A good career research and exploration plan is essential.
Follow the seven steps to put together an effective plan.
A good career research plan is the foundation for collecting accurate data. Accurate data will
make your career development plan more effective.
1. Why career research?
This is a good question.
Your career is one of the most important aspects of your life. It is also the source of your
livelihood. It is what you spend most of your life doing.
With this in mind it is worthwhile spending some time collecting accurate, objective and
up to date information about your career and your aspirations.
Good career research and exploration plan will help you get an accurate view of where
you are today
,
where you want to be
and the
gaps.
It will help you make informed decisions
about your career.
In an entrepreneurial program that I did one of the lecturers said that good research is
like "peering over the cliff to see what lies below so you can then formulate a plan for
your jump".
Do the career research and exploration before you make the career jump!
2. Identify research objectives
Before you undertake any research establish the goals and objectives.
- Why are you doing the research in the first place?
- What information are you looking for and why?
- What specifically do you need to find out about your career goals and aspirations,
your current state and the gaps?
- What do you need to find out about other career related issues?
- What is the timeline for your research? In other words by when do you need certain
answers and are there any deadlines?
Take a moment to answer these questions and write them down.
Once you have done this you need to establish how you are going to collect the
information...
3. Establish data collection method
There are many different ways of conducting career research.
I have combined some of the more common approaches and grouped them into three
broad categories:
- On-line research
- Off-line research, and
- Real time research
Each of the categories serves a particular purpose. You should try and combine some of
the approaches from all three categories in your research plan.
This will enable you to collect information from a variety of sources and make your
career research more effective and robust.
A well thought through research plan will produce better and higher quality results
which will in turn lead to better career decisions.
Let us look at each of the categories in a little more detail below...
4. On-line research options
On-line career research as the name suggests is research you conduct on the web. What was
not available to career researchers a few decades back is now abundant on-line.
The amount of information available and its transparency makes this kind of research
an essential starting point.
Some of the more common types of research you would do on-line are:
Industry bodies/sectors - most industries are grouped into industry sectors and
industry bodies such as manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, financial services, etc. You can
collect information on the outlook for each sector and the leading companies in that sector.
Companies
- almost every company today has an on-line presence. You can either enter
their website address directly or search for them using a search engine. Once you get to
their website there is a lot of information you can collect about the company even before
you have interacted with them.
eZines and Blogs - e-Zines are on-line magazines and blogs are like on-line
journals which contain a lot of valuable and insightful information. You will find them on
virtually every topic under the sun and can search for them in eZine or blog search
engines.
Career and company guides - they contain valuable information about particular
careers, professions and companies. They are usually written by industry insiders and people
who have worked at or know about certain companies. A very good career research resource!
Career tests and inventories - they go almost hand in hand with career development
and help you find out more about yourself, your interests, your personality and the type
of careers that will best suit you. They may not give you all the answers but they do give
additional information which will help you make better career decisions.
Specific recruitment sites - there are many specialized recruitment sites and
recruitment companies these days that cater to certain industry sectors. They often contain
good and up to date information on that industry sector and are a good resource for your
career research.
5. Off-line research options
Off-line research is research you would conduct on your own or involving people.
Some examples of off-line career research are:
Career conversations
- are discussions or conversations you have with others about
your career. They should include your immediate manager and department head and others
who have a good idea about you and your needs.
Informational interviews
- this is a very good source of collecting valuable data
from others about your future career interests and needs. You should definitely include
them in your research plan.
Friends and colleagues - friends and colleagues are also a good source of information
and you should not discount their perspective either in your own company or in a different
company/profession.
Human Resources department - most companies either have a department of people or at
least one person in this area. They have a good idea about the department, or particular job
in that department and it is useful to get talk to them. They are a good source of data
usually at a high level and may also give you some interesting insights which will help
you in your career research.
Books and journals - there are many books and journals available as a resource for
you. It is useful to refer to them and you may pick up some good ideas or tips that will
help you in your development.
Career and job fairs
- are quite common these days. They can industry specific,
company specific or even specific to a certain level in your career - e.g. graduate job
fairs targeted at university students looking for their first job. Look out for them and
attend them. They may also help you establish further connections with others as you
undertake your career research.
6. Real time research options
Real time career research is like getting a sneak preview of your job or profession. It is
the closest to getting a taste of what it might be like before you make the jump!
You will be able to see, hear, touch, smell, taste and feel the job.
Be sure to include this in your career research plan. It will yield very good results.
Real time research and exploration can include one or a combination of the following:
Shadowing - is where you are with the person who is actually doing the job or a
similar job/career you are interested in. You spend a few hours to several days with this
person and follow them in their daily activities. Highly recommended.
A day or week in the real role - this is taking shadowing to the next level. You
set it up in such a way that you are paired up with someone but this time you actually get
to perform in the role under the guidance of the more experienced person. This is the closest
you will get to do the real job. Highly recommended.
Taking on cross-department assignments - if you are looking at changing your career
then this is a good way of getting your feet wet. You are still in your present job/profession
but you carry out a task or project that requires working closely with a person/team from
another area/department. You then get to experience at close hand what it takes to work in
that area/department. Highly recommended.
7. Develop your career research plan
By now you should have a very good idea of the different types of research you should
undertake. Look at your career objectives and gaps and develop a good research plan.
It is best to integrate this research plan with your career development plan template so it all
stays together and in one document. That way it is simpler and easier to follow through.
To do this, take the career development plan template add your research plan to it so it
becomes one overall action plan.
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