Career Progression
Want to climb up the career ladder?
Then follow these simple steps and it should not be long before you are nearly at the top!
We all want to progress in our career and use the skills and experience we have gained over the years, but sometimes it does not happen straight away. You have to be patient unless you know at a very young age what you want to do and how you are going to get there. Some people give up because they think it’s too late or they are never going to get anywhere but there are other ways of climbing the career ladder which I have listed below.
Throughout your career it is important for you to constantly demonstrate your commitment to your employer, and get as involved as you can with current initiatives. Making yourself an indispensible member of the team will increase your value within your organization and assist with career progression.
Gaining as much experience as you can in your role will help you build your CV as well, as you may have been an Office Assistant in job title, but you may have been exposed to much more than routine administration, which will enable you to include these tasks and responsibilities, as well as enable discussion at the interview stage.
Work Experience
In your career life every job you do is important. You gain difference skills, experience, use different systems and packages and work with all types of types of employees i.e. Directors, Supervisors and HR etc. It is always worth building good relationships with everyone you work with because if they decide to move on and they see the potential in you as a good employee they can sometimes take you with them! I have known for this to happen to several people, sometimes knowing certain people can help you progress in your career. Doing temporary assignments through agencies is a benefit as you are gaining experience to help you move forward into what you want to do long term, this is usually suitable for those that do not have financial commitments as it is not a guaranteed source of income.
Qualifications
Having related qualifications are a proven way to better yourself as well as enable you to command a higher salary. These qualifications may be Academic in the form of Degrees or Masters, but you can also gain Vocational Qualifications in the form of NVQs which recognize your skills and competence.
Request Training
Ensuring you have access to training to improve your skills and address any weaker areas is essential to progressing both your career and earning potential. Train to Gain, for example, estimates that individuals with the right skills could add up to £3,000 to their salary every year as well as making themselves more likely to gain promotion. Courses can range from intensely practical and specialised offerings through to nationally recognised qualifications such as NVQs.
Individuals should identify genuine areas of weakness and discuss those with their organisation’s learning and development professionals. The training itself can range from reading generic books to on-the-job development, as well as traditional and online courses.
Internal Progression
Sometimes you will see there are internal vacancies within a Company and it may be worth applying so you can get a feel of other departments and how each department works, not only thin but you also get to understand more about the Company.