Whether you are launching your career after college or entering a new industry, creating a career development roadmap is essential for progress and staying on track. A career development plan helps you set professional expectations, identify the skills you need to succeed and map out a strategy to reach your goals. Ahead, we discuss what a career development plan is and how you can create one in five simple steps.

What Is a Career Development Plan?

A career development plan, also called an individual development plan, is a guide that outlines the steps you can take to reach your career goals. It also helps you map out your aspirations for the future. It is a self-assessment, so there is no one-size-fits-all approach to creating a career development plan. In a career development plan, it is also important to pinpoint your skill gaps to see how you can strengthen certain areas, including transferable skills (skills that carry across roles and industries). In addition, it can help you indicate what competencies your employer (or future employer) may be looking for.

Your plan should include actionable steps with short- and long-term benchmarks and completion dates. That way, you will have a clear understanding of the actions you need to complete, when to have them done and a way to track your progress.

Creating a Career Development Plan in Five Steps

An effective career development plan can be crafted in five steps and can be done in spreadsheet or slide format. These adaptable formats can be easily updated as you progress in your career. To help you on your way, we have detailed each step of the process below.

1. Think About Your Current Position and Research Your Ideal One

Before you make your career development plan, you should reflect on your current position and what you like and dislike about it. It is also important to look into any desired future roles to get a general idea of the day-to-day tasks and how you can fill in any skill gaps. You should also consider any additional tasks you have taken on in your current position that can help you in your next role. 

Another option is scheduling time to speak with someone who is currently in your desired position about their career journey. Find out what they did to upskill and how they are moving forward in their career. Or, you may want to shadow someone in a desired role to see if that position is one you would like to take on at a later date. 

Doing so in advance will make it easier for you to identify next steps and get you closer to your ultimate goal.

2. Identify Your Career End Goal

After you consider your current position, and where you may want to go next, you can use that information to set a long-term goal(s). Start by brainstorming what you want to achieve in the next few years. For example, if you want to become the vice president of a department at a company, you should add that to your plan as a long-term goal. If thinking ahead that far in advance seems a little overwhelming, you can start by charting out the next six months to a year. 

You can even consider an informal or formal mentorship with a person in a more senior role to develop your short- and long-term goals. Also keep in mind, your long-term goals may change as you make headway in your career, so make sure to provide room in your plan for those adjustments.

3. Consider Your Key Areas of Improvement

To create the steps necessary to reach your goal, research the proficiencies and actions needed to get you there. Start by reviewing the skills required for comparable positions you may want to have in the future, and consider how you can best develop and familiarize yourself with those skills. It may take months or a few years to fine-tune certain skills, so make sure to adjust your development plan accordingly. 

After gathering information about required skills, reflect on current strengths and weaknesses and identify gaps in your knowledge. Having a solid understanding of your weaknesses will help you build a plan that includes professional development, such as certifications and training programs, to close those gaps. 

Other areas of development may include updating or enhancing your resume, strengthening your interviewing skills and getting acquainted with more technology. If you actively work to overcome your shortcomings, you will be better equipped to handle new challenges as you progress. 

4. Create a Strategy to Achieve Your Goals

After researching and collecting information about the steps needed to reach a goal, it is time to craft a plan. There are several approaches you can use to create goals for a professional development plan. One of the best ways to create realistic goals is by using the SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound) goal template. The template guides you through the creation of thoughtful goals that meet the requirements of each letter of the acronym.

Another method you can use is writing an action plan. This type of plan requires you to set a series of smaller, task-oriented goals related to gaining or improving the skills you need to achieve the goal. For each step, you should include dates that serve as benchmarks along the path toward accomplishing each of your goals. Creating a series of measurable smaller tasks will go a long way toward helping you achieve your career goals.

5. Check Your Progress

It is a good idea to review the status of your career development plan. It is an opportunity to ensure accountability for yourself and remain focused on your goals. Doing frequent evaluations of your goals offers you the chance to adjust the plan if your circumstances change. If you do not hit a goal on time, do not worry. Stop to reevaluate to see how you can reset and return to your plan.

The timing of these reviews can be weekly or monthly, depending on your preference or work style. You may want to consider reviewing the status of your goals with your mentor or a career advisor to hold yourself more accountable. In addition, your manager is a great person to check in with about your career development plan as they can help you add more goals and stay on target.

To learn more about career development and other helpful topics, follow philanthropist and entrepreneur Robert F. Smith on LinkedIn.