Achieve Organizational Success Through Employee Career Growth Support

Employees' career growth is something that employers must pay attention to. Helping employees grow professionally will have a significant impact on the overall growth of the organization. 

Every employer aspires to have a reliable and skillful team. To make such a team, employers need to give employees sufficient room and support for career growth. Even though each employee is responsible for their own career growth, empowering them to upskill will benefit the organization and employer in other ways as well. 

In this article, we will discuss how employers can help their employees advance and have career growth. 

Career Growth for Employee

Although sometimes used interchangeably, career growth and career development are different. According to Jobberman, career development is the process of getting better at what you do. It can result in promotions, but not always. It is more focused on improving the skill set. Career growth, on the other hand, is more about an employee's long–term career. It’s about moving from a corporate position to another higher position.

How To Support Employees’ Career Growth

Both career development and career growth are important for every employee. There are several ways to support your employees’ career growth.

Mentoring Program

Supporting career growth for new employees can be achieved by allowing them to learn from someone with more expertise and experience. This will help new employees to become acquainted with their workplace surroundings and their future colleagues. According to the Together Platform, a mentoring program is worthwhile because it provides a platform for conversations between a senior and a junior. This experience will have a lasting impact on them and help them grow. 

Cultivate a Learning Culture

A mentoring program won’t be that effective if the office’s learning culture is not conducive. According to Workramp, a learning culture enables employees to grow in their current roles. A healthy learning culture is when the office encourages its employees to engage in learning activities during or outside the work day. If your employees feel supported in their learning journey, they are more likely to stay with your company.

Provide Recognition and Rewards

Career growth isn’t something that happens overnight. In the meantime, showing appreciation for your employees’ achievements is essential for employee retention. In fact, a 2021 survey from Great Place to Work stated that 37% of their respondents confessed that more personal recognition would encourage them to produce better work more often.

Employee Career Path

A career path illustrates how internal advancement takes place in your organization, Mikaela Kiner told Forbes. A clear career path helps employees visualize their future with your company. You can provide resources like webinars and work–related workshops. Encouraging your employees to create a career plan shows that their contributions are valued, thus prolonging the employee retention rate.

Promote from Within

Lastly, promoting from within is not only beneficial for your employees, but also for your hiring team. Jason Lemkin, the founder of SaaStr, said that it’s highly possible that you already have the manager you need to hire. He follows a 50/50 rule: 50% internal promotion and 50% external hires. This rule can be achieved in offices that have a clear career path.

Benefits of Supporting Employees’ Career Growth

For employees, career growth means stepping up their game: from the entry–level job they started out in ages ago, to a more significant and senior position. However, even though it’s intended for employees, it’s also important for employers.

Ginni Saraswati, the CEO of Ginni Media, told Forbes about some advantages employers gain from offering career growth opportunities to employees:

• When a company shows that they support their employees’ career growth, it boosts the employee’s motivation. Employees will perform better because Saraswati believes that they want to be there and don’t feel like they have to be there.
• Since employees are motivated, they will be more productive. With clear goals and the means to achieve them, employees will also develop new skills.
• Offering career development is also a way of investing in talent. It shows that retaining them is a priority, and it makes employees feel wanted.
• Providing career growth means that the company culture is excellent in that office. Most job candidates nowadays also consider a company’s culture in settling their decision. A company that offers career growth most likely attracts top candidates.
• Finally, when an employee is motivated and performing better at work, the company’s profits and productivity will increase accordingly.

Final Thoughts

At last, supporting your employees' career growth will benefit your company in return. Additionally, each employee's career growth can be different. As their employer, it is evident that you cannot please every employee. Despite this, try to be as fair as possible, so that everyone has the same chance. After all, career growth is a long journey both for the employee and for your company.

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