As a sales leader, you may not think much about mapping out career paths for your reps. You might be more focused on keeping deals moving or coaching reps through their current challenges. However, this often-overlooked step can make a big difference. Career pathing isn’t just about showing reps what’s possible but showing them what they need to do to get there.
In a post for the 15Five blog, writer Genevieve Michaels explains that career pathing is deeply individual, focusing on each specific employee’s potential trajectory. They’re personalized and identify each person’s strengths and what they need to work on to grow. Career mapping, on the other hand, is more of an HR-level pursuit.
In this issue of PromoPro Daily, we share her thoughts on building a scalable career-pathing strategy at your company.
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Step 1: Assess organizational needs and roles. Career pathing, she says, should motivate your team members to grow while ensuring your organization has the talent it needs to support its strategy. That’s why your career pathing strategy should be closely tied to your talent needs.
Step 2: Map career journeys across departments. From the organization level, Michaels recommends drilling down to individual departments to map how junior members grow to senior levels, management, and, eventually, leadership. Include relevant skills, responsibilities and direct reports where appropriate.
Step 3: Align goals with career progression. She says it’s important to identify common performance goals for specific roles and then connect them with the criteria for advancing from role to role. This gives managers a roadmap for tracking progress over time, while ensuring that goals contribute to an overall objective.
Step 4: Implement technology to support career pathing. No one wants the extra admin work of tracking goals and performance. That’s why Michaels recommends using dedicated performance management tools that allow you to connect goals with data from performance reviews, check-ins and more.
Career pathing doesn’t have to be complicated. Start by understanding where your team is headed, then show reps what it takes to get there. Map out realistic next steps and connect those steps to measurable goals. Be sure to explore the right technology to keep everyone on track. And most importantly, make the path personal. When reps can see a future at your company — and understand how to reach it — they have more reason to keep growing.
Compiled by Audrey Sellers
Source: Genevieve Michaels is a B2B writer who contributes to the 15Five blog, among others.
