Personal Professional Development Plan

Professional Development is an imperative for today’s workforce.   Because knowledge  is continually impacted by new developments and technologies, it has a limited shelf-life.   Cathy Gonzalez describes this phenomenon as the “half-life of knowledge (Gonzalez, 2004).”   Essentially, it’s the time span between the acquisition of knowledge and the point at which it becomes obsolete.  For me, this means a commitment to life-long learning.  As I complete my master’s degree in Instructional Design, I realize that professional development has to be factored into my career plans. 

Most organizations offer some form of employee development , but the current trend is for employees to initiate involvement (Noe, 2010).   For instance, the organization might offer in-house courses on management skills, but an associate might need to express interest in management in order to take advantage of them.  Employee development opportunities can include assessments, formal education (either external or internal), job experience, or interpersonal relationships as with mentoring and coaching programs (Noe, 2010).      

For the immediate future, I plan to pursue development opportunities in the form of job experience and interpersonal relationships.     I’ve had lots of job experience as a corporate sales rep, and many of the skills gained in that environment are transferrable to a career in Training and Development.   I also have experience as an instructor.   Whether the vehicle is a full-time job, contract work, or an internship, I’d like to gain more experience as a trainer and instructional designer.   I will also initiate a mentoring relationship with senior level trainers and instructional designers. 

While I am not enthusiastic about more formal education at this juncture, I do realize that it may be necessary.   I’m open to classroom or distance learning on the software most commonly used in instructional design.   Short of the classroom, I plan to continue learning this software through informal means.  To that end, Lynda.com, Youtube, and Adobe TV are great resources.    I also intend to take advantage of any relevant in-house education offered by my employer. 

Resources

Noe, R. A. (2010). Employee training and development (5th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Gonzalez, C., (2004). The Role of Blended Learning in the World of Technology. Retrieved August 12, 2011from http://www.unt.edu/benchmarks/archives/2004/september04/eis.htm.