Here's how to create a personal development plan for your employees

Creating a personal development plan (PDP) for employees is a process aimed at identifying development needs, career goals and actions that can be taken to achieve those goals. A PDP is important for employees because it helps them achieve their professional goals and perform better in the workplace.

But how do you tackle this? We share 5 steps to create a valuable personal development plan for your employees.

1. Schedule a call

Schedule a meeting with the employee to discuss development needs and goals. At least two weeks before the conversation, be sure to forward some open-ended questions for them to think about in advance. Consider questions such as:

• What is currently going well/less well?
• What do you want to achieve?
• What are your ambitions?

2. Identify goals and ambitions

During the interview, you start by discussing the questions. It is important, however, that you discuss the employee's strengths first. These points can help determine the appropriate areas of development. It is often good to Grow on strong qualities.

Next, every good employee does have goals and ambitions that they want to achieve in the workplace. Find the priorities together so that it is clear what is best for the employee to start with. Set the chosen goals via the SMART method format.

3. Discuss the steps for the development plan

Once you find out what the employee's goals are you are going to discuss what the employee can do to achieve them. To what extent is the employee already making the right choices? What skills need to be improved and what knowledge and experience needs to be gained?

Of course, as an organization, make sure you do provide opportunities for the employee to work on these skills and knowledge acquisition. A great way to provide training for every employee is with SkillsTown's online learning platform.. In fact, here you will find 500+ online training courses in different types of learning formats. This way every employee can learn what they want, how they want it and where they want it.

4. Create an action plan

An action plan contains specific actions to be taken to achieve the goals. Which (online) trainings will the employee take? Are there informational evenings or workshops that tie into this? Or maybe you have certain assignments your employee can complete on the job. Make sure each action has an execution date or end date, so the employee has a stick.

An example of an action plan:

Objective:

I want to learn how to give feedback in a constructive way within two months.

Steps:

• I will take the e-learning "Feedback" on SkillsTown 's online learning platform and I will complete the test of this with at least a 7.5 by the end of the month.
• At least once a week for the next two months, I write down a situation where I had to give feedback. In doing so, I will mention how I handled it and what I can do better next time.

Results:

I gain insight into what constitutes good feedback and how I handle feedback moments. This will help me improve this skill.

5. Evaluate and track progress

Regularly evaluate the employee's progress toward his or her goals. Provide feedback and support as needed and adjust the action plan as needed.

Creating a personal development plan for employees is an ongoing process and should be adjusted based on the employee's progress and the changing needs of the organization. By regularly engaging with the employee and providing feedback, the PDP can contribute to the professional growth and development of the employee and the organization.

Support employees with online training

Want to support your employees by offering a wide range of online training courses? Go for an own online learning platform for your organization. Fully customized to your organization and corporate identity, employees can take more than 500 online courses. This way, they can work on their skills and knowledge whenever and wherever they want. Curious about the possibilities? Find out during a no-obligation demo!