How To Do Career Development Planning
Tags: career, webdev, beginners, programming
Published: 2022-12-22 19:44:45

Build a career plan and learn how to land a job in the Information Technology Ecosystem.

## Assess Yourself

### A Quick Introduction to Career Development

Whether you’re just starting your career or already have a few years of experience under your belt, it can be helpful to step back and think about your career plan. Career planning is not a one-time event; it’s an ongoing process to revisit throughout your career as your priorities and interests shift and change.

Picture career development as a jungle to explore, not a ladder to climb. There are various directions you can explore: up, down, and sideways. When you’re clear about your career goals, you can choose the options that are the best fit. Then it’s time to get ready for new experiences or new roles.

The career development process can be helpful to revisit when you’re thinking about switching careers or applying your existing experience to work in a new field. Or maybe you’re returning to work after a period out of the workforce.

Developing a career plan involves three main steps or phases.

- Discover
- Plan
- Act

You can use these three simple steps to plan your career.

**1. Discover:** Get to know yourself, including your motivations, experiences you want, skills to build, and career goals to achieve. Research and explore opportunities and career paths that interest you and that may not have considered before.

**2. Plan:** Identify a goal and any skills you need to build or to reach that goal. Lay out a plan of how you will achieve that goal.

**3. Act:** Take action on your plan. Identify how to get connected to employers and mentors that can help you. Prepare your resume and social media presence to land that dream job.

### Get to Know Yourself

The first step in managing your career is to get a clear picture of who you are and what you want.

This includes:

- Knowing what motivates you and what matters in your life
- Identifying your strengths and opportunities to improve
- Finding out what you’re most interested in

What we want can change over time-our priorities change, and we can discover new interests or skills that we want to develop and learn. This is an opportunity to check in and see where you are today.

There are many free self-assessment tools out there to help you identify your values, skills, and interests. I’ve provided links to a few of them in the resources section.
You may want to start by exploring some of these tools.

- [Career Exploration Resources pack](https://developer.salesforce.com/files/career_exploration_resourcepack.zip)
- [HumanMetrics Personality Type Test](http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp)
- [O-Net Interest Profiler](http://www.mynextmove.org/explore/ip)
- [Career Zone California Skills Profiler](https://www.cacareerzone.org/skills/profiler)
- [Career Perfect Values Inventory](http://www.careerperfect.com/services/free/insight-work-values/)
- [Barrett Personal Values Assessment](https://www.valuescentre.com/our-products/products-individuals/personal-values-assessment-pva)

### What Motivates You

Think about that day you left work or school thinking “Wow, that was a great day!”
Do you remember what was happening? Whatever it was, you were probably doing something that you found motivating and energizing.

What you find motivating is unique to you and it’s the starting point in getting to know yourself.

Examples of motivators include:

- Creativity and innovation
- Problem-solving
- Being an expert

Once you’ve completed your self-assessment, review your results and identify any themes that emerge. It can be helpful to talk over your results with a friend or family member.

Next, we explore career options and see how they align with the themes you’ve identified.

## Explore Career Options

### Researching Career Pathways

Now that you’ve looked inward to assess your current skills, interests, and values, it’s time to expand your view outward and explore different pathways that interest you.

Perhaps you already have some ideas about roles that interest you. Perhaps you’ve thought about consulting, but aren’t sure what a day in the life is like for that role. Or perhaps there’s a specific industry that interests you, like healthcare or finance, but you’re not sure what the different roles are within that industry.

Whatever your starting point, this is an opportunity to cast a wide net to see what options interest you.

Here are a few ways to research different career pathways.

- Search job descriptions with keywords related to your interest.
- Talk to others who are already in roles you’re interested in.
- Attend industry events and meetups.
- Take people in your network out for coffee or lunch to learn more about other functions, teams, and roles.
- Shadow someone doing what you’d like to do in the future.
- Look for opportunities to be part of a special project to learn new skills.

### Market Trends

One thing to consider as you research career options is the labour market demand for specific skills and roles. What are the jobs and industries experiencing the highest growth, and where are there more opportunities?

Technology roles span multiple functional areas, including sales, IT, marketing, business management, and operations. As businesses embrace the future of mobile, big data, IoT, and AI, Theses skills are becoming some of the hottest skills to have on your resume, and that demand is growing.

Knowing where the demand for a specific skill set, such as IT skills, is strong can give you a starting point for researching different career options that draw upon those skills.

Here are some places to look for labour market information.

- Occupational Outlook Handbook
- Glassdoor’s 50 Best Jobs List
- Burning Glass Research

### A Day in the Life

Another factor to consider during your research is the day-to-day activities of different roles. Does the role require more time working with others or working alone? Is the workday structured with lots of meetings or more self-directed? What types of problems does the role solve?

Once you’ve identified specific roles that interest you, search online to find more information about a typical day for that role. Use LinkedIn or Twitter to find people in your network with that role and ask to interview them.

### Conducting Your Research

I’ve provided some information on different career pathways within the Salesforce ecosystem as a starting point for researching career options that interest you. Read through the career profiles, the skills required, what a day in the life of each of these jobs is like, and some of the additional resources provided. You can also expand your exploration outside this list and do your research on job roles that interest you.

## Creating Your Action Plan

Now that you’ve identified one or two target roles that you’re interested in pursuing, it’s time to make a concrete action plan for what you need to do to prepare for that role. Developing your career plan.

There are three main areas to consider in developing your career plan.

**1. Learning:** what are the skills you need to acquire, and where can you learn them?

**2. Earning:** what credentials do you need for this role and how can you demonstrate your skills to employers?

**3. Connecting:** what are ways to connect and network with others in the field?

### Learning

For most skills and roles, you can find many options for learning—from self-paced online learning to instructor-led classes, events, and even formal degree programs.
What type of learning you choose to do depends on your time, learning style, and budget. Sometimes what works best for you is a combination of different learning programs. There’s no one right way. It’s up to you to choose the adventure that works best for you.

- **Learn Online:** One of the best free, fun and hands-on ways to skill up your career.

- **Learn from others:** if you are skilling up for a career, another great way to learn is to get answers and tips from learners and experience fellows in the community.

- **Learn from attending a Local Event:** Attend an event the next time we roll into your hometown. These events give you the chance to attend great keynotes and learn first-hand from leading community members.

- **Find and Learn from a Mentor:** Finding and working with a mentor can be another great step to building your career. Mentors can help you identify skills to make that next step or provide valuable feedback.
  Read this article about to Find Mentor [here.](http://fortune.com/2015/12/09/salesforce-what-to-look-for-in-mentor/)

- **Grow your Resume with Skill-Based Credentials:** Credentials like badges, certifications, and personal projects are a great way to demonstrate to employers that you have the skills for the role you are seeking.

- **Get Experience by Helping Others:** If you need more experience to step into that next role, non-profits are looking for volunteers to help with their projects. Apply your skills to a cause you’re passionate about and build your portfolio and expertise at the same time.
  Here are a few ways to find a volunteer opportunity.
  -VolunteerMatch.org: Search for developer volunteers or any other opportunities by location and cause. Or find marketing and fundraising opportunities.
  -LinkedIn for Volunteers: The LinkedIn Volunteer Marketplace connects professionals to non-profit volunteer opportunities.
  -Get Involved in the Community: Blogging, helping on forums, and speaking at events are great ways to build your reputation and expertise and take your career to the next level.
  -Create you’re Plan

## Land your Next Opportunity

### Now You’re Ready

Now that you know where you’re headed and you’ve created your plan to get there, it’s time to go out and land that next role.

### Create or Update Your Resume

If you haven’t created or updated your resume in a while, it’s time to create and dust it off and add in your most recent work experience, and any new skills and certifications you’ve earned.

If you’re making a major career change or changing industries, consider hiring a professional to help you position your previous experience that is relevant to the new role.

Make sure you proofread your resume carefully. Have a friend or family member read it over if you can. You don’t want to miss out on an opportunity because you missed a typo.

### Create Your Elevator Pitch

An elevator pitch is a 30-second story of who you are and where you want to go, and it usually ends with a specific ask or request. It’s your personal “commercial.” Hone and practice it until you can deliver it smoothly.

Your elevator pitch is the perfect response to questions like, “Tell me about yourself” or “What do you do?” It can prepare you for that chance encounter with the company CEO in the elevator (or in line at the coffee shop, or anywhere!). You can have slightly different versions of your pitch, depending on who you’re talking to, but the basic structure is the same.

### Polish Your Brand

Your social media presence is the new resume. Employers and recruiters look to social media to learn more about candidates, so it’s important to make sure your profiles are top-notch and that your brand is epic, amazing, and every bit as professionally compelling as you are in real life.

Consider getting a professional headshot taken to use for all your social media profiles. Or use the best recent photo you have.

- **Twitter:** It’s a great place to look for news and information as well as establish yourself as a thought leader.
- **LinkedIn:** Show off the skills you’ve acquired by listing your certificates, badges, and other achievements.

### Research Prospective Companies

Another important step in creating your career plan is identifying what type of company you want to work for so you can narrow your search. There are many types of companies within the Salesforce ecosystem where Salesforce skills are in demand.

Here are some questions to ask yourself in narrowing your search.

- Do you prefer working for a small company or a large enterprise?
- Do you prefer a start-up or a more established organization?
- What type of company culture do you prefer?
- Do you want to work for a non-profit or mission-driven organization or a commercial enterprise?
- What industry are you most interested in?

### Connect with a Recruiter

Connect with recruiters that specialize in finding candidates for different roles.

### Apply for a Job

Once you’ve identified an opportunity that you want to apply for, search on LinkedIn. See if there’s anyone in your network who works at that company and can provide more information or a recommendation or introduction.

Review the company’s website and social media to learn more about the company’s business, culture, and products or services.

Create a cover letter tailored to that job posting. Make sure you address how you fulfil the specific skills and competencies the employer is looking for, using the language they’ve used. Update your resume as needed to better target your experience to the posting.

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