful technologies available that can help empower your employees to own their career path. OnCourse Learning has incorporated a Library module within their LMS to do just that. Employees have access to a database of courses that they can explore, search and use in their development plans.
A New Year for Career Pathing
We all know the current pandemic has brought change at a pace we struggle to keep up with. Out of this pandemic has come the exponential adoption and need for technology. Harvard Business Review makes the case that, “There’s nothing like a crisis to ignite innovation. … (and) the current pandemic has already led to countless innovations.”
Learning and Development is no different. Trainers & HR Professionals have found they need to engage their students with technology as face-to-face or printed course catalogs just aren’t an option. These challenges have planted the seeds for flexibility and innovation. We need to think differently.
L&D’s core responsibility is to help employees find their purpose in their work. When you find a perfect fit career, it’s connecting an employee to a role where what they love and what they are good at intersects. When you make that connection for an employee, they form loyalty to not only the organization but also you and the L&D department.
New Year Resolutions Are Goal Oriented – So Should Career Pathing
Making a New Year resolution is a way for us to look forward with optimism and a fresh start. It’s a statement of how we want the new year to be better and how we are going to accomplish that. The problem comes when a resolution is too generic and impossible to measure. The same is with career pathing – generic goals are harder to measure.
Start with a self-assessment. Managers and the employee meet to brainstorm and explore what they are knowledgeable about, what their natural skills are and where are they interested in learning more. This can be done individually by the employee and then discussed together with their manager. Use this as a chance to also identify possible skills gaps that need to be addressed.
When looking at an employee’s career path, set firm, measurable goals that you can track and achieve. Some of these goals might sound like:
- Complete [X] professional development courses by June 1
- Prepare for a management role by completing the ‘Leadership in Management’ series by March 31
- Mentor a mortgage loan officer to learn more about their role and make a list of what you liked and didn’t like about the role
Learning & Development’s Role in Career Pathing
Org Charts
Ensure you keep your organization chart updated. An organization chart is a visual diagram showing the hierarchy and relationships of job positions within your financial institution. It should be aligned with your business plan – ensuring the right positions are in place or planned for to support meeting your company goals. Giving visibility to organization structure also provides employees visibility to where they want to go within your institution as part of their career pathing goals.
Skills Roadmaps
Once you have an organization chart, you can begin creating a roadmap for each skills track. This can be defined by department, team or function. It should answer the question, “How does an entry-level employee advance through roles?” This doesn’t mean that there can only be one path that connects or advances each role. But rather provide insight into what it would take for an employee to change roles so they can better understand what needs to be included in their career path plan.
Training and Development Programs
Start by clearly understanding the training you currently have available. If you partner with a training provider such as OnCourse Learning, schedule time to connect with your account representative to discuss further. Can your employees meet their career pathing goals with the programs you currently have in place?
Having a robust training program can empower all employees to not only learn the compliance skills needed when working within a bank or credit union, but also the soft skills they need when working on a team or communicating with peers.
Ensure your staff has the compliance and professional training they need in order to meet their personal and professional goals.
LEARN HOW
What is Career Pathing, and Why Does it Matter?
Effective career pathing empowers your employees to envision and create their own path for career development. Career paths may include both vertical and lateral opportunities. While the employee should own their own career path, your financial institution can provide guidance and steps to follow for an in-depth evaluation of their career goals, experiences, personal characteristics/preferences and the skills they need to attain their career aspirations.
Before you lose your top talent, you need to understand why employees seek new employment opportunities. Career paths could be the reason why an employee stays or seeks employment elsewhere. Deloitte’s 2020 Talent Report indicates the number one reason employees leave their job is due to the lack of career progress.
1. 2020 Talent Report, Deloitte University Press
There are many powerful technologies available that can help empower your employees to own their career path. OnCourse Learning has incorporated a Library module within their LMS to do just that. Employees have access to a database of courses that they can explore, search and use in their development plans.
A New Year for Career Pathing
We all know the current pandemic has brought change at a pace we struggle to keep up with. Out of this pandemic has come the exponential adoption and need for technology. Harvard Business Review makes the case that, “There’s nothing like a crisis to ignite innovation. … (and) the current pandemic has already led to countless innovations.”
Learning and Development is no different. Trainers & HR Professionals have found they need to engage their students with technology as face-to-face or printed course catalogs just aren’t an option. These challenges have planted the seeds for flexibility and innovation. We need to think differently.
L&D’s core responsibility is to help employees find their purpose in their work. When you find a perfect fit career, it’s connecting an employee to a role where what they love and what they are good at intersects. When you make that connection for an employee, they form loyalty to not only the organization but also you and the L&D department.
New Year Resolutions Are Goal Oriented – So Should Career Pathing
Making a New Year resolution is a way for us to look forward with optimism and a fresh start. It’s a statement of how we want the new year to be better and how we are going to accomplish that. The problem comes when a resolution is too generic and impossible to measure. The same is with career pathing – generic goals are harder to measure.
Start with a self-assessment. Managers and the employee meet to brainstorm and explore what they are knowledgeable about, what their natural skills are and where are they interested in learning more. This can be done individually by the employee and then discussed together with their manager. Use this as a chance to also identify possible skills gaps that need to be addressed.
When looking at an employee’s career path, set firm, measurable goals that you can track and achieve. Some of these goals might sound like:
- Complete [X] professional development courses by June 1
- Prepare for a management role by completing the ‘Leadership in Management’ series by March 31
- Mentor a mortgage loan officer to learn more about their role and make a list of what you liked and didn’t like about the role
Learning & Development’s Role in Career Pathing
Org Charts
Ensure you keep your organization chart updated. An organization chart is a visual diagram showing the hierarchy and relationships of job positions within your financial institution. It should be aligned with your business plan – ensuring the right positions are in place or planned for to support meeting your company goals. Giving visibility to organization structure also provides employees visibility to where they want to go within your institution as part of their career pathing goals.
Skills Roadmaps
Once you have an organization chart, you can begin creating a roadmap for each skills track. This can be defined by department, team or function. It should answer the question, “How does an entry-level employee advance through roles?” This doesn’t mean that there can only be one path that connects or advances each role. But rather provide insight into what it would take for an employee to change roles so they can better understand what needs to be included in their career path plan.
Training and Development Programs
Start by clearly understanding the training you currently have available. If you partner with a training provider such as OnCourse Learning, schedule time to connect with your account representative to discuss further. Can your employees meet their career pathing goals with the programs you currently have in place?
Having a robust training program can empower all employees to not only learn the compliance skills needed when working within a bank or credit union, but also the soft skills they need when working on a team or communicating with peers.
5 Tips and Reminders for Career Pathing
Career Paths Are Dynamic: Once you create a career plan with an employee ensure to take time to revisit the plan. Employee interests change over time. Staying flexible will allow your program to evolve and provide the opportunity to pivot if needed.
Consider a Training Needs & Risk Assessment: One key factor in having a successful career pathing strategy within your institution is to ensure you have the proper training available to support staff growth. By taking a Training Needs & Risk Assessment you’ll be able to identify any gaps you may have in your current training programs as well as put together a plan on how to close those gaps.
Effective Career Paths Can Improve Recruiting: Once you’ve outlined possible career paths within your institution, you can bring those into job interviews. New hires (especially in management) may have already put thought into where they want to take their career. Knowing this can help hiring managers make better hiring decisions.
Make Career Conversations Part of Your Culture: Career pathing can be part of your culture beginning with onboarding and through the employment lifecycle. When a manager is empowered to have development conversations in their regular check-ins, employees are encouraged to seek the training they need to not only do their job better, but further their education.
Include All Roles – From the Frontline to the Boardroom: While not all employees want to become managers someday, they may not want to stay in their current role for the lifespan of their employment at your institution. Ensure that those are happy in their current roles know that they also have options to grow and learn new skills.
Whether you are a “career pathing pro” or you are looking to implement this type of strategy for the first time in your institution, remember your role as a Learning & Development professional. Career pathing strategies are all about helping employees find their perfect career fit. Employees in the right positions form loyalty and outperform others.
Training Needs and Risk Assessment
Financial services are one of the highest regulated sectors. With the turbulence of the current pandemic, rapidly changing regulations and the acceleration of digital transformation, employees must complete new tasks at high speed while ensuring compliance and excellent customer service.
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