Career Path by TalentGuard transforms how employee development is managed in the work environment. Employees are looking at careers in new ways. For them, it has become less about ascending methodically from job to job within a single company until the corner office is theirs. Instead of climbing the corporate career ladder — vertical and inflexible — employees are navigating career lattices. Career lattices provide strategic insight into lateral, upward and downward career paths. Today, employees feel stumped, bored, and frustrated in their current positions, likely because they’re craving change, growth and development. It’s becoming easier and easier for people to change jobs, especially considering the growth of online job boards and company careers pages, which make it less cumbersome to both find opportunities and pursue them. When this problem is left unresolved, companies will face major turnover and job satisfaction issues, forcing them to look externally for employees that fit their experience and competency requirements. For many companies, a constantly in-flux workforce has become a daily challenge of doing business. This trend is due in part to companies either placing an insufficient emphasis on supporting the professional development of their employees or simply lacking the skills and expertise to do so. Investing more time and energy into recruiting, holding onto, and developing their best employees can be unexpectedly complicated. Yet, it would be highly beneficial for companies to develop their existing employees in order to create a steady source of highly qualified talent from within. Career pathing resolves these issues through a structured, communicated and holistic development plan to help employees visualize their career growth within the company. In companies that organize themselves this way, employees are better equipped to: Enhance career progress Identify and pursue employment opportunities within the company Excel through aligned learning and development Receive coaching and mentoring from managerial, HR and business leaders Without active career planning, employees will be much more likely to see their best opportunities as lying elsewhere and leave for competitors in pursuit of their self-interest. Career planning assistance programs are not reserved for thriving, expanding companies with a wealth of resources to devote to human resource initiatives. Rather, career pathing is for every organization, whether it is flat, single-location or, multinational, whether in the high-tech, government, consumer packaged goods sectors, or any other industry. Keeping employees motivated, positive, and productive during stressful times is not easy, but actively providing career guidance can help maintain morale and reinforce a sense of loyalty when it’s needed most.

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Career Pathing
Best practices to guide employee transformation through empowerment and
ownership of their own careers.

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Meet
Eric
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A.K.A...

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Business
Development
Rockstar
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Eric works for
John
Learn More: http://www.talentguard.com/5-commonmistakes-made-360-degree-feedback-surveys
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Mr.
Sales
Director
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Eric “BD” Guy
Eric and John
Eric says:
have been
Talking about
John says:
Hey, please be patient. I’ve been
through the same thing at this
company and I’m trying to work with
HR on some programs.
Eric’s career
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High Performing
Smart
Solid track-record.
Overlooked for a
promotion.
Unsure if skills transfer to
other roles.
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Eric is…
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Bored
and
frustrated
in his
position . . .
He wants a change.
(BTW, 54% of employees feel like Eric.)*
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Eric’s Question for John:
“Where do you see me
going in this organization?”
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John is worried.
Eric may leave the
team or worse, the
company.
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So, John wants to help
Eric develop.
Eric’s career to date…
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Eric Rand
Business Development Manager, Heart Products
Medco
John Rand
Roger Smith
Stella Napers
Director of Sales
Heart Products
Customer Vice
President, Support
Director of Marketing
Spine Products
Job Purpose
Q U I C K S TAT S
Drive Sustainable sales and profit performance for my company
Years of Experience
0-2 3-5
Key Responsibilities
Lead a talented team of sales professionals to increase revenue in
new and existing customers. Development and staffing and
developing all associates on the team
Key Skills/Knowledge
Industry and business acumen, customer experience, internal
experience with ability to work cross functionally at Sr. levels
within our company. Strong leadership and communication
required.
Key Success Factors
Sales, Profit, Distribution, customer relationships and sales team
collective and individual development
MedRX, SMB
Sr. Sales Associate
10-15 15+
Education
HS
BS/BA
M
PhD
Career Aspiration
VP Sales, VP Marketing, GM of
Business Unit US
What’s the best career advice you ever
received?
“Make sure you develop new skills everyday
and share your learning with others.”
Heart Products, Global
Business Dev. Mgr.
Medical Device Company - Heart Products, Enterprise
Heart Pro, Enterprise
6-10
Business Development Associate
Team Lead, Inside Sales
Team
Inside Sales Associate
1996-2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
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2011
2012

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
Focused on
Enrolled in 20
Networking
self
skill
internally
development
development
about
classes
opportunities
Applying to
Attending
internal job
internal career
postings
fairs
Working with
seeking self development
mentors on
management
skills
Eric has been proactive
in his career . . .
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. . . BUT
HE FEELS STUCK & HAS
UNANSWERED QUESTIONS
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What competencies
are required in other
roles?
What career options
are available in my
company?
What learning gaps
do I have?
Who can help me
make a changes or
advance?
What career options are available in my company?
Should I join
another
company?
©2012 TalentGuard
What resources are
available to help me
develop?

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John needs help to ensure
Eric sees his potential for
future growth, and retain
such a valuable employee.
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Meet Sarah
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Ms. HR
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Sarah is an advocate for
Career Pathing
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SHE KNOWS THE BENEFITS OF CAREER
PATHING CAN BE HUGE
Direct Benefits:
• Highly skilled workforce
• Ready pool of leaders
• Low turnover
• Reduced absenteeism
• Improved talent &
knowledge asset retention
Collateral Benefits:
• Employer of choice
• Employee motivation
and morale
• Employee job
satisfaction
• Pay for contribution
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SARAH’S
3 BEST PRACTICES
1. Process to Deliver—Develop a new
Career Pathing model that will address the
succession planning needs of the company.
2. Capacity to Deliver—Establish the
capacity in the company to deliver Career
Pathing services that will facilitate vertical and
lateral transitions of employees.
3. Capacity to Support the Success—
Develop the capacity to support the success of
the employees involved in developing their own
Career Paths, especially for employees in entry
level positions.
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1.
Process to Deliver
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Where do I start?
(tie it to the CEO’s agenda and communicate ROI)
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SARAH LINKED CAREER PATHING
TO SUCCESSION PLANNING
See her succession planning project:
1. Set clear expectations
2. Identify and benchmark 10 key positions
3. Create a competency framework based
on those roles
4. Identify high potentials (a.k.a talent
pools) via performance reviews and
multi-rater assessments
5. Identify learning gaps and timing
6. Create and implement a custom
development plan
7. Measure progress
Learn More: http://www.talentguard.com/how-to-do-successionplanning-in-7-steps

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Sarah worked with a
task force to create a
Career Pathing Model
(To teach employees HOW to manage their careers
and ensure everyone knows their role!)
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5 PHASED MODEL
Collect job
data
Analyze gaps
and map
progression
paths
Create visuals
for map display
or set up
career pathing
software
©2012 TalentGuard
Build out
learning
resource
library and
map it to
competencies
Develop
individual
learning plans
and coach to
success

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Vice President Sales
Sales Management
Sales Director
Senior Sales Manager - Industry/LOB/Region/Market/BU
Sales Manager
Account Director (Existing Account Only)
Sales Account
Management
Major/Key/Named Account Manager (Existing Account Only)
Senior Sales Account Manager (Existing Account/s Only)
Sales Account Manager (Existing Account/s Only)
Senior Principal Sales Representative - Software and Solution
Software Solution
Principal Sales Representative - Software and Solution
Sales
(Key Role)
Senior Sales Representative - Software and Solution
JOB FAMILY
STRUCTURE
• Department
• Business Area
• Regions
• Country
Sales Representative - Software and Solution
Associate Sales Representative - Software and Solution
Principal Sales Representative - Outsourcing and Service
Outsourcing and
Service Sales
Senior Sales Representative - Outsourcing and Service
Sales Representative - Outsourcing and Service
Associate Sales Representative - Outsourcing and Service
Inside Sales Manager
Inside Sales
Senior Inside Sales Representative
(with or without levels and
grades)
Inside Sales Representative
Associate Inside Sales Representative
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JOB ROLE PROFILES
Competencies
Business
Development
Specialist
Business
Development
Manager
Senior Business
Development
Manager
Quickly sizes up
multiple situations and
complex problems and
makes excellent, timely
decisions
Pursues his or her work
with energy, drive, and a
need to finish
Decisive
Judgment
Makes decisions in a
Makes good decisions
timely manner, even with quickly, with or
incomplete information
without complete
information and under
tight deadlines and
pressure
Defines his or her
work in terms of
results, and pursues
success with energy
and drive
Sets clear and lofty
goals for himself or
herself, as well as for
the organization, and
pursues them with
enthusiasm and energy
Commits to meeting the
expectations and
requirements of internal
and external stakeholders
Dedicated to and
openly communicates
to staff that customer
service to stakeholders
comes first
Strategically plans ways
to demonstrate
superior customer
service for district
stakeholders
Driving For
Results
Customer Focus
©2012 TalentGuard
With defined:
• Experience
requirements
• Credentials
• Demonstrated
competencies

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ROLE PROGRESSION
Feeder Role
Role
Next Role
Director of Business
Business Development
Development, Sales
Senior Business
Manager, Marketing
Manager, Manager of
Development Manager
Manager, Channel
Marketing, Manager
Manager, Sales Manager
of Channel Sales
Business Development
Specialist, Marketing
Specialist, Channel
Specialist
Business Development
Manager
Senior Development
Manager, Sales
Specialist, Channel
Specialist
Telesales Manager,
Business Development
Business Analyst,
Specialist
Customer Analyst, Sales
Support, Sales Engineer
Business
Development
Manager, Marketing
Coordinator,
Business Analyst
Manager
TeleSales Team Leader,
Operations Specialist,
Inside Sales Supervisor
Identification of feeder
roles and next potential
roles within and across
departments
Business
Development
Specialist, Product
Specialist, Business
Analyst, Call Center
Manager
Telesales Manager
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GAP ANALYSIS
Employee profiles are
completed, including:
1. Skills profile, a selfassessment of role-based
skills.
2. Readiness profile, or the
variance between employee
gaps and the business
needs.
3. Manager review, a
proficiency review by the
employee’s manager
designed to validate the
competency and readiness
profiles.
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2.
Capacity to Deliver
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SARAH’S QUANDARY
“How do I make it easy for
employees to use the information?”
Manual?
Automated?
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MANUAL APPROACH
Pro
Looks good
Quick snapshot
Easy-to-see paths
Simple interface
Works for single department
or small company
• Suitable for print
• Lowest cost
•
•
•
•
•
Con
• Limited interaction
• Limited scalability (only limited
connections)
• No “what if” scenarios
• Manual development planning
• Difficult to see detailed gaps
• Not easily updateable
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SARAH’S REALITY
Fact: 15K Employees
Fact: 600 Unique Roles
Fact: Need to Show
Mobility Globally
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I wonder if I can create a map?
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This is what she ended up with!
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Realization: Our people will be
even more confused with that map!
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This is where most
companies fall short
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Decision: Automation is Required
Pro
Highly interactive / dynamic
Employee dashboards
Can build unlimited paths
Customized to your role
profiles/competencies
• Specific gaps are presented
•
•
•
•
Biz Dev
Manager
Telesales
Team
Leader
(based on role/employee
profile)
Telesales
Assistant
• Development options
recommended
• Easy-to-use interface
• Scalable
Biz Dev
Specialist
Telesales
Manager
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Identify skill gaps
Add skill gaps to IDP
Telesales
Map skills to
learning
resources
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3.
Capacity to Support
Success
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It’s all about the plan.
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SUCCESS REQUIRES TEAMWORK



EXECUTIVE TEAM
HR MANAGER(S)
LINE MANAGERS,
TEAM LEADERS, & SUPERVISORS
















TRAINING MANAGER(S)
HR STAFF
EMPLOYEES
TRAINING PROVIDERS











Formulate strategic plans and goals in which current/future skills needs are addressed
Make decisions about the overall skills development process in the organization
Ensure that the process is focused on developing the skills the organization needs to achieve its
strategic objectives
Approve the allocation of the financial, human, and other resources needed
Promote the skills development process through local support and encouragement
Approve and sign off on the implementation plan
Build and support a culture that values training and lifelong learning
Ensure that the career development process is integrated into other HR processes
Make relevant information available to the team (e.g., job descriptions, etc.)
Provide input into the career process to ensure that the path addresses the needs of the company
Describe HR policies/procedures/requirements for job design/profiles
Provide input on the performance problems and training needs in the division/unit
Recommend solutions to identified performance problems
Provide input into the training development process to ensure that the IDP addresses performance
gaps and training needs
Oversee budgets relating to training programs
Promote various career paths and coach employees toward those various paths
Authorize the participation of employees in training programs
Provide feedback on the impact of the career path initiative
Oversee the strategic direction and performance of the training and development function in line
with HR and organizational objectives
Work in close consultation with managers and other teams to ensure that the career path plan is in
alignment with the training plan
Develop new curriculum based on skill gaps
Provide employees with access to career path information
Set expectations with employees about how career paths can be used
Capture information on employees that must be included in the training plan and IDPs
Continuously update employee records (e.g., new qualifications)
Build career path scenarios
Identify skill gaps during the training needs analysis
Communicate with manager and HR
Deliver quality programs that may be needed to help develop employees
Customize the programs to ensure they meet the needs of the organization
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Be careful
not to
underestimate the
coaching factor.
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Career “Service” Center
Executives
HR
Vendors
Career
Center
Employee
MGRs
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Career Center Mission
The Career Center serves as a primary connection between HR
and the line managers, providing career coaching to optimize the
employee experience.
• Coach employees and line managers in people matters
• Coach and advise employees and managers in career planning
and development
• Manage key performance indicators impacting career mobility
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Meet
Fran
“The Career Coach”
Certified Professional in Career Management
Learn More: http://www.talentguard.com/services/career-coach-training
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The Next Chapter.
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Eric
has a
plan.
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Eric knows what career
options are available in
his company.
Eric is aware of the learning
resources available to help
him develop in his new role.
He is aware of the
competencies required
in other roles.
He knows predecessors
who’ve made successful
career changes and can be
mentors.
He knows the learning
gaps needed to develop
to pursue a different role.
©2012 TalentGuard

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John feels more
effective as
a manager
and knows
how to coach
Eric.
©2012 TalentGuard

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Sarah is thrilled
by the latest
employee survey.
Dramatic improvement in
job satisfaction scores!
©2012 TalentGuard

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Happy Employee
Satisfied Manager
Relieved HR Team
Thriving Company
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A few words about
TalentGuard
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What Does TalentGuard Do?
• TalentGuard markets and sells talent
management software and consulting
services that measurably improve
management’s ability to develop and
retain people, align with corporate goals,
and improve visibility into performance.
© 2012 TalentGuard - Confidential
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Superior career pathing tool that enables employees to map career
Talent Navigator
paths, identify gaps and develop specific skills
• Generates various career path
scenarios based on employee interests
• Supports all organizational roles,
hierarchy, grades and progressions
• Development of customizable job
profiles/preferences
• Create career roadmap up to 8 lateral
or upward transitions
• Creates employee profiles for matching
engine
• Identifies gaps between current and
future roles
• Supports development goals for career
planning review
• Allows for management and HR
support of development plans
© 2011 TalentGuard

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What Next?
Kick-start Your Career Pathing Consulting Project
Call us at 512-943-6800
Schedule a Demo of Career Navigator
http://www.talentguard.com/career-pathing-challenges
Register for Upcoming Webinars
http://www.talentguard.com/upcoming-webcasts
• “Making Performance Management More Manageable—and Less Maddening”
September 25, 12pm-1pm CST
• “Employee Development: Measuring Employee Performance”
October 3, 12pm-1pm CST
• “Coaching Employees: 5 Reasons Managers Should Be Career Coaches”
October 24, 12pm-1pm CST
©2012 TalentGuard

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Connect with Us
•
•
•
•
Blog: blog.talentguard.com
Twitter: @TalentGuard
Facebook: facebook.com/TalentGuard
Linked-in Group: TalentGuard
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