Unit 09.

4 Handout 2

Unit 09: Manage and improve own performance in a

business environment
Outcome 4 Handout 2: Personal development

It is important that we constantly develop our personal skills, whether we are keeping
present skills up to date or learning new ones. Lifelong learning is vital to us all for
individual development as well as organisational improvement.

Many occupational areas demand that you

maintain or add to your skills. Sometimes, this
can be done by carrying out certain duties within
a specified time scale. Alternatively, it may be
necessary to study for and pass exams on a
regular basis. For example, within the financial
services industry, exams must be passed in order
to meet legislative requirements.

Even if refreshing skills and knowledge are not

necessary for legislative or regulatory reasons, we still need to keep up to date to
meet the constant changes of business as well as for our own personal development.
The reasons are to:
 improve weak areas and gain new skills
 motivate
 increase our ability to embrace changes/challenges
 gain possible financial reward/promotion
 increase employability.

Continuous professional development (CPD) should be undertaken and a record or

log should be maintained to show what we do to ensure CPD.

Personal learning or development plan (PDP)

Many organisations regularly review the progress of staff through an appraisal
system which will often result in a personal learning/development action plan. This is
often called a personal development plan (PDP).

An appraisal offers you feedback on your performance, highlighting strengths and

indicating possible areas for improvement or development. These areas are likely to
be recorded in a development plan. They would be agreed with you. Some of these
areas may be personal to you, but some may be requirements of the job.

However, your learning or development plan will be personal to you and when it is
being agreed you should always consider the following:
 What skills do you need for the job? Do you already have these skills and
simply need to maintain or update them, or do you need to gain new skills to
do your job or to move on within the organisation?

 The learning activities offered by the organisation. Not everything you

would want to do will be available, so you need to consider what is available
and what is necessary to do your job.

However, while we all have our own learning styles, the activities in learning are generally
either on the job or off the job. Off the job training can be offered by your organisation or can

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 Unit 09.4 Handout 2

be learning you are carrying out for your own purposes, while on the job is generally work
related.

Your personal development action plan should be reviewed and updated regularly.
The activities you plan should be relevant to the job and you should ensure you don’t
overload yourself. It is essential that once your action plan is set, you appreciate how
important the learning activities are to your job.

You are likely to use SMART targets when setting your personal development plan.
These targets or goals should be SMART targets ie specific, measurable, achievable,
realistic/relevant and timescaled.

S – specific – meaning it should indicate clearly exactly what needs to be done. This
could be an improvement in work or a new process that should be learnt or a course
that should be attended.
M – measurable – it should state exactly what needs to be achieved and the
individual then is fully aware of what they need to do. This could be achievement of a
specific sales target or completion of a course module.
A – achievable – all targets must be achievable. To set a target which is
unachievable is only demotivating. Targets should be challenging but achievable.
R – realistic/relevant – targets must relate to the job role and be realistic.
T – timescaled – targets must have a set time for achievement or for review.

Targets set using the SMART technique are more likely to be achieved because they
are structured, clear and not aimless. Because they are also realistic, you are
motivated to achieve and gain considerable personal satisfaction when they are
achieved. SMART targets are likely to have been agreed with you rather than just set
without discussion. You are therefore a part of them. Remember though, targets may
be SMART but they are not achieved just because they are SMART. You yourself
must carry out the work concerned and be determined to succeed.

A personal development plan is important not only for you but also for the
organisation you are with. It allows the organisation to develop staff to meet present
and future business needs. It also demonstrates commitment by the employer to staff
development.

Maintaining a record or log

You should maintain a record of the learning and development you carry out within
your personal development plan. This may in fact be a requirement of the job,
available to others to prove your competency. For the maintenance of a professional
qualification or competency you may also be required to show proof – to hold
evidence – of the development you have carried out through your record of
continuous professional development (CPD). For example, you may need to show
records of your attendance at courses.

Your CPD record should show:

 the learning or development undertaken
 how it relates to your job role or occupational competency
 when the learning was undertaken
 what you gained from it.

Your CPD must be maintained on an ongoing basis to demonstrate your

development and ability to do your job competently.

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