GEC ELEC11: Personality Development for Workplace Success

Lesson 2: Personal Development in the Work Place

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of this week, the student is expected to:

a. Improve personal development skills and qualities
b. Understand how can employers support personal development
c. Understand the importance of personal development in the workplace
d. Create a professional development plan in the it industry

TOPIC OUTLINE
a. Personal Development Skills and Qualities
b. Personal Development in the Workplace
c. Professional Development Plan in the IT Industry

Personal Development in the Work Place

Personal development is the continuous act of assessing your life values and goals and building your
qualities and skills to reach your potential. Employees consider it imperative to their job and future, while
employers cite personal development as a way to advance company abilities.

But what’s the importance of personal development in the workplace? And if it’s that important, what can
you do to improve your personal development, and how can employers support personal development?
Here’s an article to guide you on why personal development is important and its impact on your
professional growth.

Improve Your Personal Development Skills and Qualities

Here are some of the ways to improve your development skills and qualities as an employee.

1. Seek for Opportunities to Job Shadow Other Employees in Your Company

Consider observing other employees in your company as they perform their duties. This can give you
a holistic view of the goals and mission of your company, allowing you to understand your value and
role in the company better. Try identifying the qualities you like or admire and replicate those qualities
in you.

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2. Ask for Feedback
Approach a colleague, manager, or friend and ask them to give you feedback on your
accomplishments and project. While this may help you improve your workplace relationships, it can
also help you identify your strengths and weaknesses. Consider using your strengths to work around
your weaknesses.

3. Create Growth Plans

Consider creating your growth plans to give you a clear sense of direction. For example, figure out
how long you plan to stay in one position and develop strategies to keep broadening your experience.
Moving to a new position can reignite your motivation and can be a chance to help you earn a better
salary.

4. Overcome Your Fears

Fear can prevent you from progressing and growing. If you are afraid of doing something, consider
taking a class to improve that skill. For example, if you fear speaking in public, grab opportunities that
can put you in a position that requires you to speak or take a class in communication. Learn new
things and grow your abilities by practicing. If you have a talent, consider showcasing it, for it might
help differentiate you from other colleagues, allowing you to grow professionally.

5. Keep Learning
Be sure to keep learning by pursuing further education. For example, you can seek a master’s degree
in your related field, equipping you with more skills to benefit your professional growth and employer.

How Employers Support Personal Development

It is in your best interest to support personal development as an employer. When employees feel that
they are working towards their professional goals and have a clear sense of direction, they get motivated
to work, which ultimately improves the company’s bottom line. You can support personal development
by:

• Encouraging managers to coach and mentor employees

• Build trust by encouraging good workplace relationships and being honest with your employees
• Incorporate a culture of continuous knowledge and skill development
• Encourage employees to have growth plans that can steer them towards career development.
• Reward employees who work on developing themselves. For example, if an employee pursues a
master’s degree, consider giving them a higher role or increasing their salaries.

What’s the Importance of Personal Development in the Workplace?

Here are some of the benefits of personal development to both the employer and the employee:

It Helps Boost Your Motivation

Personal development helps you become aware of your weaknesses, strengths, and abilities. As you
understand your negative and positive attitudes and how they affect others, you get to learn how to act

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more productively and differently, improving your workplace relationships. Having a good workplace can
motivate you to work within your team, improving productivity.

Promotes a Dynamic Team

No matter the size of the organization you work for or your position, we all want to be part of a dynamic
and engaging team. Personal development is the key to having a passionate team since everyone has
the motivation to work and grow professionally. It fosters innovation, growth, and creativity.

It Helps You Advance Your Skills and Talents

Skills are the learned abilities to perform a specific job within a given time. On the other hand, talent is a
natural skill or aptitude. Personal development can help you work on both your skills and talents. When
you begin recognizing your strengths and weaknesses, it becomes easier to build the skills that need
improving, and it’s also a chance to work on your talents to help you stand out among other colleagues
and employees.

You become a dynamic and valuable employee through personal development, improving your chances
of growing professionally. It can help you gain a promotion faster and may also help you have a clear
plan of where you’re going, both personally and professionally.

Professional Development Plan in the IT Industry

If you’re an aspiring IT professional on the hunt for that ideal job, promotion, or looking to gain real-world
skills, you must invest in yourself to become an expert. The IT industry is an exciting industry with
constantly evolving opportunities. According to The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, computer and
information technology employment is projected to grow 13 percent from 2020 to 2030 and are expected
to add about 667,600 new jobs. To expose yourself to them and make your career goals a reality,
professional development is crucial.

What is Information Technology Professional Development?

The University of California, San Francisco defines professional development as the process of
identifying goals and learning new skills that aid in growth and success at work. Ideally, this would mean
improving your tech skills and acquiring essential knowledge that’ll help you succeed in a particular tech
role. It also increases the likelihood of getting considered for promotions or streamlining the process in
changing your career.

A successful IT career requires ongoing professional development for vital reasons

1) Tech is constantly evolving; you’ll get left behind in your career if you don’t proactively learn more
than what you’re comfortable with, and
2) People that constantly learn and display their learning are able to show managers or leadership
in their organization that they can provide surprising value in their role. Promotion, anyone?

A staggering 76% of millennials believe that opportunities provided by professional development are one
of the most important aspects of company culture. They make you feel confident in your abilities and the

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value you provide to the workplace. That said, professional development should be a consistent practice
that you apply to yourself throughout your career.

Essential IT skills for professional development for aspiring IT?

Careers in IT are fun, rewarding, and lucrative if you have the essential skills to help you grow and develop.

Coding
The ability to code is a core skill that an aspiring IT applicant or professional should know. These skills
also apply to IT areas that don’t need coding. At the very least, you should have a working knowledge of
the more basic coding languages like HTML, JavaScript, Python, and C++.

Communication
As an aspiring IT person, there will be times when you’ll have to provide tech solutions to non-techies,
head a project group, show leadership, or pitch ideas to people. So, communication skills such as
teamwork, leadership, and collaboration are vital.

Time and Project Management

To be an effective IT professional, you have to be self-directed and self-motivated to manage projects
well. You also have to be goal-oriented and have the skills to manage remote work and meet deadlines.

Examples of personal development workshops?

Special Education Institutions
These institutions offer programs, conferences, and courses that help you learn more about specific
topics relating to IT. Fortunately, most special institutions issue certification or degree after completing
a course to prove that you have knowledge of the field and can perform the process. CompTIA and
Coursera are some of the websites that you can consider looking into.

Professional Associations
Sign up as a member in both local and national associations. Being a member of a professional
association or club helps you network with like-minded individuals and build your professional circle.
Growing your professional network increases your opportunities to advance within your career. The Los
Angeles .NET Developers Group for example, is an excellent forum for people in the Los Angeles area
and the west coast.

Webinars
Attend IT webinars that talk about the latest trends or issues in the IT industry. This way, you grow your
knowledge and stay current and relevant. For example, if you’re looking to become a badass web
developer, look for webinars or spaces that tackle those. Webinars are also internet-based, so you can
attend remotely. You can head over to LinkedIn and check out virtual conferences posted by tech leaders
or you can go to websites like IBM to access various videos on the topic.

What to expect in a tech career?

IT is an industry that continues to grow, so, there are always new opportunities and jobs in the field. With
this vast array of potential in the tech field, you can accept a career that’s value-oriented and growth-

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oriented. In this field, you’ll also allow the freedom to gain more experience, innovate and develop yourself
professionally and personally. Above all, expect a career that pays well.

Professional Development Plan for Aspiring IT

A professional development plan is a list of actionable steps for achieving your IT career goals. It helps
you gain specific insight into how you can reach your career aspirations, such as earning a new
certification or getting a new job. Drafting a development plan is especially helpful during an IT job
search. It allows you to understand how you want to navigate the search and interview process.

Now, there are four basic steps to create an IT professional development plan:
1. Self-Assessment
This is an evaluation of your professional interests, knowledge, and skills. It helps to examine
your current position in line with your IT career goals and identify your transferable and technical
skills. You can do this by reading job descriptions of roles and positions that you’re interested in
to identify what current skills you need to develop. When you determine the skills and interests
you currently own and are proficient in, you can identify aspects of your career that you need to
work on to achieve your goals.

2. Goals
Professional developmental goals are action-based professional results that stretches us to
achieve our career vision. They are often related to learning new skills, obtaining new degrees or
certifications, getting more experience in IT, moving up in your workplace to advance your tech
career. It also helps you stay focused on improving your tech career and increasing your
competencies and capabilities in the workplace.

The goals you set in your professional development plan should be actionable and must be
structured so you can achieve them with small and simple steps. They must also be dependent
on your unique aspirations in the IT field. Some basic examples of development goals for IT
Professionals that you can set include:

• Improve your time management skills and productivity in the workplace.

• Get a new certification or degree in tech.
• Build your professional network by attending more tech networking events and taking on
new IT projects
• Read a certain number of Tech books in a month to grow your knowledge.
• Complete a leadership training course.
• Attend tech workshop
• Choose one tech skill to improve and focus on that for a month.

3. Strategies
Your IT professional development plan strategies or options should define how you’ll achieve your
goals. Usually, professional development strategies include approaches like practical learning,
learning from others, education, and reflection.

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 For an aspiring IT professional, the majority of your strategies should be practical. It should give
you valuable hands-on experience when developing new skills. For example, if your skill goal is
intended for a career change, research the relevant education or certification you need and how
long you’ll need to complete it. If you need to get better with a particular skill– say web design,
you could enter into hackathons or take on projects that can improve your skills.

4. Resources
Resources are also professional development workshops. They’re places where you can find
professional growth by providing networking and opportunities that serve as a medium to
enhance your career path.

In essence, your professional development must be skill, knowledge and learning oriented. It
should also be directly aligned with your individual and career goals and should provide career
growth opportunities.

REFERENCES

1. Keith Willis. (January 5, 2022). Importance of Personal Development in the Work Place and Its
Positive Impact on the Professional Growth.
https://coremanagementtraining.com/2022/01/05/importance-of-personal-development-in-the-
work-place-and-its-positive-impact-on-the-professional-growth/
2. 11 Recruiting. (n.d.). How to Make a Professional Development Plan in the IT Industry.
https://elevenrecruiting.com/how-to-make-professional-development-plan-in-it
3. Maryn Liles. (Sep 29, 2022). Two Truths and a Lie!.
https://parade.com/1185071/marynliles/two-truths-and-a-lie-ideas/

Prepared by:

PATRICK V. MOLE, MIT

Faculty, College Information
and Technology Education

July 2023

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